Hi all,
I must admit I do feel a tad humbled by all of the expert knowledge and information on this fantastic forum, but here’s my first post to hopefully tap into that expertise for some general advice please.
I’m off to the docs this coming Monday 26th Aug for a follow-up chat on my general heart health. My story so far is best described as follows…51yr old male, always fit and active, competitive volleyball, recreational running, cycling, static rowing etc, low resting heart rate. I had experienced the odd ectopic beats come and go over the preceding years, but my first ‘episode’ that caused me to seek medical advice occurred in March 2017 - first night on a ski trip, early start, late night, alcohol, altitude. Woke up in the middle of the night with racing/irregular heartbeat, sat up most of the night, felt a bit better the next day, and pretty much got on with my holiday.
The associated medical intervention then led to a Holter monitor, ECG, heart scan (ultrasound) and gastroscopy. Results and general conclusion from cardiologist in around Sep 2017 was enlarged right atrium and the palpitations were what he described as an ‘inconvenience’. He suggested I take bisoprolol, but after a bit of discussion I chose not to.
Since then, my symptoms have gradually got worse across 2 broad themes.….
A few similar episodes of waking up in the morning with racing/irregular heartbeat which I managed to associate with exercising. I now wear a Garmin heart rate monitor, so can see a spike in heart rate circa 3am/4am which has taken around 36/48 hours to calm down. However I’ve experienced 4 similar episodes in the last 2 weeks which has coincided with a period of rest from exercising. With the last episode on Sunday, I went for a gentle bike ride which seemed to settle things down quicker.
Secondly, I’m experiencing more frequent bouts of rapid/irregular heartbeat almost on a daily basis, most noticeable in the evening, going to bed and waking in the morning. A common theme with these seems to be a correlation with inhaling. I’m aware of RSA but this feels much more marked than my interpretation of RSA, it feels more like my above symptoms. Furthermore, even when they are not present, I’m actually able to initiate said rapid/irregular heartbeats with a full lung and further slow inhaling, or tensing my diaphragm.
The only other point of note is that over the past 20 years, I have regularly experienced what I have generally associated as over-training/over-reaching, with flu-like symptoms/jitters which may or may not be related to what I’m experiencing now. These were often triggered without the intensity of exercise I’d expect, even a hard days gardening could trigger it. With current heart health, I’ve slowed things down significantly so less marked.
So thanks for reading my story, any help/advice most welcome e.g.
- Are these recent symptoms classic Vagal AF?
- Any thought on my inhaling related symptoms
- Where next, what follow-up tests would be recommended (I’m reluctant to take meds until I know exactly what I’m dealing with)
- Any thoughts/advice on exercise duration/intensity (I regularly commute to work on my bike)
Thanks in advance
Brian
Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 08/20/2019 12:35PM by briar.