Opioids Heart skips beats-opiates

[Leo89]

Hello all
I have been using opiates (mostly hydro, some codiene, and oxy once) for probably about a month 2-4 times a week, then for about a week straight. I took one day off, then the next day took a 7-325 hydro. The day after that (yesterday) and today my heart has been skipping beats. It's kind of a scary thing and I am wondering if the drugs are causing this. These drugs are so addictive it's going to be hard to not use the rest of them. If anyone can help it would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Leo89]

Doses have been 5-10mg hydro and 30-60mg codeine

 

[024liakam]

id give the opiates a rest for atleast another day or 2 and see how things go. ive never heard of opiates inducing heart problems, they do slow the heart rate and breathing but never heard of that. is this the first time you've noticed your heart acting like that? do any family members have heart problems? if so, please go easy on CNS depressants man.

 

[crzydiamond]

Opiates can cause QT issues, which disrupts the heart rhythms, which leads to skipping beats. Google heart arrhythmia and opiates, you'll probably get a bunch of stuff to read. Methadone in particular is known for affecting the QT interval, but other opiates do as well. Some people are more naturally susceptible.


As someone above mentioned, stop the opiates for a few days and see if that fixes the problem. If it is the opiates you really want to stay away from them as some people are more prone to the heart issues than others. If you are having heart issues that fast it would be a really really good idea to not use opiates.

 

[Sprout]

Honestly while QTi elongation is a terrifying possibility, I'd think it was more due to anxiety about the side-effects of using drugs than the drugs themselves.
The doses you gave and the sense of your being young makes me lean towards that thought pattern.

I'd still echo the above in cessation, there are zero downsides to it, whereas continuation of use is horrifying dark.
Also, you mentioned dropping 7 Hydro's, please look into CWE if you do use again, your liver will thank you tremendously.

 

[Leo89]

Hmmm thanks for the replies guys. I was thinking about it today and I think I found the source. I slammed a red bull energy drink not too long before I first noticed the problem. I'm gonna give the hydro another go because it helps my back so much. If I notice it again I will cease use but for now no more nasty energy drinks!

 

[Leo89]

Honestly while QTi elongation is a terrifying possibility, I'd think it was more due to anxiety about the side-effects of using drugs than the drugs themselves.
The doses you gave and the sense of your being young makes me lean towards that thought pattern.

I'd still echo the above in cessation, there are zero downsides to it, whereas continuation of use is horrifying dark.
Also, you mentioned dropping 7 Hydro's, please look into CWE if you do use again, your liver will thank you tremendously.

I know about CWE, by 7 hydros I meant 7mg not 7 pills.

 

[paranoid android]

Honestly while QTi elongation is a terrifying possibility, I'd think it was more due to anxiety about the side-effects of using drugs than the drugs themselves.
The doses you gave and the sense of your being young makes me lean towards that thought pattern.

I'd still echo the above in cessation, there are zero downsides to it, whereas continuation of use is horrifying dark.
Also, you mentioned dropping 7 Hydro's, please look into CWE if you do use again, your liver will thank you tremendously.

This exactly! While opiates/Opioids especially Methadone and Levacetylmethadol aka OrLAAM aka LAAM (taken off the market because of prolongued QT), Propoxyphene and Meperidine/Pethidine trade name Demerol can cause Prolongued QT syndrome this really only happens at high doses. What you are experiencing sounds a awful lot like tachycardia which can be caused by anxiety, caffeine as well as about a million other things. When my anxiety was really bad back in the day i would often feel like my heart was skipping beats. I have gotten this feeling from various anti-psychotics especially Risperidone, Caffeine, Cocaine taken in Crack form and also IV, Amphetamines and also on a few occasions Oxycodone and also Demerol both of which sometimes gave me increased anxiety back when i had bad GAD. I have also gotten it from Alcohol wd, Benzo WD, opiate WD as well as Pneumonia. Granted i probably got it from Pneumonia due to the fact that i was literally dying. I severely doubt that 7mg's of Hydrocodone would really do anything to your heart at all so i wouldn't worry about that.

Do you suffer from anxiety by any chance? I never actually knew how severe and debilitating mine was until i got it under control. Also if you consume alot of Caffeine i would suggest cutting down (tapering the dose would be best as Caffeine WD can cause really nasty headaches) as this could be the source of you feeling like your heart is skipping a beat. If you experience it again it might be a good idea to see a doctor if for no other reason then piece of mind. If you don't then your fine. I would still recommend giving up opiates or atleast not using them everyday as opiate wd will make any physical sensation of your heart skipping a beat seem like a joke. If you do need them for pain perhaps saving them for when you really need them wouldn't be a bad idea.

Just to give you a example of how your tolerance can jump back when i started taking opiates 20mg's of oxycodone would kill most of the pain i had quite nicely. Today that would be the equivalent of a sugar pill for me now and for severe pain i need a good 90mg's of IV morphine or about 150mg's of oral Morphine to do much of anything. That's what over a decade of steady opiate use will do to you i guess