Last night we went out for dinner with friends. I usually take my Atenolol (I dropped from 50mg to 25mg 3 weeks ago) around 7.00/7.30 pm but I forgot to take it with me. Around 8.00 I felt those familiar crazy palpitations and when I checked with my Instant Heartrate app on my phone, there was a crazy pattern and the heart rate was all over the place - up to 170 bpm. It went back into sinus rhythm after about an hour but stayed tachy (over 100) for a while. When I got home I took my beta blocker (a full tablet rather than the half) and checked with my Kardia (which I haven’t needed for months) and it was 105bpm and showing Tachycardia. Interestingly, I visited the loo yesterday at work far more often than usual. I should have seen that as a warning.
I’m disappointed and hoping it’s a one of - I’m almost 6 months post ablation. I’m feeling good today so I’ll “keep calm and carry on”. I’ll speak with my EP and see if I should go back to the full tablet. I daren’t say anything to my husband as he keeps telling me that I’m doing too much.
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Kaz747
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Hi there! Sorry to hear that. We all know the feeling .. Hope you are better today and last night was just a one off episode post ablation. Yup. Good to check with your EP. Stay well and take care. 🤗
Good Morning, had you had your meal or was it before? Take heed from your hubby. This happens with me if I go up to my daughters on the train when I come back and it is aLways three days afterwhen I am home I have a turn. Are you doing too much because you work? You must rest. And the toilet thing is always a sign with me, are you back to normal now? If you are then please take it easy. Take notice of your hubby I have lost mine and I would love him to be here to tell me off. Ha ha. You take care. As for your tablet make sure you ask the doctor about it because you don't want to take it if you don't need it. X
Have just been reading the other messages sounds like you have got your self stressed out a bit. I think that we all think we can carry on as normal when we are back in rhythm. And be like other people. But we are not normal people we have this thing, sounds like you know what started it. Just take it easy. X
Thanks Gillybean. I’m good again now. I’ve always felt I coped well with stress but things happen at a subconscious level in our bodies. It’s my day off tomorrow so I’ll go for a walk and enjoy some me time.
Fingers crossed, indeed, Kaz. Truly hope it's just a blip on the radar, just a short sprinkle of rain on an otherwise cloudless Perth day. Here's wishing you better rhythms ahead.
Sorry that your AF has come back with a bang - must be very frustrating. Just a thought when you said about going to the loo more often. Just wondered if that was, perhaps a sign of even a slight infection. I know a cardiologist once said that even mild infections of any kind can be a trigger..... All the best for a return to consistent good health.
Hi Jean - nothing out of the ordinary. I have had a cold which is pretty good now. I was running around late the night before picking up my sister from hospital after surgery and didn’t sleep as well as usual. No alcohol, no caffeine, no unusual foods. Perhaps just extra stress on my body- who knows?! My EP is calling back tomorrow with advice on meds.
Just when you think it’s safe to get back in the water ........ 🦈 😀
Such a blimming pain! I notice when my eldest daughter is on the phone and in attack mode, then my heart starts pounding. I think any situation where we don't feel as relaxed as we should and yes your racing around and not sleeping too well, can all contribute. There must be circumstances when it's natural for our hearts to pound. Lets hope last night was one of them for you.
The cold will be the culprit. Anytime I have a virus or infection I will be prone - it puts too much stress on the body and the only way to prevent an episode if I have even the slightest hint of a cold is to rest, rest some more and wait.
Take it slow and easy for a day or 2 and get plenty of rest. Hope you feel better soon. X
I was told last Friday that the first date they have free is 8th October, said it's very busy lately and more young people needing them. I've asked to go on the waiting list if a date comes up before then. Going to Croatia on the 13th all being well.
Yes, all those things go through my mind too, leaky microwaves, air pollution, computer screens and t.v's used to give off radiation but better now. Chemicals in tea bags, sprayed on our veg and grains and used in our home furnishings ,paint and UPVC windows. The list could go on and on.
Perhaps we who live in the greedy, wealthier part of the world, while ignoring others who starve and still don't have the basics like fresh water, here where lots of people are overweight, try not to eat too much and lose weight, just 'perhaps' we are reaping the rewards of our selfishness.
Hi Jean, i have had 3 episodes in 3 days, lasting 10 minutes, 1 hr and 1 and 1/2 hours. I am 68 and been having them for about 20 years. Unusual for me as usually can stop most of them holding breath etc. I am finding that magnesium tablet during episode shortens episode. Can i ask you, what does it mean to be in constant PAF. It sounds awful. I get loads of missed beats which sometimes triggers my arrythmia. I hope you have your ablation before your holiday. Good luck. Linda
Being in constant AF means your heart is out of rhythm all the time. While with you it's for a few hours with me I've been in AF since 1st August. It starts out with you feeling dreadful, but then as the weeks go by your body gets used to the situation and you don't feel quite so bad. For the last three days I've felt so much better, though I'm aware AF is still with me if I dare to walk up any stairs or a hill. Hopefully my cardioversion will be on the 8th October.
So many people swear that magnesium helps their AF. I can't take the tablets (makes my stomach sore), so use magnesium flakes in my bath and a spray oil.
That sounds very uncomfortable. Magnesium upsets my stomach too but i only take them during episode. My attacks are usually started by pressure on my neck so think possible stimulation of vagal nerve. If i cannot stop it my pulse jumps out right side of neck and i feel tightening around my neck. Doctor took my bp when i was having an attack and said bp extremely low, HR 130, but now HR usually just over 100 during attack. They do make me feel quite weak although i can walk around. They are definitely becoming more frequent the older i get, i am 68, but not as severe. On Atenolol 25 mg. Keep us updated re your cardioversion. Linda
Hope you're feeling a little better today? I had to reply because your post struck a chord with me. You say the day previous that you visited the bathroom a lot more and should of seen this as a warning? Can I just ask, do you find yourself urinating a lot more when having/due an episode? VERY frequent (and I mean extreme) urination is one of my main symptoms but when I mentioned it to my cardiologist he dismissed it and said it's not related. I know full well it is though.
It is related, your body is trying to correct the anomaly. An enzyme is released that makes you pee more. I have days like that then no overt AF .I assume it's the flecainide saving my bacon.
"AF doesn't always cause symptoms. ... Many patients also complain of frequent urination, caused by release of atrial natriuretic peptide (particularly when AF episodes end)."
The night before I went into atrial flutter last year (my first occasion and prior to my AF diagnosis) we’d been to a wedding and got back to where we were staying around 1.00 am. I must have gotten up 5 times that night and I usually sleep all night. The next morning my HR was a constant 150. The following day I saw my GP who liaised with my cardiologist and sent me to hospital for a cardioversion. I have found the extra urination only an issue when in fast AF/flutter.
I also have Very frequent visits to loo prior to AF episode. It’s always my first indication of AF. Also mentioned it to doctor who didn’t seem to think there was a link either!
Hope you feel better soon and it is only a one time thing. I guess we all have to change our way of living and rest a lot more than before our ablation. As little stress as possible is also a good thing, but not easy to do when you’re back in your normal way of live. We tend to forget that we had these heart issues, but our heart doesn’t forget it, our heart has changed forever.
He is a leading EP. Some people have simple problems that can be fixed up with one ablation- some of us have more complex issues. Since the last ablation I’ve been great - like I said, this is a blip.
It's probably what you had for supper - either too much sugar or salt. Here is what I found to be the problem:
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After 9 years of trying different foods and logging EVERYTHING I ate, I found sugar (and to a lesser degree, salt – i.e. dehydration) was triggering my Afib. Doctors don't want to hear this - there is no money in telling patients to eat less sugar. Each person has a different sugar threshold - and it changes as you get older, so you need to count every gram of sugar you eat every day (including natural sugars in fruits, etc.). My tolerance level was 190 grams of sugar per day 8 years ago, 85 grams a year and a half ago, and 60 grams today, so AFIB episodes are more frequent and last longer. If you keep your intake of sugar below your threshold level your AFIB will not happen again (easier said than done of course). It's not the food - it's the sugar (or salt - see below) IN the food that's causing your problems. Try it and you will see - should only take you 1 or 2 months of trial-and-error to find your threshold level. And for the record - ALL sugars are treated the same (honey, refined, agave, natural sugars in fruits, etc.). I successfully triggered AFIB by eating a bunch of plums and peaches one day just to test it out. In addition, I have noticed that moderate exercise (7-mile bike ride or 5-mile hike in the park) often puts my Afib heart back in to normal rhythm a couple hours later. Don’t know why – perhaps you burn off the excess sugars in your blood/muscles or sweat out excess salt??
Also, in addition to sugar, if you are dehydrated - this will trigger AFIB as well. It seems (but I have no proof of this) that a little uptick of salt in your blood is being treated the same as an uptick of sugar - both cause AFIB episodes. (I’m not a doctor – it may be the sugar in your muscles/organs and not in your blood, don’t know). In any case you have to keep hydrated, and not eat too much salt. The root problem is that our bodies are not processing sugar/salt properly and no doctor knows why, but the AFIB seems to be a symptom of this and not the primary problem, but medicine is not advanced enough to know the core reason that causes AFIB at this time. You can have a healthy heart and still have Afib – something inside us is triggering it when we eat too much sugar or get (even a little) dehydrated. Find out the core reason for this and you will be a millionaire and make the cover of Time Magazine! Good luck! - Rick Hyer
PS – there is a new study out backing up the above observations. You can see it at
Thanks - I monitor what I eat very closely so do limit sugar and salt and drink heaps of water. I follow Michael Pollan’s advice: Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.
Everyone is different - I’ve had multiple arrhythmias, not just AF. And it seems there’s a link to my pregnancies nearly 30 years ago so the cause of my problems may be very different to yours.
Some comments saying stress might be a factor. We tend to go into denial about stress. I had varying degrees of stress for many years. It was only after I'd retired that I recognised it in hindsight. I am now in permanent Afib, probably as a result of obesity. Stress leads us to comfort eating. Permanent Afib is much less of a problem than I'd expected. I keep it in its box with 90 minute sessions in the gym 5 days a week and a diet that is low in cards. Very little bread and potatoes. Lots of veg, I'm addicted to stir fry meals now.
I eat very healthy, exercise and sleep well. I’m very conscious about relaxation and stress levels but sometimes I know I’m overdoing things with work and family commitments. Last week I booked some international airline tickets and thought I’d input something incorrectly (thankfully I hadn’t) but those few minutes of panic, then relief brought on an episode of Tachycardia (no AF). I think it’s a physiological response. My arrhythmias started after physical stress on my body (ankle injury and major surgery) and is likely linked to underlying damage done in my pregnancies (I had severe preeclampsia with both pregnancies).
Came across an interesting study last year from the European Society of Cardioligy on Autonomic trigger patterns. Top of the list came stress (labelled as emotions) closely followed by Exercise. Makes interesting reading.
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