Living with PVCs: The Struggle to Survive
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 8 พ.ค. 2019
- This brief video gives a little insight into living with PVCs that are debilitating and muck up your life. It's the first video where I needed to talk about my current state and what it's been like.
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![EKG Patterns | Premature Atrial & Ventricular Contractions [PACs & PVCs]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/7Vz8olVnGgU/mqdefault.jpg)
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I’m 44, have had pvc’s, svt’s since I was 15. My father, grandfather, and uncle all have, or had them. Every day of my life I have at least 100 pvc’s. Sometimes I’ll go through a period of 20,000+ a day. I’ve had dozens of episodes of svt’s. Long story short, they never killed any of my family members, nor me, no matter how much you think they are going to. You literally do just have to ignore them and get on with life. Not saying they don’t sometimes suck balls but just keep on living and don’t worry too much about them.
Appreciate you posting this, it truly does help to hear your story. Just knowing others who have had it for years and been fine is so comforting.
Have you experienced head rushes or even tinnitus whenever you get them, particularly when you “miss” a beat? I get the feeling that it’s actually a weak beat that doesn’t get quite enough blood, transiently, to my head which causes a headrush and ear ringing at times. Have you felt this?
Thx
Hi Steven
Just wanted to let you know that everything
that you just described, the symptoms, the frustration, the fear,
has happened to me since my early 20’s. I am now 62 years old
and yes, it has been a living hell and I know your pain.
I have done all the tests that you can imagine, and like you I’ve
always had the same results as yourself. The only thing that has gotten me
through this is my faith, and I know that isn’t for everyone. When you reach
those dark places in your life you will do anything to reach the light.
I just wanted to let you know that after 40 years of this I’m still here
still fighting. Remember, there is an end to everything!
Thank you for making this video. It is impossible for those around you to understand the feeling of being scared of imminent death as a result of PVCs 🥺 They've changed my life.
You aren’t alone! These videos help me and same with the York Cardiology videos.
I too fear for my life almost daily which I know in my mind is wrong, but it’s always there. Have completely changed my life as well, never was anxious before I started getting PVCs all the time.
Im sobbing reading these
Me too! It’s living in fear afraid to do anything , well I should say I start doing something in the PVCs start happening and now you’re just full of anxiety and stress and panic and you can enjoy nothing . I’ve had two cardiac ablation’s and I still get the damn things .
And definitely feels like stomach issues cause these things but I don’t know ,
Thanks for this vid. I am 30 and just got these about 2 weeks ago literally from the time I wake up until I go to sleep. It sucks. I love working out and doing cardio I haven’t been able to because I’m scared something will happen. I did echo and went to ER twice and they said everything is fine my heart and blood work are great. I have them all day long they prescribed me a beta blocker which I will take in 2 Days. At night it gets horrible and hard to sleep. Sometimes I get pain in my chest and lightheaded. This is such a burden, but I am hopeful because I trust in Jesus and I know he’ll guide me through this. Blessings!
I know your pain. They are destroying my life. Mine started shortly after my 30th birthday. I'm 34 now and I've been to multiple cardiologists and have had the million dollar suite of tests done. Everything has come back as normal and structurally fine but I still get them. It ebb and flows just like you said, some days I don't want to move for fear I'm going to have one that kills me. Right now I've been having them every other minute for the last 3 days. They all say I'm fine, but as we know it doesn't do anything to hear that. It controls your life and feels like there is no escape. I feel for anyone who experiences these. It helps to know others have experienced this and can relate but good god its tough. I hope we all find peace and good health. Like you said though, I'm sick and fucking tired of it.
You gave me hope man... that i won’t die from it... my anxiety has been horrible.
Ben:
I haven't died yet! LOL I hope your anxiety lessens for ya'. Anxiety influences my PVCs so much. It, to put it nicely, sucks.
Thanks for the post!
I had a friend who had them all his life. He died the other day at 97 years old from something else.
This breaks my heart. The disparity in your voice is so relatable. I’m 32 and have been getting pvcs for about 6 years. At this moment in my life it has crippled me mentally.
This is very hard on one's mental health. I have more bad days than good days anymore it seems.
it does cause me mental distress.I feel the pain that we go through. Be strong. I know it's easier said than done
Sorry sweetie I feel your pain.
Me 2 ruined my life for 2 years now and nsvt
Much love Steven. I have pvc’s as well and it kept me in so much fear and was ruining my life. But then i realized it was because i was giving them power. They themselves are harmless, its your mind that does the harm. What i do to turn them into a positive situation is when i get one or a few i let it serve me as a reminder that I’m so lucky to be alive and how grateful i am for my life. There’s a positive in every situation, i truly hope you can get some peace of mind, much love.
I've had PVCs since my early thirties. Im 58 now. Sometimes i have one every third or fourth beat. Sometimes i have very few. I am also a monitor tech in the ICU (I watch heart monitors for the entire hospital). Lots of people have them and rarely know it. I will agree they can sometimes be annoying. But most of the time i barely notice them. Its just a slight flutter in my chest. Sometimes if they are frequent it helps to get up and go for a walk to increase my heart rate. It seems to help. But i promise you that it is very rare for someone to die from having PVC's.
im with you 1 every 3 beats, 2nd or 5th 2 days of this crap some nights cant sleep, then get a few day break where i get close to non i hd as much as 8 month break yahoo then they ccoem back
The desperation in your voice resonates so much with me. I am 37, and have had PVC's since I was in my early teens. No end in sight, my life is a crippled mess, living in fear every day that the next PVC will be my last and my heart will stop. Thank you for this video, it makes me feel like I'm not alone.
You are wasting your time why? It doesnt harm the heart read dr claires weeks book please do you ll lose the fear of pvcs cause its true they are harmless they are annoying thats all dont fear them
What does pvcs feel like
@@lisapisa1847 Like a skipped beat it can.be strong or extremely light
I feel you man. I was diagnosed with SVT. Went to ER with heart rate of 230. After the conversion, Weeks later I started getting PVCS. They have become very annoying. At first, it i would just be in bed when I would get them and it would completely ruined my day. I been seeing lots of videos form Dr. Gupta which have helped. You think I would have a peace of mind since I work for a cardiology specialty clinic in Los Angeles, but that just makes it worst somehow. Hang in there man you are not alone. I'm been just trying to ignore them but like you said, sometimes we just can't.
I'm going through the same thing you are. Being close to God is how I manage.
Thanks, steven. Just got out of the ER last night, still feeling like shit. Good to not feel so alone, though i wish none of us had to feel the way we do in the first place.
Thanks for making this video. I’m here because after 6+ years, I still get these and they still scare the shit out of me. So as you figured, I just got a bout of pvc’s right before bed. Great. I keep swearing that each one feels worse than the one before it and that the next one is for sure gonna kill me and it doesn’t. I’m sorry that you and a lot of other people have to deal with this bs that cardiologists don’t seem to figure out. I’ve gone to about 4 cardiologists now. My last one checked my blood, did an echo, an ekg and tried to put me on a -prolol medication but i’m so agaisnt trying it because I know i’m probably gonna feel shittier on it. I’m only 21 years old and I don’t think I will ever see the day where I can go a whole day without getting one. These things paralyze me. Once I feel one, it’s over for me. I can be having a great relaxing day and BAM. I can’t take them anymore. I don’t wanna live like this. I’ve tried everything and nothing works. I’m tired of people telling me to relax and breathe because “about 95 in 100 people get these and most don’t even frel them” or “these are benign and you wont die”. I wish everyone could feel them so that they could figure out a cure or something. Sorry for the rant i’m just sick and tired of this shit.
Maribel Guzman i have them the doctor put me on propopolol they ease them i really dont feel them with the meds they drew blood from me so monday i go back to see what the blood work found dont think the blood came out with something because they would of called me already saying they found something serious they ekg did have normal sinus rhythm but with an irregularity so lets see what she tells me monday hopefully i dont have to be on these meds for a long time
Johnny Flores good luck with that! The last cardiologist said he heard a small murmur but the echo confirmed theres nothing wrong with my heart other than trivial regurgitation in one of my valves. They did bloodwork to check on my electrolytes and my thyroid and everything was fine. I have 2 kinds of -prolol medications given to me by 2 different cardiologist but if they do seem to work, I dont wanna have to depend on them for the rest of my life. I’m scared of the side effects too because those usually lower your blood pressure and mine’s already low. I might have to give them a try because they have been getting more aggresive lately. I hope everything goes well with you and you can find something that works for tou
Maribel Guzman thank you hopefully you get well also and we can get rid of these irregular beats they are hell but i mainly feel them at night when trying to sleep hopefully the doc puts me on a lower dose of the propanolol and hopefully i can get off of it soon wishing you the best
I share your pain and frustration! It only takes one to crush any hope and joy we are enjoying at the moment, and then we get locked into the fear and worry.
I'm not big on meds, as you know, so I'm right there with ya' with that. Yes, there is a time and place, but there has to be a better way to control the damn things! If they become too much, you might consider the medication as stop-gap until you can get something figured out. And if I might offer suggestion, write down what's going on in your day, and see if there is a specific trigger or if they are just out of the blue. It might help. I know when I did this, I realized that it was my gut that was giving me fits, as well as my diet in general. I have them under control now, but I know it will be easy to have them flare up again.
Hang in there! We are going through the same thing!
Steven Spears yes we are all together in this sometimes they are worse than others so i will see what is going on and triggering them i am going to the cardiologist to do an echo and see how my rhythm is and i want to get off these meds cause i dont like taking meds dont want my body getting used to them so if my echo comes out good ill talk to him about getting of the beta blockers little by little
Just turned 30 and have been to the ER twice in the last year for pvcs and blood pressure, they started 3 years ago, slow and very spaced out over weeks, now it’s daily bouts and they absolutely scare the hell out of me, it’s holding my life back because I’m afraid to be alone, or live alone, out of fear of having a medical emergency I can’t help myself. It’s kinda led to a depression wondering what my life’s going to be like now going forward, I even search for places to live based on the healthcare and proximity to hospitals, despite the drs telling me they see nothing wrong despite the pvcs. But as you said, one is enough.
Same page. Honestly I pray for all of us. I hate them everything u just described I feel I feel hopeless at times. This is new to me 😢
Going thru this right now. I'm 60 and have had them off and on for 30 years. Thank you for the empathy!!
Hey, everything that you verbalized is exactly what i feel. Please keep making videos.
Hi, i emailed but i got no response
Hello! Hmmm... I have the sent E-mail in my sent folder. I'm not sure why you haven't received it. Perhaps look in your spam folder? If it's not there, I will resend. Let me know! And it's good to hear from you!
@@StevenSpears great to hear from you as well... could you resend the email please. I'm looking out for it
@@StevenSpears thanks for the video. I started getting these and developed severe anxiety from it. Drs couldn't tell me what was happening and over time I got anxiety. Still get them. Not as bad. I was in afib once from this crap. Hard to meditate when you feel like you will die
CARDIAC ABLATION LOOK IT UP
So well said. I cannot begin to explain the frustration at being told to ignore them- some people don’t feel PVSs, for people like us there is NO ignoring them. They are a thud that can not be ignored.
Four in a row is unbelievable.
I hope you’re doing well after all of this. Please come back and tell us if anything is discovered to help you.
Thanks so much for the video.
Thanks for your story. I have broken a lot of bones in my body as well as a few gruesome work related injuries but what you described is exactly what I experience everyday and scares the living daylights outta me. This condition sucks really bad but I’m relieved that I’m not alone. Thank you again for being real and not sugar coating it!! Much appreciated.
I just started having these a few weeks ago. It causes so much anxiety and fear. Glad there are others who deal with it. Sending lots of love and peace.
Right there with you man. God bless you and hopefully you feel better. Great video. Keep up the vids
Im so glad you did this video. You have summed up in 8 minutes how i have been feeling for the last couple of years. You cant ignore them and I when you get three of four in a row its terrible. Its lovely to know im not alone.
Thank you ❤️. I feel so horrible. This made me feel better. Please keep making them. It really helps to hear it from someone else.
Steven thanks for this buddy. It's the most torturous experience of my life mentally.
As you can imagine I’m watching this because I have the same exact struggle. Started in my early 30’s. I’m 40 now. My cardiologist said they can be caused by high blood pressure. Put me on a beta blocker. Worked for a while but their back. I will be seeking a second opinion. I feel for you cause I know exactly how you feel. They get to the point that it is a constant feeling of anxiety. Thanks for sharing. Hang in there. And good luck. Wish you the best.
Like you I went to the doctor who told me that my PVC’s were benign & not to worry. Put me on a beta blocker anyway. I didn’t take it & instead got a second opinion from another electrophysiologist who listened to me. Performed an ablation & now I’m 100% okay. Get a second opinion!
@@dtae7855 he put me on the beta blocker for high blood pressure. How did the procedure go? If you don’t mind me asking, how old are you?
@@scutumetinfirma6161 It went great. I got it done on Friday so i’m still recovering but it went so smooth. Getting my wisdom teeth pulled was worst honestly. I’m glad I did it & i’m 29.
It is the worst feeling I have ever experienced. Mine have basically 100% disappeared after 5ish months of utter pain from PVCs. I was taking 2/3 Magnesium Taurate 125mg a day. I took probably over 100 before I felt ANY difference. A year ago I was so desperate I was pouring Magnesium into water, I was trying Vitamin D, changing my diet. I was doing anything to numb and eliminate the pain of PVCs; I hated them. I am so so grateful for my uplift from them and one non-medical method of getting through them was watching videos like these. If you’re reading this and experiencing them then feel free to reply to me. PVCs occupied my life for (why felt like) a long time and I am blessed that they are practically gone. I want to help others now.
Im taking 125mg Mg by CR twice a days for a month but it doesnt seems working for me. I have PVCs that can feeling every afternoon only like 3 - 5 times a day and its really painful. Like you, right now its very depressing to have these and its taking my life out of me. I always wonder why this happened to me like i hope i was just dreaming.
So what exactly helped you lessen your pvcs?
Ford Girl It seemed like the Magnesium took a long long time to have an affect (presume it took a while to build my levels back up). But I was also trying to maintain all my other electrolytes. I was drinking a lot of smoothies even with spinach and lots of Potassium based foods. I was also taking two bananas a day. It seemed like something you can’t overcome just with time but it’s worth it not suffering with them anymore.
Helpppppppp
Hey my brother been having them about a month now what exactly did you do?
Hi Steve, I'm 28 & last year I woke up and felt like something wasn't quite right. I felt my heart stopping and kicking back in with such force that it felt like someone had shocked me - within a few weeks it was happening every 10 beats, and I had 3 fainting episodes & thought I was going to die in my sleep - I was scared to leave the house or drive. My GP sent me to a cardiologist, and even on an urgent category referral I waited 6 months for an appointment.
I had the appt last week that lasted 10 minutes, and he cardiologist told me that there was nothing I could do about it, and I would live with this for the rest of my life.
The last week I've been devastated and feel like I have had my life ripped from my hands. I've found your video and I want to thank you because I don't feel alone anymore and it makes me feel so much better, even though there is nothing I can do to stop this.
So sorry to read your experience with PVCs, I know your struggle! I’ve commented a bunch on this video now but want you to know you aren’t alone, so many of us are there with you, scared with you, worried with you.
My advice is Talk and chat with people about it, watch York Cardiology videos and work to make some lifestyle changes that may help to reduce or end the PVCs. Get blood work done to see if you have low potassium/electrolytes, some people find magnesium pills help, some intense cardio (running or biking) or sometimes beta blockers help.
Reducing anxiety and stress is something that can help immensely as well. I’ve even read people just talking with Dr Gupta are freed from PVCs because he completely put their minds at ease and reduced anxiety with just a conversation.
@@gwheel3502 Thanks for your reply! I'm really happy to report that I'm actually feeling a lot better over this last month.
I've started therapy, try to exercise every day, cut out the mcdonalds (!) and keep my stress and anxiety down. It definitely has seemed to help.
It's not completely gone, and I imagine that this is something that will come and go with my peaks and troughs of stresses, but I am not feeling hopeless like I did before.
Thank you to this community - it really has been a life saver.
@@TheMikaCollins so glad to hear! These changes will be better for your health overall in the long run as well.
Talking it out with a therapist definitely can be a game changer. So so glad to read this!
Thank you for sharing, just hearing someone else verbalize what I’ve been experiencing makes me feel better. When I try to explain pvc’s to my wife she looks at me like I’m nuts.
Steven, thank you for the video. You voiced everything I feel. These things are a monster and can be completely overwhelming and crippling. It's safe to say that unless a person is in the same boat as we are, they cannot fathom how life changing, and not in a good way, these things are. Hope that you a dn all of dealing with this crap, find some peace and relief... We need it.
Cheers.
Thank you my friend, I’m praying for you because you made me feel I’m not alone.
Hi Steve, thanks for sharing mate, you only get the fear and anxiety if you’ve suffered these. I was miss diagnosed and suffered a 8500 troponin heart attack in 2015 and since then the PVC’s have just been getting worse. On a bad day I’m getting about 15 a minute and in a recent hospital visit I was recording strings of up to 27 consecutive. Add to that the SVT like yourself recently bent down to pat the cat and went from 67bpm to 213bpm by the time I stood up, lasted 4 & half minutes and was able to record it on my alivcor strip so at least cardiologist now knows that I also have SVT. Like the man on your screen my cardiologist is a good man and regardless of all his positive reassurance I live every day wondering if this is it. I also follow Dr Gupta as feel he has a way of explaining issues in a calm and intuitive manner. I feel your pain mate and you are 100% correct in the fact that unless you’ve had these you have no idea how soul crushing they are. I hope things are going ok for you and wish you all the best. Many thanks for sharing.
I appreciate your video. It’s hard to find people going through the same thing. Talking to doctors seems to be a waste of time. Your video helps bring people together to communicate the causes, trends, stories, etc. I’ve just started getting these in August 2020. They lasted for weeks then went away and came back almost a month later and lasted a month or so. Now they com and go just about every other week. Had an ekg and echocardiogram. No structural heart damage. Just like everyone here.... no answers.
Thanks for making this video. I suffer with this as well. Had an ablation a few years ago and now there back, but not as bad. I agree it's the worst thing to deal with and are scary. I can be fine for days, but then boom there back. Wish you the best.
Thanks for posting; It is hard to ignore something poking at your chest from the inside. My PVCs are just like you said sometimes they hurt like hell, other times you just feel them and worry what is going on in there. I did purchase a Wellue 24 hour ecg monitor with AI so I could see what is going on when I feel these things happening. I can also save or print the events in PDF to bring to the doctor. I will find it next month how he reacts to me purchasing and managing my own Holter monitor. It works pretty well.
You're definitely not alone. And all the doctors seem to be the same...."Don't worry." "Dont be nervous." "Just relax. Everybody has PVC's at one time or another. Some people dont even feel them." Its always nice to be invalidated and belittled when you're scared to death. Those doctors never had to feel what we do, or they wouldnt say the things they do. These doctors are all trained to say the same lines so were all going to be told the same BS. The worst advice they give is not to worry about them! Im not saying you should panic, but ignoring them is NOT a good idea and I will tell you why. You should listen to your body. If you are doing something that triggers them, exercise for example, and you follow the doctors advice and ignore them and keep exercising, it could develop into another arrhythmia such as afib or svt. If you start having pvcs, I would recommend stopping what you are doing and sitting down, take a break, do something different and try to slow things down. Do anything you can that will help calm you. I keep a handheld massager handy and just start massaging my shoulders, or even my abdomen, it also helps put my attention on another part of my body instead of my heart. Listen to your body and do not ignore the PVCs. But do not obsess over them either! Obsessing over the PVCs while you are having them is a good way to keep them going! You have to take your mind off of them, once you have stopped whatever you were doing that may have triggered them. Sometimes its just the stress in your immediate environment and you need to leave the room so your heart can calm down. If Im already sitting and relaxed, sometimes the answer is to get up and walk around. Certain positions often can trigger them too! Simple change your position right away and see if that helps. I use to get them whenever Id lay on my left side. Now I get them when I sit in a squatting position, or if I bend over and lean forward sharply. Its different for everyone. The only advice I have for anyone is avoid the drugs if you can, and try to identify your triggers. Change your position, change what you are doing, look at what you just ate. For me its hormonal fluctuations, ALL sources of caffeine (I had to stop even eating chocolate, it would trigger trigeminy and it was terrifying), peppers, some cheeses, corn syrup, and many other foods would trigger them every time. I use to get thousands of pvcs every day and when I quit eating all grains they reduced to just a handful of them per day, im not saying everyone should quit eating grains, I was just particularly intolerant to those foods. Keep a food journal to identify what your problem foods might be.
Also, If I go outside and its really cold in the winter, I get PVCs. If I dont warm up really soon, it turns into bigeminy or trigeminy. I found that magnesium revved up my heart and it was very uncomfortable. Im going to be brave and try it again but smaller dosage and see if helps this time because so many people claim they have gotten rid of them with magnesium. A word of warning: If you get dental work done tell them you need epinephrine free injections. Otherwise the epinephrine in the injections can trigger pvcs and you dont want that while having your teeth worked on, trust me, its double the panic! I jumped out of the dental chair in the middle of a procedure when PVCs started up. It was a very stressful experience.
And lastly, that guy from York Cardiology insists that people who struggle with PVCs have an underlying health anxiety. I know I did before my started up at the age of 15. I had lost my mother, my grandmother died of cancer, and then my aunt died of heart attack. I started worrying about my health, and what do you know....PVCs started up and became a life long battle. Kinda hard to eliminate being a hypochondriac once you start having PVCs! Its a hypochondriacs worst nightmare. I don't know what the solution is but its a dwindling spiral for sure.
Steve, of all the videos I've seen on PVCs...yours is the one that is the realist one. All you said is exactly how I and so many others feel every time these a-hole PVCs happen. It just takes one to happen and it screws my whole day up, I don't wanna do anything. I've had them for about 6 years, sometimes they go for a while like a few months and I think I'm back to how I was before...them bamm...they always come back 😔. No one I know gets it coz they haven't experienced what this feels like, so unnatural. Thank you Steve for your thoughts...hope something works out and they slow down or disappear.
Thank you for posting. I didnt know others felt like me. I have as many as 30 a minute while on a monitor. I take many meds for them that work. But like you, when the spells happen, I am out of service. I get out of breath, dizzy, and fell like I am about to pass out just standing up during an episode.
Thanks again for posting.
Super! Grateful mine started after my first afib hospitalization at 73 years old. Then another 2 months later via ambulance. Now with near constant PVC's and taking Metoprolol and Eliquis - both of which I hope to get to drop after ablation and a Watchman soon. I'm one who does great research on all and everything I can find on anything afib and the drugs used along with their side effects. Sonja Gupta has provided a more common sense and broad based perspectives than most I've discovered. Not to say I haven't benefited from all quality talks I've found. At 73 I was still quite healthy and active then afib hit and then following the persistent PVC's. Shocking change in my life including all the stresses and miseries you've described. Thanks so much for sharing your experiences here.
I hate that you are suffering like me but also it is of relief to know I’m not alone.
Just lately my ‘benign’ PVC’s (I’ve had ecgs, echo and a holter) have become more reoccurrent and now only tend to happen in short 20-30 second bouts of bigeminy instead of occurring in isolation a few times a day. I would do anything to go back to having them be isolated one or two here or there! The bigeminy is absolutely making me nerveless!! I become irritable, so scared, feel absolutely floored and go into a huge panic no matter how much I try to remain calm in my head. I am exercising more, drinking more water, but in terms of sleep I’m often woke up now by bigeminy!
I probably only get about 100 a day but they are just absolutely destroying my quality of life and my happy go-lucky personality.
Thank you for making this video for little worried ol’ me to watch!
I've been having a lot of PVC's this last month. Today I was sitting on the plane and had so many of them I had to ask them to open the door again because it was bad. Been having PVC's for almost 10 years and this las month has been particularly bad. I appreciate everything you say and maybe one of these days will get better
Thanks for making this video. I’m just getting diagnosed with these after years of having them off and on (in my 40’s now). I also find doctors flippant a lot of times. It’s been crappy. It’s great to hear about another person’s experiences with these and to have a sense of what it’s like.. .to feel validated. I’m also a psychotherapist and I do actually have quite a consistent meditation practice. Meditation itself does not change electrical signaling - in my experience; maybe it can at times help to manage the thoughts and emotionals that arise in response to the sensations of PVC’s, but it doesn’t seem to cure them. Ugh. Anyway, having a lot these last few days and was finally diagnosed in the emerg this weekend. Trying to learn more… Thanks again.
Thanks! You are describing where I am now... not bad enough for an ablation, I suspect (5%). Nice to know I am not alone!
Thank you for sharing Steve. We are together in it.
I'm a retired MD with recent onset of very frequent PVC's. I am considering ablation but with a 3% rate of serious complications from the procedure, I lean toward just living with them. But you are right, the symptoms are not easy to live with.
Thanks for the video. Having a hard time to not focus on them. Same, no meds yet, but cone and go and feel like they take me over. Appreciate you.
Thanks for this video. I was just diagnosed after several months of experiencing these PVCs. Hearing others' stories and knowing that I'm not alone in my worry about them even though I keep being told that they are benign and nothing else other than the PVCs is wrong.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you for sharing!
Glad I found this video. I’ve also been living with them on and off for about 5 years. Sometimes I go a year without noticing one and then the day comes where l’ll have a bunch within one minute and my heart breaks (pun intended) knowing I’ll be dealing with thousands a day for months. It’s so hard and stress inducing. The doctors are so dismissive it’s mind blowing. But glad to see others fighting through it!
Same with me my friend i had it for long time nothing seems to help don’t want to have an ablation scare that something will go wrong maybe have to try some kind of diet, you not alone wishing you all the best good luck
Thank you for making this video, I totally hear you. Started with PVCs and SVT at 17, now 47 and I'm so sick of it. I do take Sotalol and on a good day o might get 2 or 3 but for the past two weeks it's been spells of 5 or 6 a minute and my anxiety and frustration is through the roof. After all these years of it I still don't know how to relax and could do with some pointers! You sound as fed up as I am, people just don't see how debilitating this is. Please keep the videos coming 🙂
Hello Louise!
Sounds like you have been struggling for quite some time, and I'm sorry to hear that you are getting them more frequently.
Relaxing can be a struggle in our society these days. We are always on the go, there is so much to worry about, and there is never any good news it seems. But there are way to help slow things down. You've probably heard this before but breathing is going to be a big part of relaxing. I'm planning on doing a video on the subject, but for now I will give you some quick suggestions, and as always, seek professional medical help if you need it.
Breathing helps to slow things down if done properly. One method is to take a breath in and then release very slowly. Let out a lot of air and then breath in again. Find a nice rhythm and do this for a while. This has gotten me out of SVT in a matter of a few breaths. This also allows the blood vessels to relax and open up, moving more blood through the body. Of course this lowers blood pressure, too. I tried doing this before getting my BP taken and it really helped, plus it is very relaxing.
Something else that I have found that works for me is getting outside, and leaving the electronic world behind. It takes time to learn how to relax as we don't really do it much any more. Give yourself some time to figure out what works best for you, and start as slow as you need to. Reading a book does it for some folks, whereas others need to do yoga. It's not my favourite activity in the whole world, but it does work.
I hope some of that gets you started, or helps a bit! Thanks for posting!
Been dealing the past two days n finally found someone say how many they have.. I feel them sometimes 3-6 every ten mins.. then maybe not for 30/45.. then here comes 1.. then no more for 20 mins.. etc.. I’m 31 I often feel like just crying because “why me”?
Address this as a low magnesium issue magnesium threonate and taurate (heart muscle uses taurate)take 500 mg a day make up a cup first thing in the morning and sip it throughout the day . I have suffered with ectopics for 35 years and recently discovered that magnesium was the missing link it governs the ATP pump in every cell and if the sodium cannot leave the cell the potassium cannot enter it's as simple .as that . stop sugar stop high energy drinks stop sweets soda drinks they steal magnesium so distress and anxiety ... hope that helps thank you ..
Thank you. It helps to hear similar stories. This is a very disconcerting condition.
You're very welcome
Im struggling bad with this. really bad. It's ruining my life. Getting the same info you are. "It's benign, we don't know what causes it, you need to de-stress". Absolutely frustrating.
Michael Tindall stay hydrated stay away from caffeine eat lots of omega 3 fatty acids
Michael Tindall: Yeah, and it's Bullshit when your told that. I'm not trying to scare anyone but I just read an article about premature beats "Over Time" that does scare me. But, on the downside, another Cardiologist disagrees with his conclusion. We'll see, I have them all the time. I'm more or less a Hermit now since these started in 2017 and luckily I can go to work but come home and mostly stay here due to these. Your not supposed to try and understand them as well. I don't. Hopefully he IS wrong about what he wrote.
@@johnnyflores1978 I recently removed a water pill from my meds (which i didn't need to begin with... uhg!), drinking a lot more, taking garlic and fish oil daily, no caffeine, no alcohol (i miss my sweet, sweet whisky) and have been doing so much better. I just had a follow up with Dr. and they said, if it comes back and is bothersome, they recommend an ablation due to my age (38). My stress has been less as well and I am on an upswing. I know there will be bad days, but for now it's great. Thanks so much for replying!
Michael Tindall im glad you are felling better keep up the great work
I think I know this study and if it's the same one, it was referencing those over 70 with some other specific conditions. The thing with studies, and they are very valuable, one doesn't mean anything. It has to be repeated, and if it has not, then it's something to go by. I read a lot of studies and have to keep this in mind when I do. Repeatability is the key, and if it hasn't been done, then the study is a spec of sand on a beach waiting for more specs to back it up.
Steve, so glad I found your video. There seems to be so much information on Afib and SVT, but very little on PVCs. Everything you described is what I've felt. Every time you have and attack you wonder if this time its going to be a heart attack. I've felt frustrated and the medical process has been slow because of COVID. Reading all these posts though, has shown me that I'm relatively lucky. My doctor has taken me seriously. She put me on a 30 day Holter monitor which showed I was having some PVC episodes during sleep. I started Metoprolol but didn't tolerate it well. The cardiologist lowered my dose and then switched me to Carvedilol. Unfortunately, my PVC burden increased to 30% during this time. I was put back on Metoprolol and referred to the electrophysiologist. Now the Metoprolol mostly has my PVCs under control and I have an ablation scheduled in two weeks. Best of luck to you.
Maggie:
Thanks for your post! Please, how did your ablation go for your? I hope you got relief!
Thanks for your post!
Steven, well done with the video. It tells PVCs like it is. I'm a lot older than you (coming up to 70) but I identify with everything you said, including the attitude of the medics, who unless they suffer them themselves, have no empathy or understanding of what living with PVCs is like. My cardiologist treats me like I'm a goddam nuisance every time I turn up and has no answers. My PVCs started after I had an ablation for afib 12 years ago and they have become a right pain in the butt, disrupting sleep, daily activities, exercise routines, music (like yourself I'm a musician), marriage ... everything. Went to electrophysiologist who advised against ablation because the PVCs are polymorphic rather than unifocal, so there's too much risk being under the fluoroscopy xrays for so long while he hunts around for all the trigger points, and at the end of it can't guarantee that he'd find them all to ablate. I don't want to do the AAD's because of the risk of pro-arrhythmia. And you are so right about 'meditation' - when your heart is jumping around out of sync with where it should be, that's all you can think about - meditation my ass!
I do thank you for this video, Because it does give some peace of mind that you’re still here, and I’ll get through it too. I’ve had the full cardiology work up, as well, short of an angiogram. I’ve also had to give up alcohol, because one drink triggers them. (I’m 46)
Good Evening my friend, I hope that you see this message coming from New Jersey.
Great video, very informative
I've been getting pvc for the past 4 months, and there very nerve racking, no matter what people say.
My own cardiologist told me don't worry.
So I saw a different cardiologist and he sent me for a echocardiogram that came back normal.
I feel my heart skipping about 3 to 4 times van day freaks me out!!
I've also seen Dr Gupta videos, very informative.
Stay strong, your in my prayers,
God Bless
Mike
Yeah, they tell us there is nothing to worry about, that we are fine, but living with them isn't so fine and they cause plenty of worry. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for your pvc info. God Bless you.
Im so glad I found this video. I’ve been dealing with PVC’s for a couple of years now and in the past week they have seen to be getting worse to the point where it’s hard to sleep due to that horrible feeling in my throat. I made an appointment to see a cardiologist for next week. I’m hoping for some relief, but after reading this who knows now. It’s nice to see I’m not alone. Thank you
How are you doing now?
@@Jaredkprimalhealth I’m a lot better. I got put on 48 hour monitor to measure the PVCS. between the 2 days my average PVCs per day were 6,900 (which I thought was a lot but interventions usually start around 15,000/day. I followed up a couple days later and surprisingly I didn’t have any PVCS anymore. Then couple days later they came back but a lot less frequent. I saw my primary and we decided this is probably stressed induced. I got put on anti depressant meds and anxiety. I’m doin a lot better and maybe get a PVC here and there but it doesn’t bother me. Thanks for asking.
@@MrGmilla interesting that they are anxiety related. Shows the power of the mind.
Also a possibility it could be an electrolyte imbalance
Thank you for sharing your story. I understand what you're going through as I am in the same boat. Mine started 8 years ago, at 34 when I was diagnosed with premature ovarian failure and Hashimoto's. When they first started my panic attacks were so bad that they left me shaking like a leaf for hours. I still have general anxiety because of the PVCs. I get one or two a day, but it's enough to ruin my whole day. Few times a year I get them every few seconds for hours. Had numerous echoes, EKGs, calcium score test, stress test. I caught them on Kardia, otherwise the cardiologist would have just said it's all in my head. Because of the anxiety from the PVCs I have chronic gastritis which brings on more PVCs. It's a vicious circle. It's difficult to find joy in life when you're scared for your life on a daily basis. My family dismisses it as hypochondria and anxiety.
Seagullterra:
I'm really sorry that your family is dismissive. Having a strong support system helps significantly for me. Please keep coming back and and sharing what you are going through. People are reading and finding comfort in them.
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for this video. Nice to know I'm not alone. Always hard to be taken seriously by people who don't experience them, including medical professionals. My experience with PVCs is particularly rough at the moment, and trying to sleep every night is hell- I dread it! I try not drinking, cutting caffeine, nothing helps. I've never got to the bottom of why they are worse some times than others.
I feel your pain! I was in the same boat! I changed my diet and I ate fruits and vegetables with moderate amount of meat for a month then I started intermittently fasting. 18 hours no food and 6 hour eating window. I truly know it helped heal me to where I’m feeling normal and able to workout again with actually energy. Stay strong man
Hello, can I ask you how does that work or more how is the fasting done? I have heard of this before and would like to know, if you don’t mind. Thanks
Thank you for sharing your story. I am completely stressed out with these PVCs. I have had five ablations for Atrial Fibulation, and Atrial Flutter. That didn't work. Now I have to deal with PVCs. I went to the hospital yesterday and guess what the Doctor said. There is nothing I can do with PVCs. That was the end of his comment. After all the stress I went through during the day before I saw him. I really got upset so I just gave up and asked to be let out of emergency. My cardiologist is from the Mayo Clinic and I am trying to get in touch with him and I know that will take a while. I am very anxious as well and have no energy!! That is why I am here to tell you to keep up with you search for help. I know it can take a long time but I am hoping for help from someone.!!!!!!!!!!!!
I’m 41 years old. I’ve suffered from depression and anxiety since I can remember. I had my first run of SVT at age 20. I didn’t know what it was but it made me extremely anxious and I felt as though I would die at any moment but I was more afraid to go to the hospital because I didn’t want to hear what was wrong with me. I went home and somehow managed to fall asleep and when I woke up my heart rhythm was back to normal. Since that point I was extremely heart aware and acute to even the littlest changes. I developed avoidances so not to upset my heart, (which I thought of as a monster I didn’t want to awake). I lived that way full of fear until age age 35 when I went into another run of SVT that landed me in the hospital. Since then I’ve been on numerous beta blockers and calcium channel blockers along with anxiety medication. I’ve modified my diet so much so that it’s very bland and monotonous. I do not drink, smoke or do any drugs. No caffeine or sugars either. And after all this I still get SVT occasionally and PVCs every day all day. I’m a very strong willed man but I honestly can’t live like this much longer. I can’t enjoy life constantly dwelling on my heart and wondering if it’ll just stop beating all together suddenly killing me. I have no quality of life. I can’t enjoy a single moment. There is a virtual rain cloud that follows me everywhere. My heart is the last thing on my mind before I fall asleep and the first thing when I wake up. And yes, a few times a week I wake up with a fast pounding heart rate. I’m beyond frustrated and there is NOTHING I can do about it.
So yes, I understand what you are talking about and I certainly appreciate this video. It took bravery to put yourself out there. I appreciate that!!! Thank you!
when you say every day all day, do u mean u get little moments throughout the day or every 30 seconds or so you get one or two, all day? Also have you ever had any NSVT? Non-sustained ventricular tachycardia? I get spurts of them alll day, when i say all day, I mean my heart feels odd all day long, it almost feels congested, if that makes sense, and on top of the congested feeling in my heart, i get the PVC palpitations. Sometimes those episodes will last for weeks, sometimes I will go a week without them.
Sorry you are going through that. Its brutal. I did have a Doctor willing to do an ablation, but i dont want heart surgery at 33 years old. I feel sometimes people dont fully bounce back from surgeries. So in the meantime i am trying medications and the like to see if i can get rid of them.
Sorry to hear this, as I am in the same situation. It is all consuming, effecting every aspect of my life, and is hardly a quality of life situation I would place on anyone. If you do happen on a solution, please let me know, as I am Fudking sick of this!
@@JordanMichaelArt my PVCs were constant, probably around 40-50 per hour.
I am happy to report that the PVCs are nearly gone now. I discovered that carbohydrates were the cause so I’m on a low carb diet and I couldn’t be happier. I’ll choose a bland and boring diet over constant PVCs!!!
@@bobsass2532 I discovered that carbohydrates were the cause. I’m now on a low carb diet and the PVCs have basically stopped.
@@lewisfoltz6306 Could you feel every one of them?. Very glad to hear this new man! Happy New year.
Thank you for this video.
So many people suffering with a problem that has solutions but the health care professionals what you to live with it instead of fixing it.
I have been living with it since I was 25. They just called it hypertension.
In my early 40's it started affecting my abilities to get through the day.
At 53 I had to quite work costing me everything. I lived on SSDI until I was old enough to collect regular SSI.
I suffered heart failure at age 52. I suffered cardiac arrest at age 58, ten years ago.
I have been in the hospital more times than I can count. Same tests, scans and medications for decades.
Now I am 67and I think the doctors my be getting ready to do something about it.
It may be also be from having two leaking valves and the right to left shunt that they have known about for a decade.
WHY ARE ALL OF OUR LIVES EXPENDABLE!
I pray for all of you that live with PVC's. The longer you live with it the worse your heart gets.
My last EKG found I suffer daily SVT's, of course PVC's and have Sinus bradycardia and Sinus tachycardia. My pulse ranges between 35 and 171.
I am scheduled for my seventh stress test to see if things are bad enough to do anything.
I pray anyone of you have better luck than I have at getting help.
Hope you feel better man I know the panic I get from skipped beats so I relate. Annoying when docs say it's just anxiety I'm never convinced
Thank you for this man. I needed to hear all look of this. Kinda feel better just from hearing you express exactly my same sentiment about this PVC and bullshit doctors.
Thanks Steve for this video its exactly what I am dealing with
Chad:
We are all in this together!
I really appreciated your video. I am a 70year old woman who has had these since age 30! I have Mitral Valve Regurgitation ("not too bad" according to my cardiologist, but I get some of these daily however many times I have a flurry of them! I take Toprol XL for the palps as well as high BP. I know stress affects me a lot with them, but other times they occur for no reason. Dr. says the palpitations are not dangerous! Like you say, the fear is real! Hang in there. What else can we do.
Thank you for sharing. 🙏
15 years i been living with pac and pvc. I have broken down and cried as a man from having to deal with them because when I get the weird hard ones that last 6 seconds I feel like this is it I'm dying. It sucks to feel like you're gonna die so many times in your life. I have had a angiogram, ekg, stress tests with echo test, CT scans, xrays, everything and my doctors 4 cardiologists have told me that they are safe and won't kill me. It just sucks and I don't believe them for one second. I still feel like one day my heart will give out from this crap. I'll have a month or two where I don't get them then I will get them fro two months sometimes 7-8 times a day. The hard ones really suck the small ones make me have small little coughs and I do feel them in my throat as well. Life sucks with these things. I have 3 young kids too which I want to be around for so it's hard on me. I feel your pain
Yeah i feel u buddy. Got the same problems and yeah i think i need to learn to live with it.
Best regards.
Over time they can weaking your heart get another opinion
@@lovely_unforgettable_ree8727 i went to Mayo clinc here in AZ and two leading Cardiologists both agree that my pvc and pac are not frequent. I wore a Holter monitor again for the 4th time in my life which showed that they are not threatening in any way. I did speak with another Cardiologist from Oxford who suggested I take Magnesium to help with my pvc and pac said he had a lot of patients who took it and were fine. I started taking it and let me tell you it works! I rarely feel them now compared to before the Magnesium. I guess it calms the heart beating and slows down the beats by a little too. Anyway try it it worked for me
Steve, been dealing with Afib and PVCs for 30 years. 2 ablations for Afib and 2 MI's later and occasionally still go into Afib but mostly PVC's. Everytime I get a Holter they seem to not show as much as I need them to and doctors say they are benign and not to worry (fat chance). I don't smoke, drink alcohol or caffeine and heart is structurally good. I find that they seem to peak more from poor sleep, illnesses such as the flu, lower GI issues and work stresses. I tried electrolyte supplements and magnesium (many different types) and keeping a log on what I ate trying to see some parallels but little makes sense. Sometime over use of electrolytes can be worse than low levels. It is impossible to get true intercellular levels of Mg and Potassium measured by only blood draws and you need to use symptoms to better gauge the levels.
I took a sleep lab 10 years ago and now wear a CPAP device, which helps get a better nights sleep, but it is not perfect. I am on my 17th cardiologist mostly Japanese Doctors as I live in Japan for work. I am surprised at the amount of ablations conducted in this country. Stress is the uniform of the day here. Coffee, tobacco and alcohol are part of the food pyramid in Asia.
I will recommend trying a Keto diet and remove sugar and refined carbs, you probably should avoid going full carnivore diet as the drop in electrolytes can throw you into Afib or excessive PVC's from the Keto flu if you are not supplementing electolytes prior to starting. Walking or biking enough to get your MHR up well above 120 for many periods of week but not to the point of overexertion and stress the heart too much. Sometimes when I start getting PVC's a change of environment helps, like turning off the computer, shut off the TV, go for a walk, drink some coconut water maybe eat a light healthy meal can help. I got rid of my car 12 years ago and bike to work, the routine helps. I have tried the drugs you mentioned and they mostly promote arrythmias rather than reduce them. Make sure you are talking to an electrophysiologist (electrician vice a plumber) to better help with a plan. I have seen a large disparity with the outcomes in seeing the wrong cardiologist. Internal Medicine Doctors can do more harm than good, trying what they learned in school 10 years ago vice sending you to a specialist.
Have you looked into the Mayo clinic? Good luck brother and wish you peace and a better outcome.
Hey Steven, I stumbled across your video here and just wanted to share my experience aswell. I’m turning 28 this week, and I’ve had problems with PVCs ever since an aFib episode that I had back in 2017 that sent my heart rate to 300+. I had previously dealt with SVT also before that but thankfully that went away on its own. I have had many test done including the 2 week monitoring, echo of the heart and I’m also structurally sound. They say that these pvcs make up less than 1% so they don’t see any reason for an ablation and medication would probably be an option but I hate feeling like crap from the beta blockers (which I was on for years for the tachycardia). I really hate being so aware of this problem but I know that this anxiety stems from previous experiences with my own heart conditions and the episodes that scarred me. The constant fear that this weird ass heartbeat is gonna be the last one sucks😂 I hope you and everyone here is doing well!
I understand completely. I was 27 when I went to the hospital feeling light headed, coughing, short of breath and that dreaded thump that tells you that you just had a big one. They did ekg, stress test, echo and said my heart was fine and I should just think of it as normal. Well, i am 46 now and like you they come in bouts. I have given up on medical treatment because the beta blockers did nothing and all they ever try to do is medicate me for anxiety. Those don't help either. I have learned to ignore then mostly but there are times that the fear gets the better of me. The more scared i get, the more pvcs I have. It's a vicious cycle but I am not wasting my time with doctors any more.
Dang bro I’m 30 now & was hoping to hear that they went away. So sad. Sometimes I get them every 2-3 beats for like hours.
I get them when I don’t sleep good or drink caffeine :/
I'm just grateful to know others out there not only 'feel' what I feel inside my chest (and neck, and head, and arms sometimes), but also know how they make me Feel! I'm 39 now, a lawyer, with three kids, but my doctor still dismisses me like that 16 year old kid who first tried to talk about them. I had one doctor take me seriously for a bit, and like you I had a stress test done with nuclear medicine, but they found my heart "structurally sound.". Because I was in my twenties and in otherwise good shape shape and health, they did no interventions.
Now doctors just run a quick strip and see that my testing heart rate is in the sixties and my bp is normal and they don't feel like enough is wrong to warrant further investigation. But it makes me feel like absolute ass when I have a bad day. It scares the hell out of me. Thank you for posting your video. It really really helps to know I'm not crazy.
I’m right there with you. I’m 38 with 2 kids and work as a nurse. I have been suffering from PVCs for a couple of years now. They do come and go but the past week I have been having them everyday. I got testing done last year and everything was fine. They did see PVCs on the holster monitor but not enough to do anything. Echocardiogram was fine. I’m about to got back to the doctor to get all the test done again. So frustrating
How many do you get a day ? And for how many days ?
@@JordanMichaelArt sometimes I get just a handful in a day. Like five to ten in rapid succession and then they go away. Other times I get hundreds, maybe thousands a day. Those days are the really really bad ones where nearly every, or at least every other, beat is accompanied by the pause flop then hard beat that follows. Those are the days that make me think of going to the hospital.
The frequency of days I get them varies wildly. There are no patterns per se, but i do k ow of some of my surefire triggers that will ALWAYS lead to an attack or a long run of them:
1) MSG. Tastes delicious, but it's almost an immediate onset after ingestion;
2) high caffeine or other stimulant (like nicotine or medications like pseudoephedrine) days.
3) dehydration;
4) alcohol intake of any kind;
5) too much sugar; and
6) being very tired.
Each of those I have come to avoid like the plague - which has actually helped me to greatly reduce the amount of attacks I get. But, sometimes they still come without any obvious cause.
I wish I could give you an average number of days or something, but it is truly so random I have no idea how to estimate it. For example, right now it's been several weeks since I have had anything significant. But the last time I did, the flops lasted about a week straight. I was able to get some relief through vegal stimulation efforts like forced sneezing and cold water shocking, but those were just brief pauses in a long week of them.
I also sometimes think they create their own feedback loop. Like, when they come they make me stressed which makes me tired and dehydrated which makes me use too much caffeineand eat like junk which makes more attacks come on or makes the attacks stronger, which feeds the loop even more etc. . . .
Sorry for the super long response. I just hate not being able to give an actual answer.
I was admitted to the ER about 2 weeks ago because I was getting PVC’s every 3 minutes for hours. They told me the PVC’s were benign and recommended that I wear a monitor for 2 weeks which I did and yesterday sent it back. I had a horrible PVC yesterday at well to the point where I become depressed and anxiety riddled which I still am while typing this. Im 26 years old and this started about 3 years ago when I ingested pre workout while being on performance inhancers. The past 3 years of my life have been a living hell to the point that if a truck was coming at me I would not move. I don’t want to live like this it’s absolutely horrible.
I know what you’re feeling man trust me mine started three months ago. I have a good days and I have bad days. I take 200 mg of magnesium Glysinate in the afternoon and it calms them down to the point where if I’m chillen I don’t feel them much. Eat pumpkin seeds and workout 3/4 days a week you’ll improve. Hang in there bro. Eat bananas for potassium it helps. And get unsalted pumpkin seeds
@@georgepanagiotou8673I second the pumpkin seed thing, they are absolutely packed with minerals.
I wish you would make more of these, I'm getting them more frequent daily. My dr had the nerve to tell me I should look into mental health
Hello Steven and everyone else posting on here. Thank you for the video, and for many of the great posts. I have had PVCs now for at least maybe 5 years for sure, and I think I may have had them in the past (up to 10 years or more before that) and didn't even know it. I pretty much have them all the time now (heart beats for 4 or 5 beats then skips a beat). I was experiencing some HUGE anxiety back at the beginning of 2019 that I think was because of these PVCs and low electrolyte levels from drinking too much water (thinking it was healthy) on a daily basis. I stopped drinking so much water, my electrolytes came back up and the anxiety subsided quite a bit. I still have these PVCs though. They seem to feel the worst when I lay in bed at night, apparently because of body position, and it being quiet, not doing anything else. I've been to a cardiologist and have had a stress echocardiogram. My heart is all normal, no structural issues. My cardiologist tells me that he does not want to give me Beta Blockers because he thinks they can cause more damage that not taking them. I asked him about ablation and he said that I am not really a candidate because my PVCs do not come in "salvos". He also said that he thinks ablation could have unintended consequences, meaning that while trying to repair one spot in in the heart, another part of the heart could be damaged, further complicating matters. It seems like the older I get, the more I feel these PVCs. I exercise 4-5 days a week. I do some pretty rigorous cardio, and weight workouts. It almost seems like the harder exercise makes the PVCs seem more severe. Anyone else experience this? I hate to dial back my work outs, because I want to keep myself in good physical condition and keep a healthy weight. I haven't tried Magnesium yet on a large scale. Sounds like some people think it's worth a try. I already take fish oil 3 times a day too and have for some time now. I see the cardiologist again in probably February or March 2021, as just a routine check up. Anwyay, any other suggestions would be helpful. Anyone on here being judgmental about anyone's opinions, reactions, or thoughts on these needs to stop. Even if you have PVCs, you might not be able to understand what another person is going through. I have struggled, and I am trying to "ingore" them, but it's not so simple. It really makes you realize your mortality, if that makes any sense. I will come back and post again if I have any luck with anything, or updates. Thank you for reading my post.
Yeah they really do make you realise your mortality were you told your burden percentage I have 12% burden I don’t know if that’s bad and I have been prescribed medication
I have a very similar situation. I train professional athletes on the side, so I work out 5-6 days a week and eat healthy. I've had heart palpitations my entire life, but in my late 20s they got a fair bit worse. I haven't had a single palpitation in 1 month and now today I can feel the PVCs almost every other beat, all day long. Never can get mind mind off them because the second I do, BOOP they palpitate. They make me want to just go lay down and sleep. I dont want to be awake for them. They are horrifying. So far the Drs tell me I'm all good but I'm still doing testing. I am on a month monitor as we speak and on a beta blocker Bisoprolol. Not sure if it is helping because of the spastic nature of the PVCs. I hope the best for you! Scary stuff :(
@@JordanMichaelArt oh wow same I always wanted to lay down and sleep but they say posture of lying down makes you feel them mine made me very fatigued though and your right it’s the only thing that helped during the bad episodes of them. Yeah same I’m on bisopropol 2.5 mg. So far it’s been helping and I have cut out caffeine. I love coffee and tea but I don’t want to risk my life for it. I don’t really drink alcohol much anyway and I had very bad reactions whenever I drank it rarely this past year. I notice very high fat foods cause it for me or high energy it must raise my heart rate and they start or something. Do you know the route cause of your pvcs ? My heart is structurally normal but I have this year been diagnosed with Graves hyperthyroidism so the doctors believe this has caused it. Excess thyroid hormones make heart rates higher etc. I got diagnosed with Graves after I had covid. So my covid was November 2020 and my heart rate was fast and didn’t feel right after covid and then I had tests done and by June the following year I had the Graves diagnosis and is kinda when all these pvcs started for me. But they got dramatically worse in august and September this year. So glad I’m now on the medicine and cutting out caffeine it’s really made a massive difference. I’m only 29 and female from uk. I don’t know long term about them with the medicine if they wouldd come back etc but I think they were really damaging my quality of life. My heart on the 48 hour tape said my heart was 55-138 that’s just walking about with occasional stairs. So the Graves makes my heart beat a lot faster so the 12 percent burden is not really 12,000 but must be like 15,000 - 20,000 beats a day or more I don’t know what my most common heart rate was. It made me feel like I was going to die soon. I have bought a garmin watch now which monitors my heart and my heart range now is like 59 - 119 so it’s gone now like 20 beats I think on average. I would recommend something like that if you do worry about how fast your heart is
I have definitely correlated the pvcs to my stomach and diet. I have always been a high anxiety ridden person, which is something I've worked on over the years and have made improvements on. I also have digestive issues and have had them most of my life. I developed ibs in my 20s but had a huge ibs flare early this year. The worse my stomach is, the more pvcs I get. I think im going to do an elimination diet and a food journal to help identify exactly what may be provoking my issues. It took me years to realize there was a connection to my pvcs and diet.
@@denastevens6203 yeah try an anti histermine diet I tried that too when I cut out caffeine and it helped it’s mostly fresh foods and nothing aged like mature cheddar instead I would have mozzarella instead
I’m going through what you are PVCs are scary as hell. I loved the video and how you shared your frustration because I’m right there with you. I’m on 100 mg of flecanide and 50 mg of atenolol. If the meds don’t help, then I have to decide whether I’ll do an ablation or not. Tough decision because it can get worse after surgery, but I’m willing to risk the ablation because I’m tired of feeling this way too. Much love dude 🤟
What exactly could get worse after ablation surgery and who said that? From what I understand ablation for ectopic beats targets very specific heart cells identified as causing the ectopic beats. No other cells are touched so why should it get worse? Kindly explain. Thanks.
I had to chime back in..... there really is no successful cure Maybe for One in five but my problem is the psychological aspect of it I can't beat it alcohol/medication's nothing takes that feeling away everyone who suffers from this I understand and this video hits the point right on.
The psychological effects are horrible, and often ignored by doctors. It really boils down to if they have had to experience them or not. If they haven't, then they are usually not interested in how we feel or how we cope.
I'm 47 and I live with PVC's. I hate them! If I lay flat, I can almost trigger a bout of them depending on how I lay down. I've even felt my pulse beat twice! If that doesn't fray at your nerves.... They are scary, and I totally understand what you are going through. I am currently prescribed Propranolol, 20 mg 2x a day. Sometimes I think gas sets some PVC's off. Once again, I completely understand what you're going through. Every time you get them, you think your time is up. Recently I'm having bouts of them just laying flat on my back. I've also started to suffer panic attacks more frequently back to back. So far, Propranolol is sorta masking the panic attacks, but it doesn't stop the PVC's. I can still feel them. Side effect is sometimes low 48 bpm heart rate at deep rest. I really wish there was a way to resolve these PVC's. Having PVC's makes you feel like you're being held hostage by fear. It sucks!
There are times when I get very light headed. A few occasions I thought I was going to pass out.
Thanks for uploading this video man! I been dealing with palpitations since January this year. Scared the living f out of me first time happened .. went to ER demanding to be looked at ASAP. Like you, had all sorts of tests run on me - and told “everything looks normal just ride it out”. You are right. Even these cardiologists I feel have no understanding what it does to us mentally. Lucky I have a supporting family but even explaining to them is difficult. I will go 2 weeks with no palps and then BAM almost everyday for a week. I am 29 scared to have this forever. I always think I’m going to die when they get really bad: palps, tingling, barely breathe. I’m not religious but I pray there is something out there to help us. Anyway, thanks for the video . I’m with you man
Chris:
We share your story! I'm very happy that you have a support system in place. It can make a lot of difference. When these started for me, I was pretty much alone with them. Thankfully, like you, I have folks around me how make them better.
Since you are new, take some time and read some of the comments around the channel. There are a lot of folks getting relief through vitamins and diet changes. Some might work for you, some might not. And please remember to consult your doctor before starting any changes. Make sure they know what's going on and if it's safe for you.
One suggestion that I do have. When they start up, write down what was going on a couple days before until they happened. You might find a trigger and be able to avoid it. Not saying you will find anything, but it can't hurt to check it out.
Thanks for posting! I hope to see you around!
I’m curious how you’re doing two years later since you commented that. I’m currently having extremely bad PVCs that have been going on for a week now. I’m having about 60 a day and I can feel every single one (they’re the really forceful ones). I went to the ER the other day and they did lots of tests and they said “oh everything is fine, as far as the PVCs go man idk what to tell you, you just kinda have to deal with them”. Before this episode I was only having them maybe once or twice a day but I’ve been struggling with them for 3 years now. It’s so hard to stay positive.
hey ! thank you so much for this . i am a icu er med surg nurse and it still didn’t resonate with me until today what my best friend is dealing with . she is one of the strongest women ik . she did have svt . maybe like 5 episodes . she got the ablation a month ago but the pvc are still here . they couldn’t ablate them because they wouldn’t show up during the procedure . and idk i guess i was viewing it ultimately as something temporary and we could carry on with life . but now me know the actual feeling and thoughts . i have to be more present and surround her with more love and understand when she don’t wanna move . again thank you .
I totally understand how you feel. I have PVC's and I am currently having SVT every other day. I am going to have multiple tests coming up worse part is I have been working in the medical field for over 13 years and I understand what you mean about the medical field. I don't go to ER when I have my SVT bc it would be a waste of time ekg, blood work, then once my heart is lower ok go home and follow up with your cardiologist. So frustrating I've had these pvcs since my late 20's aswell I'm 38 and 100% understand how you feel.
Thanks Steven. I was 52 when I had some chest pain while working in my shop so I went to the ER and had a heart cath and had a 95% blockage in my LAD. Better known as the widdow maker. After 2 stints to repair it they put me on Brilinta and 80mg of Lipitor with asprin. 2 months later I had what I thought was a heart attack. Went to the ER and they said it was PVCs. Ive had them for 2 years now. I constantly feel like im going to die any second. I have been to my cardiologist dozens of times. They have tried having me wear a monitor twice but they say Its not a problem. No one seems to understand what im going thru. Thank you for your videos. They seem to help.
Wayne:
Thanks for sharing your story. Having saved yourself form a heart attack and now having the PVCs is not a pleasant prospect. I can't even imagine what it must have been like to find out that you were 95% blocked! WOW! And when they say they aren't a big deal doesn't really make folks like us feel better. We have to live with them and each one is living with a moment of death each time. I wish they would understand that part of it.
Please keep us in the know how things are going. It helps folks to hear your thoughts and feelings.
Thanks for the post!
It's also funny when I read how many people with this problem state, "Get An Ablation". You just can't do that. The EP has to approve it before you can, they just don't let you do it by your request. I had 2 of them deny my request for it. They say, it's less than 1% of your total beats". Sure feels like more to me. They also said "I just can't do it." How many of you here that did get one at your request must be just awful lucky. I'm screwed for life. I also don't believe they may go away on their own as I was told. Good Luck.
I hear this from PVC folks all the time. It's not just quantity, it's also quality of life. That should be taken into consideration. I hope maybe something comes through for you in the future.
Thanks for making this video I've been getting PVCs constantly for the last 10 days never had them went to the er they told me my x-rays and blood tests came back fine and released me so I'm trying to find a cardiologist as of right now I'm 29
It's a scary road, but it will get easier. You're going through the right steps. Cardiologist will help ease your concerns and come up with some plan for you. If you don't like their answer, get a second opinion. That's what I did.
Read my comment
maybe you can check with your gi doc,gerd or hiatal hernia can cause all this mess with heart
Steve ...very very accurate description and definatley frustrating when docs say just put up with them and youl be fine.
Really pisses me off and wish they could feel what I feel.
Im 46 and also started feeling them from around 20. Difference now is that I can get them last for hrs...every second beat. I wish they were the odd one here and there like earlier. But now they just surprise me anywhere anytime and I just need to drop what I'm doing and go home and lay on couch until they go. I just had 3 hrs of them now every second or third beat. Like a fish flapping around in my chest. And in my throat. And docs say ignore it.
Im on diltiazem but since being on them I now get these episodes lasting longer and more often.
Like all of us im wishing for a miracle cure one day. Anyhow..great watching your video. I felt I was in your shoes
Steve:
It sounds like we have the same shoes. I know the feeling of having life stop because these things crush you and put you down. It's not as easy as saying, "Hey! I will ignore them!" Yeah, if that were the case, this channel wouldn't exist, and we'd all feel fine! We don't. Just know there are folks out there who know what this is like, and that you are not alone. We struggle, we feel, we hope!
I have diltiazem on the shelf and only used it briefly. I think it made me feel worse than nothing. It posts like yours that I wish I had an answer or cure. It seems what works for one doesn't work for others. I don't know if you have tried the diet changes and vitamins, but they are worth considering.
Thanks for sharing, and keep coming back!
Hi. I'm only 3 mins in but I can relate so much. I'm 51 n have had this stuff (a triggery heart lol) since 17 or so. I also have had many episodes of svt. The pvcs have ramped up for me the last couple years. I'm anxious over it. I'm pissed. I'm sometimes depressed. On bad days I'm rocking myself chanting *this will soon pass. Haha. I can't take the meds either. Feels like I can't breathe on them. They will work phenomenally for about a week but then I start feeling like my lungs shut down. Docs try to tell me that shouldn't happen... it does. The anxiety the heart fluttering causes me is making my life feel smaller& smaller. Thank u for making this video. U r not alone. Lots of love.
Thanks for sharing your experience. Completely agree that symptomatic episodes suck. Recently diagnosed with PVC's- have been in frequent bigeminey for last 3wks so fatigued and nauseated cant do much of anything without stopping to rest. echo done ✔ Holter monitoring ✔ awaiting stres test and starting diltalizem. Healthy 39yo ER nurse here also told to just deal with them 🤬
Steve, I hear you. I know only too well. I even got them as a teenager and of course was told don't worry. Then as I got older I finally had surgery for an aortic aneurysm. Then an aortic valve replacement. Still have a bit of pvc's but I really feel your frustrations.
THANK YOU FOR THE VIDEO!! I don’t feel alone in my anxiety dealing with these do nothing Doctors at Kasier ! Kasier is like assembly line healthcare. Getting a doctor to actually listen is a HUGE CHALLENGE. Dr visits (which its long wait to see ur doctor) they stare into the computer and push thru the appt as fast as they can. But thanks again for the vid!!
Yes, I also have had them since my 20's. I always feel like I am dying. I believe it's instinctive to have fear.
Kathleen:
I think you are right. We want to get away from them, so we have fear, which is our programmed response. It becomes a vicious cycle of having them and getting the fear. The sad part is the fear never really leaves us, so we are locked into a state of worry and perceived lack of safety.
Thanks for the post!
Hey thank you so much!! I feel the same way!! I started getting them when I was 26, I'm 27 now. They started me on metroperol , didn't help, then they put me on ditelzam or however you spell it and it started to help , but now the PVCs are coming back full front. I've been through several cardiologist, and several heart monitors. I just got done with my third hesrt monitor and they just told me I am a candidate for the ablation procedure. I am relieved, but scared in the same sense. I am so sorry that they are not able to help you. Sending prayers
Hello everyone . I wish we were not all here because we have this affliction. I have ended up in the er numerous times because my pvcs caused a major panic attack, that caused svt. My blood pressure tester didn't even say a number, just said high. My pulse was 183 and felt horrible. I had the ekg tests, echo, Thank God all of them are ok. My doctor says try to ignore them. easier said than done. One doctor was trying to explain how to do deep breathing to calm down. I cant while it's acting up. However , the pvc s are ruining my life. I live in a constant state of fear and panic, I dont know if I should be put on anti anxiety meds. I expect to die at any moment, hoping I will not die. I am afraid of doing stuff I used to love.. traveling, dating etc. I force myself to work, and then just stay at home and feel miserable. Anyways, forgive me for ranting, best of luck to all of us. Those that dont have them, have no clue what hell it is.
How many do you get per day and how many days in a row? I will sometimes get 15-20 per minute and I’ll have them most of the day for weeks at a time. Really rough stuff
I remember having them since I was a young kid. I'm 35 now. They are definitely worse from anxiety. I get them anytime I'm somewhere new or traveling
Hi Steve, I feel all your pain… Doctors telling you to live with it, meditate, you’re not gonna die etc. makes you wonder if the doctor ever had one in his life! If he did he wouldn’t be saying that.I’ve had them for 15+ years now tried the medication same as you makes you tired low blood pressure low heart rate. It was hard for my doctor to catch my PVCs on a Holter monitor every time I would put it on I wouldn’t have any LOL the last time I wore one I was having a horrible horrible time for weeks nonstop and finally I wore one for 48 hours and it showed over 20% of my heart beats were PVCs so I was sent to an EP doctor not sure if you ever saw one of them but he said there is no point of suffering and suggested the ablation which I will be having in December. If you can’t take medication, Which I could not either your only option is ablation or living with it. You sound exactly like me it’s debilitating. You mentioned the doctor screwed up getting an ablation I don’t know what that means? PVCs are an electrical problem with your heart and IMO no pills or medication will cure it! All pills do is calm them down hoping that you won’t feel them but if you are like me I feel every single one that I have and I don’t know how you’re supposed to meditate when there’s a fish flopping around in your chest! Sorry for the long post but I would suggest that you talk to an EP and request an ablation. I’m anxious to see if mine works… I sure hope soBecause I’ve had enough. Good luck!
Hi
I did ablation
It was succsses.
I did not feel any pvcs for about 2 month
Now it comes back
But not like before
I feel scard and dispointed
But the bright side is
Until now stll my pvcs now not like before ablation.
Maybe i need more ablation.
Cause i heard that pvcs elemnated in second ablation
@@user-pz5gh5ld6j how are you now?
@@jazzammarbello5835 not bad but still battling pvcs
@@user-pz5gh5ld6j You still have it even you got ablation??
@@jazzammarbello5835 yes but not as much as before
I understand how you feel. I had atrial fib start when I was 10 years old. It ruined my childhood. There wasn’t anything they could do in the 80s. I was afraid to run or over exert myself in any way. The crushing chest pain is scary. Had an ablation in the 90s and it fixed it. Just recently I started getting the PVCs. All that stress and anxiety is back. Flecainide made mine worse. Had to stop that drug. Getting help now and possibly another ablation soon. Hope you’re doing ok.
Hello Lee!
Thanks for posting. Way, 10 years old. That's not even something I can fathom, and, sadly, you were in a period of time when the medical field was very limited on what they could do. Wow, still can't wrap my brain around what you must have gone through, and what you missed out on. It is nice to know that you were able to get the ablation, and get it fixed. I wish that would have been the end of your story.
It's often confused that the anxiety came first, and for some of us that can be the case. But having one PVC can bring on so much fear and anxiety, that it just exacerbates everything. That's where doctors fall short. The are confused on which came first. A friend of mine felt one PVC and she was in tears and afraid to do anything. That was just one, they can't imagine what it's like to have hundreds if not thousands of these things.
Flecainide worked for me years ago, but I tried it about a year ago and I felt like I was going to die, so I can relate to stopping that medication. It's not pleasant, though I'm glad it works for some folks.
Good with your ablation if you get it, and I hope it cures your PVCs. Please keep us in the know how it goes!
Please come back and start making these videos again. They really help. I hope you’re pvc’s are not so bad right now
I feel so sad about you looking at your underlying depression .... May you get well soon completely ...All my good wishes to you .. I am also having pvc's at times ..I am 26 and don't know what is in store for me in future
Hey Steven, hoping you are doing great now. I have been dealing with anxiety for years but on 2018 I first started feeling my PVCs and since then everything has been a downhill. Doctor termed the benign but when I get them I feel it will stop my heart. And the strange part is sometimes it goes to hibernation and you feel that’s it you might have conquered it and then bang. Last night I had multiple big thuds after almost 6 months. This cycle is so debilitating and annoying and the panic that comes after it is all the more irritating.
I hope we get well soon and can live a life without these worries.
I don’t have the anxiety thought these things sometimes make me anxious…I have the same thing…I’ll go a long period with nothing then all of a sudden I get them for days….