Publish Date
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March 19, 2025
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Blogs

Yyour heartbeat can increase in response to a specific situation which causes stress

Question: Are you always feeling that your heart is racing, fluttering, pounding, or skipping a beat? Do you know what mental health condition causes it?
Answer: Anxiety.
According to experts, your heartbeat can increase in response to a specific situation that can cause stress. You may also have palpitations due to an anxiety disorder, which is described as excessive or persistent worry.
Question: Why does anxiety cause you to feel that your heart is beating in your neck or throat apart from your chest?
Answer: Many times, palpitations come from single early or delayed heartbeats that do not typically follow your heart’s normal, regular rhythm. These abnormal heart rhythms last a while and cause palpitations—that you may feel as if your heart is beating in places other than your heart.

Why does anxiety cause palpitations?

According to experts, high anxiety levels can set off your body’s fight or flight response as part of the autonomic nervous system. And so, whenever you are uneasy about a situation, your heart rate goes up.
However, palpitations from anxiety do not last very long. Doctors say palpitations that happen frequently or do not go away within a few minutes may not be related to anxiety. And so, if, apart from palpitations, you have chest pain, trouble breathing, dizziness, or confusion, seek medical help right away. Apart from anxiety, the condition can also come from cardiac or noncardiac issues like:
  • Heart rhythm issues arrhythmias or atrial fibrillation
  • Myocarditis or inflammation of your heart’s muscles due to a viral infection
  • Thyroid issues like hyperthyroidism
  • Structural problems in your heart, like valve disease
Even heart palpitations can be alarming; most are not dangerous, and they usually go away within a few minutes, after the stressful situation passes.

What are the signs and symptoms of palpitations from anxiety?

Symptoms of heart palpitations include:

Fluttering

You may feel a flapping or fluttery feeling in your chest. Your heart may feel like it’s flipping.

Irregular heartbeat

You might feel like your heart is skipping a beat or beating out of rhythm. You may also have a feeling that your heart keeps pausing for a second or two.

Pounding

Your heart might beat forcefully or very strongly. Some people say they can feel their heart beating in their ears.
Besides these symptoms, you may also feel:
  • Fatigue
  • Digestive issues like gas and diarrhoea
  • Rapid breathing
  • Sweating
  • Tension in muscles
  • Trembling

Ways to manage heart palpitations from anxiety

Your doctor can suggest a few options to manage and treat your palpitations that arise due to high anxiety:
  • Massage and biofeedback therapies that help you manage stress
  • Medicines for anti-anxiety include antidepressants. Your provider may suggest options to treat anxiety that happens in specific situations, like when you take a flight or speak in public. These medicines include beta-blockers.
  • Psychotherapy like cognitive behavioural therapy helps you identify and change your thought patterns. Exposure-response prevention aims to create a positive response to fears to relieve anxiety.

How to stop palpitations caused by anxiety?

Palpitations from anxiety are not harmful to your body, but they can create uncomfortable feelings. Following these suggestions may help reduce the severity of heart palpitations from anxiety. These methods include:
  • Coping
  • Using diaphragmatic breathing
  • Regular exercise
  • Getting enough sleep
  • Practicing meditation
  • Using pursed-lip breathing
  • Practicing yoga and meditation
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