has anyone here had experience with getting doctors to take you seriously as a young adult with heart problems? I'm going to try to be as succinct as possible, but my whole journey has been... a lot, and I want to do the important parts justice.
I have quite the history. most of my family has some sort of heart issue. so, when I was growing up, my parents were certainly sensitive about my heart. as such, when I was six or seven years old and doctors reported my heart rate as 150+ when I was mostly resting, they were a little concerned. when prompted, doctor after doctor stated that it was perfectly normal, because I was a child, and it would go away when I grew up.
now, saying that to the parents of a seven year old is reasonable. saying that to a seventeen year old who drove to the appointment alone is less so. my parents never lost the feeling that "something" was wrong, but over a dozen different doctors told them it was nothing, and they had nowhere else to turn.
I first noticed for myself during PE class when I was fourteen. according to the math and my age, my heart rate should be in the upper eighties, but it hovered between 95 and 110.
I had my COVID shot when I was sixteen, and it caused my heart rate to spike to nearly 140 bpm. when my parents dragged me to the ER after 12 hours, the doctor initially dismissed what turned out to be myocarditis as an anxiety attack.
shortly after turning eighteen, a doctor noticed that my heart rate was 125ish while I was just sitting on the examination table. she asked about it, and I told her what the previous doctors had said. but then I told her that more recently, my heart had gone through spikes in rate, which were startling and a little painful. they also didn't seem to be triggered by anything- at the most recent one, I'd been standing in one spot loading dishes into the dishwasher, when I suddenly had the feeling that my heart was sort of vibrating, instead of beating properly. I used my pulse oximeter to see that my heart rate was over 130, and it stayed there for a few minutes until it let down all at once.
that doctor suggested afib, especially after knowing that my family members have had afib. but then she agreed that couldn't be the cause, because it would have shown up on one of the many ECGs I've done. either way, she asserted that I should have seen a cardiologist years ago.
hearing this, I asked my father to speak with his cardiologist and see if he would accept me as a new patient, seeing as I'm an adult now.
the cardiologist declined, stating that the asthma medications I take are probably causing my heart rate, and either way, my problems would be solved if I just went to a gym. I'm far from out of shape, for the record. I also walk two or three miles a day, simply by virtue of being a college student. additionally, my respiratory therapist stated that the medications I take cannot cause an accelerated heart rate. I don't really know where to go from here, and my support from my parents is limited.
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