Diagnosed with irregular heartbeat. had all my life, not on any meds. is this same as arrhythmia and can i just drop dead from it? 39 f

Depends on type: Arrhythmia is the medical term 4 an aberrant (irregular, or abnormal) heart beat. There r many types of arrhythmias, & w/o knowing the type u had as a child, & not knowing the type u have now, it's hard 2 say if it's the same type or not. A Cardiologist will do an EKG, possibly a Holter or event monitor, to determine type. The VTach type can b fatal. "Afib"= risk of stroke (untreated); others r b9

Irregular heartbeat: Many people have extrasystoles and this doesn't necessarily mean much. You need to check with your doctor and see what is going on. The chances are you have a benign extra beat situation and needn't worry. Be sure the doctor explains your situation to you and you get all your questions answered. You will likely have some ecg testing and perhaps longer term monitoring.