Changes in the rhythm of the heartbeat like a fast heartbeat can make a person uncomfortable, even feel anxious and about to faint. There are several reasons and medical conditions that cause a fast heartbeat.
The right time to check your heart rate is when you wake up in the morning. Place two fingers, usually the index and middle fingers, on your wrist in line with your thumb for 15 seconds. Count how many heart beats you feel, then multiply by four to find your heart beats per minute. This is the baseline heart rate or resting heart rate.
Contrary to popular belief, a slow heart rate at rest actually indicates a person's health condition is in good condition. This indicates the heart muscle is in prime condition, so it doesn't have to work too hard. Unless this slow heart rate is accompanied by complaints of dizziness, shortness of breath, or chest pain.
Conversely, when the heart rate is fast, it means the heart is working harder to effectively circulate blood throughout the body. A fast heart rate can occur when a person is exercising, stressed, exhausted, or due to certain medical disorders.
A fast heart rate is also known as tachycardia. This is a condition that occurs due to an electrical disturbance in the heart that plays a role in controlling the rhythm of the heartbeat. Tachycardia is classified as if a person who is at rest has a heart rate of more than 100 beats per minute. Tachycardia can appear without causing complications, but can also increase the risk of stroke, impaired heart function to cardiac arrest, and even death.
Recognizing Trigger Factors
There are several factors that trigger a fast heart rate, namely age, exercise, stress or anxiety, fever, consuming too much caffeine or alcoholic beverages, drug side effects, and smoking habits.
In addition, there are certain health conditions that can cause a fast heart rate, for example, high blood pressure, anemia, hyperthyroidism, heart failure, electrolyte disturbances in the body, and heart electrical disorders (arrhythmias).
As you get older, your heart rate tends to slow down more and more. However, this does not apply if there are certain factors that make the heart beat even faster.
Proper Handling
Fast heart rate that occurs not because of disease generally does not require treatment because it can improve on its own. If it is caused by certain medical conditions, the treatment for a fast heartbeat will be adjusted according to the causative factor. Treatment is aimed at slowing a fast heart rate to within normal limits, preventing it from happening again, and reducing the risk of complications.
In some cases, a fast heart rate can slow down with the help of a few simple movements, also known as the Vagal maneuver. Movements such as coughing, straining as you pass a bowel movement, massaging the carotid arteries in your neck, or applying ice to your face can affect the vagus nerve, which regulates the heart rate. However, if that doesn't work, your doctor may give you an injection containing an antiarrhythmic drug or other drugs to normalize a fast heart rate.
In a condition that is considered an emergency and medication does not work, the doctor will perform a cardioversion procedure using an electric shock device to the heart. This action is expected to improve the electrical impulses of the heart so that the heart rate returns to normal.
Several other follow-up measures to treat a sustained fast heart rate such as catheter ablation, use of a pacemaker (pacemaker), to cardiac surgery that requires thorough medical consideration.
Maintaining an ideal body weight and staying active, as well as reducing stress and avoiding smoking are some ways to keep your heart healthy and avoid a fast heartbeat. If the fast heartbeat persists and it is not known for certain what the cause is. Consult a doctor for further examination.