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UserID: malena35 Type: CurePVCs Joined: Oct 26 2013
Thread Started: Jun 24 2014 Last Post: Jul 06 2014 Last Post By: malena35
Origin: General Topics Total Posts: 8

Bad PVC's, feeling desperate, need HELP

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Posted Jun 24 2014#1 of 8
malena35User Since: Oct 2013Posts: 5Hello,

I am new to this site. First, sorry in advance because my English is not so good :) Anyway, I've been having PVC's for almost four years now. They started out of the blue one day and the most I had on 24-hour holter was around 3.000 and a few brief incidents of non-sustained VT. I am 36 year old female and my heart is otherwise healthy. When my PVC's were really bad, they put me on low dose of sotalol and first couple of months it was great, NO PVC's AT ALL, but then they slowly started to come back... At this point, I have them every day very frequently (despite taking sotalol) and they also wake me up from my sleep a few times at night, which never happened before. Dr's don't know what to do, they just tell me "live with it" (yeah, right) and refuse to listen when I tell them things are getting worse... I am at my wit's end, crying and feel desperate all the time, and I feel like a hypohondriac because no one seems to understand how terrible it is to live with this condition. I tried Magnesium, Omega 3 and CoQ10, took them every day for months, but nothing seems to help much... So here is the question: how do you live and cope with your PVC's? What do you do when the drugs are not working anymore? And is there anything else that might help them reduce just a little bit? I read that some of you take potassium, I never tried that - maybe I should? Thank you for your patience. Any advice will be greatly appreciated, I am really depressed...
Posted Jun 25 2014#2 of 8
PVCManUser Since: Oct 2009Posts: 228Hi malena35,

A warm welcome to you...

I know exactly how you feel. Half the trouble is getting the doctors to be a bit more sympathetic. The worst thing they can do is say "I don't know what else to do, you'll just have to live with it!" I hate that! Half of the trouble with arrhythmias is that you need some reassurances and even sympathy will help. But it's almost impossible to get sympathy or understanding from those that don't suffer with the condition because they simply don't understand how horrible it is.

I was in Thailand for nearly a year back in 2007, and I was struck down with an illness like nothing I've ever had. I was alone in my room almost incapable of going out and in a heck of a state. The receptionist at the hotel I was at suggested I went to the local hospital which I did. The doctors there were amazing, and their sympathy and attention to detail alone made me feel so much better. So much so, that I started getting better that very day. My point for saying this is that I wholly believe that state of mind is half the trouble.

Nevertheless, arrhythmias are often caused by a combination of things, especially electrolyte imbalances but exacerbated by anxiety. It is like a downward spiral. You mentioned you have tried magnesium which didn't help. When mine started back in the late 1990s, I too tried magnesium and it made no difference at all. But I have heard many people say that there are many types of magnesium.

Have you read: My Story?

Most of the advice I could give you based on my experiences is covered in the above link. There are however a couple of questions I would ask:
Have you had blood tests done to test your electrolyte balances? (This doesn't always paint the full picture mind)
Do you suffer with indigestion (heartburn etc)?

Like yourself, I was close to despair with horrible long nights of anxiety and tiresome days as a result. But don't give up, because I have almost eliminated my PVCS with just an occasional relapse (the last one of which was last year).

One final point, don't worry about your level of English, it's a lot better than some English people I know! :-)
Posted Jun 25 2014#3 of 8
malena35User Since: Oct 2013Posts: 5Dear PVCMan,

thank you so much for your post. I am at work right now so I just looked at your story briefly, if I understood right you resolved your problems mostly with Apple Cider Vinegar? I don't have classic heartburn but I do often have digestive problems, such as bloating and diarrhea... Anyway, I did blood work and I am waiting for the results of electrolyte levels this afternoon, so we will see... I had a pretty quite day today until afternoon, and the PVC torture started again right after lunch :( I will keep you posted. Thanks again.

Posted Jun 25 2014#4 of 8
malena35User Since: Oct 2013Posts: 5So I got the blood work results, everything is fine (I didn't think it would be different anyway...). Now my GP is thinking of sending me to do some hormone tests, although I already did those a year or two ago and everything checked out as well, so it will probably be a waste of money... Had many pvc's again last night, very forcefull, despite taking BB and Klonopin as well. I am desperate beyond words, I feel like I came to a brick wall and there is nothing else I can do... There is just one option left - EP study, but I'm not sure if I want to go down that road yet. But if they continue at this frequency, I think it's either ablation or mental hospital :) Anyone else here had an ablation for PVC's? Experiences?
Posted Jul 05 2014#5 of 8
miss spice bombUser Since: Jun 2013Posts: 47Hello there!
I'm so sorry your having a rough time with your PVC's! Ive been suffering from them daily for about a year and a half now.
I get around 1-2 per minute, also have non sustained VT, and I go into bigeminal rhythm for hours at a time a few times a month!
When i first started getting these i was an absolute nervous wreck, I thought my heart would stop at any minute and i was obsessed of finding some kind of cure!
Ive had all the usual tests..scans...monitors..blood work..and everything with my heart is fine, apart from these annoying beats!
I've come to the stage now where I'm not too fussed about them anymore,because its the way my heart works now, I don't take any meds and I've stopped trying out diets and trying different supplements! None of these make a difference!
I think the key to benign arrhythmias is to accept that this is your heart beat and its not going to hurt you!
Pay the pvc's no attention and they will soon fade into the background!
I do think anxiety feeds them and you need to be less stressed about something that is harmless!
Yes you could have a radio frequency ablation, but even then its not gauranteed to cure them and its risky too!
I'm also 32 weeks pregnant and they haven't got any worse they are the same!
Hope you find peace soon! xx
Posted Jul 05 2014#6 of 8
malena35User Since: Oct 2013Posts: 5Hi Miss Spice bomb,

thank you for your post. I admire your courage to stay pregnant, I couldn't even imagine that... I know you are right about the anxiety - sometimes I manage to cope, but sometimes it's just too much. Not sure what to do, I have an option for the ablation now and my cardio thinks it shouldn't be a problem because my pvc's are all from the same focus, as he said. But I know it's still risky. I'm not worried that it might not work or about the procedure itself, I'm worried that I might have even more problems afterwards, and there's no turning back once you do it... Did you ever take any medications for pvc's?

Posted Jul 06 2014#7 of 8
miss spice bombUser Since: Jun 2013Posts: 47Hi :-)
The only medication i tried was an anti anxiety drug called citalopram! I was so stressed all the time i needed something to calm me!
They worked quite well but I'm not on them now because of the baby. Ive never tried beta blockers as ive got a slow resting heart rate in the 50's and low blood pressure, so they are not really an option for me.
Ive just tried to manage them on my own!
I used to cut out tea..coffee.chocolate. Sugary foods but to no effect! And I think it was stressing me out not being able to have what i wanted!
When i was at my most stressed i asked my cardiologist about ablation, and his words to me were, why would you want a risky procedure for a benign arrhythmia! And to be honest he was right!
How many pvc's do you get?
xx
Posted Jul 06 2014#8 of 8
malena35User Since: Oct 2013Posts: 5They vary, sometimes just a few a day which is nothing, but then sometimes they get really crazy and I get them like 5,6 a minute and that can last for several hours. The most I had recorded on holter was around 4.000 in 24 hours. But I do take beta blocker and it helps, although not every time... Oh, I know about food and sugar, there's nothing I haven't tried, including all kinds of supplements - Mg, fish oil, CoQ10... But they won't leave me anyway. Sometimes I feel it has a lot to do with hormones. My cardio actually told me that for some women pregnancy can make them stop, so who knows - maybe this is your miracle baby :)

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