Pulse races after coffee or stress
You finish a cup of coffee. Twenty minutes later your heart is thumping fast in your chest. A tense meeting or a hard phone call can set off the same thing.
Doctors call this palpitations, which just means feeling your own heartbeat. It may feel fast, hard, or fluttery. Some people feel it in the neck, the throat, or even the ears.
Caffeine and stress both raise hormones that speed the heart up. Poor sleep, skipped meals, alcohol, and too little water can make you more touchy. Some cold pills, energy drinks, thyroid problems, and low iron can also play a part.
When to see someone
Get help right away if chest pain, trouble breathing, or fainting comes with the racing. See a doctor soon for dizziness, a pulse over 120 beats a minute at rest, or beats that start and stop all at once. Tell them about heart disease in you or your family, and list any pills you take.
Below you will find remedies people have long used for a racing heart, each with an evidence grade. The grade shows how much research backs it, not a promise that it will help you. Talk with your doctor before you try any of them, mainly if you take other medicine.



