Fast heartbeat when you wake up? here are 6 causes

Have you ever woken up one morning and felt your heart be racing? This condition suddenly makes you feel uncomfortable and even afraid. There are various factors that can cause a person to experience a fast heartbeat when they wake up. Find out the answer in this article.

The cause of a fast heartbeat when you wake up

A fast heartbeat, or in medical terms it is called palpitations or tachycardia, is a condition in which you feel your heart beating faster, stronger, and irregularly. Not only the chest, you can also feel this sensation in the throat and neck.

In most cases, a fast heartbeat without other symptoms is a common condition that usually lasts briefly and can go away on its own. However, if you experience a fast heartbeat that is too frequent, gets worse, and is accompanied by certain symptoms, you should be vigilant.

Here are some of the causes and factors that increase your risk of experiencing a fast heartbeat.

1. Stress

If when you wake up you feel shaking, cold sweat appears, heart palpitations, and feelings of chaos, it could be because of stress.

Stress can affect your body in many ways, including increasing your heart rate. Anxiety, panic, fear, panic, happiness, anger, or sadness - all of which can raise the adrenaline and cortisol levels in the body, which increases the heart rate.

Your ability to cope with and control stress can help bring your heart rate back to normal. One way you can do this is to take repeated deep breaths until you can feel more relaxed. In addition, exercise and adequate sleep are also the best ways to help deal with stress.

2. Consuming caffeine

If you wake up and feel your heart beating fast, try to remember how much caffeine you drank before bed. The reason is, caffeine can be one of the causes that makes your heart pound after waking up.

Caffeine is a stimulant drug that can stimulate the central nervous system in the brain. The central nervous system functions as a command center for all body functions. That is why drinking coffee can cause all kinds of side effects on your body. Usually this happens when you drink coffee or caffeinated drinks excessively in a day.

3. Dehydration

Did you know that dehydration can also cause your heart to beat faster? Yes, losing too much fluid or not drinking enough before you go to bed can cause heart palpitations which are accompanied by dry mouth, dark urine and muscle cramps. The reason is, dehydration can cause changes in the amount of electrolytes in the body which causes a decrease in blood pressure.

Well, this condition puts pressure on the body so that it results in an abnormal heart rate. Therefore, fill your fluid intake before bed to avoid dehydration while you are asleep.

4. Taking certain drugs

Many prescription medications, such as asthma or thyroid medications, can cause your heart to palpitations. The reason is, there are several drugs known to be able to affect metabolic processes, and there are also drugs that can cause changes in the electrical conduction system in the heart.

If the medicines you normally take have side effects that can disrupt your heart rate daily, consult a doctor immediately.

5. Anemia

Anemia is a condition in which your red blood cell count is low so your body doesn't get enough oxygen-rich blood. As a result, you may often feel tired and weak. Although it does not always cause heart palpitations, anemia sufferers also sometimes complain that their heart is often pounding due to a lack of oxygen in the blood.

6. Abnormal heart function

A beating heart when you wake up can also be caused by certain medical conditions, such as arrhythmias. Arrhythmia is a heart disorder characterized by an abnormal heartbeat or rhythm, in which the heartbeat is too fast, too slow, irregular, or too early.

Apart from arrhythmias, damage to the heart, heart attacks, and heart failure can also result in a fast heartbeat when you wake up.

It's important to know

Basically, some of the causes of a fast heartbeat as mentioned above do not only occur when you wake up. The reason is, when sleeping, the heart rate tends to slow down if it is in normal conditions, that is, when the body is not affected by any substance. Now, when you wake up, your heart rate tends to increase more.

However, if your body has previously been affected by caffeine, stress, types of drugs, and several other causes mentioned above, this will trigger a faster heart rate when you are sleeping or after waking up.

Immediately consult a doctor if you have a fast heartbeat accompanied by chest pain or shortness of breath so that you get proper treatment immediately.