Posted this on Facebook yesterday, thought I’d share here too
There is a group on Facebook called, Alternative AF Cures. But is there a Normal, or Common Cure? Is ablation considered a “cure”? I don’t think I’ve seen any cures. So the title is a little misleading but I understand that the motivation is to open up the dialog for potentials beside the allopathic route.
I have never had health insurance until I got married at 58 a decade ago, so before that time I always had to deal with my own health, and lapses thereof without the assistance of a medical professional. One of the insights that I gained is that to look and understand the causes must be my priority... symptoms are secondary. I have read many times that “no one knows the causes of AF, there is no cure.”
How many of you have come up with a cause? When I say cause I mean primary cause… you may say alcohol, or heart disease, or weight, or sleep apnea… but before that… what caused those causes? There are only two possibilities, two categories… it is either something external like a virus or genetic certainty, or it is internal, something that we have chosen to do, or not do. There is much less we can do about external causes, but the internal one we are quite capable to moderate if we are willing to take full responsibility for our healing.
And I say the the root cause is stress. I believe the elimination of stress is the cure for AF.
I believe my case of AF came on from stress in my life, emotional, mental and physical. I am retired and I have the time and interest to look at the condition soberly. At first I was quite upset. The pounding in my chest, the tachycardia, shortness of breath, the weakness, the irregularity, the confusion of why this is happening to an otherwise healthy person. An avid bike rider I’ve learned AF is common in athletes. Why? The heart is stressed. Not everyone has the kind of heart that can ride 20 miles a day without problems. Some can get healthy by riding, some get AF, it depends on your physiology and anatomy.
If stress was the cause, the symptoms themselves were more stress! Getting ultrasounds and EKGs were stress, see the cardiologist was stress. Reading about the condition was even more stressful with the dire diagnosis. Pharmaceuticals are stressful to the body in several ways… don’t get me started! So I had stress in my life, the AF doubled my stress, the treatment options, as well as exploring alternatives were nothing but stress. Mindfulness based stress reduction is itself a subtle form of stress . Something's not right with this picture.
I was having 48-72 hour episodes two or three times a week for six months. Four days without AF was a rare occurrence. Now it is nine months later and I am virtually symptom free and stress free. My path was custom made for me, and yours need to be custom for you, but the key is that stress must be eliminated, not reduced, not managed, it must be eliminated completely. It can be done, it’s not necessarily simple, but it is worth it. You must look at where is the stress in your life, how are you complicit in creating and maintaining the stress. What are you doing with your body that is physically stressful? Food, chemicals, behavior, environment? What about your mental states -- do you think constantly about the past and future -- how much of your thinking is stressful? What about your beliefs and assumptions, are they contributing? Emotions… how often do you find yourself in some form of fear? Are you disconnected from your inner joy, love, peace, and compassion? We must identify where the stress is in our lives and eliminate it completely. We must heal our relationships, with ourselves and others. We must find a way to quieten our minds, to be present and engaged. And we must really pay attention to our body -- how are we mistreating it, disrespecting it, ignoring it’s messages.
Best wishes to you all!
It is true that to function in society we often sacrifice our inner peace for nice house, nice food, etc. But I do know people that have set their spiritual, mental, emotional and physical health as the first priority, and they are stress free. Some are yogis, some are monks, some are simple people who have tapped into a deeper wisdom, or are simply accepting of what is given and live in surrender to the present moment. They have tapped into an deeper, timeless way of living. They have no stress because they have found peace in every aspect of life. It is rare, but if ending AF is your goal, there are living examples on this planet at this moment. It is probably true that not working is a pre-requisite for ending stress, but ultimately it is our choice to get on the stressful hamster wheel because of the programming we have been given by our family, our teachers, and our churches. 
Stress, AF + minor surgery
The Big 3
AF/SVT and underlying causes 
