Having had AFib for 3 years now my symptoms are getting worse .I would like however to know the symptoms of an episode that can last for up to an hour and more .My symptoms now leave me with breathlessness after walking 20 metres or climbing 5 steps or stairs .On all these occasions I have to stop to find my breath.If I walk unaided without a bannister walking stick or human arm I would walk unbalanced and staggering — very embarrassing and frightening.I am also very tired.I have very high BP and a fast AF.that is being unsuccessfully being treated with Rivaroxaban,Perindopil and Verapamil. Am having a 3rd 24 hr.Holter monitor being fitted next week .Results will be available in 3 months.Look forward to advice or comments,because I’m a bit fed up.
Describe an AFib episode: Having had... - Atrial Fibrillati...
Describe an AFib episode
I can understand you being fed up Rose. It happens to the best of us 
I also suffer from breathlessness when afib kicks in -it's frighting but a part of it. If afib lasts an hour or more this quite common. An Afib episode can last for a few minutes or for a lifetime - it's luck of the draw. The first few hours of an attack is when you really feel it - for me anyway. You can feel your heart pounding and you panic big time - pretty normal IMO. Certainly if you have been in sinus for months.
I don't how old you are - I guess it can make a difference if you are over 70. However the right med's can make a difference - you'll need to speak to your doctor about this.
One thing that does strike me ? 3 months seems a long time to get the result for your Holter monitor. Maybe I have it all wrong but it seems a long time to wait.
Paul
Question is are you permanently in AF or are you aware when it strikes. Episosdes of onloy one hour are uncommon form my experience as most people find they last several hours and some even until cardioverted.
Most people experience fatigue often profound along with a need to urinate frequently during events . Shortness of breath and chest pain are also symptoms some people experience whilst as mentioned elsewhere many are asymptomatic and totally aware they have AF.
To be clear, Rivaroxaban is an anticoagulant for stroke prevention and provided taken correctly ( i e with a full meal) should not be much trouble. The other two drugs will slow your heart which in turn could be a cause of fatigue and breathlessness.
I'm afraid AF is a long journey and it often take some time to find the right balance of drugs.
I’ve had similar symptoms and am on eliquis and metoprolol now
Hello Red Rose,
I am not a Doc.
I know when I am in afib my blood oxygen saturation level drops because the heart is not pushing blood through the lungs and body properly.
You can get a finger tip pulse and blood oxygen saturation meter for not very much. It just gives you an oxygen saturation level as a percent. Normal is 95-100% but I was 91 when I was in afib. As soon as I went to normal HR blood oxygen sat went back up to normal. That was in an ER the first time I was diagnosed with afib. So I bought one from Amazon. Knowing what your blood oxygen saturation is may reduce anxiety. It is also more info you can provide your care giver from home so they can decide what you should do or advise you if you see your condition worsening.
When your body has less oxygen you get out of breath easier. I notice that every time I go up into the mountains at 7,000-10,000 ft altitude. There is 25-30% less O2
Afib is not fun and neither are the medications.
That’s interesting so thank you for the info regarding blood oxygen saturation .Sounds logical ,so will check it out now.I think you are very lucky being able to climb mountains.I always feel lucky when I manage 50 metres on a flat surface ,with a few stops to find my breath.—All the best ,and keep up the mountain climbing
My episodes would start without any warning. I would feel the flipping in my chest, break out in a cold sweat and become very tired almost immediately. My heart rate would be around 190. The episodes would last no less than 8 hours before going back to NSR. I would feel completely wiped out for several days afterward.
Give this a try - might stop your afib, or at least reduce it's severity …
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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 (this is why all doctors agree that afib gets worse as you get older). 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 (afternoon) 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?? I also found that strenuous exercise does no good – perhaps you make yourself dehydrated??
I'm pretty sure that Afib is caused by a gland(s) - like the Pancreas, Thyroid (sends signals to the heart to increase speed or strength of beat), Adrenal Gland (sends signals to increase heart rate), Sympathetic Nerve (increases heart rate) or Vagus Nerve (decreases heart rate), Hypothalamus Gland or others - or an organ that, in our old age, is not working well anymore and excess sugar or dehydration is causing them to send mixed signals to the heart - for example telling the heart to beat fast and slow at the same time - which causes it to skip beats, etc. I can't prove that (and neither can my doctors), but I have a very strong suspicion that that is the root cause of our Afib problems. I am working on this with a Nutritionist and hope to get some definitive proof in a few months.
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 study backing up this data you can view at:
Hi Red rose 
as you mention episodes I guess like me you are Paroxysmal too.
My episodes begin abruptly like flicking a switch and last 8-10 hours and since December have progressed from monthly to every two weeks .
During episodes I am breathless, unsteady and walking is difficut though I have to take my dog out somehow and manage to go a little way slowly . The moment the episode ends I am fine . I used to feel tired but don't now maybe due to lifestyle changes which have increased my fitness and stamina.
I am 71 and was diagnosed 3 years ago and have come to accept my P-AF as part of life , others put up with worse things. I currently take a beta blocker and anticoagulant and I was due to visit the arrthmia clinic with a view to trying Flecainide but there is a 90 day wait for clinic so I guess I won't get there any time soon due to the C19 virus.
My last episode began about midnight last night and ended at 9am, I checked my Kardia to confirm my heart rate and took 5 mg of beta blocker to try to get my heart rate down then went to bed and began Diaphramatic breathing which sent me to sleep. I woke up a few times in the night but I quite like nightime episodes they pass more quickly.
I like to manage my P-AF with a minimum of fuss, it used to scare me but it doesn't now.
It is limiting in that I sometimes have to cancel family events and I won't drive far so that I can get home quickly if I need to.
The thing that has helped me most has been learning relaxation and breathing techniques, they seem to make the AF more managable .
.
About a year before I was diagnosed, I was experiencing short periods of fatigue or breathlessness. As an example, after a day working in London, I was heading back to Kings Cross and felt unable to walk up the escalator. Another time I would feel a little breathless after walkig up a couple of flights of stairs. There were also times while cycling that I found hills unusually difficult.
I just thought I was getting old and/or less fit. Gradually, the symptoms worsened and I made an appointment at the Doctors; between making the appointment and attending my Afib became persistent and was easy to diagnose.
The main effect of this was that any exercise would cause my heart rate to rocket. I gave up the cycling and waited for a treatment plan. Strangely, the bisoprolol, I was prescribed controlled my HR, but made the breathlessness 10 times worse. One cardioversion and I was immediately back to normal, although only for ten days. It took an ablation to get me back to normal, but now AF free for just about three years.
That’s really interesting as almost identical to my problems . I couldn’t tolerate the Bisoprolol so was put on a channel blocker -Verapamil that didn’t improve my condition but gives me acute constipation .This was treated with bisocodyl until I read it should only be tolerated for 6 weeks after I had taken it for 4 months .I now take a few prunes and some liquorice every night,which I’m not very happy about—.I am probably quite a bit older than you at 81 yrs.and that is possibly why I have not been offered Ablations or Cardioversions .Recently there was a mention of perhaps a pacemaker if the results of my recent 24 hr.Holter Monitor warrants it— so we’ll see !
At the moment I am struggling on with Verapimil, Rivaroxaban and perindopril..
Thats fantastic that your condition has been rectified and I am pleased for you. Best wishes for your future.
Everything folk have said in reply to your post I can agree with - symptoms, effect etc.
I was on 120mg Verapamil x 1 a day for tachycardia - then af kicked in & dose increased to the maximum. I tolerated it well but eventually it stopped working. After that I was put on Bisoporol (felt poorly on it) changed to Atenalol - same effect. As a result have been on Diltiazam & Digoxin with no side effects though getting the dose right has not been easy this last 12 months. When I had holter monitor approx on 4 different occasions I eventually ended up having one for 5 days as it never picked up af during just 24hours. So maybe worth asking if you can have it for a bit longer.
This is actually my 3rd. Holter - 1st and 3rd - 24hrs. and second 48hrs. No reports on 1st and 2nd.— Reports seemingly take 3 months if nothing untoward, so I have received no reports so far ,for 1st and second.
They gave me a printout of all mine - it was interesting to compare them.
Thanks Gowers .—This time I’ll ask for a printout of all 3.
Good Idea!!
It helped me a lot as I could take them when I went to see cardiologist in the hospital - they don't always have links to the surgery
You are very lucky Gowers ,that you see a Cardiologist!— I have seen one only twice in 3 years .
When I mentioned this to GP.she said that Cardiologists are only seen once then treatment was all done by Computer — Cardiologist’s suggestions to G.P then passed on to Patient !HMmm!
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