Anxiety may be one cause of heart palpitations, which are fluttering feelings in your chest. Typically, the palpitations are short-term and don’t damage your heart or overall health. But long-term palpitations may require attention from a doctor.

Common signs of anxiety include feelings of nervousness and tension, as well as sweating and an uneasy stomach. One other common symptom of anxiety is an increased heart rate, also known as heart palpitations.

A typical resting heart rate is between 60 and 100 beats per minute. But heart palpitations can feel like your heart is racing, pounding, fluttering, or skipping a beat.

Unless your palpitations are caused by a heart rhythm disorder, known as arrhythmia, they tend to be short-lived and harmless.

Anxiety is a response to stress, which is a response to a perceived threat.

Anxiety’s impact isn’t just isolated to your mind. It’s a feeling that activates your body’s autonomic nervous system (ANS), also known as the fight-or-flight response.

The ANS helps regulate the functions of your:

  • heart
  • lungs
  • digestive system
  • various muscles throughout the body

This explains why your heart may involuntarily beat faster in some circumstances, such as when you’re nervous or anxious, and only last until your nervousness wears off.

Individual response

Each person responds to stress and anxiety a little differently.

If you’re in a situation that makes you anxious, heart palpitations are just one sign that your ANS has kicked into gear. Other physical symptoms may include:

Anxiety may often make you want to avoid the situation that causes your uneasy feelings.

Beyond anxiety, other causes of heart palpitations may include:

A racing heart could also be a sign of:

Arrhythmia

For some people, palpitations are signs of an arrhythmia, a problem with your heart’s electrical system that controls your heartbeats.

There are three types of arrhythmias:

  • Tachycardia: This condition causes your heart to beat exceptionally fast. Episodes may last a few minutes or longer.
  • Bradycardia: This condition causes your heart to beat slower than 60 beats per minute. It feels less like palpitations and more like a slow thudding.
  • AFib: This condition occurs when your heart’s upper chambers (atria) beat chaotically instead of in a synchronized manner with the lower chambers (ventricles).

Your doctor will first need to determine the root cause of your heart palpitations before diagnosing a health condition.

Diagnostic screenings

Your doctor will listen to your heart with a stethoscope. Then they may use one or more of the tests below to help identify what’s going on in your chest, including:

  • Electrocardiogram: Several electrodes are placed on your chest to measure the electrical activity of your heart. It can help diagnose an arrhythmia or rule out a heart rhythm problem.
  • Holter monitoring: This is a device that you wear 24 hours a day to record your heart rate and any changes. It’s usually worn for up to 3 days at a time and may not sense any palpitations if they’re infrequent.
  • Event recording: This is often used if a Holter monitor doesn’t pick up any rhythm abnormalities. The recorder can be worn for weeks, but it only records your heart rhythms when you press a button while having symptoms.

Diagnosing anxiety

To evaluate if anxiety may be causing your heart palpitations, your doctor may start with a physical examination.

If they suspect a physical condition may be causing your palpitations, they may request a blood sample.

They may also refer you to a mental health professional, such as a psychologist or psychiatrist, for further evaluation.

These professionals can review your symptoms, go through a questionnaire, or perform other psychological screenings.

»More on this:Anxiety Diagnosis

If feelings of anxiety bring on heart palpitations, you can take some steps to help you relax and slow down your racing heart at home or with medication and therapy.

At-home relaxation techniques

Some relaxation strategies may include:

Regular exercise and practicing healthy sleep hygiene are two more ways to help you reduce stress in your life.

Avoiding known stressors is also important. This can mean:

Medication and therapy

While at-home interventions may help some people who experience heart palpitations due to anxiety, this may not be enough for everyone.

You may want to speak with your doctor about anti-anxiety medications and therapy if you feel that you aren’t seeing improvements with lifestyle changes alone.

Together, you and your doctor will create a treatment plan that may include medication, such as:

Therapy, such as cognitive behavioral therapy, may also be a part of your treatment plan.

Remember that health professionals approach anxiety treatment differently, so the plan that you and a health professional choose will be unique to you.

Speak with your doctor if you have anxiety-triggered heart palpitations that last for hours or keep you from performing daily tasks normally.

If palpitations appear without an anxiety-inducing cause, you should still tell your doctor or see a cardiologist.

It may be something that has a quicker fix, like a medication side effect that can be resolved by switching drugs or dosages. Or, you may need to work with your doctor to devise a proper treatment plan.

Anxiety is one cause of heart palpitations. But heart palpitations that don’t occur with symptoms of anxiety may be signs of another underlying health or heart condition.

Speak with your doctor about your symptoms. They may provide a diagnosis of anxiety or another health condition.

You can help ease these episodes by learning relaxation techniques, discussing de-stressing strategies with a therapist, or switching current medications, if you’re using any.