A detailed answer from a layman who’s had irregular heartbeat: I have had serious two episodes of atrial fibrillation (irregular heart rhythm) which each ultimately required 3 or 4 day hospitalizations. They both began during the night while I was in bed. I believe the direct cause of both episodes was that, when I first lie down, I often have irregular heart rhythm. If I sit up for a minute, the beat returns to regular, and I can lie back down again with no more problem. This very often happens.
Anyway, I believe the times my heart got locked into an irregular beat were times that I laid down, was so tired I failed to notice my initial irregular beat, and fell asleep, sleeping for hours before noticing. By the time I was awake and able to notice, the rhythm couldn’t correct itself and slip back into regular rhythm without the aid of medication.
This is my theory based on my own experience. And to answer you, yes, body position very definitely can cause irregular heartbeat. When you fail to notice the irregular heartbeat early enough, I think it slips into irregular and stays. If this is true, then the solution is simple: just be mindful of your heart rhythm when you lie down for a night’s sleep. If it is immediately irregular, take action. Sit up or switch the side you’re lying on. Or lie flat on your back.
All this, in my experience, seems to occur independent of any blood pressure issues. My blood pressure is good. Two contributory factors, though, may have been caffeine over-consumption during the day, and fatigue. A cardiologist told me that he had this condition himself, and that fatigue is a known contributory factor. I knew caffeine could be a problem without a physician telling me so, from having read about this.
I wasn’t that concerned about the irregular beat until I was told by a nurse at the hospital that you are more apt to “throw a blood clot” during an episode of irregular heartbeat. This is so because the blood pools in the heart without moving along as it constantly must, and it can begin to coagulate. Like any clot, it can pose the bigger health risks of stroke or cardiac arrest. Since then, I have been told the same by doctors in person, and I’ve read the same online. So take it seriously, as a condition that can’t be let go indefinitely.
Good luck.
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