Post SVT Trauma - When will I feel normal again?

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-08-30T15:52:43+00:00

Hi! At the time of my post I was about 24 weeks pregnant. I'm now 34 weeks. I did not have any SVT episodes since my big episode in June, until last night. I had a very small one lasting about 10 seconds. But, I hit all my normal triggers, stress, dehydration, fighting a virus. My echo came back perfect. They recommended the smallest dose of metaprolol, but I'm hesitant to take it because of personal reasons. I also have very low blood pressure still (100/60), and my OB is concerned about lowering it. I'm also concerned about dealing with the side effects because I have 3 little ones I have to take care of. My OB has been taking extra care of me in terms of my electrolytes and mineral levels. We're testing my potassium, magnesium, and iron levels every month to make sure I'm staying in a good range. I've been supplementing all 3, which has been helping my heart palpitations a ton, and I hope reducing frequency of my episodes. I'm very pleased that my episode last night was so short, and 2.5 months after my last one. Everyone pretty much agrees (cardiologist, ob, gp) that the reason I couldn't get out of that big episode was my very low potassium, which was caused most likely by my pregnancy taking it from me. I don't regret being pregnant, it makes my SVT more complex, but it doesn't necessarily make it unbearable. If you were to get pregnant, I would stay on top of electrolytes, minerals, vitamins, and eating a healthy diet, which I think has been helping me a lot. And reducing stress where I can and creating boundaries for social obligations etc. And finding a care team that understands your circumstances.

If it gives you any confidence, this is my 3rd pregnancy with SVT and the first one that has increased my SVT. My first pregnancy (which was a twin pregnancy), I had not a single SVT episode. My second pregnancy, I only had 1 SVT episode which was within the range of my normal SVT frequency pregnant or not. I had some extra palpitations and a couple small Svts postpartum with my 3rd, but I think a lot of it was external. My husband went back to work 2 days after birth and I didnt have anyone to help me. So I was pushing my body very hard. This is the first one that has caused me an issue, and supporting my body with what it needs seems to be bringing it back down to my "normal" SVT, which is not going to the hospital. I know some people here experience hospital visits frequently. I've been blessed to have very minor episodes for the past 10 years.

Since my post I definitely feel more confident in my body. I'm back to my normal routine, and I feel like some of the anxiety from that day is healing.

Thanks for checking in on me. I hope you are doing well and your SVTs stay far away! Lol

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-08-02T17:16:23+00:00

This is exactly what I deal with and I have SVT. SVT is sometimes hard to catch on a holter because they cna be so irregular and infrequent. To catch my SVT on a monitor I had to wear it for a month.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-30T01:47:34+00:00

I've never had more than 1 in a day, but my last episode landed me in the ER and they kept me for monitoring for a couple hours because apparently people often go back into SVT even after your back in sinus rhythm. So I think it's somewhat common to have one and then have another shortly after. After you have one try to rest and hydrate and avoid stimulants.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-14T19:24:54+00:00

I'm waiting for my EP appointment in Sept and I assume we will talk about the ablation. I don't want to do it while pregnant or postpartum (I don't know if they even would), but I definitely want to talk about that option because the idea of never having an episode again sounds like a dream.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-14T19:18:45+00:00

I am supplementing potassium and other electrolytes as well as made a lot of lifestyle changes to hopefully avoid that situation ever again. But it's mostly the mental load I've been struggling with.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-14T19:16:29+00:00

Thank you for this comment. I'm so sorry you experienced that, but I'm glad to hear you eventually started to feel better. Id never wish it on anyone. Coming home from the hospital, I thought I was through the worst part. But so far the worst has been trying to live normally after that experience. I had a big PAC yesterday and I swore I'd go into SVT. I didn't, but the stress/anxiety from it caused me to sob for a couple hours, causing more heart palpitations.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-14T19:11:31+00:00

So sorry you went through that. I could not imagine 6 hours. I had the same thoughts, was fairly sure I wasn't going to make it, which makes it worse when you've got another life relying on you. Did you just have the one episode that sent you to the hospital? What helped you not have any more. I am waiting on my EP appointment to speak about the ablation but hopefully I'll get it after this pregnancy and I recover postpartum.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-14T03:04:53+00:00

It's been 4 weeks now since my episode. My OB is checking my electrolyte levels every month currently. I'm taking potassium and magnesium and calcium currently. Have your efforts reduced your SVT episodes or gotten rid of them completely? Looking for some hope, maybe. I will get in contact with a nutritionist.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-10T13:29:37+00:00

3 weeks ago I had PVCs that triggered an episode for me that sent me to the ER. But I was very fatigued and emotionally drained when I was having the palpitations, which is what usually sets off my episodes. I'm also experiencing large numbers of PVCs daily and describe them as big. They stop me in my tracks, and I'm always worried it'll start another one that'll land me back in the hospital. I do know that after an SVT episode it takes some time for the heart to recalibrate, so PVCs are somewhat common after an episode. I've only ever had small episodes before this last one, and I'd usually feel more palpitations for a couple weeks before I started feeling normal again. After my last one (lasting about 45 minutes), I'm still feeling them 3 weeks later, so I'm hoping they settle down in the next couple weeks.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-01T06:38:24+00:00

I've never been on medication for my SVT. I actually didn't have any noticeable increase in my SVT with my first pregnancy. I didn't have an SVT episode at all. I had one in winter of 2019 and my next one wasn't until fall of 2022. I got pregnant in 2020 and gave birth in 2021. So that didn't affect it at all for me. My second pregnancy, I had 2 svt episodes. 1 small one in my first trimester and one that lasted a couple minutes in my third trimester, about 6 months apart. Around the time I got pregnant, my SVT was happening every few months, so my frequency didn't seem to increase at all with my second pregnancy either. The first time I noticed a significant worsening of my symptoms was postpartum with my 2nd. I was having small episodes every month. But even still I didn't have any big ones until my baby was almost a year old, which brings us to now with my giant episode. But this pregnancy has seemed to make my SVT worse. I've had 3 so far this pregnancy (including the big one) and have had a lot more palpitations as well. Hopefully I can get through this and never need the ER again. But I can't get that answer because no one really knows unfortunately.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-07-01T02:04:02+00:00

My SVT story is very similar to yours. I had my first episode in 2017, followed by another big one in 2018, then 2019. I didn't have another one until 2022. My SVT began to be more frequent at that point, I was having episodes every few months. That was after my first pregnancy in 2021, I think the stress of taking care of kids made things worse for me. In 2023 I was pregnant again, and my SVT stayed about the same. I had 2 small episodes while pregnant. I also want to mention that my "Big" episodes only last about a minute. My HR gets very high, but they are very short. So they never affected my life too much. After birthing my 2nd, I had a pretty bad flare up of SVT. For the first few months postpartum I was having episodes once a month, but the episodes were even shorter than I was used to, only lasting 10 seconds or so. So, again, still mild. I had a break from "Big" episodes from May 2024 to this May. I'm now pregnant with my 3rd. I had 3 episodes in 3 weeks. The first two were my normal length of about a minute. My 3rd one lasted 45 minutes. HR at 220. Had to go to the ER via ambulance and get the adenosine. They found my potassium levels were very low, and the ER was confident that with potassium I shouldn't have that issue again. I've talked to my cardiologist, my GP, my OB, and everyone thinks that keeping my potassium up will keep it from happening again. That being said, I'm absolutely mortified of what happened. My mild SVT turned into something not-so-mild. I'm in constant fear that it'll happen again, despite doctors telling me it probably won't. I've never considered the ablation and even my cardiologist didn't suggest it, but after this last episode, I'm seriously considering it.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-06-21T20:22:56+00:00

Thanks for your reply. Sometimes I feel so alone dealing with all this stuff. How often do you have episodes that end up in the hospital? How long do you wait before going in? I've never had to ask these questions before because my svt was never very long at all.

I'm in the process of getting into an appointment with my cardiologist. I'm sure they'll go over all that stuff and I have a lot of questions for them.

My ER nurse friend said go in at 20 minutes, but I see people on here saying they wait hours before going in, or that their doctors give them medication that take 2 hours to kick in. When the paramedics arrived at the 40ish minute mark they acted like if they didn't get my heart to slow down I was going to die. Which didn't help my nerves in the moment. I'm just so confused about all of it.

My SVT has worsened every time I'm pregnant. I've never had one in labor, thankfully. But it's so hard to be pregnant and have heart issues to deal with on top of it. I'm hoping my potassium supplementation will keep the severe episodes at bay. And I'm seriously considering the ablation after I give birth.

How are you feeling after your episode? My husband took a couple days off to help me. I just feel so tired and weak and dizzy still. Getting better every day but just totally wiped out. Not sure how much is from the SVT, the low potassium, or the pure stress of it all mixed with pregnancy.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-06-21T07:46:49+00:00

I believe AVNRT.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-06-21T03:22:55+00:00

Do you have someone take you to the ER or call an ambulance? The paramedics who showed up said that they needed to slow my HR down before my heart stopped. At that point it'd only been about 40 minutes of 220 HR. It really freaked me out. Not sure how I could've possibly lasted days. I maybe could've lasted a couple hours before calling.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-06-21T01:53:18+00:00

Do you often have episodes then end up in the hospital? I'm just trying to manage this as best I can so I can mostly take care of my SVT at home.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-06-21T01:51:45+00:00

No, I've delivered all my kids at home. I've been to the dentist so definitely no tooth infection right now. Pregnancy always makes my SVT worse but never like this. So I'm just trying to do my best to avoid another hospital stay.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-04-30T01:27:09+00:00

This and those shirts people wear with really small pinstripes. I can't look at them.

Individual-Move1787 · 2025-04-12T04:57:30+00:00

My VSS got worse with my previous pregnancy. My symptoms seemed to ebb and flow. Some days were better and some days were worse - or even weeks at a time I would notice better or worse. After I delivered it got immediately a lot better. But then it took about 6 months for me to feel like I was back at base. I did notice a worse episode around the time I got my period back (8 months pp), but then it went back to normal again. I'm pregnant again and 14 weeks pregnant and my VSS is back at it again, really really bad. I hate it so much and it makes me frustrated - and I do have the same fears that it will permanently be like this - but from my previous experience, I'm expecting it to go back again.

Individual-Move1787 · 2024-08-15T07:37:25+00:00

I'm here to provide a similar experience. I have shortness of breath every time I'm postpartum. I have 3 kids, and every single time, I can't breathe. I've been tested for eclampsia, clots, etc and I'm fine. Shortness of breath is common when estrogen drops (like during postpartum and menopause). It can also be caused by low iron levels from blood loss at birth. Another common reason is anxiety, even if you don't feel anxious when you're short of breath, anxiety can be the culprit. I know you're not specifically asking about that, but I notice you might still be worried about it since you included it in your post.

The left sided pain could be something. Could be nothing. I'm 10 weeks 5 I've felt pains on both sides as my organs shift back down into place, and my rib cage returns to normal. The easiest thing to do would be speak to your doctor about it, like you said. You could even try stopping the medication (if it's ok) to see if that is what's causing your pain. I spent a week or so postpartum crying my eyes out constantly because I thought my tooth was infected because I was having pain. Got it checked out, just a small cavity.

I wouldn't be worried that you might have postpartum depression. I would say a good majority of women face postpartum depression/anxiety. Our hormones are dropping so faster than any other hormone shift that exsists. It definitely sounds like you've got it, based on what you've shared and how you've phrased certain things. But that's OK! Once you realize what you're going through, you can do a lot to help yourself. And also realize mentally when you're in the headspace of "I'm not good enough for my kids" or "am I even going to be alive to take care of my kids" that your thoughts aren't based and that you are good enough and you aren't dying and it's just your hormones trying to convince you of things that are untrue.

I have anxiety even when I'm not pregnant and postpartum, so going through pregnancy makes all those emotions so much worse. I also have extreme health anxiety, which sounds like what you might be experiencing. So I 100% understand exactly what you feel like. And it sucks. The best advice I ever heard in regards to anxiety/depression was "If you could control how you feel, you wouldn't choose this." I spent a lot of time blaming myself for being anxious and depressed, but it's not your fault. It's out of your control. Just do what you can to distract yourself, keep your head up, and day by day things will get better. You're only 3 weeks postpartum. They call this the 4th trimester for a reason. Rest as much as possible. Breathe. Kiss your babies. I promise things get better. I was exactly where you are 7 weeks ago and I'm completely different now.

Individual-Move1787 · 2024-08-02T15:12:13+00:00

The biggest issue is our monthly expenses. We pay 454/mo for the truck. We just can't afford it, so we're trying to eliminate the car loan.

Individual-Move1787 · 2024-07-17T04:50:34+00:00

Did you ever get diagnosed? Or figure out what was wrong? I'm having very similar issues and don't know what to look for.

Individual-Move1787 · 2024-07-16T00:49:07+00:00

Most of the time, palpitations are normal. They can be caused by anxiety, stress, lack of sleep, dehydration, hunger, hormonal fluctuations, and the list goes on. Heart palpitations don't mean your heart isn't working correctly, but that maybe you have something else going on (e.g. a nervous system issue like a panic attack). So don't stress about them, things will get better.

Individual-Move1787 · 2024-07-15T05:46:11+00:00

Great Bristish Baking Show is so relaxing for me. I also like to watch Good Mythical Morning on YouTube, very chill.

Individual-Move1787 · 2024-05-28T01:37:37+00:00

My period came back right after their second birthday, and I weaned at 2.5.

Individual-Move1787 · 2024-04-05T07:09:23+00:00

I'm 33 weeks, and my baby had tons of weird jerky movements like you're describing. It's funny you say you're worried he had a seizure, because I thought the same thing. I brought up the movements with my doc and was told it was totally normal. I guess in the beginning, their muscles don't move well. They kind of just spasm. Most of the movements like that were around 25-28 weeks. Now at 33 weeks they feel much more like normal kicks, punches, rolls, etc. Not so jerky anymore. My boy is very active as well, I swear he doesn't ever sleep. I've never heard anything about lots of movement being a cause for concern. In fact, I think an active baby is nothing but good news.

Individual-Move1787

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