Fast Heart Rate After Drinking Alcohol

hi this is my stotry
i jhave bad anxiety since june, i didnt drink alcohol for 3 moths until yerstuday.
today i woke up at 8 am sleepeng 4 hours, i noticed my HR is elevated, my normal would be 60, but it was 80
i didnt worried , was still little drunk, and could fall a seel in 30 minutes.
when i woke up second time 11am my HR was 100 it, so i began to worry, I drunk lots of water, and ate lunch. couldnt eat to much becouse i felt sick.
when i returned to the bed, i became extremly anxious. my HR jumped up to 130bpm, heart was pounding. stupid me tried to relax with cigarette which made my heart go to 140 bpm, i decided to take benzos. and it calmed me down but not HR which was still high.
thought about to go to ambulance but i didnt,
get some sleep with help of benzos and woke up 5 pm
HR wstill elevated 90bpm, but its getting better
now i have almost normal HR 70 or 80 in resting.
i dont know why it happens, i hope it will go away, but i wont drink so much soon

normal reactions...alk will raise hrt rate and BP, both during drinking and day after...benzos arent the best combination either

My mom died 11/20 , gone out almost every night, but that will change after this weekend...I also had been taking Xanax, half mg twice a day and thats going too

I quit smoking 3 yrs ago, and dont want to start new BAD habits

Makes sense, but what if the increased heart rate goes on for 2 weeks? I've had it go on every day for 2 weeks with some chest pain..

Explain?

It concerns me greatly about what all of you are saying. I used to have the same problems and i always ignored them. They were uncomfortable and scary and though i always thought i might die, i never did which is something that is very important to keep in mind--this hasn't killed you yet. This first began when i was 22 and i am now 24, and lets be honest, i drink quite a bit of alcohol compared to what i have seen from others. I remember the first time it happened and it was scary as hell. But then eventually it slowly went away. I thought it was gone forever until something happened last October. I will admit that there was a considerable amount of stress in my life and that i was looking forward to blowing of some steam at the bar with my friends. I had a fun time and went to bed-- no fast heart rate. The next morning i woke up hung over but still had to go to work so i did. About 2 hours in, i got REALLY dizzy and lightheaded. It felt like i was going to faint! So, i went and sat down. I was completely delirious. I got up and tried to walk again and just felt like i couldn't even stand. I thought i was dying. So, i checked my pulse to convince myself that i was still alive. AND I COULDN'T FEEL ONE!! (or anything else for that matter...it was like i was stalled in the place between near faint an consciousness). That was when i told the person who was helping me, " you need to call 911, i think i am having a heart attack." I went to the E.R. and the EKG didn't show any signs of a heart attack. I was in the E.R. for about 3.5 hours and while i was "plugged in" my heart rate was 130+. For me, this was as if i had been doing a good jog for 3.5 hours!!!! I was exhausted, hallucinating--saw a dead relative and i couldn't be calmed. (I have absolutely no history of mental instablilty what so ever...by the way) My heart just wouldn't stop. They told me like many others here that it was anxiety and gave me a lorazepam which is essentially a xanax. Eventually my heart slowed down and they sent me home. After that morning, it has yet to ever be slowed on its own (and hasn't been for 6 months). It got to the point where i couldn't even walk without feeling like i was going to pass out. I was bed ridden for 4 months...but bed ridden with a fast heart rate is no picnic as all of you here well know...it is truly in an of itself a constant state of inconceivable discomfort. Imagine that fast heart pounding feeling 24/7 for 3 months. You can't sleep, you can't rest, all you can do is hang on to what little existence you still have left. I was prescribed lorazepam and prozac which helped me remain calm but never stopped the problem. I insisted that it was physiological and that something had happened to my body that night. No doctors believed me. Eventually my doctor send me to a cardiologist who performed an echo, and an ekg-- all fine. However, the cardiologists office insisted that i purchase a blood pressure cuff and chart my levels along with my pulse. I suggest that all of you if financially capable look into purchasing one of these. They run around $80 and are well worth it. In addition i was given a holter monitor which is a 24 ekg of your heart. (if what you are experiencing is more episodal then you might want to look into a king of hearts which is an ekg that you wear for an extended period of time and record events with). The findings of the holter monitor were that my heart rate was in fact mildly high. 100+ bpm for 12 out of 24hours. In addition, the readings on my blood pressure cuff told showed me what was really going on with my body, and that when i would feel really bad, it was because my blood pressure was low and my heart rate was high. And when i talk about low blood pressure, i mean low like 86/45. Normal blood pressure according to what i have read is 120/80. And if you bottom number (diastolic) drops below approximately 35 you faint. So i was kind of close but not too close. Luckily, i was prescribed a medication called metoplerol which controls fast heart rates. It slowed my heart rate down. In addition, i was instructed to drink lots of fluids and no just water but fluids with electrolytes like gatorade to improve my blood pressure. I DRINK SO MUCH GATORADE! And luckily, now, my life is back to normal. These are the things that i found that worked out for me and i am in no way suggesting that they may work for you **legal disclaimer** but what helped me were the following things: 1. checking my heart rate and blood pressure during these events. I have heard that anxiety can make you feel like your heart is pounding through your chest and just knowing that my blood pressure and heart rate are within normal limits it is comforting and calming. 2. A fast heart rate can be scary! But understanding the hearts capabilities are also calming. I had learned earlier about my hearts limits and also through being active in my past. I know that 120 beats per minute is a jog for me and i have survived many jogs. I know that 160 beats per minute for me is a strenuous jog and that i have never died from a heart rate that high before. What also helped me distinguish between anxiety and an actual heart problem was the length of the experience. Anxiety attacks are said to last about 15 minutes, so if it calms down after that, it might be something to be considered. However, it is possible that you might be looking at something else. 3. In addition, to those taking a Xanax to go to bed: i found that it did not solve my problem and the mixture of those two drugs seems concerning to me. I have heard that anxiety is best coped with by using other more stable drugs but have not read any research on this. 4. After finding abnormalities in my blood pressure and pulse my doctor put me on a heart rate monitor which provided them with statistical data that lead not to my diagnosis but more importantly to my comfort (though falsely mediated by medication).5. GATORADE, OJ, salty foods all helped me because i have low blood pressure and even slight dehydration made it worse.

I regretted that night of my life when all this went wrong for a very long time. I always asked myself, "was that night of drinking worth my misery?" and to me it absolutely wasn't. I take a pill every day now, twice a day, and it seems as though i have to just to function. The reason i am sharing this is because i don't want it to happen to you. Check you heart rate, check your blood pressure, and feel lucky that you have control over this feeling. I ignored what my body was trying to tell me and it didn't work out well. I wish all of you good luck and hope that each of you can conquer this problem.

Same with me.. I had my first real BAD attack on Saturday night after drinking Vodka/Seltzer all night. I usually drink on the weekends, and never had this affect before. My heart pounded since around 11pm to Sunday afternoon and I did not sleep AT ALL! I felt and still feel tingling in arms and legs and pain around the front and back of lungs. I had several smaller attacks in the last several weeks, so I had an EKG, but not while it was happening... I originally thought it was from my low carb diet, which I have been on for 5 weeks today. But, I'm not sure...maybe because I am not eating carbs or sugar and when I drink, I am getting a blast of sugar? Not sure, but Vodka has no carbs, so....now I am afraid to have a drink and I really enjoy them! Wonder if there is something we can do or if some drinks are better then others....

It is a bit complicated and it is not entirely understood.  But here we go.  Alcohol is broken down to acetaldehyde and then to acetate.  All three lower blood pressure and thus to compensate raise the heart rate and the contractility of the the heart (the pounding).  Acetaldehyde is the big offender.  About 20 to 50% of orientals have one or two gene copies of a severe defect in the enzyme breaking down acetaldehyde (let's call it very slow ALDH).  So big problem.  Facial flushing, nausea, low blood pressure, heart pounding, dizziness.  Now there is another genetic defect out there that is seen most often in orientals and those of jewish descent.  This is a  form of the enzyme that breaks down alcohol to acetaldehyde (let's call it fast ADH).  It propably causes an acetaldehyde burst that causes low Blood pressure and heart pounding.    Also, there are drivers for the production of ALDH (let's call it ALDH promotors) but some people have defective promoters that are a bit feeble.  Finally some people may be more sensitive to and some less sensitive to alcohol and its metabolites.
Bottom line, genetics appear to be the issue.
The good news:  those genes make one less likely to become an alcoholic. 
The bad news: no fun and at least with those with very slow ALDH more health risks with drinking.

Doctor

Now there are of course other possibilities other than a hypotensive response (low blood pressure) to alcohol and its metabolites. For example, people can get a specific tachyarrhythmia (rapid heart rate arrhythmias- like atrial fibrillation or supraventricular tachycardia etc.). Another possibility is a reaction to the histamines in the alcohol beverage. A third possible explanation is an allergic reaction. A forth is a panic attack. A fifth could be such excessive drinking that a person is getting close to a lethal poisonous dose. Yet, a sixth is alcohol withdrawal symptoms. A seven is a hypogycemic (low blood sugar) reaction to alcohol. See your doctor.

Just chiming in that I also have this problem, and it's getting worse with age.   I'm 49 now, and am not sure exactly when I first noticed it, but I've had it for at least 10 years.    

This condition is called Holiday Heart Syndrome.  I was having an episode the other night and I took 400mg of magnesium and the racing heart went away in about 2 minutes and replaced itself with an anxiety attack... LOL.  If you take a Magnesium suppliment before you drink, it will help.  Limit the alcohol.  Change up the kind of alcohol you drink.  Vodka has had better results for me than Whiskey.  It seems that the clear spirts make somewhat less work for your liver (depending on how much you drink of course).  Drink water. 

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Ann is absolutely right!  it's magnesium deficiency ....causes PVCs (premature ventricular contraction) ..skipped beats...and palpitations....also causes anxiety.  Alcohol interferes with  magnesium absorption and also leads to extra secretion in the urine.  Studies are showing that like 80% of the population is deficient in magnesium and caffeine & alcohol consumption only increases this.  Dehydration is also a contributing factor.   In addition, NAC (N-acetyl cysteine) is a amino acid supplement  u can take prior to alcohol consumption that greatly reduces the hangover....google it....it does work. 

Ive read through all these reply's and i think only 2 people have mentioned it. PRESERVATIVES is a big contributing factor,as well as the high amount of SUGAR (and of course the ALCOHOL) in alcohol. I've had this problem for many years now,i find the best way to minimise it when i drink, is to drink alcohol that is PRESERVATIVE FREE. regular exercise also helps minimise it,and i find working out a few hours before you start drinking and the day after (i know its hard with a hangover sometimes).

Can anyone recommend preservative free vodka or wine?  I also have this affliction.  It doesn't happen everytime I drink, but enough to seriously annoy me.  I already take magnesium supplements so I do not think I have a deficiency.  I am going to try and be more aware of my water intake while having a few.  I have also noticed it happens when I eat heavy food while drinking.  I would like to try preservative free alcohol.  It's nice to know that I'm not alone with my problem. 

ima 30 yro male thats been a real heavy driker since my early teens.. but thease days i have realy bad panicy fellins in my heart..ive also slowed down  alot since all this has began but problem still remains.. there is more to say, but i just wanted to get this going..any sugjestions

I have had this problem now for 7 years. I am 45 years of age and have been a social drinker since my late teens and at least once a week I used to hit the booze reasonably hard. 7 years ago i first noticed that the next day after a drinking session I would start to get an increased heart rate usually about 1 hour after eating breakfast. This went on sporadically for about 2 years and I just pushed it to one side.

About 5 years ago I had a particularly bad episode in the morning after a heavy session, my heart was racing at possibly up to 180 beats per minute and i nearly passed out (probably the most frightening episode in my life). This prompted me to visit the Doctor and he did a barage of tests on heart function, EKG, blood tests, kidney and liver etc. The liver function test was the only one that came back slightly suspect but the Dr assured me it was nothing to worry about.

The intolerance to booze got steadily worse over the next 4 years and the frequency and amount of booze that I could handle decreased accordingly. It got to such an extent 6 months ago that 1 bottle of beer would make my heart thud and race but always about 2 to 3 hours after consumption. I again visited the Dr for a liver function test thinking I maybe had chirossis but the test came back absolutely pristine, better than 4 years previous!.

I have tried to work out what is causing this and I have a hunch.

About 7 years ago I started running, about the same time as the symptoms started, as the symptoms got worse I gradually became addicted to the exercise (probably a replacement for the booze) I now run 70 miles a week and I have never felt or looked better. I thought maybe there was a correlation between the exercise and the booze intolerance so a month ago I stopped exercising for 7 days and went out for a few beers. 3 hours later hardly any symptoms and none the next day. I havent tried again because I now love the running more than the booze!!!

It would be interesting to know if anybody else has experienced this.

 

 

What I am struggling to understand with all the responses of possible explanations is why does this symptom suddenly occur after years of drinking with no effect whatsoever?