In a nightmare

[Sweptaway]

Hi all, following my august ablation for PAF things had been going well. Then last Thursday I had severe Norovirus which ended with a hospital admission as I’d lost all recognition of family and surroundings and was treated for swelling in my brain. Woken by the nurse at 2am for obs and was back just about normal. My heart didn’t seemed to be affected but since discharge on Sunday I’ve been having spikes of high heart rate. On Thursday evening I was back in a and e running around 160bpm and was started on low dose bisoprolol. This has settled it ,a bit. To complicate things I’ve had my routine 5 month heart monitor on since Friday lunchtime. My EP said to go ahead with this. I’m really struggling to cope with these setbacks and the possibility of this virus completely knocking my ablation. My family believe I’m imagining heart problems and have become a hypochondriac. Maybe I have? Feel I’m taking part in my very own living nightmare.

[BobD Volunteer]

Health anxiety with arrhythmias is very common so please don't knock yourself out about it. Infections often cause blips and that does not means you will always have them . Remember that we say in our fact sheet on recovery that many people are still improving at nine months or a year so still early days yet. Stay very well hydrated (dehydration is bad for arrhythmias) and concentrate on getting over the virus.

[Kaz747]

Our hearts can be very sensitive to anything out of the ordinary going on in our body - any illness, injury or infection.

It can be hard for family and friends to understand the impact, especially if we don’t look sick.

I know I even question myself at times - is this all in my head? I said to my EP after one of my ablations when he said that he had done a lot of burning, “So I wasn’t imagining it?”. He said, “No, you definitely weren’t imagining it!”.

Hope you’re feeling better soon.

[jeanjeannie50]

You are not a hypochondriac, I can assure you of that. If your heart is recorded beating at 160, that is not right.

Talk to us on this forum who understand and can empathise. Family and friends just do not understand how awful this condition can make us feel. I tend to keep quiet about it now with mine, who I know feel the same as yours. Mine think that my coming on this forum is not a good thing and I should just forget my AF and it will go away. If only it was that simple!

Yes, stress can make our hearts worse, we know that and it's best to ignore symptoms as best we can, but when we feel very poorly and our heart is beating at a high rate, seeking medical advice is the best thing to do.

Jean

[Singwell in reply to jeanjeannie50]

People have no idea do they? I had three friends tell me "you'll have to accept it, then it'll be easier". I have accepted it in fact, but that's not an easy journey. Took me 2 years.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to Singwell]

Oh yes, accept it and then you'll be ok!!!! It's something other people need to experience to fully understand. When people ask how I am I just answer that I'm fine.

[Singwell]

Norovirus is really horrible and I'm not at all surprised you got back into AF following that shock. I've found the same thing - our body prioritises the fight against the invader - sees it off and wham, off goes the AF. Try to see having the monitor as a positive - you'll find out more about what's going on.

Anxiety and responding to every sensation you feel us perfectly normal in this situation. Tell your family you need their support during this time - not their criticism or disbelief. Do you have an arrhythmia nurse? If so ask them for advice, also let your GP know you're having a rough time.

Hope things settle down for you and that this is a set back only.

[stoneyrosed in reply to Singwell]

I told my GP I was having a rough time dealing with AF recurrence, he merely told me to google “Mental Health Services”. 🙈

[Hidden in reply to stoneyrosed]

That's a very poor response from the GP. AF is known to produce anxiety in many who have it. I would be inclined to change my GP!

[bassets]

Sorry you've been ill and hope you feel a lot better soon. Infections brought my AF back a couple of times - I'm recovering from an ablation in August too. Best of luck.

[Sweptaway]

Thanks everyone for the experiences and advice. I’ve had a few high runs on Saturday afternoon but settled a bit now. I should have said the a and e doctor thought my Thyroxine was on the high side and could add to my anxiety. I’ve reduced it from 125mg to 100mg since Friday (it had been 150mg until November). My monitor has been sent to the hospital so hopefully it will filter through to my EP when he’s back from leave. I don’t have a cardiac nurse to ask all my questions. I suppose EP will take account that I’m now on the Bisoprolol. My GP hasn’t been that supportive especially after I went the private ablation route. The NHS consultant said I would feel better once I’d gone into permanent Afib. This told me to go it alone.

[Snowgirl65]

Your nightmare will end. The virus certainly caused havoc, didn't it. I'm sure anxiety over all of this certainly doesn't help, but for us a-fibbers, it's unavoidable. Take this day by day; this is just a setback caused by something out of your control. Gain your strength back, eat healthy, and my guess is that you'll be back to normal soon. One episode doesn't mean the ablation wasn't successful; it could well be a one-off from the events you described. Best wishes in getting your life back as it was.

[Florence-Nightingale]

Hi Sweptaway. I have to agree with Bob. I would just say I take Bisoprolol which did get my heart rate under control, and apart from the tiredness that both the condition and the drug causes I have been fine. I know that a lot of people on here could not tolerate Bisoprasol but for me it works also calms anxiety very well. You most definitely are not a hyperchondriac 160bpm is definitely not normal. I hope things improve for you soon.👍x

[Mazza23]

I have been taking 10 mg bisoprolol for eight years no problem if people don’t understand what you have it’s easy. To say it’s in your head my cardiologist almost had me committed when I was first diagnosed but I persisted until he took me seriously

[doodle68]

Hi Sweptaway I had Norovirus a couple of years ago and spent a night on the bathroom floor feeling too ill to move. My greatest fear was not being able to keep down my anticoagulant and how my P-AF would be affected . My P-AF was ok but I felt rotten and exhausted for some days.

As Bob says take care to stay dehydrated and replace the fluids you lost while you had Noro so a little water taken often is a good thing . Do not underestimate the effect a virus can have on your body , get lots of rest and gentle excercise, be kind to your body and give it time to heal.

[Terjo]

Re the bisoprolol . I was proscribed it twice and gave up ,then when I was very ill I was given it to have and my family made me take it together with Digoxin . I'm still taking it with other things including a pacemaker. The AF is permanent now but I feel much better than I have for the last few years, just a bit more tiYou will feel betterred. Getting a bit breathless if I rush about. I'll be 90 next month. No ablation.