Shawna

Thank you all so much for your suggestions - I appreciate you taking your time to help me. I think the hardest part is logically knowing what they are but still freaking out and thinking my heart will stay stuck in that horrid rapid rhythm...

I've researched GABA also - Has anyone ever tried the accupressure points to calm an attack?

Does anyone have any suggestions for dealing with this symptom? I have tried deep breathing, tapping, and self-talk...my last resort is always an ativan and a 911 call - The emt's know me well. Some days I can control the adrenaline/panic that always seems to accompany my rapid beats, others I am convinced I'm going to die. HELP!

Thanks for the suggestions - I'm actually trying some compression stockings tonight. My Dr. said that since I've never fainted, he wouldn't order a TTT for me.

Hey all! I seem to only suffer tachycardia and spike in bp when waking early in the morning. I have had numerous ecgs - halter monitors - stress test and even a 24 hr urine to see if a pheo was the reason. No one can tell me what is going on in my body. Only that I have normal sinus tachycardia. I have to call the ambulance at least 2 times a month due to my heart rate, and by the time they transport me to the hospital, the symptoms have calmed. I take an ativan on the mornings that I know I cannot breath through them or cope naturally. Some days it isn't there and others it's weeks at a time. I am so lost as to where to look for help next. All Drs say panic and anxiety, but this is not the same...it is almost as if as soon as wake and start to move in bed, my heart just starts to pound and then when I sit up, it continues to increase speed. Some days I can manage not to add adrenaline, but others I can't. Is my bp dipping too low during sleep and perhaps this is a type of reflex tachycardia to prevent fainting? Any one have similar experiences? It's like i woke up 3 years ago with this one morning...and it's never left.

I've read the same article and also could relate to the content. I seem to only suffer this after being asleep for a few hours...like a surge in bp and tachycardia. It's terrifying!

Thank you all for replying - you don't know what a comfort I feel in just knowing others out there understand what I'm experiencing...or maybe you do. It's Thanksgiving morning and I just called 911 - they checked me out but by the time they arrived the ativan kicked in and I chose to stay home. The ER always sends me away with 'palpitations". After my C=section and blood clots I noticed that I would get these random feelings of "fading away" or like an inner dropping sensation....then my heart would kick into overdrive. The early morning tachycardia is the most frightening - I know it is not "anxiety" although it is similar feeling to a panic attack. My blood pressure is always elevated when they take it in the ambulance....like 144/81 - then drops to normal after lying on the stretcher for a bit. I am so tired and frustrated. How do you all manage the fear part of the tachycardia?

It seems odd that it happens only in those early morning hours. I do suffer from panic disorder and I know what those attacks feel like - this seems more my body than my mind. I will sometimes lay back down and the rate will slow...and then as soon as I get up again it beats harder and faster. I have been researching "extreme dipper" bp and maybe I'm getting a reflex tachycardia due to low heart rate and bp during sleep? I also thought that maybe it was hormonal - like surges of adrenaline and cortisol...I just wish I knew what the root cause is, or could find a Dr. that won't dismiss it as "anxiety".

I haven't had a tilt table test - the tachycardia always seems to resolve itself once I am up for a while. The E.R. sometimes has me lay, sit , and stand and take my bp...I notice my top number increase but the bottom is good so they never seem too alarmed. I'm wondering if my heart rate/bp are dipping too low while I'm sleeping. I wonder if a sleep study would reveal any abnormalities? The dr.s always assume it's panic/anxiety - they assumed that when I had my lungs full of blood clots too! I find that when I awake in the early morning it seems the heart goes zooming even before I sit up, sometimes just turning over, and then once I sit on the edge of the bed it really takes off. I also am sweaty and shaking. Could this be POTS?

I've had a treadmill stress test - 3 week heart monitor, and echocardiogram...they clocked my heart rate at 150 but it was a normal sinus rhythm. All blood work looked normal but I know something is very wrong. My episodes almost always happen after being asleep for a few hours. Mostly when I awaken at 3 or so. Feels like an electric surge is rushing through my body. I sit up in bed and I feel my heart increase...then I, of course, add the blasted adrenaline to it! I usually can deep breathe and talk my way out of the spiraling panic...sometimes I call 911. This month I have called twice...they all know me there. Always settles by the time I arrive at the ER. They have caught me with a low bp once or twice...my blood pressure also surges during the attacks. I do take an ativan before the 911 call - I have never had a tilt table test...my cardiologist laughed at me when I spoke of it because I have never fainted. Sometimes healthcare professionals can be so uncaring.

I am a 46 year old female that had my 4th child 4 years ago - it was an emergency c-section and I also suffer from a blood clotting disorder and suffered clots in my lungs and left leg. Ever since this event I have experienced strange and scary symptoms. I would often feel a sinking sensation and then my heart would race. Every morning(usually 3-5) I awake and as soon as I sit or roll over in bed my heart is racing. I've had all tests - just sinus tachycardia is found. I know something is wrong with me...the cardiologist just told me to relax and live my life. I do suffer from panic disorder, but what is happening in the early morning and even during the night at times...is NOT due to panic, although I add panic when I feel that heart rate soaring. I'm tired most of the time due to not sleeping and miss my old self. I live in Maine and there are not many Drs who even know what POTS/Dysautonomia is. I don't know what to do. I would welcome any suggestions or advice.