During AFib, does anyone experience a mix of weak and forceful beats?

[John3333333]

During atrial fibrillation, I understand that heart rates can vary, but I was curious if any fellow sufferers experience heartbeats of varying force during an episode, or does the intensity remain the same?

[doodle68]

Hi the heart beats vary in intensity during my episodes from gentle to heavy thumps in my back.

[Buffafly]

My beats vary from heavy thumps to rapid quivers and everything in between. The variety seems worse in slow AF (below 100bpm) for some reason.

[gsd01]

I think a mixture of strong and weak pulses is common. I asked the cardiologist some years ago when I first developed AF episodes why my ECG heart rate results were always higher than my wrist pulse. He explained that the weaker pulses were not easily detected at the wrist but picked up on the ECG. I now have my own ECG monitor and for example when my wrist pulse seems to be 77-78 my ECG reading is often in the late 90's. Examining the trace shows the smaller pulses that presumably couldn't be detected at my wrist

[jeanjeannie50]

Hi John

My attacks could come at any time, but the ones during the night were the most terrifying. My heart would feel like a fish flip flopping around in my chest trying to get out. I've heard others say they've had the same. I guess those beats were more strong giving a powerful twitching effect in more than one area of my heart.

Jean

[Windlepoons]

My beats are all over the place and the rhythm during an episode.

[Snowgirl65]

Most definitely -- mine would go from hardly being noticeable (was I still with the living?) to thumping hard and fast as if I were running up 10 flights of stairs, then go weakly again. Everyone's experience is different in that regard.

[javo123j]

I must admit that mine go very weak and stay that way until the afib episode ends. It's normally very strong in sinus rhythm

[Singwell]

Thumps and flutters variably. Can calm down so you think it's stopping, then off it goes again.

[Hidden]

Yes I would get the weak and forceful beats - sometimes runs of forceful beats sometimes really slow beats, down to 50s - along with a sense of doom and sometimes faint feeling - rubberband type feelings - they would progress until my heart would just go off running at 200-250bpm (even once recorded 280) for minutes at a time, only short bursts of slowing - the pounding would just kind of blend together and turn into what just felt like a burning feeling, and pain radiating up into the back of my neck. The faint feelings wouldn't happen at the top bpm runs, which is good because I don't think I could deal at all with all of those feelings at the same time. Terrifying tbh. Attached one of my ECGs of experiencing what you described.

prerun

[sdweller]

During afib you can feel all sorts of beats of different intensity. It's easy to over-think when your heart is not beating properly, and to think the worse of course! Remember many/most people live a long life with episodes (as long as your doctor is with you on the journey)... when in afib irregularity is the MAIN symptom, concerning beats, intensity, etc....so try not to obsess.