You spend your whole life listening to your heart. It’s got a great beat, and you can dance to it. But when it skips, it’s amazing how 

Don’t panic about palpitations. (ABCNEWS.com)

fast you can assume the worst, that the slightest twinge means a toe tag to follow shortly.

     True, if your rhythm is out of whack, or if you have heart pain, you should have it checked out. But not every heart hiccup means you’ll soon be walking toward the light. In fact, a number of (nonfatal) circumstances might cause your heart to thump like a ’72 Chevy with 16 inch woofers. For instance, it could be …

A can of Coke. Temporary heart palpitations — a condition called supra ventricular tachycardia — are enough to scare the hell out of you, but sudden rapid heartbeats are usually harmless. Often, they’re triggered by caffeine or nicotine, which means you can eliminate the palpitations by cutting out the vice that’s causing them, says Dr. Paul Mahoney of the University of Pennsylvania’s health center. If pain or dizziness accompanies irregular beats, or if they last more than a few seconds, see a doctor to rule out more serious stuff.

The company party. After a big night out, quickening palpitations could signal a common condition known as holiday heart syndrome, so named because it often coincides with raucous Christmas parties. Drinking a lot of booze can lead to a machine-gunlike pulse. “We usually see it when people suddenly drink way more than usual on one particular night or over a weekend,” says Dr. David Hayes, a cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic.

Constipation. It’s a classic heart attack symptom — fainting, that is. But just because you keel over doesn’t mean you’re dying. Fainting is often caused by dehydration, strenuous coughing or — from the Pray-This-Never-Happens-to-You category — a difficult bowel movement. “Straining can alter the pressure in your chest and reduce the blood flow to your head, so you faint,” Hayes says. However, if you feel you’re going to faint during physical exertion, stop what you’re doing and go to an emergency room.

Your personal best bench press. While the pain from a heart attack feels as if someone were tightening a belt around your chest, the pain from a muscle pull or strain feels sharp and knifelike, says Dr. Jonathan Zaroff, a cardiologist at the University of California at San Francisco. Try raising or lowering your arms to see if that helps alleviate the pain. If it does, stay off the weights for a few days. If it doesn’t, call 911 — just to be on the safe side.

A small leak. That small flutter you feel is just a defect in one of your heart valves. Sounds serious, we know. It’s probably innocuous: A valve simply isn’t opening and closing as efficiently as it should. The skipped beat, or heart murmur, could be the blood trying to pass through that malfunctioning valve. If you have a murmur, you may need antibiotics before surgery or dental work. Bacteria can easily pool around a malfunctioning valve, putting you at risk for infections.

Those six burrito supremes. Men often think they’re having heart attacks when what they really have is just a bad case of indigestion or heartburn. An antacid should relieve the burning sensation in a few minutes, Zaroff says. If it doesn’t, do a  self check for other classic heart attack symptoms, such as dizziness, sweating and jaw pain.

A bug. Any viral infection that causes  flu like symptoms can also lead to inflammation of the heart, says Dr. Douglas Zipes of Indiana University. Inflamed heart tissue can disrupt the flow of the tiny electrical current that causes the heart to beat. When the infection leaves, so do the irregular heartbeats. If they don’t, see a doctor.

Your in-laws. Chest pain and irregular heartbeats can signal anxiety or extreme stress. Anti-anxiety drugs may help; so might moving 2,000 miles away.