not too well

hi everyone...

thought id give you all another update. i saw dr heupler on wed he is a coronarty artery specialist and he ordered a few tests for me. i had a TEE where they put a camera down my throat to check my aortic valve, this came back fine and they said no surgery is reccomended yet, which is great news. i also had a ergonovine cath test on fri which was awful, they wanted to check for artery spasm. this did not go so well. the test came back fine. they did not find any spasm. during the test i was in constant tachy and they had to give me two doses of beta blocker ontop of the one i take every morning. after the test i went into recovery for 4 hours. my heart went into a tachy of 150bpm and then i started to panic also which made it worse. i had another shot of beta blocker and something to relax me, my heart rate went down to 100bpm and i went home.

unfortunately since then i have had constant tachycardia my beta blockers dont seem to be working, i thought it may be anxiety so i took some relaxing meds which worked but my heart was still in tachy. today i have a majorly tight chest and im not sure what to do. so many thoughts are going through my mind like blood clots or bronchal spasms or even chest infection but i have to wait until tue to see my cardio. im a little worried as to what is happening. does anyone have any advice? my heart rate is in the 100s at rest so prob higher when active and im on beta blockers. my chest feels extremely tight i find it difficult to catch my breath. i dont want to take anymore anxiety tabs as it makes me feel so bad. my leg is not hurting anymore from the cath site but im just so worried why my heart is so fast constantly. has this happened to anyone else after a cath?

i was very sad after my cath when my cardio told me there was no spasm... i couldnt stop crying. i know you are all thinking she is crazy. but i was hoping for some answers but i know feel like i am back at square 1. so im back to more testing now.....

thanx for all your support

ally

By beckym
Posted May 24, 2009 at 4:46 pm
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Hi Allly--so sorry to read of the challenges you are facing right now. Could you call the Clinic and speak to someone about the way you are feeling now? Maybe they could even put your call through to the cardiac floor and talk to a nurse. It may help to ask a medical professional about the fast heart beat. Maybe that isn't unusual (couldn't prove it by me). It must be terrible to be worried and feel you have to wait for answers.

Hope you can get some reassurance so you can enjoy this beautiful day.

Becky

By careh
Posted May 24, 2009 at 5:46 pm
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Dear Ally....I am so sorry for what you are going through! Tachycardia really sucks! How much beta blocker are you on? Is it a high dose? Just wondering. My Corgard does a pretty good job of keeping my inappropriate Sinus tach and AV node re-entrant under control...unless I do something to aggravate my heart....like lean over or try to walk fast :) My Doc also put me on Digoxin and Verapamil to help, but I understand there are some nasty affects from the combo of these drugs with beta blockers. They do seem to work for me though.
Are you having other symptoms with the tachy like chest pain or dizzyness? I know how you feel about a test not proving what your problem is and still feeling bad. It is very frustrating. That's what happens quite often with micro vascular problems. The angina is awful, but tests don't show a problem because the large arteries look okay.
This quote came from Healthy Women.org.....
"Medications commonly used to treat heart conditions may help to relieve pain caused by microvascular disease. Symptoms can be debilitating and new data suggests that if left untreated, women with microvascular disease do not have as favorable a prognosis as previously believed. Their risk factors should be managed as aggressively as someone who has CHD." Do you have MVD in addition to tachy? It can make you miserable!!
Stay with this until you get answers, my friend. No one should have to feel bad all of the time! And please, keep us up to date!
Carolyn

By lvfrogs
Posted May 25, 2009 at 9:45 am
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I think you should be calling your doctor! If his office is closed today, call the hospital where you had the procedure done and see if you can speak to someone on the cardiology unit/cath lab. Maybe you just need a different type of beta blocker? This is all new to me, so I can't offer much advice, but I would definitely call the doctor. you shouldn't be feeling this way everyday. Let us know what happens!

By Yatchzee
Posted May 25, 2009 at 11:04 pm
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Oh rats! So sorry to hear that you are feeling so horrible. I was so sure that you had spasms as your symptoms seemed so close to mine and I have had such great results on my treatment. Hang in there for the answers you want and need. When is your next appointment and what will they be testing? I wonder if the ergovine is what set off the bad tachy. Let us know how you are doing?
Joyce

By Hany
Posted May 26, 2009 at 4:51 pm
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Hi Ally

So sorry to hear you are having such a nightmare. How was the doctor today (tuesday isnt it ?) I think it is great that he said he wouldnt let you go home without an answer. It sounds like you liked him and communication is good. It is horrible if you are ill and cant communicate with doctors. So did he tell you whats causing the tachy? Is it an allergic reaction to the ergonovine. It sounds scary. I hope you are feeling better very soon.
So glad to hear you dont need surgery now , thats a relief. Ask him about microvessel . Best of luck and keep us informed. I see prof collins in London next Thursday.
hugs
Hana

By martzj
Posted May 26, 2009 at 6:12 pm
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Hey allie,

Thanks for sharing the TEE camera procedure. It doesn't have to see through the rib cage, like external scanners so the imaging should have been clearer with it sitting almost right next to your heart.

I'm sorry it was so scary for you.....Us tachy girls don't have a very easy time of it....especially when it is prolongued. There is just no way to relax when the heart is slamming around in the chest that rapidly. And it truly does make us feel so nauseous and dizzy on top of all that.

The good news is that there was no evidence of spasming at this time. The anti-tachy meds are a little easier to cope with sometimes than than the anti-spasm meds. (there is no way my system could tolerate 24/7 release nitro for example)

None of the cardiac testing is easy on the patient....and few of us are given immediate result consultation. The waiting is tough.

Let us know how it goes. You are very brave to have tolerated all that.

Hugs to you,
Jaynie

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