Heart beat

Hi I did a lot of work around this, hope some of this can help 🥹 1. Somatic exposures - complete activities that raise your heart rate so that you become more comfortable with an elevated heart rate, be able to acknowledge it and move on with your dad, an example: get up quickly walk a few laps around your house then sit down and be okay with the raise in BPM. 2. This may seem contradicting, but listen to it until you become bored of it, eventually your mind will let it go, I started with 30 seconds, 3 minutes, and so on. 3. What helped me most, realizing that elevated heart rate isn’t ONLY a result of anxiety, it can also be excitement, love, happiness, and giving it that reasoning behind it rather than a scary one. I’ve come such a long way with this compulsion, and happy to give any other tips that have helped me if you need :))

In past I posted this a few times: Some things I’ve picked up in my journey as it may relate to somatic ocd and/or body sensations: The heart knows how to pump blood throughout the body, the lungs know how much air to breathe in & out, the stomach knows how to process nourishment, the eye lids know how & when to blink, the scalp/face have muscles & blood vessels that pulsate. So I’ve learned (and through practice) to let them all do their jobs without having to interfere. This while accepting the uncertainty and discomfort. Hope this helps you.

i experience this too! its rarely ever racing when i get this also. but like i can be sitting down just concentrating on something and realize that i feel my heart beat through my entire body. like if i lean back in the chair i feel it in my back but if i lean forward i dont. then i ask someone like "can you feel your heart beat all the time too?" and they are like uhhh no. and im like ok well im sitting with my legs crossed and i feel it in my legs now too like any pressure on my body at all results in me feeling my heart. if i stand up i feel like the rush of everything to my head and its just pulsing for a few seconds/minutes before it regulates and its like i dont think i have even stood up or moved once in the past three years without constantly being aware of my heart rate while doing it - its become a part of every thought even when im like having a friendly conversation or enjoying myself. i have a pulse ox on me at all times and it is my compulsion to check it and watch the number go down to a certain range that i feel is OK for me. i know i gave no advice haha but i feel the same way - like i dont know how to make it go away when my heart is going to always beat. I just feel like ill forever be aware of it.

yeah i wont even buy one because i think ill never need the alerts when my heart rate gets to high haha. However i HAVE done an echo, a stress test, and a 10 day heart monitor. i was having palpitations and my dad had a heart attack pretty young and im almost 40 so i felt like it didnt seem completely over the top to just have everything checked. i dont feel like i need to do them again anytime soon, but they helped as a reminder of "EVERYTHING IS FINE"

Hi, I’m obviously not a therapist, but I think that part of what you have to do is learn to stop checking. So when you feel the urge to check, just let it go. And if you accidentally check, hold yourself accountable not to check, and ALSO do not analyze what you notice about your heart beat. Maybe you could practice by checking your heartbeat, but not letting yourself analyze as a practice. Of course, talking to therapists is the best thing to do

I have a therapist here and I meet with her weekly. I’ll definitely be asking more questions about this topic

Out of curiosity have you ever seen a cardiologist? Some people with heart conditions are actually much more aware of their heart rate than most people are, me being one of them. This is not to cause any alarm, but I’m a big proponent of preventative medicine and the comfort that can come with a professional telling you “hey you’re healthy and strong!” Or “you’ve got something that maybe needs occasional or annual attention, but you’re still healthy and strong!”