Hey Judy!
This is very normal for panickers. When you start to panic, your adrenaline starts going and that causes your heart to beat faster. When your heart beats faster, sometimes it causes a few skipped beats because it is pumping out the blood at a faster rate and skips a few to keep in rhythm. Very normal and it will not damage your heart. That's what my doctor told me. That's also what a cardiologist told my mother.
I know that sometimes the heart will seem to be beating funny and that will cause panic. This is also normal. The heart pumps out a certain amount of blood with every beat. Sometimes, a little blood leaks back in and doesn't get pushed out. After awhile, the heart has to push that extra blood out. So, it will pause for a second to build up momentum and give an extra hard push to get that extra blood out of the chamber and then will beat fast a few times to catch back up to normal rhythm. This is also very normal and not dangerous. Everyone has this - we just notice it much, much more. Because we pay more attention to it, it happens more often and seems more intense than normal. But, I promise that when you convince yourself this is not dangerous, it will start to go away and happen less often. Actually, it will still happen, you just won't notice it. I had this fear for years and years and years and when I finally realized this is not dangerous and that it is normal, I stopped noticing it as much and it has finally stopped being a panick trigger for me.
Of course, if you haven't seen a doctor about it, I suggest you do just to put your mind at ease. But, you need to trust your doctor. If he / she tells you there is nothiing to worry about after checking you out, then know that it is the anxiety causing it and that you need to work on the anxiety surrounding it - not a problem with the heart.
Hope that helps! Hang in there!! You will be ok!!
