I'm a 56yr old woman with no health conditions apart from osteoarthritis and being overweight. 18 months ago I started getting palpitations. They increased in strength to point my heart felt it was racing and dropping and so irratic. I tried twice to get patamedic or doctor to see it while it was happening but by time taken to hospital the episode had passed. Eventually a dr at A&E organised a 24hr monitor. Nov 2019. Typically I only had a few light palpitations and didn't see a doctor or cardiologist. Just got a letter dismissing it saying it was nothing to worry about. I've been living with it ever since but they are getting so much worse. They last longer and I feel restricted in my neck, throat, jaw and tongue. Last week I called paramedics who managed to get a trace while it was happening. They said I was SVT and heart was 170 but dropping and rising again. Taken to hospital and doctor diagnosed Atrial Fibrillation. Gave me beta blockers and blood thinners. Got a cardiologist phone appt on 8th March. I'm worried that it'll be dismissed again. Or I'll just be kept on medication without investigation. Can anyone give me some advise what I should do or ask. Thanks.
AF?: I'm a 56yr old woman with no... - Atrial Fibrillati...
AF?
No, I'm sure it won't be.
Let’s see what we can do to help. I’m not medically trained but there are some general things which are worth considering. AF comes in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. If it comes and goes without warning, it’s called Paroxysmal AF (PAF) and if it’s there all the time, it’s known as Persistent or Permanent AF. When you have it, if you feel your pulse the heartbeat is irregular, generally but not always fast and you tend to feel breathless and generally yucky (not a medical term). It is generally a progressive condition which perhaps accounts for what you have experienced over the past 18 months.
The fact that you managed to get it monitored in hospital is helpful because you are now on medication which will help to control the symptoms, but more importantly help protect you from the risk of having a stroke and also give you some protection from any further deterioration of the heart. You should ask the cardiologist about having an Echocardiogram as this will establish the overall condition and performance of your heart and also give a guide to further treatment which, given your age, is very important.
Given your other health issues, I know it may not be easy but lifestyle changes play an important part of the treatment process and being overweight might have a limiting factor on the treatments offered. It might be helpful to take a look at the Kardia single lead monitor as this will enable you to produce reports at home if you sense your heart is playing up. Check on Google, cost around £100 but the reports are accepted by most medics. Also, click on the link below and you will be able to navigate through lots of useful information on AF, including treatment options and things to ask a consultant. Hope this helps, others here will, I’m sure, come up with other suggestions......good luck in March.
healthunlocked.com/afassoci.........
Thank you so much for explaining this for me and the advice given and link. I will definitely have a look. And I will ask for an echo audiogram.
Have you spoken to your GP about the symptoms you describe in your jaw? Angina does not always present with chest pain. If the symptoms persist, call 111 for advice.
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Non steroidal medication (NSAIDs) for osteoarthritis can provoke atrial fibrillation (AFib)
Getting your BMI back into the middle of the normal range can be a cornerstone of management of AFib. Exclusion of diabetes mellitus (DM), thyroid function tests and repeat blood pressure monitoring would be appropriate.
Magnesium supplements may be helpful, subject to discussion with your GP. Dr Sanjay Gupta is a York based cardiologist, with many YouTube videos which many here have found helpful.
You should assume that unless stated otherwise, no one on this forum is a doctor. However there are inevitably many here with a deeper understanding of atrial fibrillation than some general practitioners, as in any specialty.
A proactive approach on all our parts is the key to effective management of this lifelong condition.
Thank you. My GP hasn't been in touch and he dismissed my palpitations when I saw him ages ago. Have no trust in my GP. All my blood tests are clear and good. My blood pressure has never been a problem and is normal. I will see what the cardiologist says on 8th March.
Hi the same has happened to me I’ve been back twice to hospital and just left to get on with my life , my anxiety I think is making it worse , I just want to see a specialist x
Have you not seen a specialist yet? I somehow keep thinking its a mistake and I'm fine. But at same time feel worried. I really hope the cardiologist will be helpful.
Sorry to hear this. If you start another thread with an update, maybe we can help.
Gosh you sound a mirror of what I had this time last year. I had always suffered with a few palpitations but dismissed them until ended up in AE with fast heart rate 185 which had to be stopped with medication. You can read my history posts for full detail. I followed lots advise on here and paid for private consultation/ tests to speed up the process as we were slap bang in the middle of lockdown,
A year later, one stone lighter, no alcohol, caffeine, yoga, meditation and regular daily walking I can pretty much say it’s totally all gone. Perhaps once a month maybe longer I will get short palpitations.. if they go on to long then I take a pill in pocket bisoprolol, most importantly my anxiety levels is back under control. 😊
Well done you. What a great proactive positive response.
Thank you. I'm struggling with emotions of disbelief and anxiety. I have always struggled with my weight and have recently lost 2 stone but I'm still a lot over weight. That makes me anxious too, but weight alone won't stop it will it? The doc at A,&E said its electrical messages not working correctly. I'm on bisoprotol and apixaban. So far no side effects from it. If I don't feel happy with the cardiologist I may look into going private too.
I obviously don’t know your personal history or situation but I took the approach that I was going to use this forum and gather any information that would help. Then I did absolutely everything I could to self help. I would then know that after I have done absolutely everything it would help towards any genetic things i just can’t change. I feel so much better as a person by making all these changes.. the only thing I really do miss is the odd class of wine .. I am looking soon to introduce this back into my week when covid has settled and I wouldn’t be a burden on the NhS if I did for some reason have this as a trigger and end back up in AE
Don't focus your worry on weight. People in this group are great, but there is always a tendency to say you have to be of a perfect weight. Well I started with Atrial Fibrillation in my mid 40's when I was a really good weight, slim and fit and very active. I'm now in my 50's sad, fat and fed up because no medic want's to treat my thyroid problem properly. What I mean is I developed the condition when I was in great shape, the best shape of my life actually. And now I'm in the worst shape of my life it's no worse. If people bang on at me about loosing weight I just panic because I know I can't do it. My thyroid problems mean I can't exercise at all and I'm miserable as hell so I comfort eat and if I panic about weight I eat more. So I don't worry about it. As I say it's made no difference to my AFib. Instead on concentrate on what I can change. I take the relevant supplements for my thyroid which also benefit AFib and I cut out caffeinated drinks. I drink very little alcohol and on a very rare event.
My Dad had this condition, his brother and sister had it too. It can be hereditary and I think that's why I have it. I take an anticoagulant and a beta blocker and I've stopped worrying about it most of the time.
This is what I understand and have read.
The effects of atrial fibrillation will not harm your heart so long as your heart is not in permanent tachycardia (i.e when you have a persistent pulse rate of over 100bpm, measured on your wrist). The beta blocker tablets should keep your heart rate well below 100bpm. If they take it down too low into persistent "bradycardia" (30-50bpm), then don't worry, but do phone your GP to see about reducing the dose.
If you haven't been prescribed an anticoagulant already, such as rivaroxaban or apixaban, then ask your doctor about why not. These are given because some people carry a higher risk of stroke when they have atrial fibrillation. Your personal stroke risk is calculated according to various factors,
Taking your blood pressure might be useful as it can fall while on beta-blockers and could cause light-headedness. Also, a high blood pressure can be a factor in setting afib off. If you don't have a sphygmomanometer (a blood pressure machine or "BPM"), then the cheapest Boots model is the Which magazine recommendation; if you want an automatic version then a wrist model is very convenient and those by Omron or Braun are accurate and easy to use. One with a phone app can help you remember and track your readings and track your pulse rate, too.
Just for some reassurance my friend has had permanent atrial fibrillation for very many years, is 87 and healthy!
Steve
Hi Steve thank you so much. My blood pressure is fine and I've never had any problems with it. I'm on bisoprotol and apixaban since the A&E visit. No side effects so far although I do get tired. I'm hoping the cardiologist will help me on the 8th. I don't want to be on medication rest if my life if I can help it. I enjoy the odd bottle wine especially on birthdays which mine is next week. So don't think I'll be having any then 😪. Just hope I can get it investigated and treated.
I’ve read that you can drink in moderation with no ill effects! 😊 I suspect that you are likely to be on apixaban permanently, owing to the way it reduces the risk of stroke.
The tiredness could be a side effect of bisoprolol but is (in my experience) just as likely to be caused by the heart itself not pumping quite as efficiently or, indeed, by anxiety (which rockets when the heart isn’t acting normally).
I would press to be given a “stress MRI” scan of your heart when you see the cardiologist. These are the gold standard and will reveal the state of the heart like nothing else, I gather. I was lucky to have been given one in 2019.
Steve
Weirdly, research has showed that regular small amounts of alcohol can trigger an AF journey for some.
I should have said that, sorry, as I’d read something similar. I certainly do know of people with afib who drink in moderation without problems.
I also recently read a report that suggested any intake of alcohol was not a good thing. The trouble with these kinds of study, I suspect, is that they are so difficult to attribute certainty to their findings owing to the long term nature of what they are looking at. Add to that the potentially confounding variables that must exist over such lengths of time and it must be very difficult to produce meaningful results .
Moderation in everything, eh? I do like my glass of red, preferably a nicely aged Bordeaux!!
Steve
Dear Youngest, please do not hesitate to contact us on info@afa.org.uk or call our helpline 01789 867 502 if you'd like some advice from our Patient Services Co-Ordinators
Thank you so much.
You need to also look at how you are losing weight. You should not cut out things like nuts which are demonised for being high in fat but which are also high in magnesium which is essential for heart health. Look up foods high in magnesium and make sure you are getting enough in your diet. As someone else has suggested magnesium supplements can be helpful in preventing palpitations . Many people here have found magnesium has made a real difference. It also helps with anxiety so two birds with one stone . Alcohol can provoke afib attacks and you should not drink a lot at once. Some people find sugary food can provoke attacks too. This has happened to me a couple of times. Some find that the chemicals in processed food give them palpitations and provoke attacks so it is always better to cook from scratch with fresh ingredients.It is a good idea to get your arteries checked out but if the angina like symptoms only come with the afib episodes I would not worry too much about them. I get this feeling of slight restriction in my throat and upper chest when having an afib attack and some others in this forum have mentioned it too. Worrying just makes afib worse.
Thanks i eat a really healthy diet and do not eat any processed foods and always cook from fresh. Like I said I've lost 2 stone through eating this way. I couldn't go back to processed food again. I dont seem to have any triggers. It just happens. I don't drink a lot if alcohol and when I have its not trigged an episode. It really is hit and miss. I used to take magnesium supplements and read that they can cause palpitations. So I stopped and they did lesson. I do drink a lot of water 2-3 litres a day (not including tea/coffee). Over last 3 weeks I've cut it down to 2litres but hasn't changed anything. I drink Clipper fruit tea which is caffeine free. I only have 1 coffee in the morning. I'm honestly at a loss why its happening. With regard to the restrictions on neck jaw throat etc the A&E doctor said its because if restricted blood flow from the AF. My cholesterol is spot on and all my bloods taken at hospital were clear. So not sure what is happening!
I have never had any triggers for this either. And there was nothing wrong with me at the time it began other than I suspect my thyroid was starting to struggle. For me, I'm sure my thyroid condition and lack of response to medication, is part of the AFib problem. Our doctors only ever consider too much thyroid hormone will give you AFib. But too little will do it too. Being in range is not good enough. If you feel like it you could try to ask for a full thyroid panel, TSH, Ft3 and Ft4 plus antibodies. And then get a copy of the results printed out, with the ranges. You could pop over to the thyroid board on this site and ask for advice about your results. It could be nothing but it could be something and generally a GP or cardiologist won't know it.
Congratulations on losing so much weight, it can’t have been easy.
And yes there is an association between a raised BMI and AFib
heart.org/en/news/2018/05/0...
There is also an association between raised BMI and Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA).
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...
AFib is strongly associated with OSA
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...
Maybe you could ask the cardiologist whether exercise is safe for you at this stage, in light of what sounds like possible angina pectoris. I have found my static exercise bike helpful with losing weight during this “long cold lonely winter”... but then again, here comes the sun
I have no problems with sleeping. I should point out that I'm overweight not obese. Although I do not agree with BMI. I think it is an outdated way of looking at someone's health. Health care practitioners are moving away from BMI as a guide. But thanks anyway.
I think they have updated their views on this. If you got an AF diagnosis at the hospital, I don't think the cardiologist could possibly say you haven't got it. And if by any chance they do, make sure they look through your hospital records, or insist on a second opinion.
I had a similar experience years ago. I was prescribed an antidepressant that worked very well, but I got some peculiar heartbeats, and at the hospital they said I was having panic attacks -- maybe they thought that because I was on antidepressants! It was only later when I had a paroxysmal episode that I was taken seriously. But this was in the 1990s, and I don't think they are like that nowadays.
So I hope your 8 March call will go well for you.
Forget the cardiologist and go straight to a ELECTROPHYSIOLOGIST!!!!! They are the specialist for this issue. It was several cardiologists that dismissed my heart issue for almost 10 years to the point I was headed for heart failure at 50! Electrophysiologist said all that untreated activity wears your heart muscle out! Please - do your research and find a good electrophysiologist. Step on toes and demand to see one.
That would be my advice as well. I was treated for AF for 17 years and AF continued to get worse and more frequent (every week, 24 hours.). I finally went to electrophysiologist and I have not had an episode for nearly one year! However the two drugs I take make me feel awful: fatigued and dizzy all the time. An EP has studied the electrical system of the heart for YEARS!
Thank you everyone i will put questions to the cardiologist and ask for an echocardiogram or stress MRI and also enquire about electrophysiology.
I too have lots of palps and was having a fast heart rate 140 for hours. Called my GP and got an ecg done at surgery same day. That showed Atrial flutter which terrified me. I have been put on Digoxin, Eliquis and its slowed back down. I have been referred to 2 hospitals for consultant. Can't get an appointment. So scary. Thinking I might go private but they are overwhelmed too.
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