I was diagnosed with Paroxysmal AF in Feb this year......tried 3 different drugs, but none of them was controlling my episodes......so tomorrow, I’m going to have my Cryoablation.
I’ve been reading all the posts on here for several weeks now......this is a wonderful community forum ! So informative, and it really helps to know that there are so many of you out there with words full of positivity......and makes me realise how AFib affects everyone differently.
My episodes have always occurred in the evenings, when at rest at home......lasting all throughout the night, and usually going back to NSR late the next morning. My Apple Watch records the alerts through the night.....and although I do manage to sleep, it appears I never go into any Deep Sleep when in AF according to my Autosleep app on my watch.
I’m still on Sotalol at the moment, plus Apixaban....but have been told I will able to stop the Apixaban in 6 weeks time. I understand the the scar tissue from ablation can take around 3 months to form, so will probably still experience episodes for some time yet.
I know I will have to take things slowly, and not try to rush it.
I will put my positive pants on 😊
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bookartfan
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Thanks for the welcome and the best wishes for tomorrow ! I’d already downloaded the 2 info sheets you mentioned ! They were very useful .... and read them over and over several times 😊
Welcome to our wee community. Lots of support and sharing of experiences here and we benefit from the advice of cardiologists and EP's who treat our members, who in turn, pass on that advice.
Tomorrow is the start of the rest of your life - hopefully free of such debilitating episodes. Very best wishes and do let us know how things go.
I would say read the print off the info sheets they are great, pre ablation make sure you lose any body hair where the catheter goes needs to go and good luck .
I am a real coward and need a second go but I’m more looking forward to it than fearing it
Thanks for your message.....I will have a little “tidy up” tonight .....if you know what I mean 😉
Just feeling a little apprehensive, rather than scared ......hope I get to sleep tonight quickly.....got to be at hospital at 7.30am in the morning, so won’t be sitting up late !
Best wishes for tomorrow and let us know how it all goes please. I guess as you've been told you can eventually stop taking Apixaban that you're quite young, we oldies (over 65's) tend to get told to stay on it forever.
Jean, you are so tactful whilst finding out if this lady should be anticoagulated!
I know that most folk are reluctant to take any medication which they feel is unnecessary but anticoagulants are arguably the most important drug we take. I’m sure you will know that AF significantly increases the risk of having a very debilitating stroke but what is often not known is that having a successful ablation does not change that risk. Apparently, there is still a lot of research currently going on, but the view expressed by most medics is that once someone has AF, an ablation does not change the structural changes to the heart which AF can cause therefore, the risk is still there. Unless someone has a known high risk of bleeding, the majority of EP’s would encourage patients to continue taking their anticoagulant. I know people will say that CHADsVASc recognises 65 as the critical age but in reality it’s not like a light switch which flicks on when your 65th birthday arrives! The difference between 63 and 65 is just a number! Now is not the time to worry about it as you have enough to focus on your ablation but I would urge you to give it some thought after and discuss it with your EP before stopping the Apixaban.
I hear what you’re saying FlapJack.....to be honest, Apixaban has never caused me any problems since I started taking it , and maybe my EP will consider leaving me on it, as my stroke risk increases with my age . I don’t have any other heart issues . I hope to have a proper talk with my EP when I have my first post-ablation review, and take it from there.
All the best for your ablation. I agree with Flapjack. I know doctors have guidelines they go by but I have always found it strange. It’s like if you’re 64 years and 364 days old you your risk is low but that extra day alive suddenly puts you at a high risk. I’m 56 and don’t have any comorbidities but I did have major hypertension issues in my pregnancies and when my AF was bad my BP would fluctuate (it’s now a perfect 110/70). My EP said that any history of blood pressure problems is taken into account. Two years ago when they were about to do an ablation they found a small blood clot in my heart so couldn’t do the ablation that day. My EP said after that he wanted me on anticoagulants for the rest of my life. My grandmother had debilitating strokes when she was young so I was happy to take his advice.
Thank you Lolo ! So much positivity on this forum , you are all wonderful 👏🏻👏🏻
Hi good luck with the ablation, the only thing I would say is maximise your lifestyle afterwards, healthy weight, good diet, moderate exercise etc and it's far more likely to be a success
Hi. My episodes were at night like yours. Ablation in 2013 aged 63 and still free of AF. My EP advised staying on apixaban and so I did but no other meds.
It took 5 months for all my episodes and bumps to stop and almost a year before resting heartbeat returned to pre ablation rate.
Take things very easy for first weeks and then gentle exercise for the next couple of months. Remember heart is still healing.
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