I had the most glorious day in 3 years on the 4th day after my first ablation, which the doc said went great. The first three days were tougher because I had a sort throat, fever, then a migraine. But on day 4 I felt incredible…until about 9:30pm when my watch told me I was in afib again. And then the episode got worse and worse as the night progressed and now I sit here about 2.5 days later and still in afib and I fear it is not going to subside. And I feel worse than I did before the ablation. I had a couple drinks with dinner on the 4th day and I wonder did that trigger this? I want to be patient and give it time and appreciate all the posts on this site that tell me so - but to be back in constant afib so quickly and more intense than before the ablation is incredible let down. I am healthy and active, only 51 yrs old, and want my energy level back up again.
Afib worse than before ablation - Atrial Fibrillati...
Afib worse than before ablation
Sorry you have this experience but I do think it would have been alcohol - it really is a no,no for some considerable time after ablation.
The sore throat, migraine and fever are pretty standard for the first few days following ablation.
Have you contacted your team because if you could get treatment, the sooner the better that AF is converted now.
Not sure where in the world you are but I would urge you to ring the team who did your ablation for advice.
The drinks may well have triggered your AF. At the moment your heart needs to heal and form scar tissue to block the rogue beats. Don't despair after my third ablation I had AF before I even left the hospital and had to stay in an extra day. Then about 4 weeks later it kicked off again and was finally put back into normal sinus rhythm by a cardioversion. It was still the most helpful procedure, my heart rate rarely goes over 100 now and that ablation was about 6 years ago.
Give the inside of your heart time to form the scar tissue, no more alcohol for a while, take life very slowly and get plenty of rest during these first weeks. I would let your EP's secretary or one of the AF nurses know that you are in AF.
Please let us know how you get on.
Jean
Hi,
I was told there is a 3 month blanking period post-ablation where you can expect to be in and out of Afib. I’ve had 3 ablations and found that afterwards, the intermittent Afib would be quite severe
Hi,
I am day 14 and have had similar issues I was already back in Afib before I left the hospital I too had to stay in over night they managed to get me back to normal rhythm before I left the hospital then day 2 it started and lasted 3 days.It was worse than before so I phoned up the cardiology department for advice and got an appointment to see the consultant on Wednesday then before I saw him I went back into Afib then tachycardia which lasted another 3 days he said that it was normal but it shouldn’t make me feel worse so has altered my bisoprolol and said give it two more weeks and if there isn’t an improvement then he will change my tablets.
It is quite disheartening isn’t it as I too didn’t expect to feel worse after having it done and I know it’s still only early days but I don’t really want another one not how poorly I was after I had it done.
If you are concerned then I would phone up the hospital for advice you might just need your tablets altering and it’s also nice to be reassured that this is normal after having it done, take care and get plenty of rest.
Drinking so soon after an ablation is a really bad idea! Alcohol is a poison and processing it places significant stress on your body.
Each drink is the equivalent of a hard 6 mile run in the stress it places on your body. You’d be better off avoiding both for quite a while until your body has fully recovered.
Once you have recovered you will be far better served by giving up the drink entirely and replacing it with exercise as, unlike alcohol, it’s actually good for you.
The general recommendation is to avoid alcohol for just 24 hours, until the various anaesthetic drugs used have cleared the system. This is only because alcohol might add to their sedative effect.
The evidence seems to be that your drink is unlikely to have caused your problems. These were much more likely to have been the heart muscle responding to the still raw burns in the atrium. So soon after an ablation, the heart is mightily sensitive (well, mine was), so the alcohol, rather than having a direct effect, might have contributed indirectly in complex ways. It certainly won't have caused any long-term problems for you.
The trouble with mentioning "alcohol" is that some people who abstain from feel that it is a toxin or similar. There has been some evidence that this might yet prove to be so, but it isn't looking that way yet. I continue to enjoy my glass of wine and feel it helps rather than hinders my cardiac issues. It reminds me of that glorious country, France, where the grapes ripen under the warm summer sunshine - and that relaxes me nicely, helping rather than hindering!
Over the coming weeks and months, you'll get much better and be pleased with your procedure, I am sure.
Steve
Cheers to that Steve! Alcohol was never a trigger for me but I did stay clear of it for a few months after my ablation as a precaution . Nothing beats a nice glass of red wine or the occasional glass of bubbly! ( If it is not contra-indicated by meds or a health condition of course). Sadly it seems to be a trigger for some.
I live in frogland and would look highly suspicions if I avoided alcohol or croissants 😅
You're in my favourite country, Lily!
Steve
Well I also became french last year due to blooming Brexit. Always felt european .But it's great for the rugby 🏉 I can support France and England although my special favourite is Wales 🏴🏴
That was a day that saddened me and which I felt back then we would come to rue.
Steve
I had an ablation in 2013. It was amazing for 12 months. Then the following year I lost my lovely hubby to Cancer. I must admit I went off the rails a bit. I will admit that I totally abused the ablation.I lost 12 months of my life through grieving. Then in November 2017 I stopped drinking. Full stop. I am quite happy having a glass of water with my dinner and then a nice cuppa. If I new back then what I know now. !!!!! Like Jeannie says your heart has got to heal and you must rest. I wish you all the very best. Feel better soon and look after yourself.
Hi. I'm 9 days post 4th ablation and yes I have had runs of af and yes I have felt terrible. But its early days. Please treat your heart like the tender, vulnerable organ it is at the moment. Dont rush anything. Dont be impatient. I know it's easy to say but that is my mantra at the moment. Good luck with your recovery. 3 month blanking period will soon go and then we shall both see how we are.
Take care 🌻
Alcohol used to make my daily afib attacks longer and much more stronger. I have given up drink since ablation and so far a year later no afib.
thanks everyone for your replies- much appreciated. Still in afib here 5 days running but not as intense as couple days ago. I do find a drink or two to be quite relaxing so not excited about the possibility that I may have to give it up. To be clear, I specifically asked the doc if it was ok to have a drink, and as has been pointed out by others here, he said just not in first 24 hours.
Not had an ablation, and in permanent AF. my consultant said I could drink red wine if I was Ok with it. I'm not, it makes my feel awful now....even low alcohol. So I gave up any alcohol about 6 ysr ago. Its hard and I feel like an outsider sometimes, when socialising, but I just have to accept it. Being alive is more important
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