Is Medicating Tachycardia A Good Thing?

[Griffin]

I am still waiting for a date to start on Ivabradine for my tachycardia (& poss fludrocortisone for my BP). Am getting very fed up with waiting. Was originally advised I was going to be started on it in November and here we are late Feb and still no date from consultant to begin.....

Meanwhile all sorts of questions pop into my mind. The latest is that since the heart is racing for a reason, if medication stops it racing this is simpy stopping the symptom and doesn't that mean that whatever is wrong with me will manifest in some other way? I suppose I am questioning whether it is ok to treat the symptom rather than the cause; might treating the symptom acttually make things worse? Sorry, probably not explaining very well......

[erickamcc0523]

I am still waiting for a date to start on Ivabradine for my tachycardia (& poss fludrocortisone for my BP). Am getting very fed up with waiting. Was originally advised I was going to be started on it in November and here we are late Feb and still no date from consultant to begin.....

Meanwhile all sorts of questions pop into my mind. The latest is that since the heart is racing for a reason, if medication stops it racing this is simpy stopping the symptom and doesn't that mean that whatever is wrong with me will manifest in some other way? I suppose I am questioning whether it is ok to treat the symptom rather than the cause; might treating the symptom actually make things worse? Sorry, probably not explaining very well......

I think I understand what you're saying... there's a reason for the tachy, so if it is treated, then the symptoms might worsen instead of get better? Is that right?

And as for me, I do feel better somewhat with the tachy under control. I don't get the head pressure symptom so much, and I haven't had as many headaches since I've started on the Toporol. I do still have issues with light-headedness and I still am just as tired all the time (perhaps just a touch more), but trading off the headaches is worth being a bit more tired for me... YMMV, however. In some cases, the tachy is caused as the body's reaction to a drop in BP, so in those cases it may be better to raise the BP, as that will most likely automatically cause the pulse to slow down. However, for me, my BP stays about the same both sitting and standing, so raising my BP isn't a good, or even healthy thing.

[firewatcher]

For me, tachycardia is an inappropriate response or exaggerated response to "normal" conditions. So slowing it down is a good thing, for me. My heart is not supposed to thump at 120 bpm just standing there. Along with the tachycardia, I get HIGH BP, so bringing that down is good for me as well. I'm not a fainter, yet, so hypotension is not an issue. For POTS the tachycardia is not an appropriate physical response to the demands placed on our systems, it is an overresponse by the nervous system, so we are treating the heart, but it is the brain that has the problem.