I took Speed(methamphetamine) about weeks back. I was told the pill weighed 300 mg and it had about 100mg of Speed with rest being filler. I was paranoid about getting tachycardia. Somedays, after I took the pill, I happened to measure my heartbeat and I thought it was going at 120 BPM while walking. The pattern I though I was counting was like this [tic…tic…tic…tic…]
I asked my friend to check my pulse and he said it was going at a normal pace. I then heard it carefully and there were/are alternating sounds [tic…tac…tic…tac…tic…tac…]. If I count [tic…tac] as one beat, my heartrate turns out to be normal (resting = 35 BPM, walking=55/60 BPM).
A pulse doesn’t have any sound. It just pulses. Put an index finger right below your thumb on the wrist and feel the pulse. Each pulse is a heart beat. You can also feel it at your throat, but I prefer the wrist. Do not use your other thumb, since that has a slight pulse and may not be accurate.
Try a blood pressure monitor at a drug store. That will give you your pulse.
Often when you are aware of your pulse it makes you nervous so it beats more. Here is something I have NEVER been able to do. They say the average person breathes 14 times a minute. That is his chest will rise and fall 14 times in a minute (more or less). Try counting it. I can’t do it. I keep holding my breath etc…
I had a similar problem while taking a beta blocker. My doctor took me off of it suddenly. My pulse shot up to 120 just resting. He should have weaned me off of it.
A lot of things from asthma meds to anxiety (yes stress is a BIG thing) to Red Eye coffee can make your pulse fast. I once had anxiet attacks and that can speed up your heartbeat more than you could imagine.
When I got my CPR certification we learned that when you take a pulse you are not necessarily looking for the pulse rate but the strength of the pulse. (though the bpm is certainly a factor)
I hope you are feeling better and with luck you learned a very valuable lesson cheaply
Ok, if you’re listening/feeling your heart actually pumping, there may seem to be two beats. The first when the heart contracts and then when it expands. Together these two motions cause ONE beat. It’s better to take your pulse at wrist or throat where you won’t feel both movements.
ALso, tachycardia, in small doses, is not dangerous. Most people can become tachycardic after they exercise or work-out. It’s completely normal. Especially since normal heartbeats are 60-80 bpm and tachycardia has been defined altenately as over 100 and over 120.
Beta blockers regulate the heart, and going off them suddenly WILL increase your heart rate, and should be redusced slowly.
Note, IANAD, but I was trained as an EMT, and I have chronic tachycardia.