Hey everyone, I am new to this forum as I have only recently come across this website. I am a 21 year old male with no prior history of heart health issues. Back in July of last year, I began professional school and after the first week of classes were completed the students held a large party. I attended the party and got extremely drunk, to the point of which I was stumbling around and eventually blacked out. The next day I felt perfectly fine with no issue. However, I would say around 24 hours after I quit drinking I was laying in my bed, and suddenly felt my heart racing and then slowing down, back and forth. Of course I freaked out and called the ambulance and was later diagnosed with Atrial Fibrillation. I underwent 2 cardio versions in the emergency department which failed to convert me back to sinus along with two doses of adenosine which also did not work. I was on amioderone for probably 36 hours and as they were wheeling me up for the cardiology department to attempt a cardio version I converted back to sinus. I’ve had a thousand cardiology appointments since then and have been advised not to drink as this exasperates the problem, but unfortunatly I have not been as strict as I should and have continued to drink excessively on the weekends (stupid I know). The doctors have all told me that they honestly don’t have an explanation for my A-Fib. I have a team of cardiologist I see at a very prestigious research hospital, all of which say I am bar far their youngest patient to have atrial fibrillation and not have some sort of heart defect that is causing it. Is there any chance that this could have been an instance of a-fib due to the excessive alcohol consumption I partook in the night before it happened? In all the research I have done I can basically find no one like me or that has a similar story. If there’s anyone out there who has had a similar story, would you mind telling me more?
Thanks so much!
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Lc06091
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I don't know if it is linked to the alcohol but I had a similarish incident when I was about 30 - was at my best friend's wedding in Vegas - 7 day boozefest! On last night my heart began racing - lasted all night and then returned to NSR the next morning. Didn't have another for over 20 years
Kenny, thanks so much for the reply! I am hoping my a-fib story turns out much similar to yours in that it will take years before I have a reoccurrence. I pray that you’re episodes are few and far between. Have a good night!
If I had a dollar for every time a doctor, or mechanic, or whatever, told me "this is the first time they have seen this or that" I could have retired 20 years earlier.
The point is you're not alone having afib at a young age. Here's a reddit thread about just that:
Last comment in thread from the original poster : " Doctors and nurses have made me feel like there’s no one else young who gets it, so reading responses that say otherwise have been helpful"
So you're not alone and since your heart has been tested, you can plan on living as long a life as anyone else. The other good news is that should things progress and you need it -- you will probably be offered better treatments down the road that no one has heard of today.
Meanwhile, the big drinking not a great idea. And afib is also a good excuse to start taking extra good care of yourself by eating well, keeping a good weight, watching your blood sugar and cholesterol and exercising.
Thanks for the reply mjames1! I know the drinking needs to stop… I have been trying, but with the stresses of school it is an easy social outing with friends after a week of many exams. I hope to discuss a sort of middle ground with my cardiologist next time I have an appointment to do determine at what level, if any at all, would be considering not to increase my risk of an episode. While it definitely sucks to have the “limit” that seems to come with this diagnosis, you’re totally right that I should use this as an opportunity to improve my health. Have a great evening!
G'day Lc,
Look upon this as both a warning and an opportunity ! The warning is you have a human body and no matter how perfect you might seem to be, no matter how invincible you might feel - booze will cause all manner of issues ( not just cardiac) as you age.The opportunity is for you to take care of your body so that you may have a long and healthy life with a successful career. That said, although I am an old git now - I was young once and did all the stuff and more ( but not drugs) that you are probably trying to dream up.
Next you could be advised to look at your family to see if in past generations any family member has a tendency to heart issues and to strokes and even digestive issues. There is a tendency that in some people AF can have its origins in genetics. True in my case.
Next you would be wise to read up on the body's information superhighway ... the Vagal (or Vagus) Nerve. Google Vagal Nerve Schematic diagram to see exactly how this nerve fits into the body. In many sufferers of this hydraheaded monster called AF a dysfunctional vagal nerve or an inflammed vagal nerve can trigger an AF event. More usually from food a person has eaten than booze but AF doesn't descriminate ( as you are finding out).
My family on my fathers side have a genetic predisposition to AF and apart from me - my daughter at the age of 32 when pregnant with her two girls was diagnosed with AF on each occasion. When she stopped breeding the AF stopped. She now practices Thai Kick Boxing and looks like a stick insect - but no AF. Still it might return to haunt her when she is in her 60's.
This vagal nerve connection is not readily recognised by all members of the medical profession. You could also get onto YouTube and look at a range of videos on this subject by Dr. Sanya Gupta, York Cardiology for more insights. The more you can educate yourself on this condition the better off you will understand it.
Thanks you for the reply carneuny! While going through the process of determine possible causes of my A-fib, we went through basically all of the family we know with no one having any instances of atrial fibrillation. Regarding the Vagal nerve, I am actually currently in dental school so I have had the great displeasure of learning the ins and outs of all of the major cranial and spinal nerve pathways. It has made it interesting to learn about how much control the vegus nerve has control over the cardiovascular system. Thank you for the recommendation on the YouTube channel! I will look into it for sure. Have a wonderful evening.
Alcohol is a sure fire trigger for me, I learned that the first time while on vacation and it ruined the latter part of it since I was stuck sitting in the hotel rather than the beach. Second margarita and that was it for over 7 hours in afib at a high rate 150’s. Felt horrible and had chest heaviness, have not touched a drop since then. I have other triggers, but the alcohol for me was awful… I was just sick. My daughter told me (cardiac nurse) that most afib at my age is progressive, it has been 8 years and she was right. I did have heart rhythm issues at age 27, was hospitalized, but not afib. My EP told me my heart has electrical issues and as I have gotten older the afib developed along with my other rhythm disorders. I have bradycardia, pvc’s, pac’s and now afib. The afib has greatly impacted my life in respect to lifestyle. Take care of yourself and listen to your body!
Just stop drinking heavily. Then you will minimise the risk of more frequent Afib events over time. You might be lucky and never develop frequent Afib requiring an ablation to fix it. For sure you are at risk and a risk factor is heavy drinking.
Have you heard of Dr Rupy Ajula? He'd just qualified as a young Dr when he developed what we call 'lone AF'. He addressed it by changing his diet. It may not be the alcohol itself- it's more likely a combination of stress (anything medical related in training has high stakes), lack of sleep and poor eating habits. Go check out The Dr's Kitchen podcast and listen to some of the earliest episodes where Rupy talks about his own AF experience. Start supporting yourself and getting back on track. Don't blame yourself at present for drinking - it's a stress response. Remove the other factors and you'll likely need it less. I speak from experience. You've got a long life and an interesting career ahead of you.
HiAs someone who loves a good drink and knows there is a link between AF and booze for me….I’d really recommend zero alcohol for a month & see how u r.
Good luck but once this genie is out of the bottle he won’t go back in
Bless you. Firstly don't blame yourself. Getting blind drunk is what everyone does at 21. It may be that you just have a genetic disposition to Afib for some reason. But you probably need to avoid it for now.I hope you get sorted out and sorry I can't help more x
Sorry that your doctors seem so ignorant about AF but binge drinking is THE MOST common reason for AF in young people. Just stop unless you want a life time of problems.
This is not a matter of cutting back or stopping for a week or two this must a life style choice. As a bonus , as my doctor said to me many many yeasr ago "Think of all the money you will save!"
If it's any consolation, I had my first episode when I was 19. I wasn't drinking alcohol at all at that age, but was drinking a lot of sodas with caffeine, and that may have contributed. We'd had a swimming pool party at our house, and after the party I was throwing pennies into the pool and seeing how many I could pick up before having to come up for air. This was after having done some strenuous swimming during the party. So you could say I was pretty much worn out by the time I went inside and laid down on my bed. After a few minutes, my heartbeat became chaotic. I knew nothing about such things, so I thought it was a heart attack. I walked out to the living room and told my parents I thought I was having a heart attack, they checked my heartbeat and called the Fire Department, since that's what you did in those pre-911 days. They came out in a fire truck, and a medic put me on oxygen. I don't think they knew what it was, but thought the oxygen might help. I don't remember if I converted before they left or not, but I seemed to be OK. It did convert by itself at some point, I don't know if there was any such thing as cardioversion back then (1963). My next episode was in 1969, and I think I'd pretty much forgotten about the first one by then. I was in the Army at the time, and was drinking a lot of coffee, so maybe too much caffeine again. I didn't know it was called Afib, or really know anything about it, until I started dating a nurse in 1979, and she told me what it was. The episodes slowly increased in frequency over the years until about five years ago I was having one about every 2 or 3 days. That's when I had my ablation at age 73. It didn't get rid of it, but the episodes are far less frequent now so I consider it to have been successful.
Hi, DONT BEAT YOURSELF UP.I would even your drinking out and whilst it may act as a trigger, you probably have other factors contributing to the Afib.
I know of a 15 year old that had an ablation for Afib and then another one 15 years later as the Afib was sneaking back.
To my knowledge most at your age are more likely to get SVT but AF is only a different version which can be a real issue if you are a lot older than you are now.
I would continue to see a Heart Consultant and seriously consider the ablation if the AF becomes persistent.
Trust me, you must not and do not want to be on that Amiodarone for longer than a few months.
Hi - you’ve had some really great feedback from some kind, well informed people.
Stopping drinking is hard so ask yourself why you want to drink?
You say you are stressed, you are under pressure and the ‘norm’ is to let off steam partying but when you do that when you have or have had AF you are going to exacerbate everything which then gets into a viscous circle. You just will not be able to keep up and spiral down so now is crunch time - only you can choose to be well.
My best guess as to you wanting to drink is to self soothe so my suggestion would be - find an alternative strategy to disperse your stress because as you will already know by now from your studies - stress = inflammation = poor health.
This is a wake up call for your and as you will have seen by the previous posts, you aren’t the first and certainly won’t be the last but consider what you want for the rest of your life.
Know you will receive kindness and support here and information which may or not help.
The one thing I’ve learned from this forum is that every single one of us has a different journey with AF which caused by SO many things and you can come out the other side healthier and seller than before if you take action.
What’s that old saying - if you want things to change, you need to change something.
The alcohol could well be the culprit, but so could anything else.?? Iv spent years trying to pinpoint a trigger for my Afib episodes and drove myself nuts in the process.!!!
It's the company that relives the stress, not the alcohol, so still go out but drink fruit juice, or alcohol free. There was a well known Pro cyclist of 21 who used to compete in the Tour de France who had AF. So you are not the only young person who has it.
Over here in the States, it's called "holiday heart," i.e. a person's heart reacting to excessive alcohol which is frequently consumed at holidays. I'm one who loved to imbibe, but it's a definite trigger for me, and my fear of getting an episode quashed any desire now for alcohol. It's much harder to stop when you're young, I realize that. To me, it was an easy choice to make.
My nephew had this happen after a heavy drinking trip to Las Vegas. There is a term for this here in the US, it’s called “ Holiday Heart”. Definitely caused by heavy alcohol binge. My nephew was in his mid 20’s.. it took about a year or so to keep his heart under control. He’s been fine and off meds for at least 10 years. He also matured and quit the binge drinking, got married and has 3 kids. Just stop binge drinking it helps!
Hi, your post really interested me and just goes to show how unpredictable and annoying afib can be. Back in July last year I went for run in very extreme heat. I knew something wasn’t wrong as I felt so fatigued and heart rate was higher than normal. I’m a regular runner so just put it down to being a virus or something like heat. However i still wasn’t feeling right so took myself to a walk in and the sent me to A&E where they diagnosed ‘an irregular heartbeat’ and they would refer me to a cardiologist. I left that night and waited for contact and after a while I got an appointment and I was diagnosed with AF. They asked about my lifestyle etc. well before the incident I used to drink lots of caffiene and fair amount of alcohol, smoked, was quite a stressful time and was over exercising. They reckon that combination of things triggered my af! Mine wasn’t every now and then either, mine was irregular 24/7 for 2 months. So I’d gone from sinus to irregular in one afternoon and stayed there. I got put on blood thinners for 6 weeks and was booked on for a cardioversion last September. I had the cardioversion and was successful after one attempt. Since then I’ve had sinus rhythm and very little problems. Main problems are anxiety and the occasional palpitations/missed or early beats. So I’m hoping it was a one off. Even my cardio nurse agrees and said I’m 41 and very young for this to happen. So you being 21 is unbelievable. As I said I’m hoping that’s it for me and have made life style changes. Stopped smoking right away, drink more water and try to eat healthier however I have put on a bit of weight. But I’m the same as you, no matter how hard i try to search for similar symptoms to mine or similar experiences I can’t find anything. I really hope I never have any heart problems in the future, however everywhere I read it says afib is progressive and there’s no cure etc. it can just be dormant for ages then pop up. Hopefully I’m now nearly 10 months on from cardioversion and feel great. Just hope ot lasts.
Hi!Hey - I am 71 now, but I so recognise your situation.
I had my first AF episode when I was about 27. Newly married, just bought a house, I'd been at work, waiting all day for a phone call as to whether my 1yr contract was going to be renewed. Nothing - so I phoned them late afternoon and, yes! Such relief! We went out, had a curry, lots of beer, and I had a couple of large cigars. A great day. Until I got up around 0200, drank a lot of water to stave off a hangover, and went back to bed. It all kicked off! Heart racing, irregular. I thought I was going to die. Called an ambulance - everything took ages, and all we came away with was "it's not a heart attack". No diagnosis, no meds.
The paroxysmal AF happened occasionally after this. Always through getting well "lubricated" with alcohol, and smoking. It took a decade after this before I was diagnosed with PAF.
In my late 40s I totally stopped smoking. I also didn't "binge drink" to the same extent. However, into my 50s the episodes of AF became more frequent. The triggers, I think, were still the same. 1: stress 2: alcohol 3: tiredness. I'm sure smoking would have been well up there, had I not quit.
In my 60s I was lucky enough to retire early (PAF was a factor in this!) - but then things went totally haywire. We'd moved to Scotland. Huge family problems in Manchester meant huge stress mentally and lots of travelling, so physical issues as well. I did not see the problem coming - I knew nothing about AF really. So, I pushed myself too hard to help the relatives. Way too much travelling, and trying to control situations. I "self-medicated" with alcohol to relieve the mental stress - usually around 70 - 80 units a week, never as much as 15 units on any day. So, I never got "drunk", and never really had a hangover. But it obviously took its toll. I know that because, 3 years ago, we had a visit from our daughter, over from Australia with her husband, and we went to the Lake District. I knew I had to get fitter to make the most of this. Hey, no problem - I was a long distance runner, hill walker, cyclist. So, I was surprised when it didn't seem to be working. Visit to GP, ECG, diagnosis: You have AF. Me: Yes I know that, but only occasionally. It lasts for a day, goes away & I'm fine. GP: No, you have AF right now. Me: No way, I can't even feel that my heart rhythm is wrong.
Of course, he was right. I should have had an early cardioversion, but Covid messed that up.
Nearly 3 years later I've had 2 cardioversions, both of which were only temporary. I'm not sure what next.
So....... If I could turn back the years? In my 30s and 40s I wouldn't change too much. Just try to avoid getting "totally drunk", and making episodes of "heavy drinking" as few as possible.
In my 50s and 60s - well, hopefully, getting totally sloshed no longer seems such an enticing idea. But, there can be an insidious alternative, which is drinking every evening. And managing that amount of drink, so you never feel really intoxicated, and you never wake up with a hangover. And then you think everything is obviously OK. Well, I think it isn't. I am convinced that my, now persistent, AF is primarily caused by stress, but that alcohol was also a major factor.
My bottom line. Alcohol may well be a serious trigger for you. It absolutely is for me. Hydrating properly might help, but I am personally convinced that the alcohol itself is the trigger. However, small amounts never seemed to be problem - just too much or too regular.
Secondly, stress. This was probably my main trigger.
Thirdly, tiredness. If I was not properly rested, then I was vulnerable.
THE BIG ONE!
The big one from my experience is to take warning from your paroxysmal AF.
I had no idea that, in my late 60s, it might suddenly become persistent. But, I was still under stress and still drinking too much.
Unfortunately, it has become persistent. In my case a disaster. Some folks reckon they are asymptomatic. I am not. I have turned from a very fit person into a geriatric.
I could run long distances, climb any hill in UK, cycle miles and miles. Now, all I can do is a little work in the garden, and I need a nap every morning and after lunch.
I hope this helps. Don't be pessimistic - try to discover your triggers (you've nailed one already!) and avoid. I lived until my mid 60s with PAF, and did loads - fell running, marathon running (OK, only twice!), SCUBA diving, lots more.
As the years advance, become a bit more cautious about the AF becoming more persistent.
But, hey, by the time you're my age they'll have probably found a simple solutiuon anyway!
Interesting story about holiday heart… I was already diagnosed with AF at like 41. At that time I didn’t know what “HH” was. I pretty much knew my triggers etc. though.
First time heard about HH I was on a bachelor party in Cabo San Lucas. 10 dudes. Everyone was getting drunk nearly every day. We went REAL HARD. The Bachelor is actually a successful practicing cardiologist friend of mine from college. He practices in a different state than me. He partied hard (yes doctors party when the white coats come off) On the trip were five other doctors. One orthopedic surgeon, one spine surgeon, one endocrinologist, all friends of his from medical school.
I remember one morning I woke up and had to use my Kardia and my Apple watch to check to see if I was in AF or just getting PAC’s from my drinking the night before. We were all hung over and my Cardiologist friend said he felt like crap too and his own heart was beating weird.
We all proceeded to use my Kardia and Apple watch getting read outs. Couple of use definitely were having significant Heart rhythm issues.
That’s when he told us all the story about holiday heart and what it does. Even some of the Docs never have heard of it themselves.
Alcohol is no joke man, it’s all fun and games until the next day
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