AF, STROKE, HEART FAILURE

Oh, what a difficult time for you. Try if you can to see the glass as half full and not half empty and be glad for what you and your parents have, even if it's not going so well right now. There are so many improvements in treatment and medication constantly being introduced and these will have benefits for us all.

So sorry you are having such a hard time. Were you parents on anticoagulants before the strokes? What medication have you been prescribed. Are you on anticoagulants? Sorry for all the questions but if your not then speak to your cardiologist and ask why, its really important if you have AF to be on the proper medication to control the heart beat and rhythm, but more so to protect against you blood clotting and you having a stroke as this greatly reduces the risk. Read as much information as you can on the AF Association web site as this really helps to put everything into perspective. Take care.

Hi Juliewoo and welcome to the forum.

I am sure you are very concerned about your parents and I do hope they are r ceiling appropriate treatment.

AF does increase your risk of stroke which is why it is so important to take an anticoagulant which then decreases your risk. Seeing a competent Cardiologist who specializes in electrical problems of the heart is important to ensure you get access to treatments.

Knowledge is power so may I suggest that you visit the AFA website where you will find a lot of information about AF.

This forum is a very supportive and friendly so if you want to know anything don't hesitate to ask. The important thing about coping with chronic conditions is how to manage them.

Very best wishes CD,

Julie, I can only imagine what you are going through now.

I go along with has been said by others, particularly about taking anticoagulants. Never mind your young age do ask again .

Sandra

Hi it's a difficult time supporting parents at this time. Don't neglect yourself during the process. If your parents had AF why were they not on anticoagulants ? At least they are now. With your parents health as it is now I think open discussion with your consultant should result in you having anticoagulation. Read around it on the info for patients on AF website and make list to take to discuss with docs. Good luck with everything and remember yourself too

try not to worry about yourself too much- strokes happen with AF if patients are not anti-coagulated but when you are young your heart muscle is still smooth so it's harder for a clot to form. The doctor should work out your Chads Vasc score- you can do this too if you look at the AF website. Also your bleeding risk (HASBLED score) and then help you decide what's the best way forward.

Please try not to worry to much I was admitted to hosp with heart failur I was so worried at those words I thought any minute now they will be in to measure me for my box ,but here I am 3years later hf is much improved AF under control I have had a TIA but no side effects thank goodness for modern medicine

Be sure to take care of yourself. Be sure you have a good doctor to treat your AF with rate and rhythm control medications and anticoagulant to prevent stroke. Also maybe look into to having an ablation to correct AFIB. I had an ablation in Nov. 2017 and so far so good no AFIB. You need all of your strength to take care of your parents. I wish you the best. Hope you can get great care and compassion from you doctors for yourself and your parents. When AFIB hits the episode cause so much fatigue and anxiety it is hard to think clearly. Wishing you the best.

Julie, lots of good advice. It may seem selfish, but maybe you need to focus a bit on your condition first because of you are not firing on all cylinders, it will be even more difficult for you to cope with your parents problems. As you probably know, we are not medically trained and therefore shouldn't comment on medication, but some beta-blockers do have fairly aggressive side effects and it might be an idea to look at types other than Bisoprolol or alternatives such as calcium channel blockers to see if they might be more suitable for you.

Given your family history, anticoagulants for you should be properly considered with expert medical advice.....clearly you are having one hell of a time at the moment, but hopefully the support you are getting from the forum will help you through this ordeal....very best wishes.....

Thank you to each and every one of you for your informative and caring replies. I'm going to read them all now digest what you've all said. Thanks again

I would like to add my support to RosyG's comment. Stroke risk increases with age and the CHADS2 score takes age and other factors into account. I have lone AF, 17 years, and had a PVI and never been prescribed anti coagulants , other than during the PVI period. See your DR or cardiologist as they should have done the scoring for you. It is not this forums role to say you should or should not be on anticoagulants You need professional support, preferably from someone who will give you the time and reassurance to discuss all your fears about your own AF and any need for anti coagulation.

Hi Julie,

I am in a similar position to yourself.

I have heart failure, (although I'm not sure how much of my heart is not functioning. I don't ask.) I'm no were near as ill as your dad so I would say mines not too bad. I also have AF. Im 36.

I'm on bisoprolol, ramipril, digoxin, bumetinide, spironolactone and warfarin.

I would definitely suggest they put you on either warfarin or asprin to remove the risk of a stroke for yourself. Especially as your parents have had one. Just as your care team or cardiologist.

I hope your parents and yourself keep well.

Sarah. X

Hi Juliewoo

So many great replies, and not sure I can add too much, but perhaps just some observations.

Stress and worry, and right now with your Dad that's completely understandable, is often a trigger for AF, so keeping YOU healthy so that you can support your Mum and Dad is very important.

First step I would suggest is knowledge, heart failure is not always as serious as it sounds and can often be treated, find out exactly what the problem is with Dad and then ask lots and lots of questions, in fact hound the doctors with questions, for your Dad and you. The more you know the better you will understand what is happening, and the better you will feel.

Now you, with both parents with AF I fully understand your worry, you should be seeing an Electrophsyiologist, does he/she know about your Mum and Dad, the doc needs to know and you need to discuss it with them. He/she can advise if anti-coagulation is appropriate for you. It always a balance of risk/reward and the usual measures may not apply in your case, you need specific medical advice here.

Second step is support, we are here and happy and willing to talk about anything AF, we have all been there got the T Shirt, we are not medically trained, but in some ways we are better as we all suffer. As long as you never try to take any medical advice from the forum the support you will find will be immense, I guarantee that.

Third step, scared.... Now here we are the experts, and in many respects more so than the medical staff. There is not a person on this forum who will honestly tell you hand on heart (pun intended) that they have not been scared. Scared for themselves, scared for their children, and scared for the people they care for. Scared is how you come into the AF world, scared is how you cope with treatment plans and procedures and scared is how we carry on our lives. But scared is not a permanent fixture, someone has just posted the most wonderful comment which says

"I have AF. AF does not have me."

It's really hard to believe that at first, then as knowledge grows, supports helps, and you comes to terms with AF, slowly it grows on you.

It will grow on you too given time.

We are here for you

We are here to support you supporting your Mum and Dad

Be well

Ian

Quick update

I am with my dad in the hyper acute stroke ward of another hospital. I went to visit him this morning at his regular hospital and he wasn't himself so a doctor was called and he was sent to a more sofisticated hospital for assessment. It transpires that he's had another stroke due to his AF sending a clot to his brain.