Women starting to experience menopausal symptoms may find that they wake up with their heart feeling as if it is thumping its way out of their chests. Sometimes during the day it may feel as if your heart has skipped a beat, or is racing for no reason. This is more intense in some women than others. If you are conscious of these symptoms, you are probably just experiencing a heart palpitation, otherwise known as Tachycardia. This, like many other little problems, is a part of menopause. Your heart palpitations will probably occur on an occasional basis over the period of one to four months. They may even be accompanied by other menopause symptoms like hot flashes. Some women undergo a difference of eight to sixteen beats a minute from their normal heart rate.

Heart palpitations in menopause are usually caused by constantly changing hormone levels in the body. Your estrogen and progesterone levels can change at times on an hourly basis when you are living through menopause. As a result, your heart pounds rapidly, and you can experience acute sweating as well. These incidents do not denote problems in and of themselves; they are just a typical symptom of menopause.

There are, however, some other serious causes of heart palpitations, so it can be a good idea to get any notice of an irregular heartbeat checked out immediately. The most common cause of heart palpitations, beyond menopause, is the overuse of stimulants.

Decongestants, caffeine, nicotine, diet pills, and alcohol all are or contain stimulants. Too much of any of these or other stimulants, causes a change in your heart rate. Combining these things with menopause may make you feel as if your heart is out of control.

While these are usually harmless heart palpitations, there are more serious causes of heart palpitations. Anemia, hypoglycemia, and thyroid conditions can cause similar heart palpitations. They can even be a good indicator of heart disease or heart valve disorders.

If you are suffering from heart palpitations as a normal symptom of menopause, consider the following tips.

• First, avoid common stimulants like smoking, caffeine, and diet pills. These will only make them worse.
• If you are working out and you notice heart palpitations, take a break. Your body is trying to give you some warning that it needs a chance to rest, so you'd do best to listen to it immediately.
• If possible, lie down and take slow, deep breaths. Try to inhale using your nose and exhale using your mouth for five minutes. This should help your normal heart rhythm return.
• A program of morning and evening mediation might also help you. It is also a good idea to learn how to take your pulse.

You and your doctor should decide upon your normal heart rate, so you can figure out how often your heart palpitations are occurring. If your heart palpitations occur with a dizzy feeling, if you faint, or if you feel tightness in the chest or neck, you should visit the hospital immediately.