Hi there. Sorry to bother you. As some of you know I was diagnosed with PAF in December although most of the time now I am in persistent AF. I take flecainide 100 mg twice a day. Bisoprolol 1.25 mgs once a day and edoxaban daily.
I’ve had a couple of what I can only describe as funny turns lately and am concerned as to what they are. I will try to describe them as best I can and would appreciate any thoughts from you. This morning at 9 am I began feeling uneasy, anxious a little as I felt as if an AF episode was coming on. Dizzy, mild nausea. AF irregularities but no massive raise in rate. Just feel absolutely awful. As if about to pass out. No shortness of breath no chest pain. Very weak and no energy but this is normal for me most of the time. The worst of these symptoms lasted an hour then I just didn’t feel well for another few hours. More or less back to normal around 3 pm. I feel scared when this happens and value any help to ease my anxiety. Thank you.
Sheena
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Equish
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Sorry to hear you are having these symptoms, It may not help but I have very similar ones most days some worse than others and I assume it’s my heart and nervous system reacting together. It feels awful and brings anxiety with it each time.
My EP knows this and although I have had many tests over time he seems to think it’s nothing to be over concerned about in my case. It’s easy to say not to Over worry but feeling like this is not conducive to living a good normal life.
If you still are under the care of an EP it would be wise to check with him or her. Alternatively is there a af nurse attached to your cardiology dept who you could check things with, other than that ask gp for support. Best to get it all checked out.
I hope you can get some resolution as it’s no fun living with these distressing symptoms. Best wishes. X
We were away in Cirencester last year and walking to the shops I felt dizzy. Nearly face planted one time. Ended up grabbing a wall. Not a good look at 10-30am for a 76 year old! Mentioned this to arrhythmia nurse and to EP. Neither bothered.
Hi Gilly. No I didn’t and wish I had. I kept thinking it would pass. Also although my heart rate was very irreg it wasn’t high so that held me back from taking some flecanide. Next time though I will. Thank you
Hi there. I also have this and was advised by doctor it is aligned to Interaction with vagus nerve. I also feel clammy sick and dizzy and generally unwell when in AF. Sorry to hear you are suffering too
Hi Sheena I was diagnosed with AF last November and also get these funny turns as you describe. I've been told that these feelings of uneasiness & anxiety etc which can be scary are all too common with AF. I bought a good quality oximeter for reassurance which checks my heart rate is within the normal range. It's easy to use just pop it on the end of your index finger. I've also found that deep breathing for a few minutes during an anxious period helps enormously as does mindfulness. Hope this helps.
I had this last year before my ablation for atrial flutter and once afterwards when I had a single, really awful, attack of atrial fibrillation. Since then, several times, I've had the beginnings of the same feeling but it tends to evaporate and come to nothing. Feeling "awful" and "weak" with no energy is also not that unusual with me since this all started. The feelings seem related to sleep quality, too, which, with me, is never good and sometimes awful.
Looking back, though, I have come to wonder whether anxiety might not be a very big part of the feelings and what is happening. Have you considered that? Anxiety, when it peaks, causes a "panic attack" but there are lesser forms of this, I am sure, when the full-blown panic attack doesn't happen. These are like "funny turns", as you call them.
Hi Steve. Yes I did wonder if anxiety plays a part. Because I feel anxious when it happens. I don’t get breathless though as in a panic attack. However I’m sure anxiety hinders the event but dosnt cause it as I am always calm prior to it. It’s a puzzle and it seems to happen to a lot of us. Wish I knew why but its comforting to know others get them and recover fine. My real worry is ending up back in resus which is where I was in December when first diagnosed. Take care and thank you.
Calm before the storm, eh? Yes, same here. I can be standing at the sink doing the washing up thinking of nothing to do with my heart when suddenly that weird "feeling" sort of washes over me. and I have to tell myself to ignore it, all will be well!
I have these occasionally and thankfully they have never, yet put me back into AF. I sit down drink a glass of water and try and do my yoga breathing until it passes. These can last about from 2 hours to most of the day. The thing to do is to try and stay calm and relax.
Funnily enough I had a "funny turn" this morning going to get our milk in from the doorstep. Just recovering now. So lasted about an hour and a half today.
Hi Equish, my guess is that many readers of this forum will know exactly what you mean. I certainly do - I was diagnosed with AF and sinus node dysfunction 18 months ago and I still haven't got used to the weird, disorienting feelings (always persistent, always hard to describe). Maybe it could be another arrhythmia? I have atrial flutter as well as AF. Lots of people on flecainide develop atrial flutter (the drug is pro-arrhythmic to some extent). Maybe you could talk to your EP about that. Do you have a Kardia device or something that can detect arrhythmias? I find that helps. Anyway, hang in there. It's all you can do. Peace.
Thank you Aus. Yes I do have a kardia. Most times when I record it says ‘unclassified rhythm’ so I don’t know what’s going on. As you say. Likely some other arrhythmia. Take and peace to you too
Sheena if it is an unclassified rhythm it's worth keeping that reading and putting it in a letter to your EP so that they can look into other arrhythmias and possible causes. Or it might be you're permanently in AF. In any case finding out will ease your mind. I agree with others that the funny turn you describe us probably vagal. Slow breathing helps, especially a lower and longer outbreath if you can manage it. Others here swear by downing a glass of ice cold water. Personally I haven't tried this yet...
hi ive taken almost exactly as you describe and i put it down to meds 1.25 bisoprolol plus multaq [dronederone] 400mg horrible feeling and quite scary was on christmas break last year and literally couldnt move i thought i was dying but it passed after about an hour or so i sympathise with you sorry i cant offer help i guess we have to learn to live with some things happening
Yes I think we do. Thank you for sharing though And take care.
Had the same problem a few years back and then had my first Ablation. I could feel it coming on and I had to sit down before I fell down, it was accompanied with a 165 heart rate. No rhyme or reason, not after light exercise. not after specific food. Iit even happened when I was sitting watching TV and I could not lift my arms or move, I had to wait for it to pass to move myself to bed. When I felt it come on I went to bed or lay flat on the floor, 10 min or the longest lasted 30 mins. Now I am waiting for my second ablation, never had it so bad since then, they tended to last seconds. I am on Amiodarone waiting for the op with minimal problems, mostly from the medication. Take care it will get better.
Oh that sounds worse than mine. Thank you for sharing. I am on the waiting list for ablation but was told it would be a year. Hope my episodes don’t get worse. Take care
Hi. Yes I will try and get in touch with him. I wasn’t given any direct access so may try and find a cardiac nurse up in Glasgow. This us where I saw my EP. Thank you
Hi Equish, this may not work for you, but when I was put on Edoxiban, I felt light-headed and dizzy. The consultant suggested a change to apixaban and it made a big difference for me.
He explained that different people can find one anti-coagulant suits them better than others. Some will find edoxiban suits them better.
If your light-headedness coincided with starting Edoxiban, it might be worth discussing a change with your doctor to see if it improves your dizzy spells/light-headedness ?
I had one of those yesterday, they are horrible especially as no obvious reason. I thought it was a reaction to hoovering the day before (I’m asthmatic) but my peak flow was fine. I suspect my BP dropped so next time I am going to check it. Even if there is nothing that can be done it would be reassuring to know the cause 💜
As your taking Flecanide I would strongly advise seeing your EP or Cardiologist as only an ecg will tell if your medication is making you worst. It did for me - see my posts. I know Fleanide only affects a small
number of people but if it does affect you you may get serious heart problems. Don’t stop it before seeing the EP, that may be worst.
Hi Equish, I was diagnosed in 2016, I know how you feel as I passed out, made app with gp and he diagnosed AF. It’s a horrible feeling, I get a 2 second warning, feel hot clammy wobbly legs and out. Always feel bad for a few days, and shattered, no energy. Had a few of these once in the queue in supermarket, but my hubby is always with me, and a couple at home. The last one was last sat morning, but I was brewing a tooth abscess and it started my Af off, so double whammy. Anxiety I’m sure plays it part I’m sure, I have white coat syndrome too! I hope you feel reassured that in this group we all understand how you feel. Af stinks
I’m so relieved to know that there are others who have had this problem. I have had episodes that I can only describe as brain freeze in my chest. It has happened when I’m in a-flutter and also NSR. Episodes last 1-2 hours and I feel horrible during them. My BP is elevated
and pulse a little high.
I take two Tylenol and try to stay still till it passes. It almost always happens in the morning and my GP thinks it has something to do with the arthritis in my neck. I have a pacemaker and my EP sees no trace of anything happening. I’m no longer terribly worried about them since my doctors aren’t. It happens infrequently- 3-4 times a year but feels just awful when it does.
It’s so weird isn’t it and very difficult to really describe well. But I agree I have gained so much moral support by posting this I actually feel much better. Thank you for replying and take care.
I get funny turns too. They are just horrid. It’s so hard to separate what is physical and what is anxiety and panic. I think they all go hand in hand.
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IWhat do ectopics feel like 
Absolutely sue
New to this AF nightmare!
