Why is my Heart Beating Like This? (And it's a good sign)

Your body doesn't "go crazy," it just goes into "turbo mode" to prepare you to deal with a threat. It's a system that works great.

Why does this happen briefly?

You know the smoke detector in the kitchen? Its job is to beep as soon as it detects danger. There is a small "smoke detector" in our brain (the amygdala), designed to protect us from predators and threats.

When this detector detects danger—or even a frightening thought—it immediately activates the body's alarm system. It floods you with adrenaline to prepare your muscles for rapid "fight or flight" action.

In times of war or stress, this detector becomes very sensitive. It triggers a "false alarm" even when there is no immediate physical threat. The result is that the body is flooded with tremendous energy that has nowhere to go, and that is exactly what you are feeling right now.

Do you recognize this?

These signs are proof that your system is working properly:

Rapid heartbeat: The heart is working hard to pump blood to the muscles.

Trembling in the hands or feet: energy (adrenaline) that the body has prepared for action.

Rapid breathing: An attempt to take in a lot of oxygen in a short time.

My tool: "Shake It Out"

The solution is to help this energy come out through proactive shaking:

Get up from the chair.

Shake your hands and feet vigorously (as if trying to dry water from your body).

Take a deep breath at the end.

Watch a short demo

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The science behind palpitations: What happens in the nervous system?

To better understand what you're going through, and why a rapid heartbeat is a healthy response, you need to know about the autonomic nervous system. This is the system that is responsible for all the involuntary actions in our body, and it consists of two main parts that act like a gas pedal and a brake pedal.

The gas pedal: the sympathetic system

When you feel anxiety, stress, or sudden fear, the sympathetic system is the one that kicks in. Its evolutionary purpose is one: survival. In the past, when we had to run away from a tiger in the jungle, this system saved our lives.

The process begins in the brain, in a region called the amygdala (the same “smoke detector” we mentioned). The amygdala receives a stimulus—it could be a loud noise, a scary headline in the news, or an alarm. It sends an immediate command to the adrenal glands to secrete stress hormones, primarily adrenaline and cortisol.

Why do I feel this physically?

These hormones cause dramatic changes in the body within seconds, and each such change is designed to serve a survival purpose:

Heart rate increases: The heart starts pumping harder to pump blood rich in oxygen and sugar to the large muscles (legs and arms). The body is preparing to run fast or fight hard. That's why you feel your heart "pounding in your chest."

Shallow, rapid breathing: Your body is trying to oxygenate your blood as quickly as possible. This may make you feel suffocated or slightly dizzy, but you are actually breathing in too much oxygen (hyperventilation), not too little.

Body tremors: The tremors you feel are the result of high muscle tone. The muscles are alert and ready to jump. When this energy is not released through running or physical activity, it manifests as uncontrollable tremors.

False alarm in the modern era

The problem is that our brains still work like the brains of early humans, but the dangers have changed. When we sit in the waiting room or read the news, we have nowhere to run and no one to physically fight. The body is ready for action, but we stay put.

A gap is created between the "thinking brain" (the cortex), which understands that we are sitting on the couch, and the "emotional brain" (the amygdala), which is certain that there is a tiger in the room. This gap creates the feeling of anxiety and restlessness. The body is flooded with energy that has nowhere to go.

Why does shaking help?

This is where the tool of “shake it off” comes into play. In nature, animals that have escaped danger (e.g., a deer escaping from a lion) are often seen shaking violently after the event. This shaking is a natural mechanism of trauma discharge. It signals the nervous system that the danger has passed and that it is time to return to normal.

When we shake our arms and legs proactively, we are essentially “completing the circle.” We are giving the body the physical action it so desperately wanted to do, burning off excess adrenaline, and signaling to the brain that it is safe to move from “survival” mode back to a state of relaxation and rest.