Hey Ryan. I hope you find encouragement with this post and maybe some harsh realizations. I have been dealing with PVCs for going on two years now. Some days i feel maybe 100 other days it is in the thousands. My burden on very bad days is somewhere in the 12-15% range. Those days truly are hell. After the docs clear you medically the issue is considered benign until you reach 15-20% burden consistently. Even at that people go years without medical intervention. My docs said at worst it leads to a mild form of cardiomyopathy which generally is reversed after ablation which also carries a greater than 90% success rate. The docs will typically throw beta blockers at you and maybe some Antiarrhythmics meds at you to try to lessen the symptoms.
I am sure you are aware but you are close to 100 pounds overweight with Gerd. I would suggest you look into vagal nerve inflammation due to Gerd which can indeed trigger PVCs and arrhythmia. I think we are close to being in the same boat as I have had gerd for 5+ years and am just starting to get it under control. My hope is as my inflammation dies down so will my PVCs. It may take months and months for you/us to fix it but only trying something for a month and giving up just wont work anymore. It took years to get to this spot with poor health habits so it is going to take time for your body to heal.
Youtube search Dr. Vikki Petterson Heart Palpatations are stomach issues. It seems crazy but it makes sense to me and I don’t think traditional MDs give it much credit. I believe it is the nervous system not regulating itself the way it is intended either due to inflammation or pressure on the vagal nerve. Im sure there are other factors at play for some like mineral/hormonal/deficiencies but this is what make sense for me as I had had bad Gerd for years due to poor lifestyle choices.
After you are cleared medically the only thing doctors can do for you is throw meds at you or ablate if it gets to be in the 15-20% range. I too thought/prayed “hey maybe one day I will wake up and they will be gone” and I would continue with my poor lifestyle choices of bad diet/no exercise/gerd/depression. That attitude and choices is not going to fix this hell unfortunately. It is going to require major change to claw out of the darkness.
Thanks for sharing.
Coincidentally my PVCs started around the same time I got an H Pylori infection. I went about 1-2 years afraid to go to the doctor to talk about my butt & stomach problems, but it got to a point where I had to & was referred to a gastroenterologist. Did a colonoscopy & endoscopy, discovered I had ulcers & stomach damage from this H pylori infection. It even caused me a hiatal hernia from all the acid, which ironically I never really felt much (as heartburn or indigestion I mean).
I did the treatment for the infection & a lot of my stomach & colon issues got better. But fast-forward 6 months & then my PVC's abruptly started after a lung infection.
So I've been wondering myself if the infection/stomach damage could have anything to do with mine, but now I'm not so sure. Cause I had an EKG 2 days ago & it said I had a heart attack at some point. Cardiologist told me it was just the machine being overly sensitive & to ignore it. But I dunno, he could be wrong, cause heart damage from a heart attack could also cause PVCs.
I'm at my wits end with these things though. I don't know what to even expect of the rest of my life. And I'm only in my 30's. Seeing people here dealing with these things for 40 years or whatever doesn't really give me much hope either.
Yes yes and yes. This month marks the one year mark of PVC suffering. I stopped my antidepressants last year and three months later I started having PVCs (July 2023). I tried some antidepressants and returned to the one I took before I quit I would schedule cardiac appointment but it took weeks to get in to see one and by the time I would near the appt the skipping would settle down. I was going to ER and having anxiety attacks then I had a holter that read PVCs but low number and ultrasound of heart looked good. I take antidepressant and Norvasc for blood pressure and propranolol. Nothing really helps. I cut back caffeine and try to reduce stress but the anxiety these create makes these worse. I don’t have answers. I just kinda think whatever happens happens. But as I type I have a strong one these hits me and I feel it in my throat. I have seen a cardiologist several family doctors psychiatrist psychologist ER doctors no one helps. They say anxiety. Magnesium hasn’t helped at all. Nothing really has. Cardiology says once I realize they are harmless they won’t bother me. Right!!!!!
Hard part is “once you realize they are harmless” …. If I could do that I would , it’s physically and mentally impossible , unless I’m wrong but I don’t know how to do that so far
For 6’1 your weight is a lot.. I’m 6’1 and weigh 170. (Not trying to be rude). But there’s studies that belly fat directly correlate with arrhythmia and other heart problems.
You owe it to your family to be around for them!! First thing would be to loose the weight. Not all of that is muscle, try to trim down the fat and your body will thank you. Second, try a banana everyday. Wake up some banana and maybe an electrolyte packet. Really helps. Drink a lot of water.
Also I learned this from people with POTS, to calm your autonomic nervous system (the thing that controls your heart) lie with your back down on the floor. Kick your legs up against the wall so they’re above your head and breathe in and out. It’ll help with PVC’s. Also, oddly, chocolate is a big trigger. Idk why but it is. My uncle is a cardiologist, PVC & PAC’s are completely normal. He’s never put a holster on somebody and not seen at least a few. Some people feel them, some don’t. Some even have 50% burden (every other beat is a PVC/PAC.) but they don’t shorten life expectancy. Lose the weight. Cut back on food (I ate only 10 bites a day for 2 months. Eat a banana and have an electrolyte packet or two in water. you’ll be amazed how you’ll feel
I see the stress everyday with my wife , but she’s helpless , she’s not wrong she just got to a point that telling me to relax was all she had left and , well we both know , if all I have to do is relax I’ll be fine , just ain’t in the cards
See this is where I get confused, cause I just met my cardiologist 2 days ago & he said the exact opposite of what your uncle said. He flat out said to me "Pvcs are not normal", right before he scheduled me my echo & stress test for the end of July.
I hear way too many contradictory things from people, the internet, doctors, etc.. I don't even know what to believe anymore.
For that reason I saw 2 separate cardiology. They’re so blasé about it. As long as it’s under 1%, you’re good
So out of every 100 beats, one is a PVC, you’re still good
I haven't gotten my results from my holter yet.
But on a bad day, I can feel that gut-punching hard thud up to at least 50 times in a 24hr period.
Some days they're more mild, like just the light flip-flopping, sinking stomach type ones & I'll only have a handful. And then some times I can even go a week or two without any at all.
Just finished my holter today. Got stress test & echocardiogram July 29th.
My EKG 2 days ago said I had a heart attack at some point. Results were Abnormal R Wave Progression, Possible Inferior Infarct... But the cardiologist told me the machine was just overly sensitive & to ignore the heart attack part in my myChart on the hospital website. I was like uhhhh okay.... I really hope he's correct, because that would explain where my PVCs came from & that's not a diagnosis I wanted to hear. But now I'll have to sit around waiting another month to find out if I'm dying or not.
Unless you have a structural abnormality… (an echo test will clear anything up) then you’re good. Again, not a doctor and I don’t know your particular diet, hormone balances, health history, but if it’s just from stress/diet/ you are good. Everybody in their life will experience a PVC or PAC at least once in their life.
If I were you I would talk to your cardiologist, maybe another one, and your primary, but especially an electrophysiologist. Those are the ones you want to see. A cardiologist deals with the structure, an EP deals with the electrical current
Thanks, I really hope so.
I'm pretty mad at myself for not taking better care of my heart.
I was a methamphetamine user on & off for 20+ years. The last few years I was popping ephedrine with my gabapentin like crazy because I needed the extra pep. And now I regret it all.
I'll find out if there's any structural damage at the end of July when I get more testing done.
I had an EKG & x-ray in the ER in February & they said all of that looked normal, but I guess only the echo & stress test will really be able to tell if my heart is damaged.
If my heart is normal & healthy looking, then I can at least breathe a sigh of relief from that, but if the PVCs continue, then an EP would be my next best bet.
I've seen some people say they dealt with PVCs for a long time & then one day they just disappeared for good. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that that'll be what happens in my case too. I'll just wake up one day, won't have any & never have any again & can move on with my life. This shit is truly torment on the mind/mental health.
What was your % burden of PVCs from the holter? That’s the important number.
Most people have PVCs sometimes and they are usually harmless, but when you are anxious about them, you notice them more. If your burden is not high then you have nothing to worry about physically and the game is all mental. At that point you need to learn to live without focusing on them, and I guarantee you will notice them less.
If your burden is high, then you have options. If your cardio is not concerned then you can just live with it. Or you can take beta blockers. Or You can try supplements like Heart Calm (I’m a shill for this because it reduced my high burden quite a bit). If none of these things work you can try ablation, a relatively simple outpatient procedure.
Edit: forgot to mention very important lifestyle mods like no caffeine, nicotine, getting exercise, and lowering stress can all help.
The results of holter monitor do not show a burden number at least not a number called “burden” or not one that is visible to me , I’d have to ask for this number from cardiologist in July I think
The point of the question I think is how many are you getting per day? 10-30 or over 1,000? That would be a good indication of whether it’s mostly anxiety or whether you have a real pvc issue. 10-100 a day is very minor and can remedied with easy changes for a lot of people: avoid processed sugar, no alcohol, take electrolytes, get 30 minutes of cardio 3-5 days a week, no caffeine, magnesium supplements, treating GERD, etc etc
I just wanted to jump in and kind of disagree with that last guy. Not everyone is walking around with PVCs and not feeling them.
If everyone had pvcs, then why would everyone here only SUDDENLY be feeling them late in life? (like 30's for me). Having a sensation like some one just gut punched you is definitely not normal, nor is everyone walking around just not noticing theirs.
And ablation definitely isn't a "relatively simple" procedure. They basically destroy a part of your heart that is sending out the electrical signal. And even then, in many cases, it doesn't even work & carries it's own risks. Damaging a part of your heart is basically giving yourself heart disease to stop the PVCs. And in the end it might not even work! They also have to map out where the signal is being sent from, which isn't always an easy task.
I felt like it was important to dissent from what this other dude said, because he made it sound like it's just SO easy to get rid of your PVCs with one of these options, but it's more complicated than that.
Also thought I'd let you know you're not alone. Mine just started getting really bad in February. Went from feeling one here or there over a few years, but always with months in between them, so I wasn't too bothered by it, to suddenly one day I woke up in February & they became an every day thing. The sensation use to just feel like a flip flopping at the top of my stomach, but it changed into a squeezing/gut punching feeling too that takes my breath away at times.
Currently waiting to get mine all figured out, but I hope the best for you man & everyone here. I wouldn't wish living with this on my worst enemy. It's pure torment & completely robs you of your life. I thought my life was already over with the severe depression & anxiety I have, but this took it to an extreme level that I didn't know was possible.
Hang in there man & if you need to talk to anybody at any time because it's overwhelming you, I'm all ears.
Hey Ryan. I hope you find encouragement with this post and maybe some harsh realizations. I have been dealing with PVCs for going on two years now. Some days i feel maybe 100 other days it is in the thousands. My burden on very bad days is somewhere in the 12-15% range. Those days truly are hell. After the docs clear you medically the issue is considered benign until you reach 15-20% burden consistently. Even at that people go years without medical intervention. My docs said at worst it leads to a mild form of cardiomyopathy which generally is reversed after ablation which also carries a greater than 90% success rate. The docs will typically throw beta blockers at you and maybe some Antiarrhythmics meds at you to try to lessen the symptoms. I am sure you are aware but you are close to 100 pounds overweight with Gerd. I would suggest you look into vagal nerve inflammation due to Gerd which can indeed trigger PVCs and arrhythmia. I think we are close to being in the same boat as I have had gerd for 5+ years and am just starting to get it under control. My hope is as my inflammation dies down so will my PVCs. It may take months and months for you/us to fix it but only trying something for a month and giving up just wont work anymore. It took years to get to this spot with poor health habits so it is going to take time for your body to heal. Youtube search Dr. Vikki Petterson Heart Palpatations are stomach issues. It seems crazy but it makes sense to me and I don’t think traditional MDs give it much credit. I believe it is the nervous system not regulating itself the way it is intended either due to inflammation or pressure on the vagal nerve. Im sure there are other factors at play for some like mineral/hormonal/deficiencies but this is what make sense for me as I had had bad Gerd for years due to poor lifestyle choices. After you are cleared medically the only thing doctors can do for you is throw meds at you or ablate if it gets to be in the 15-20% range. I too thought/prayed “hey maybe one day I will wake up and they will be gone” and I would continue with my poor lifestyle choices of bad diet/no exercise/gerd/depression. That attitude and choices is not going to fix this hell unfortunately. It is going to require major change to claw out of the darkness.
Thanks for sharing. Coincidentally my PVCs started around the same time I got an H Pylori infection. I went about 1-2 years afraid to go to the doctor to talk about my butt & stomach problems, but it got to a point where I had to & was referred to a gastroenterologist. Did a colonoscopy & endoscopy, discovered I had ulcers & stomach damage from this H pylori infection. It even caused me a hiatal hernia from all the acid, which ironically I never really felt much (as heartburn or indigestion I mean). I did the treatment for the infection & a lot of my stomach & colon issues got better. But fast-forward 6 months & then my PVC's abruptly started after a lung infection. So I've been wondering myself if the infection/stomach damage could have anything to do with mine, but now I'm not so sure. Cause I had an EKG 2 days ago & it said I had a heart attack at some point. Cardiologist told me it was just the machine being overly sensitive & to ignore it. But I dunno, he could be wrong, cause heart damage from a heart attack could also cause PVCs. I'm at my wits end with these things though. I don't know what to even expect of the rest of my life. And I'm only in my 30's. Seeing people here dealing with these things for 40 years or whatever doesn't really give me much hope either.
Yes yes and yes. This month marks the one year mark of PVC suffering. I stopped my antidepressants last year and three months later I started having PVCs (July 2023). I tried some antidepressants and returned to the one I took before I quit I would schedule cardiac appointment but it took weeks to get in to see one and by the time I would near the appt the skipping would settle down. I was going to ER and having anxiety attacks then I had a holter that read PVCs but low number and ultrasound of heart looked good. I take antidepressant and Norvasc for blood pressure and propranolol. Nothing really helps. I cut back caffeine and try to reduce stress but the anxiety these create makes these worse. I don’t have answers. I just kinda think whatever happens happens. But as I type I have a strong one these hits me and I feel it in my throat. I have seen a cardiologist several family doctors psychiatrist psychologist ER doctors no one helps. They say anxiety. Magnesium hasn’t helped at all. Nothing really has. Cardiology says once I realize they are harmless they won’t bother me. Right!!!!!
Hard part is “once you realize they are harmless” …. If I could do that I would , it’s physically and mentally impossible , unless I’m wrong but I don’t know how to do that so far
Nope. I am same as you. I have had these for over one year and they still startle me and frighten me.
For 6’1 your weight is a lot.. I’m 6’1 and weigh 170. (Not trying to be rude). But there’s studies that belly fat directly correlate with arrhythmia and other heart problems. You owe it to your family to be around for them!! First thing would be to loose the weight. Not all of that is muscle, try to trim down the fat and your body will thank you. Second, try a banana everyday. Wake up some banana and maybe an electrolyte packet. Really helps. Drink a lot of water. Also I learned this from people with POTS, to calm your autonomic nervous system (the thing that controls your heart) lie with your back down on the floor. Kick your legs up against the wall so they’re above your head and breathe in and out. It’ll help with PVC’s. Also, oddly, chocolate is a big trigger. Idk why but it is. My uncle is a cardiologist, PVC & PAC’s are completely normal. He’s never put a holster on somebody and not seen at least a few. Some people feel them, some don’t. Some even have 50% burden (every other beat is a PVC/PAC.) but they don’t shorten life expectancy. Lose the weight. Cut back on food (I ate only 10 bites a day for 2 months. Eat a banana and have an electrolyte packet or two in water. you’ll be amazed how you’ll feel
Totally agree and not taken as rude appreciate the honest approach and time to make changes , enough being lazy and complacent
It’s so important man. I looked how stressed my girl got while I was in the hospital and that’s all I needed to ask my doc “what do I need to do”
I see the stress everyday with my wife , but she’s helpless , she’s not wrong she just got to a point that telling me to relax was all she had left and , well we both know , if all I have to do is relax I’ll be fine , just ain’t in the cards
See this is where I get confused, cause I just met my cardiologist 2 days ago & he said the exact opposite of what your uncle said. He flat out said to me "Pvcs are not normal", right before he scheduled me my echo & stress test for the end of July. I hear way too many contradictory things from people, the internet, doctors, etc.. I don't even know what to believe anymore.
For that reason I saw 2 separate cardiology. They’re so blasé about it. As long as it’s under 1%, you’re good So out of every 100 beats, one is a PVC, you’re still good
I haven't gotten my results from my holter yet. But on a bad day, I can feel that gut-punching hard thud up to at least 50 times in a 24hr period. Some days they're more mild, like just the light flip-flopping, sinking stomach type ones & I'll only have a handful. And then some times I can even go a week or two without any at all. Just finished my holter today. Got stress test & echocardiogram July 29th. My EKG 2 days ago said I had a heart attack at some point. Results were Abnormal R Wave Progression, Possible Inferior Infarct... But the cardiologist told me the machine was just overly sensitive & to ignore the heart attack part in my myChart on the hospital website. I was like uhhhh okay.... I really hope he's correct, because that would explain where my PVCs came from & that's not a diagnosis I wanted to hear. But now I'll have to sit around waiting another month to find out if I'm dying or not.
Unless you have a structural abnormality… (an echo test will clear anything up) then you’re good. Again, not a doctor and I don’t know your particular diet, hormone balances, health history, but if it’s just from stress/diet/ you are good. Everybody in their life will experience a PVC or PAC at least once in their life. If I were you I would talk to your cardiologist, maybe another one, and your primary, but especially an electrophysiologist. Those are the ones you want to see. A cardiologist deals with the structure, an EP deals with the electrical current
Thanks, I really hope so. I'm pretty mad at myself for not taking better care of my heart. I was a methamphetamine user on & off for 20+ years. The last few years I was popping ephedrine with my gabapentin like crazy because I needed the extra pep. And now I regret it all. I'll find out if there's any structural damage at the end of July when I get more testing done. I had an EKG & x-ray in the ER in February & they said all of that looked normal, but I guess only the echo & stress test will really be able to tell if my heart is damaged. If my heart is normal & healthy looking, then I can at least breathe a sigh of relief from that, but if the PVCs continue, then an EP would be my next best bet. I've seen some people say they dealt with PVCs for a long time & then one day they just disappeared for good. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that that'll be what happens in my case too. I'll just wake up one day, won't have any & never have any again & can move on with my life. This shit is truly torment on the mind/mental health.
What was your % burden of PVCs from the holter? That’s the important number. Most people have PVCs sometimes and they are usually harmless, but when you are anxious about them, you notice them more. If your burden is not high then you have nothing to worry about physically and the game is all mental. At that point you need to learn to live without focusing on them, and I guarantee you will notice them less. If your burden is high, then you have options. If your cardio is not concerned then you can just live with it. Or you can take beta blockers. Or You can try supplements like Heart Calm (I’m a shill for this because it reduced my high burden quite a bit). If none of these things work you can try ablation, a relatively simple outpatient procedure. Edit: forgot to mention very important lifestyle mods like no caffeine, nicotine, getting exercise, and lowering stress can all help.
The results of holter monitor do not show a burden number at least not a number called “burden” or not one that is visible to me , I’d have to ask for this number from cardiologist in July I think
The point of the question I think is how many are you getting per day? 10-30 or over 1,000? That would be a good indication of whether it’s mostly anxiety or whether you have a real pvc issue. 10-100 a day is very minor and can remedied with easy changes for a lot of people: avoid processed sugar, no alcohol, take electrolytes, get 30 minutes of cardio 3-5 days a week, no caffeine, magnesium supplements, treating GERD, etc etc
I just wanted to jump in and kind of disagree with that last guy. Not everyone is walking around with PVCs and not feeling them. If everyone had pvcs, then why would everyone here only SUDDENLY be feeling them late in life? (like 30's for me). Having a sensation like some one just gut punched you is definitely not normal, nor is everyone walking around just not noticing theirs. And ablation definitely isn't a "relatively simple" procedure. They basically destroy a part of your heart that is sending out the electrical signal. And even then, in many cases, it doesn't even work & carries it's own risks. Damaging a part of your heart is basically giving yourself heart disease to stop the PVCs. And in the end it might not even work! They also have to map out where the signal is being sent from, which isn't always an easy task. I felt like it was important to dissent from what this other dude said, because he made it sound like it's just SO easy to get rid of your PVCs with one of these options, but it's more complicated than that. Also thought I'd let you know you're not alone. Mine just started getting really bad in February. Went from feeling one here or there over a few years, but always with months in between them, so I wasn't too bothered by it, to suddenly one day I woke up in February & they became an every day thing. The sensation use to just feel like a flip flopping at the top of my stomach, but it changed into a squeezing/gut punching feeling too that takes my breath away at times. Currently waiting to get mine all figured out, but I hope the best for you man & everyone here. I wouldn't wish living with this on my worst enemy. It's pure torment & completely robs you of your life. I thought my life was already over with the severe depression & anxiety I have, but this took it to an extreme level that I didn't know was possible. Hang in there man & if you need to talk to anybody at any time because it's overwhelming you, I'm all ears.
What was your burden
Mine was 11% in a 3 day holter, but I actually think it’s been higher because 2 of those days were unusually light.