Felt not right for over a year

[dodgemall]

Any ideas what's wrong with me? I'll start by saying I do have anxiety, but it is fairly well under control with sertraline. I am also about 4 stone overweight and in my early 40s. I work full time in a relatively important/stressful job.
Other issues I get are recurrent UTI's, and I take antibiotics maybe once every 6 weeks for this.
I'm hyper mobile but never really caused many problems.
About a year ago I started with a fast-ish heart beat and feeling dizzy. Resting HB just over 100bmp so I was put on beta-blockers. These seemed to help a bit, fast heart went down a bit, still dizzy. Told my weight was causing it.
I am mainly dizzy when standing from sitting or lying down. The room spins for a few seconds and I can hear the blood rushing in my ears.
6 months ago I started to get severe heart palpitations. Every few seconds, 24 hours a day, every single day. GP did 5 min ecg and said PVCs and totally harmless, and to forget about them. She said they register every few seconds on the ecg, but they're harmless.
Anyway, 6 months on I still don't feel right. I'm dizzy numerous times a day, my heart pounds out of my chest constantly and I just feel crappy.
Anyone have any suggestions?
Blood tests all fine, thyroid fine, diabetes blood sugar on the upper end of fine.

Oh and I was 3 stone heavier than this last year, but have lost 3 stone since these issues started and if anything they've got worse.
All I keep getting told is that it's my weight and anxiety causing everything.

EDS and POTS - have a look

POTS?

Interesting both of you have said POTS. A doctor a few months ago took my blood pressure at sitting and then standing and said there wasn't a huge drop so couldn't be POTS?

Peri menopause.

I also thought perimenopause, had similar symptoms.

Peri + BPPV?

I also thought peri menopause. I once had heart palpitations that lasted about 12 hours, it was terrifying. Then one day they just stopped and I haven’t had them again.

I wonder if I can get tested for peri menopause. Is that even a thing? These palpitations have been 6 months solidly now. I cannot put up with them much longer!

Push to see a cardiologist to get the PVC’s looked at with a 7 day event recorder. Can you afford to go privately?

Ferritin/iron levels? Have they been checked?
I would do a complete blood count,and see if there's anything that jumps out there.

Perimenopause is diagnosed on symptoms, not bloods. Recurrent UTIs was my first sign. Vaginal pessary HRT and showering immediately after sex (literally not even stopping for a cuddle 😂) is working, not had one since I started that.

I'm now on gel HRT as well because my sweat stinks, periods are now erratic, hair is like straw, and my temper was so frightening that I begged for help. It seems to be working on the probems!

Everything you're describing is well within the bounds of perimenopausal symptoms. However you'll want to have proper cardiac checks too.

Yes ferritin and iron levels checked and fine. When I say early 40s I've just turned 41! Is that too young or not really? Periods still regular as clockwork, every 28 days. Recurrent UTIs started 3 years ago.

Another vote for perimenopause OP. I had all you describe - thought was my anxiety & depression & only till started HRT did I realise that palpitations, blood pressure going haywire, dizziness, acute anxiety & rage were caused by low & fluctuating estrogen & progesterone. You need to insist to your GP that you want to try HRT & that you don't have to be having hot flushes to qualify for it -as a lot of GP's are still clueless re peri/meno. I was amazed at how much it's helped me - mine are all gone.

Exactly what I was thinking.

This. A lot of your symptoms sound familiar as part of perimenopause that I've had: the anxiety, palpitations, dizziness... I've even had things like really sore soles and tinnitus, plus a lot of oral health issues like gingivitis and burning mouth syndrome. Most can probably be helped with HRT. I'm not on it but I know that a lot of women swear by it.

Plus UTIs can become a lot more frequent in perimenopause thanks to the lowered hormones making vulva skin thinner, and more sensitive to pain /infections. Being a woman is crap sometimes 😞

Peri menopause, I’ve had a lot of similar symptoms and more. Been in peri since I think around 38 x

Thanks all. I'm deffo going to look into POTS and peri menopause. There has to be some reason behind it all!

Definitely. Women with cardiological issues are too easily dismissed as having anxiety, etc. Men tend to have thorough investigations of the symptoms they report.

OP, did anything happen to trigger the palpitations?

Try all the tricks that can't do any harm - good sleep, hydration, etc.

I say peri-menopause too. I had heart palpitations that went on for a solid week. I didn't know what it was and was very frightened. It calmed down after that week and heart monitor showed same as yours. After I went on hrt it got a lot better. Now I only get the occasional one.

No nothing triggered the palpitations. Literally woke up one day and was having them every few seconds. I can't believe that something that feels so scary is apparently perfectly normal! Can't afford to go private and they won't investigate more. They just say it's normal!

With the UTIs if they are thet frequent ask for a low dose antibiotic as a preventative cause. Or ask to be referred to urology.

Yeah I've seen a consultant and am on a waiting list for more treatment, so that's all under control re UTI. Thank you though!

Assume you've stopped all stimulants like coffee, chocolate and sugar? Sugar is what makes my ectopic beats a million times worse.

I've had them for 15yrs, I don't let them bother me any more.

Also:
Salt in food helps with the dizziness
Estriol cream for your vagina and vulva will help massively. I don't know why GPs don't use this alongside antibiotics for UTIs in women. You take this for life op and it helps. I don't even get up for a wee in the night any more.