Cardiac conditions cause anxiety/depression physical symptoms?

[whose_da_man88]

Hi,

Believe it or not, I was hospitalised on Tuesday after at work for something I never had.

I went for near hour walk and got back into the office and there was a massive thump in the chest and my heart was trying to escape from my chest. I tried to relax and deep breath but it did not settle so the ambulance was called. Long story short, I was diagnosed with SVT.

Supraventricular tachycardia is a heart condition where the electrical signals go into a loop causing your heart to beat crazy - like heart palpitations. Mine was clocked at 190bpm. I'm sure it went above that as I feel it settled down a little after the paramedics came.

What I want to ask is this. Panic attacks and SVT have very similiar symptoms -racing heart, sweating, dizziness etc - but SVT still felt differnt to a panic attack. What are the chances that an issue with the heart is causing the anxiety/depression without me knowing because it was never picked up before?

I've been having st john's wort - anyone think that could cause SVT? Could deep breathing cause changes the heart rhythms? Could Neurofeedback (which is changing brainwaves) cause issues with the heart? Am I being silly trying to figure out if my latest diagnoses has any relation to what I have been doing to treat my anxiety/depression?

Thanks.

[blondguy]

Hi Man88

You are covering all the bases where anxiety is concerned and thats fine. Anxiety can cause a rapid heart beat as we have our adrenaline in overdrive. Thumping chest, palpitations are all very normal anxiety symptoms and yes they are upsetting as we arent used to them.

I used St Johns wort in the 1980's when my anxiety attacks started...Just for me it didnt do anything...the anxiety levels didnt change. (other people may have found St Johns wort beneficial)

Just a note if I can Man88....The breathing exercises do help yet if we take too many 'deep breaths' we can over supply our system with oxygen.....thus the feelings you experienced

I am sorry that you were hospitalised Man88 as that would have been awful to go through.

You mentioned that you tried to 'deep breath' before the ambulance was called. If you were in an anxious state to begin with, deep breathing can sometimes make us dizzy and even cause shortness of breath and then the anxiety can become worse....The breathing techniques do take time to learn Man88

You are not being silly at all! Subject to your GP's opinion.....your symptoms do reflect anxiety symptoms

Do your anxiety feelings (symptoms) interfere with your day to day well being?

my kindest

Paul

[whose_da_man88]

Hi Paul,

My anxiety feelings do interfere with my day-to-day. I do note my mood seems to have lifted a bit, maybe coz of the st john's wort, which has exposed an underlying sense of panic and dread about how to cope with the day. But this was before my trip to the emergency ward.

As you can see I'm still trying to figure out myself. I'm keen to get better and trying to recognise the root cause. I still think I pushed myself too hard but I'm really keen to see if other health issues can cause the anxiety/depression symptoms that I have been experiencing. E.g. Heart not pumping enough blood and causing issues with the brain. Or maybe heart not functioning well and affecting the rest of the body causing the fatigue etc.

I was hospitalised for what I think was a panic attack in July 2017 (wasn't diagnosed as by emergency as a panic attack though) and one of the recommendations was to get my heart checked after the ECG showed something irregular but the specialist gave the all clear. Hence curious to see if what I've been going through since with the anxiety and depression and wondering if is in any way shape or form related to a cardiac condition!

[TaySmith]

Hi Man88,

While the symptoms of a panic attack are very different for every individual, my symptoms were similar to that of a heart attack. I would have the racing heart, shortness of breath, pain in my left arm, chest pain, etc. it was hard for me to decipher between what was a physical condition needing medical attention and what was anxiety. They also told me they suspected I had SVT (basically the only condition that is common among young people - meaning only a heart rate beating faster than normal). After eliminating all of the possibilities of what it could be, it came down to anxiety. It’s very hard to go through a time like this and while you are in the moment it is difficult to come out of it. I found that implementing strategies (outside of a panic attack) like meditation, eating well, exercising, practicing breathing, talking to a psychologist, etc. the attacks continued to happen less frequently to the point of not happening at all. In saying this, a doctor has the tools to test and diagnose you but it’s important to keep an open mind as it is crazy what the brain can bring on physically!