Buffafly's post, Loss of appetite, off food, rising INR

Thanks for that Buff. Very very interesting - I always find these heart/gut connection articles interesting. always a little gem to pick up even if it just makes me think in a different dimension about my gut problem solving.

Now before I go on I should acknowledge some other stuff on this forum which is similar to yours Buff, some recent, some 3 years old ....... so I acknowledge contributions from Paulbounce ( How to get ride of atrial fibrillation once and for all), Kiwi2 ( some 3 years ago - “Everyday foods from over-ripe bananas to cheese and beans could be to blame for your heart palpitations)” and The Gastrocardiac Syndrome - Heart palpitations caused by the stomach by Racquet. There are other contributions too but too many to mention here.

Each of these has a different take on food, drinks etc that make a contribution to kick our hearts off. However, I do have to say that in my view its horses for courses for each of us - but if I followed Dr. John Day and his recommendations on foods to eat then I would be an AF cot case. Absolutely no doubt. Sorry Doc but you are talking pure rubbish as far as my body is concerned.

On the other hand the stuff he says to avoid - for me - is pretty much spot on.

However, what has even more relevance for me is the article that Buffafly posted.

So, that’s that - in so far as it goes. As I have already mentioned, this Christmas has been - health wise - the most crap I can recall for aeons. No ... I have not lurched into AF. As I have said - if food is gonna lurch me into AF it will be bloating under the lower ribs, to the left. No, this time its gut, but lower abdomen, as opposed to upper abdomen.

2021 saw me end up feeling like a pin cushion - AZ CoVid jab on 29/1/21

then came AZ CoVid jab 2 on 23/4/2021

then came CoVid booster Pfizer on 23/10/2021

then came the Flu jab 12/11/2021

PCR test date 15/10/2021

PCR test date 22/12/2021

...... and since 12 November I’ve progressively gone down the gurgler ! I developed what I thought to be a “heavy, rotten common cold”.

I’ve also had symptoms that seem to partially mimic Omicron: continuous headaches, red hot eyes - feeling as if sand has been thrown into them, wanting to sleep forever, loss of appetite, both food and booze, running nose, constant gurgling in lower gut, massive increase ( for me anyway) in blood pressure - that’s enough for now. Yet my daily temperature is constant at around 35 to 36 degrees, and my blood oxygen is around 95.

I turned to my supply of Probiotics - with some success. Feeling better. But I have also eaten precious little.

As indicated above, I have had two PCR tests, one on 15th October to satisfy the surgeon who carried out cataract surgery 3 days later, and one on 22nd Dec because one of my bus driver colleagues who I’d been in contact with had tested CoVid positive. In my cases both PCR resulted in a negative result.

So, the loss of appetite has now become quite far reaching to the point of causing my INR readings to dramatically rise - but for me not outta control. The point is my loss of appetite means that my main meal of the day, early evening, usually a cooked meal, meat, veg, potatoes in various shapes and forms has now been abandoned in favour of something light, an omlette, sardines on toast. In fact an evening with friends on NYE was the first main meal I’ve had for weeks - but then I only could eat half of it. A couple of nights ago was a cold chicken drumstick, slices of chicken and fries. and last night 4 January I had ‘bubble and squeak’. So, I have broken the golden rule with Warfarin of ‘consistency of diet’.

3rd Jan saw my INR hit 3.3 ( for no reason apart from not eating) when normally it is 2.4 to 2.7. At least not only can I self test at home but am now ( after 12 years) confident enough to adjust my own doses, which I started to do also on 3rd Jan. We’ll see. I am now trying to get back to a cooked main meal but very tiny portions.

Tested my INR this morning is 3.2.

Hey ho!

John

[Threecats]

Hi Carneuny, I am sorry to hear you’ve been having such a rough time. I hope you’ve ‘turned a corner’ now and start to get your appetite back and get your INR back to your normal levels, too and hopefully put the last few weeks behind you. All the best to you, TC

[Hidden in reply to Threecats]

Thanks Threecats. For a guy who is now reasonably fit and pretty much ailment free its just a damn nusience. However, I really do have to take notice of the subliminal messages from the gut and look more closely at my diet ....yet again ! Just v grateful it hasn't kicked the AF off again. Thanks.John

[Threecats in reply to Hidden]

Yes, I can imagine it’s very frustrating for you but, from reading your previous posts, you sound like a positive soul who’s up for a challenge! Glad the AF is behaving anyway - you’ve got quite enough to contend with without that in the mix as well! Good luck with the diet tweaking, TC

[bassets]

I hope you will feel better soon as it's awful to feel yuk through the holidays. Best wishes.

[Maggimunro]

Oh dear, John, you are going through a rough patch. Loss of appetite is not good, especially if it goes on for any length of time.

I have tweaked my eating habits gradually since being diagnosed with AF. Just small changes such as eating natural yogurt every day. Then I started making my own kefir water (can be bought), almost but not quite cutting out processed foods, gradually starting a plant based diet. In other words, lots of smallish things but they add up to big changes in your gut flora.

Have you watched Tim Spectre’s videos on the gut biome ? If you log onto the Zoe app you will find them.

[Buffafly]

Sorry you are having a bad time. Never mind the diet, have you had a full blood test recently?

I have been suffering from sore itchy eyes post cataract, put it down to effect of eye drops used for weeks after surgery. Specsavers advised eye drops which seem to make things better in the short term but worse later so now just using drops for dry eyes instead.

I was poorly before Christmas with bowel probs and headaches, loss of appetite. I think we forget there are still other viruses beside 🦠 so that’s a possibility.

Hope you feel better soon but if not do contact GP 💜

[Hidden in reply to Buffafly]

Hiya Buff,

Blood tests ............ hmmmm ! I normally have a range of blood tests annually and now you have mentioned it I need to check my diary as to when my last lot were. That actually does raise some concern - more arising from my growing mistrust of my GP practice where more and more I am seeing the tendency toward phone consultations. Of course, you can't do blood tests over the phone. Must check on that - thanks.

Sore eyes ... hadn't considered the eye drops, post cataract surgery I was given three different eye drops to put in the operated eye until used up .... must have gone on with this performance for best part of a month.

May I ask how long a time it was from when you had surgery to when you started drops for 'dry eyes' ?

I am mending slowly, not the raging appetite I once had but I am eating small ( tiny) and steadily but am continuing the course of Probiotics. Anyway, I'll keep on the track I'm on and see how things go. anything to do with the gut, experience tells me, is a long slow process.

Thanks for your thoughts.

John

[Buffafly in reply to Hidden]

Hi, re eyes, I started getting a watering eye in the cataract eye soon after I stopped the prescribed drops, seemed as if the channel was blocked. Then when the watering stopped an itch started in the corner of both eyes and spread all round along the lashes. At that point I had my checkup at Specsavers and they advised some rather expensive eyedrops. I don’t feel they are helping so gone back to wiping eyes with cool water on a tissue. When I saw my friend after she had had her cataract done she said she had an itchy eye diagnosed as blepharitis. My husband has had the same for some time so I suspect it’s an ‘age thing’ - believe it or not, haven’t googled it 😂

[dizzielizzie1]

Hi there, you asked me about my experience with warfarin. I'm sorry, but I've never taken it, as I use one of the DOAC drugs. Liz