Heart Palpitations & Anxiety After Baby? 7 Reasons No One Tells Moms!
Postpartum Heart Palpitations
Are you waking up with a pounding heart or feeling unexpected heart flutters throughout the day? Do these palpitations leave you scared, confused, and unsure of what to do next?
You’re not alone.
Heart palpitations are far more common among mothers than you might think, and many times, the root causes are overlooked by healthcare professionals. Often, these symptoms are quickly labelled as “anxiety,” without digging deeper into what’s going on.
Take my client Olivia, for example. She experienced heart palpitations during pregnancy and again postpartum. She came across one of my YouTube videos and decided to try my One Daily Tea Blend. After drinking it twice a day, her heart palpitations stopped completely.
Simple. Affordable. Effective.
Why did it work? Let’s dive into the real reasons behind postpartum heart palpitations and how you can naturally address them.
Treatment for heart palpitations
1. Blood Sugar Imbalance
One of the most common and overlooked triggers is low blood sugar. If your diet is inconsistent or lacks enough protein, fat, and fiber, especially after you stop breastfeeding, you may experience blood sugar crashes that trigger a spike in adrenaline, leading to palpitations.
Ever had a glass of wine in the evening and woken up startled at night? That’s often due to a blood sugar crash combined with elevated histamines.
Tip: Start your day with balanced meals and snacks. Adding herbs like stinging nettles (found in the One Daily Tea Blend) can help stabilise blood sugar. For example, I drink nettle tea with sweets to help prevent sugar crashes and cravings. The milky oat tops in the blend also help soothe your nervous system.
For Olivia, balancing her blood sugar was the key to stopping her palpitations.
2. Hormonal Shifts
Your hormones change daily and even more drastically during motherhood. When you stop breastfeeding or enter perimenopause, fluctuating estrogen and low progesterone can trigger anxiety, sleep issues, and yes, heart palpitations.
Signs of high estrogen (also called estrogen dominance) include:
Breast tenderness
Constipation before your period
Feeling “wired” or unable to relax
This imbalance affects your ability to rest, recover, and feel calm. Progesterone, your calming hormone, can take up to two years to return to normal levels postpartum.
Tip: Herbal support or working with a practitioner on hormone balancing (and possibly considering hormone replacement therapy) can help, especially if you're entering perimenopause.
3. Sleep Deprivation
Let’s be honest, moms rarely sleep through the night. Whether it’s kids, your partner, or even your dog, your sleep is likely interrupted. And every time you wake, your body releases adrenaline, which can lead to heart palpitations and anxiety.
If you find it hard to fall back asleep or if you wake with a pounding heart, you may benefit from resetting your sleep patterns.
Tip: I created a resource called the Finally Sleep Masterclass, where I go in-depth on how to naturally restore your sleep, balance your hormones, and reduce anxiety. The link is below if you’re ready to sleep again.
4. Mineral Deficiency
Childbirth, especially if you experienced blood loss or had a C-section, can deplete essential minerals like magnesium, potassium, and sodium. These minerals play a vital role in regulating your heartbeat and nervous system.
Tip: Adding mineral-rich drinks or supplements to your routine can help. If you had antibiotics during delivery, you may also need to rebuild your gut health to improve nutrient absorption.
5. Nervous System Dysregulation
Have you ever been startled awake by a memory or found yourself emotionally reactive without knowing why?
That could be a sign of unresolved trauma.
Many moms think trauma has to be big or obvious, but it can be subtle and unprocessed. For example, after I had my twins, I would wake up with recurring memories from my 20s that disrupted my sleep for months.
Tip: Noticing triggers (like a song, smell, or your child’s cry) is the first step. Write them down. These subconscious thoughts can manifest physically, especially as heart palpitations.
When you begin to regulate your nervous system, you’re not just healing yourself; you’re also modeling emotional safety for your kids. That’s powerful, generational healing.
6. Poor Vitamin Quality & MTHFR Gene
Your vitamins could be making things worse.
If you have the MTHFR gene mutation (which many people do), your body can’t properly process synthetic B vitamins like folic acid. This can lead to heart palpitations, fatigue, and even anxiety.
Tip: Choose clean, methylated (bioavailable) vitamins like folate instead of folic acid. Your body prefers natural sources, especially if you’ve experienced sensitivity or adverse reactions to common supplements or even certain foods.
7. Histamine Spikes
High histamine levels can keep you awake at night and contribute to heart palpitations.
Why is this happening more now? Again, your hormones.
Estrogen raises histamines. So, if you’re estrogen dominant and progesterone is low, your histamines may spike, especially at night. This leaves you tossing and turning or waking up in a panic.
Tip: Some moms have even resorted to antihistamines for sleep. While that’s not a long-term solution, it shows just how strong a role histamines play. Natural histamine-balancing herbs and dietary changes can help calm this response.
Conclusion
Heart palpitations occur for various reasons. Of course, you want to check with your doctor for any serious concerns. Watch the video above to see how we're healing heart palpitations in the postpartum time with just 2 cups of tea a day, if it’s related to blood sugar spikes. Additionally, herbal and homeopathic remedies can calm cortisol spikes and help you feel safe and present again.
xo
