Rapid Sternum Tapping

rcobourn wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 12, 2020 1:12 pm

Pretty sure when doc said extended she meant more than 5 seconds.

Oh believe me, I said that. And, as only doctors can say, “well that’s nice what you read on the internet but this is how we check to verify you’re ok”

Possible second opinion indicated here.
This doctor could have made up her mind before she even saw you.
She dismissed your internet research out of hand.
Obviously, you hurt her ego.
My doctors recognize that I aspire to be as knowledgeable as possible.
If they have a problem with that--they are NOT my doctor.

If you are taking BP meds, and taking the same dosages you were before CPAP, that could certainly be causing palpitations. But the idea it's nothing to worry about is silly. Go see a cardiologist.

Just a follow up on this. The strapped a 48-hour recording ECG to me with an "event" button I could press when I felt something. ECG was clear. Definitely some skipped beats here and there but all within normal ranges. Nothing around the events I marked. Cardiologist said it's likely my heart but nothing to be concerned about. Could be dehydration since one of my BP meds is a diuretic, and the events occur at the tail end of sleep where I'd be most dehydrated. Suggested halving the dosage of the diuretic med and see what happens.

A friend of mine is an amazing cardiac surgeon and he's never heard of the symptoms I've experienced. Just part of the fun of getting older I guess. Glad for the all-clear on the ticker tho!

I assume your potassium levels have been checked. When on diuretics the potassium levels can fluctuate or drop too much and affect the heart rhythms a bit. You don't want too high and you don't want too low.
Be extra careful with your own overall hydration levels as well.

Pugsy wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 04, 2020 11:02 am

I assume your potassium levels have been checked. When on diuretics the potassium levels can fluctuate or drop too much and affect the heart rhythms a bit. You don't want too high and you don't want too low.
Be extra careful with your own overall hydration levels as well.

This happened to me! It wasn't so low as to cause discomfort, but it was below normal. Increasing potassium and using a different bp med resolved the low potassium and reduced the meds i needed for bp. Potassium can lower your bp, while sodium can increase it. But WARNING, it's a very fine line. Too low or too high can cause muscle cramps and heart arrhythmias, and can be fatal, so involve your doctor, don't you with that on your own.
Most people's bodies can self regulate. I have a rare condition that leads to low potassium, and that was exacerbated by the diuretic...

khauser wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 04, 2020 12:56 pm

Pugsy wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 04, 2020 11:02 am

I assume your potassium levels have been checked. When on diuretics the potassium levels can fluctuate or drop too much and affect the heart rhythms a bit. You don't want too high and you don't want too low.
Be extra careful with your own overall hydration levels as well.

This happened to me! It wasn't so low as to cause discomfort, but it was below normal. Increasing potassium and using a different bp med resolved the low potassium and reduced the meds i needed for bp. Potassium can lower your bp, while sodium can increase it. But WARNING, it's a very fine line. Too low or too high can cause muscle cramps and heart arrhythmias, and can be fatal, so involve your doctor, don't you with that on your own.
Most people's bodies can self regulate. I have a rare condition that leads to low potassium, and that was exacerbated by the diuretic...

Yep....and our bodies can change as to how they metabolize the potassium. I went for years on my BP meds which also contain a small amount of diuretic and my potassium levels were fine and then all of the sudden they started dropping so now I have to add a potassium pill and it's a horse pill. I have to cut it in half to swallow it.