★★★☆☆
Bradycardia - Low Heart Rate
In December of 2015 I suddenly found my self in the ER with high blood pressure (189), a hard beat of my heart, heart rate was erratic, I was weak, shaky and the EKG showed bigeminy. While hooked up to the monitor I discovered my heart rate was only 49. I got scared, but everyone told me not to pay any attention to that. They kept me overnight. My ultrasound showed a normal heart, x-rays were normal. I asked for Heart Coronary CT scan but they did not do that and sent me home saying there's nothing wrong with my heart. I later did have the coronary CT but it was normal other than the Right aortic artery is smaller than the Left one. I have had a low heart rate since then - and perhaps had it even before I went to the ER that 1st time. Since then, I've had to go to ER approx 15 times, each time sent home with no diagnosis, each time this weird, hard, fast HR, shakiness & weak feeling started after I ate a meal or even a snack. I only go to the ER when it's serious enough to scare me. I started seeing a cardiologist in 2017. He put me on Metoprolol for high bp and palpitations, which I've had palps occasionally since my 20's but more often now. I couldn't take the meds since it lowered my heart rate even further. My bp now is variable, usually from 99/59 to 127/70. In August of 2017, I had one bout of atrial fibrillation and spent the night in the hospital, and had the cardio conversion the next morning which put me back in sinus rhythm. I have been on Eliquis ever since. At that time, Dr also looked at my heart from my esophagus and found nothing wrong with it. I went to Mayo Clinic in 2017. They found nothing wrong with my heart other than some minor calcification in the mitral valve. I failed their stress test, could only get my HR up to 90 BPM. They said my low HR was caused by being sedentary and told me to exercise every day (walking), gradually increasing until I could exercise 30 min/day. Even though I have been walking 5,000 paces/day since 2017. They said nothing should feel like I was exercising too hard. They thought exercise would 'reset' my HR. It did not. However, each time I got close to my goal of 76 BPM on the treadmill, something would make me sick, diverticulitis or arthritis. I do run very low fevers occasionally, for no reason that I can tell, ever since the breast cancer. I don't get sick, just very low grade fever.
Some history for me. I was dx with breast cancer in Dec 2011, lumpectomy and 39 radiation treatments to the left breast in Jan 2012. Could the radiation have damaged my heart's electrical system? The radiologist was so suspicious when I wanted my medical records and even had their manager ask me if I was suing them and shredded the papers they had already given to me. I had one infected tooth extracted and another infected tooth was treated with antibiotics, and a root canal. I also have a dead incisor with a lump in the gum from a baseball hitting me 35 years ago. I have scoliosis, upper and lower spine. Doctors claim that shouldn't affect my HR. I am pre-diabetic. I have lost approx 30 lbs and still have about 20 still to lose. I've been on 88 mcg of Levothyroxine for approx 10 years, never a change in the dosage. I saw an endocrinologist in 2018 who had me try Tyrosine (a prescription, 'pure' Levothyroxine) for 1 month, but nothing changed my HR. He tested me for antibodies (which were 140), Free T4 (was 1.4) & TSH (.85). He refused to do any other tests even though I asked if perhaps it wasn't converting properly in my body. He says my thyroid isn't affecting my HR. I was diagnosed with sleep apnea in Sept 2017 and I wear a CPAP mask faithfully. That is it's own form of hell. I hate it but I wear it. I fell & broke my collarbone in April, 2018 and what with the constant pain & stress, I feel that I have gotten weaker. In the last month, sometimes my oxygen level goes down to 91 and rarely to 88. Usually it's at 93 & has been for years. I have to take stairs slowly. I'm scheduled for a chemical stress test in October and frankly I'm scared it may trigger a heart failure. For supplements I take ubiquinol, vit E, Vit D, Vit C, selenium, a mult viti, vit B12 (Other B vits are in the multi), magnesium, probiotics, chlorella, drink ACV, drink home made fermented beet juice, apply 2 drops 2% Lugols iodine topically to my breasts for painful lumps as needed, drink POM juice, eat lots of vegetables, follow a Paleo diet. I don't eat sweets, starchy vegies and limit my carbs. I also pray.
Has anyone had symptoms similar to mine? I am desperate to keep from having a pacemaker even though my current resting HR is 44, during the day it's variable depending on my activity, usually in the 50's/60's, and low 70's when I exercise, but HR drops when I relax. I have never fainted and don't feel dizzy unless rarely when my blood pressure is low. I want to try medical ozone therapy but my husband thinks I would be hurting myself. All the functional medicine drs are so expensive - $450.00 for consultation plus tests costs, etc and they don't take Medicare. I am 70 year old femle and feel like I should have another 70 left in me! No kidding, I still have a child inside me, living and encouraging me. Can anyone advise?
