# Sudden heavy heartbeats **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [July 26, 2004, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-heavy-heartbeats/256900 "2004-07-26T05:36:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![BubbaDog](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bubbadog/32/333_2.png) [@BubbaDog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BubbaDog)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-heavy-heartbeats/256900/21 "2013-05-07T14:54:10Z")
I get them all them all the time. And by “all the time” I mean daily, often and for hours. I get at least two different kinds of Cardiac Arrhythmia events. The cardiologist told me that just about everybody has them but most people don’t recognize them because they can be very infrequent and mild. In my case it’s been severe and has at times incapacitated me. I’ve never passed out but I’ve been at about 25% energy. My cardiologist has told me that most types of events are more of an annoyance than harm. Still the fact that at any moment I can be “surprised” by something that drops my energy down 75% has prompted me to seek a solution. My cardiologist told me I’m in no immediate danger but agrees that corrective action was warranted. I’ve had an ablation procedure which involves finding the misfiring nerves in the heart and burning them off with a heart catheter device. The first procedure only gave modest improvement. I’ll probably need another. My suggestion to **gentle** is to discuss this with your doctor, take note of the frequency and duration of these events, and consider cutting out some or all stimulants, particularly caffeine. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-heavy-heartbeats/256900/22 "2013-05-07T14:56:05Z")
I’ve had those, and they have been called “ectopic heart beats.” My primary care physician and a physcian friend of mine (whom I respect very much for his knowledge) both said it’s not unusual and not something to really worry about, given a lack of other symptoms. My primary care doctor was so unconcerned that he didn’t even want to set me up with an EKG, and I had to insist on it. Anyhow, for me it lasted a couple of years, and it was quite disconcerting and annoying, especially when it came in bunches. It’s long since gone away (thankfully). I never was able to pin it down to any external factor, whether caffeine or stress or hydration. It _seemed_ to coincide with when I was losing weight and exercising heavily (and my resting pulse had come down from my usual low 70s to 50s), but I can’t be sure of that. But, yeah, they really suck and throw you off your rhythm (no pun intended.) ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2013, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-heavy-heartbeats/256900/23 "2013-05-07T18:46:19Z")
> [@Smeghead](#): > > I’ve had the same thing for years. I talked to a doctor about it, and he said it’s perfectly normal, and I shouldn’t worry about it - unless it starts happening often, or they become strong enough to be noticeable. Most people have them, but don’t notice them. I’d say talk to a doctor about it. Which, considering this is an internet message board, is going to be the only reliable advice you’ll be getting here. > > And as purely anecdotal evidence (which is an oxymoron), I’ve found that it happens much less often when I’m exercising regularly. It’s been almost nine years since he posted this, but THIS guy sounds like he knows what he’s talking about. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 2:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-heavy-heartbeats/256900/24 "2013-05-08T02:40:16Z")
I’ve had that sort of thing for years and years. Occasional spells where it was quite frequent, like every 30 seconds. Allegedly, these are quite common and you don’t even notice it. When you _do_ notice, it’s called a _palpitation_ (that’s a generic word for any noticeable heart irregularity of any cause), or it’s described as “symptomatic”. My case was diagnosed as PAC, which seems to stand for either Premature Atrial Contraction, or Premature Atrial Complex. You can find many on-line sites, by the way, that describe electrocardiograms, and how to read and interpret them. Here’s one: [home](http://www.drsegal.com/medstud/ecg/) ETA: And like others have noted above, my various doctors have all said this is (usually) nothing to worry about. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 4:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-heavy-heartbeats/256900/25 "2013-05-08T04:48:15Z")
> [@awldune](#): > > If you are concerned, you could ask your doctor to do a [Holter monitor](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holter_monitor) analysis, where they attach electrodes to your chest and record a continuous EKG for 24 hours. That should tell them whether you have anything to worry about. It’s been 9 years. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2013, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-heavy-heartbeats/256900/26 "2013-05-08T04:49:25Z")
Medical advice is best suited to IMHO. Even nine-year-old medical advice. Colibri General Questions Moderator [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sudden-heavy-heartbeats/256900.md?page=1)