Dr. Stoll,
I was diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse five months ago - I know, it doesn't have any symptoms. I'd had a run of supraventricular tachycardia which led me to a cardiologist. I started taking magnesium, COQ10 and L-carnitine. I haven't had SVT since. But I still have PVCs, or what I surmise are PVCs - my heart does an extra hard THUMP every now and then. I'm trying to do SR every day, bought a pretty good tape. I'm probably a pretty typical case of stored stress in the hypothalmus (anxiety, headaches, occasional insomnia). I've never had atrial fib, but do you think I might need intravenous magnesium anyhow? I enjoy your web site and board immensely and plan to order you book. Thanks!
Follow Ups:
Re: PVCs and Magnesium (combination causes)
Posted by Walt Stoll on February 20, 1999 at 10:43:01:
In Reply to: PVCs and Magnesium posted by Kathy on February 19, 1999 at 09:35:47:
Hi, Kathy.
How much magnesium (and of what kind) have you been taking and for how long???
Remember, in those whose intracellular magnesium is low enough to cause PVCs, most will be unable to efficiently absorb magnesium orally until the level has been brought up by a series of about 6 IV magnesiums (at least a gram of elemental magnesium in each dose IV.
ALL cardiac dysrhythmia tendencies are mostly related to a low intracellular magnesium. Nearly all of the rest are caused by the hypothalamic stuff you mentioned. The combination of both is the most likely scenario.
Without practicing effective SR at least twice a day for 20 minutes, you will never resolve the hypothalamic stuff fast enough to get ahead of the game. Once you HAVE done it for 6-12 months, most people can cut back to once a day & maintain a position ahead of the advancing load we are all faced with every day.
Do you understand why your "extra thump" happens with PVCs?
Walt
Follow Ups:
Re: PVCs and Magnesium (combination causes)
Posted by Kathy on February 20, 1999 at 11:12:24:
In Reply to: Re: PVCs and Magnesium (combination causes) posted by Walt Stoll on February 20, 1999 at 10:43:01:
I started with a liquid mineral supplement; I don't know how much magnesium was in it. I then took magnesium citrate for a while, but now I'm taking magnesium asporotate. There is a doctor in the area who does chelation therapy, and I suppose he'd do I.V. magnesium. I don't actually know why the PVCs occur. Could you please explain? Thanks!
Follow Ups:
Re: PVCs and Magnesium (combination causes)
Posted by Kathy on February 20, 1999 at 11:29:48:
In Reply to: Re: PVCs and Magnesium (combination causes) posted by Walt Stoll on February 20, 1999 at 10:43:01:
Whoops, I forgot to say how much magnesium I've been taking. I guess, on average, about 450-600 mgs. a day. The magnesium I'm taking now is a combo of aspartate and orotate. The PVCs really do seem to coincide with stress and worry. I know that SR is SO, SO important. It's hard for me to find two 20-minute chunks of time a day (I have two young children), but I guess I'd better!
What are PVCs, Kathy & Walt?
Posted by Deb on February 20, 1999 at 15:55:47:
In Reply to: Re: PVCs and Magnesium (combination causes) posted by Walt Stoll on February 20, 1999 at 10:43:01:
Hi guys,
My Dad has angina and arrythmia, but as I don't know what OVCs are, I don't know if it gets them. Sounds like he needs IV magnesium too??
I have already lent him your book, but I don't think he's actually read it yet.....
Thanks, Deb.
Follow Ups:
Oops, sorry about typo, OPCs=PVCs (NMI)
Posted by Deb on February 20, 1999 at 15:57:03:
In Reply to: What are PVCs, Kathy & Walt? posted by Deb on February 20, 1999 at 15:55:47:
NMI = no message inside
Re: What are PVCs, Kathy & Walt?
Posted by Kathy on February 20, 1999 at 16:12:53:
In Reply to: What are PVCs, Kathy & Walt? posted by Deb on February 20, 1999 at 15:55:47:
Hi, Deb. PVC stands for premature ventricular contraction. I had some show up on a Holter monitor a few years ago. To me, it feels like my heart does one big thump. I've heard lots of different things can cause them; stress and anxiety seem to do it for me. I imagine Dr. Stoll can explain the mechanisms and about low intracellular magnesium.
Re: What are PVCs, Kathy & Walt? (learn or die) ("bump" mechanism)
Posted by Walt Stoll on February 21, 1999 at 10:36:03:
In Reply to: What are PVCs, Kathy & Walt? posted by Deb on February 20, 1999 at 15:55:47:
Dear Deb,
Although your dad could learn that he doesn't have to wait for the next coronary (which is surely coming), by reading my book, what he really needs is chelation therapy, a 10% fat diet, the regular practice of SR and mild daily exercise. 90% OF PEOPLE IN HIS CONDITION WHO DO THAT ARE SYMPTOM FREE WITHIN 30 DAYS! No wonder the conventional medical monopoly would prefer he have a bypass. No money at all in what resolves the problem & the average bypass now costs about $150,000.
It is true that the magnesium level is also important as are the essential oils.
HOWEVER, with him in this condition & he still hasn't even taken the time to read a book as short & sweet as mine, he surely falls into the catagory of so many I have seen that would "sooner die than learn something new".
You can only open doors for him you canot make him walk through. At this stage you are likely going to have to just love him as he is until he passes on. Much as you love him there is nothing you can do to change him. Likely the more you bug him about it, the more miserable he will become.
Let me know if I can help more.
Listen to Kathy about the PVCs. The reason there is a "bump" with the PVC is that "premature" means that the next beat of the ventricle is sooner than the signal from the atrium would be. That means that the premature beat has happened before the ventricle has had time to fill and so IT is less apparent than even a normal beat would be. The immediately following beat does not occur until the next signal from the atrium. SO, there is a greater time than normal between the PVC and the next normal beat. THAT extra time allows the ventricle MORE time to fill and so that ejection is larger than normal ("bump").
Walt
Re: PVCs and Magnesium (combination causes)
Posted by Walt Stoll on February 21, 1999 at 10:43:57:
In Reply to: Re: PVCs and Magnesium (combination causes) posted by Kathy on February 20, 1999 at 11:12:24:
Hi, Kathy.
I still don't know how much elemental magnesium you have been taking. Almost certainly you are telling me how much magnesium aspartate you are taking and the aspartic acid part of this molecule weighs more than the magnesium.
You are right in that the most likely doc to give you IV magnesium would be the chelating doc.
HOWEVER, ignorance abounds in even chelating docs. Few know that they can perfectly safely give 50ccs of 50% magnesium sulfate IV to anyone without risk. They did it every week on their Obstetrics rotation for eclampsia and thought nothing of it. IV is even safer than IM which is the way it was routinely given in this situation.
For PVCs, at least a gram of elemental magnesium IV daily for 6 doses would help a lot and usually get people to the place where they can absorb it orally.
Walt