Anxiety - Heart Palpatations Triggering "Health Anxiety"

I just felt the need to get this off my chest, as I'm starting to freak out. I can get heart palpitations a lot; I'm used to it. I've had anxiety problems since I was a young teen, and I'm now 27, so it's pretty familiar. The thing is, I've been on Propranolol for a couple of weeks, now, and I'm sat here, trying to watch Prison Break, and I noticed my heart throwing a wobbly, like it has done in the past: heart palpitations.

I'm trying not to freak out; I'm trying not to think of it as something like "heart attack" or "heart disease", etc. I just don't get why I have the damn thing in the first place - I already took the damn pill, today, and Propranolol is a beta-blocker that apparently reduces things like heart palpitations.

There's no real point to this post, but I could do with some advice, if you can think of anything.

I did take a charcoal tablet, because I'm a bit gassed up (my own fault for drinking Pepsi) but I don't think that would do it, as I have been taking them for months, as and when needed. I know Prison Break is an intense programme, but I can't seriously be having a panic attack over it, surely? ¬_¬ Sometimes it's like my anxiety is purely physical.

I think one of the worst things about "health anxiety", is that you trigger yourself. Here I am, perfectly fine, watching a programme, then I get a symptom of anxiety, one with which we are all familiar, and then that of course triggers my health anxiety, which only makes me more anxious, which will inevitably give me more possible symptoms about which I will stress! Argh, my brain is so warped.

Thinking about it, I'm Jittery, and I think my palms are a bit sweaty, ... I am anxious, and for nothing. FFS, can I not just watch a programme without my anxiety getting in the way; is it going to take that away from me, too?!

Help?

{ Kein Teufel }
Translation: Not a devil
[ `id -u` -eq 0 ] || exit 1

Sounds like a panic attack, but if you haven't had it checked out see a doctor. If it is a panic attack, the good news is they are not dangerous, just uncomfortable. Controlled breathing exercises work for some. Might be a good idea to find a professional to talk about it too.

This happens to me. I'm going to come down hard on you with this.. Because I try to make a post like this but too afraid because I'm almost panicking and then when I'm not I just don't care..

Are you eating properly?. Not just ya but I mean an actual full three meals per day.

If you are not eating properly, breathing exercises will not work. Nothing will work. You just have to sit there and panic more than usual until you can get into the habbit of proper eating. I assume theres a problem if you have to take a disgusting charcoal tablet from drinking Pepsi. The only thing that works for me somewhat is swimming.

When I forget to eat for a while (Ritalin), my heart beats fast as **** without even panicking (about 150-160bpm and 240 when anxious which is extremely high for just sitting there and doing nothing). It can flutter too as if it feels like its not pumping blood. With or without stimulants.

When that happens I have a banana (potassium and other lacking nutrients that the heart is supposed to be using for actually beating properly). Warm milk for calcium, diphenhydramine to calm a bit or clonazepam if I have any and what ever the hell other sedatives. Booze helps but don't recommend.

If the problem still persists, try taking potassium supplements and others, take a bit more salt to increase blood pressure if it's low. Drink more milk. I dunno I'm only like around 18 but this is from experience because I know how you feel it's scary and there has been many times where I have the need to go to the ER but my mom won't let me because she knows I'm over reacting. I also have a complete compulsion of checking my heart beat for hours at a time it can get that bad. The past three days has been ok but it goes in waves and is a part of anxiety.

Also, you should say every single drug or herb you take as well because Prozac nearly killed me by giving me severe ventricular fibrillations. All I would feel is "BOOM" in the chest and would compain at the front desk multiple times at the hospital.

Obviously I'm sure you have seen a doctor about this so if you are indeed healthy, you should be prescribed ... Oh wait the propranolol.. I was thinking of that as well but I think it can do the opposite especially if it's something that takes a few weeks to work.

Weight plays a role in it as well. Apparently I'm underweight which means I have to constantly eat to get nutrients.

Sometimes I binge on coke like 2L a day for like three weeks.. Don't be me..

Btw the word "panick attack" is used too easy. I prefer to say "anxiety attack". Cuz my anxiety attacks are definitely not the crazy paranoia death hell panick attacks I sometimes get but they sound like it.

Not "properly", but I do aim to get fiber, veg', protein, etc. I don't drink much in the way of booze, and I don't go crazy with sugary crap. I eat a takeout, now and again, but it's more like once a week at most, and even then, I always insist on something with a ton of veg' in it, like Domino's Chicken Tikka Hot "wrapz" that have plenty of veg' in it. I currently drink decaffeinated tea, peppermint tea, water, and Pepsi, but the Pepsi isn't often. The Pepsi is apparently sugar and caffeine free. I used to drink Pepsi/Coke a LOT, a few cans a day. I dunno how I managed to get into drinking so much Pepsi, but I "canned" that, recently, because my doctor suspected that, alongside my anxiety, all the Pepsi and caffeine was screwing with my bladder. I have issues relating to food, as well, so I have to be careful with what I eat. I can't really eat 3 full meals a day, so I tend to go with a few small portions and one meal at the end of the day. Anywho, I really don't think food was causing heart palpitations, although diet is definitely an issue with me.

As mentioned, I do have an anxiety problem, to say the least; I'm disabled (officially) by it, alongside OCD. I think it's GAD or something - health anxiety, social anxiety, blah blah blah.

The charcoal tablets are just for built-up gas (and are also handy to have, as they can help get rid of toxins in the body) with which I have a problem. I take one if I have a particularly acidic meal, or a heavy meal, such as pasta, that would need sure there's not going to be a huge amount of gas getting in the way.

I took Prozac as well, for a couple of years. It sounds to me like your body really didn't agree with it. I was sort of OK with Prozac, until I came off it, when I had nasty withdrawals, those of which lasted for ages.

My doctor leads me to think that I'm otherwise healthy. I had a test done for diabetes and other things, lately. A number of years ago, I went to A&E (health anxiety thing ¬_¬) and it was for my chest. I had an x-ray, and some heart-related stuff done (blood-pressure test, I assume) and they all said I was fine; although I was very fit and healthy, back then, I like to think it still holds some weight.

The Propranolol is a beta-blocker, which reduces blood-pressure, and thus helps with symptoms of anxiety, which is why I take them.

I actually worked out, last night, and not long after, I started to relax; it was just anxiety, although I'm not entirely sure why; perhaps something in the programme triggered me and due to my therapy, I managed to ignore the trigger, but the anxiety remained. I've not been sleeping very well, lately, which is pretty normal for me, so I think that has something to do with it. I find I get more anxious if I haven't slept properly.

I am overweight, at least according to my BMI, but I have a "muscular" build (not Arnold Schwarzenegger, but I used to look "athletic", as I worked out, cardio and weights, regularly and some obsessively, for years, until I stopped due to depression and other personal reasons) so I assume I'm not quite as "obese" as the BMI charts say I am. Everyone say I don't look overweight at all, although I imagine they're just saying that. I know getting exercise is an issue for me, and it's not just depression I battle, it's my bladder, my bowels, my sleep, etc. There's no point in working out, if it's going to make me ill. After a couple of years of battling the depression and willpower, I finally got back into it, but then I started getting abdominal problems like mentioned above, and I had to stop; it completely threw me off and put me back to square one. :|

Yeah, I agree that "panic attack" is perhaps overused. I am anxious pretty much all the time, and have been that way for most of my life. I don't know if you know of the term "free-floater", but that's pretty much me. The Propranolol helps, but it doesn't get rid of it. Point is, I sometimes struggle to know whether I'm actually having my version of a "panic attack", because it's all so normal for me. I can't help but to be dismissive, when a normal, healthy Joe Bloggs tells me they're having a panic attack; it feels as though they have no clue.

{ Kein Teufel }
Translation: Not a devil
[ `id -u` -eq 0 ] || exit 1