1. Are you familiar with basic ECG analysis? Are you willing to spend the time it will take (hours or days of sitting and watching the thing) in an effort to demonstrate the issue you perceive?

2. There is a line between being (health) conscious and anxious (unhealthy). Stress can blur that line. Are you in the blur??

Over the years I have learned to recognize the warning signs that indicate the manageable is about to take on a life of its own and shut it down.

How one shuts it down depends on the trigger and the individual.

Occasionally it will manage to sneak up on me and for those times, once maybe twice a year, one 5mg Klonopin does the trick.

Basically reboots me.

I totally agree on the reset. But I hope you meant .5mg!:eek:

You're not supposed to take the whole bottle at once?

No, I have no knowledge of how to interpet data from an ECG other than one of these things is not like the other...
I was thinking more like when I do notice the irregular rhythm that I could record it and present the information to my gp to show that I am not crazy... Well, not crazy when it comes to the heart rhythm anyway.

I was just wondering if a "heartcheck pen" or the "qardio core" type of device would provide valuable information to my health care provider or gp?

Thanks for the responses. It does make me feel better knowing that this is something that others deal with without lifestyle implications.

I've got mitral valve prolapse (MVP) and can feel what seems to be a skipped heart beat some times. I used to worry about it, but not as much.

Definitely need to get back in shape though...

Acid reflux, especially while lying down can trigger a heart episode. When I get them I stand up or sleep at an elevated position. Gassy food can also trigger an episode.

I do have a small sliding hiatal hernia that has been the cause of reflux symptoms.

I haven't suffered from this for a while but it does happen from time to time.

The main reason I got a Samsung Galaxy Gear watch was to keep an eye on my heart, as it sometimes stops, beats out of rhythm, and yes, been diagnosed with Afib.
As a matter of fact, right before knocking me out last week for a procedure, as the nurse was reading my medical background, and my heart rate started to get a bit erratic, so it was held up a bit.
Keep an eye on it, but don't let it stop you from doing things, especially physical things..

On the surface, that sounds like a good idea but everything is an economy and the things people trade are time, energy and opportunity. Maybe try to get on with being happier and less stressed about stuff. It sounds like you have health that a LOT of folks would pay really good money to enjoy!! SmileWavy

If you do have A-fib, it's best to deal with it in its early stages, as I think you have more options for treatment then.

Probably nothing unusual for a person your age but I always suggest getting it officially diagnosed.

JR

Just a quick update on this thread.
I had taken the advice here and treated this seriously, so thanks for that.

I visited my GP and had told him my concerns and I was told by him that it was probably a benign condition. I expressed my concerns about the probably part of the equation, explaining that some of my activities (hockey and mountain biking) can take my heart rate to very high levels and I wanted to make sure that I wasn't going to drop dead because of them.

Step 1 was a Holter Monitor.
Had the monitor overnight and was able to feel a few of the disruptions to the normal rhythm and cued the monitor at that time.

My GP had then sent me to a cardiac testing facility and had a bunch of blood work done. After a consult, I had a treadmill stress test.

Cardiologist reviewed tests and blood work and except for a slightly high bad cholesterol reading (bad diet with my family away for the last few months) I was told to keep doing what ever exercise I wanted and that my risk of heart attack/stroke is very low for someone of my age (53).

So I guess I will see if I can pick up some spare spots in my summer hockey sessions as I didn't sign up this year and get back on the old Blur LT and start climbing again.

Things that I have changed since the PACs had begun (that's what they called them btw):
Cut down on coffee. Only one cup in the morning
Cut back on chocolate. I really like this and still have one square with my coffee in the morning. I was told by the cardiologist that some chocolate is very good for maintaining artery flexibility...
Cut back on booze. To be honest I was probably drinking too much. I haven't quit but I have cut back to a few beers during the week and I really watch my intake on the weekends.
Stopped taking some supplements that I had read could contribute to this.

To make a long story just a little bit longer, I am glad that I had the testing done. Nice to have some piece of mind and some confidence that what you love to do wont kill you. I still have them but they don't bother me now that I know what they are.



Cheers,

Glad to hear you've decided the situation has been resolved as far as you are concerned. I went on blood pressure medication a couple of years ago for borderline hypertension. I don't have instances of an irregular heartbeat, but have been having episodes of low blood pressure. The docs mostly say it's probably dehydration, but I think it's because they just don't know. I had an episode yesterday while weed whacking. Started feeling really fatigued & went inside to take my blood pressure. The monitor said 80 over 51 w/ a heart rate of 118 & fluctuated during the rest of the day w/ a high of 109 over 65. Seems like lots of people here have heart irregularities.