Take your pulse first

“When a heart attack, the first procedure is to take your pulse first.”

–God’s house Written by Samuel Shim

This famous line for Med students is clear and real. It is a reminder that in moments of chaos, we have to stop long enough to register access with ourselves. As an electric world of heart, I saw that the need for internal awareness not only applies through a blue symbol. This applies in our daily life where we face an increasing challenge with uncertainty, carrying excess information, and discomfort. Sometimes, our bodies can betray us with symptoms that do not always reflect reality but can lead Catastrophic.

When the heart precedes, the mind often follows

Race pulses, or “palpitations”, is one of the common symptoms seen in the office or e It might reflect FearfulThriller, or excessive leave, but this may also be due to a short circle in the electrical system of the heart called irregular heartbeat. The challenge is that symptoms of panic and irregular heartbeat often look similar to the surface: rapid heartbeat, shortness of breath, dizziness, and even discomfort in the chest. In our fast -paced culture, these experiences are often wrong or reduced based on manifestations. The key is to learn to explain it accurately and mercy.

The story of two patients

I remember a 20 -year -old healthy woman who came after several ER visits to “panic attacks”. Its symptoms followed a pattern: sudden, bombing the heart and awe of awe. By the time it reached ER, the heart rate was normalized so it was diagnosed anxiety. During one loop, Apple Watch was used to record ECG (electrical planning). I showed me this and the diagnosis was clear: ultra -ventricular heart tachycardia, or SVT, a kind of arrhythmia that often affects youth and health. Her episodes occurred, not during pressure. These details are suitable for how SVT behaves often happens when the heartbeat is slower, allowing early recovery to start a loop. Just as it starts suddenly, it suddenly stops. Many patients describe it as the effect of light key. We dealt with it with the catheterization of the catheter with the short circle. Its symptoms were solved with no “panic attacks”.

Compare her story with the story of a 50 -year -old executive director who dealt with the timing dates that were moving, consuming large quantities of caffeine, and distorting his self -pressure with Alcohol. His heart was racing during tense meetings, arguments, or when He lies I wake up at two in the morning, think about everything to be done. He was concerned that he was suffering from a serious condition in the heart, especially since his father died of a heart attack. But when we watched his heart, what we found was the irregular heart rate Nervous system The stress response is fed by adrenaline. Sometimes we use a medicine called ezoprotinol in the electrical physiology laboratory to simulate adrenaline and stimulate irregular heartbeat. In his case, life itself has become Ezoprotinol.

What does stress really do for the brain

These two patients had different diagnoses, but the same fear: there was something wrong in their heart. One had an irregular heartbeat of anxiety, and the other had a height caused by stress in the heart rate due to arrhythmia. Both cases prove that the heart and mind have a two -way connection, which can confuse patients and service providers. Under stress decision makingClosing. attention Narrowing, memory Fragments, perceptions are distorted. Neuroscientists showed how stress disappears Decision paths in the brain Which leads to interactive thinking. The heart of the race can feel like imminent death, even when there is no real danger. It has also been shown that chronic mental stress, especially anxiety and anxiety, maintains the physiological stimulation of the body for a long time after stress. This is called “perseverance perception“It can raise blood pressure and reduce the fluctuation of the heart rate. The prolonged exposure to stress can lead to a high condition of cortisol, which can be fed again in the nervous system and increases the blurring of the line between emotional and physical symptoms. Add to the phenomenon of misfortune more.

Wearable devices such as smart watches and portable ECGS can be useful in providing data in actual time, but they are a double -edged sword. Without context, the high heart rate can increase fear. The data alone cannot replace the differences in a good history, and it cannot distinguish between the natural heart rhythm that mocks adrenaline and the irregularity of the real heartbeat.

Restore the rhythm through the nervous system

I encourage my patients to rely on practices that regulate the natural body rhythm. contemplationAnd ventilation, and yoga directly stimulates the heterogeneous nervous system through VagueHelping to bring heart rate and breathing and think about better align. In SVT, we use vague The maneuvers, such as carrying or spraying cold water on the face, to restore the rhythm. Even these physical techniques reflect the fact that when the nervous system feels safe, the heart often follows.

Take your pulse

For this reason, I continue to return to this phrase: take your pulse first. Stop taking your pulse It reminds us exactly before we interact. It helps us to ask: Am I really in danger or interacting with the past shock The result of current events or internal novels? These questions, if asked early enough, can help us avoid reactions that can lead to personal suffering, tension of the relationship, or exposure to error, wrong or invisible. Whether irregular heartbeat or stress misunderstood the heart disease, the lesson is the same. The heart is often the first to interact. Although ECG can tell us part of the story, it is rarely all. But all of this needs an explanation in the context of the situation and history.