I have had Afib since 2018 , in Jan 2019 I started sotolol and Xeralto after a successful cardio version, I have felt good no side effects except insomnia since I started on it . I think the sotolol causes the insomnia cause I did not have it before . I however think that’s better then a lot of other side affects people get from medications . A couple mon ago I went to emerg cause my heart seemed to be lurching, or doing a beat beat this or skipping , fluttering , I had no other symptoms but did not want to have to go in middle of night I sat in emerg for 4 hours they did an ECG it was fine they said I was there till 3 :00 am sitting in a plastic chair waiting to see a doc as they wanted to do blood work, nothing showed up on blood work but I could hardly move with my arthritis when doc said we cannot find anything come back if it happens again lol I am thinking ( pass) I I don’t want to take a spot from someone that needs it plus a lot of sick people I do not want to pick up something . Since then it’s started to happen more often for several hours then disappears . Last night I haf it from before supper till like 9:00 , By bedtime it was back , today it was this morn , this afternoon then tonight , I really notice it if I lay on my left side like my afib was before cardio version, I hated that feeling and it always increased my anxiety . I have mo other symptoms , I cannot pin point what I am eating or drinking that would cause it , I did make a appt. for tues w / family doc as here we have to go through family doc then they contact cardiologist . So my question is does any one else have this or experienced this as often . Do I need to go back to emerg , I hope not and I suspect I don’t have the racing heart cause the sotolol is keeping that in check . I appreciate and Thank you in advance for your thoughts . I know you can get ectopic beats but as I have had those over the years before afib but this often ,Have a great day or night as to where you are located .
thank you
Written by
myrnalynn52
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
I’m so sorry this is happening to you. I have many different arrhythmias in addition to my AF and can feel every heartbeat. I have not slept on my left side in several years because that triggers mine in addition to many other triggers! One of the major ones is reflux (which I have no history of) and it occurred right under my sternum and sometimes in my throat. I was started on a proton pump inhibitor, pantoprazole, which made a big difference! Sometimes even an antacid helps. It would happen all different times of the day or night. I don’t eat large meals, drink or smoke, sleep with my head up, and sometimes even drinking water would stimulate it or being hungry. I had an ablation 6 weeks ago and am waiting for an appointment with a GI doctor while still taking the reflux meds. So far the ablation has been great! Good luck!
I don’t have reflux or anything like that , I do not drink or smoke or use CBD or anything . Thank you for your help, I thought I ate smaller meals but am going to try smaller. Seems like we are always having to accommodate something new with our bodies . Have a great day !
Do you have anything to monitor your pulse or rate when you have these episodes? Like a Fitbit or Applewatch? Some of us with afib, also have Kardia as ( or similar) where we can do an ECG at home and it tells us what is happening.
From your description, it sounds like you might be having arrhythmia of some sort - Afib, or tachycardia episodes, or it could possibly be ectopics that you are feeling. It is hard to say without monitoring it. You sound like you might be paroxysmal ( it comes and goes) and perhaps when you went to A&E that time, your episode stopped when they did the ECG.?
if you can, it would be worth trying to monitor your heart rate to see what’s happening and to rule out afib., Also, insomnia isn’t ideal if you have Afib as it can worsen episodes and not everyone suffers from insomnia on beta blockers and you shouldn’t have to suffer like this.
Also, I am sorry to say, beta blockers don’t stop afib, they can help manage heart rate which in turn can lessen episodes, but they don’t stop it, so you can still have episodes. Cardio version also aren’t always permanent, lots of people have many.
Have you mentioned the insomnia to your GP and your experiences? There are other beta blockers and medication you could try.
I have a fit bit but it’s an older one it does tell me my pulse and but nothing like the newer ones , I will need to invest in an Apple Watch and am also looking at a monitor . As it took me 4 months to get in for the last one. My GP seems not concerned with the insomnia , She feels that all antiarrhythmics have side affects and I think my GP and Cardiologist think this is the lesser of 2 evils as I had not been back in hosp and it keeps me in NSR , As I also had SVT with the afib , I was prescribed 12/ a sleeping pill which only gives me 3/12 -4/12 hours sleep most nights , every week or week and 1/2 I get 6 , when I tell doc I get we would ultimately loke you to get 7 . Nothing more said . I mention it at all appts . Maybe with the above I can go in armed with info to my appt . with G.P. . With Covid I have not seen cardiologist in 3 years , last time I saw him he switched me to every 2 years and last year I got a phone call from him after my doc sent him a message saying I had mentioned a week of heart kinda jumping around . Cardi said he would book me for a echo and monitor and he sent a letter back to GO after I had them 4 mon later that very minor changes . So I do not get a chance to ask a lot . As for the cardio version they sent me 3 mon after I was diagnosed to try to get me back in NSR , It worked and they started me on the sotolol that night and I only had that strange beats 11/2 years ago for that week and not again till I went to emerg and it stops till this week where it is more often . I was on motropolol and digoxin but it made me tired and I felt quite often it bothered my asthma . I asked at that point for an ablation as I had known someone that had success , Carfi said he did not do them but could refer me but no cardi would confident it till I had been on an antiarrhythmic for a year . So he prescribed the sotolol I can still remember his words this can be lethal ! And said start tonight . here they do not put you in hosp to put you on it . I went home and did not take it till the day I went for cardiaversion . All I kept thinking was why would I take something that would kill me , I have 25 people coming for Christmas . I was petrified . I kept telling my family they gave me a drug and said it could be lethal and I am at home if it happens . So I went in Jan for the cardio version and needless to say they were not impressed I had not taken it , I tried to explain I had been into GP with my concerns and she had messaged the cardi but being over Christmas it was scatter staff no one answered her back . So I have learned alot since joining this site and am forever grateful for all and any advice as it helps so many people I already had anxiety for years so for me when he said it my mind went blank that’s all I heard so I had no questions and I got home and was a basket case till I got into GP . Then on read more on this site and it helped so much . So I will try the watch and monitor and take into GP Thank you
Oh, I do feel for you. You have certainly been through it all with the medics and don’t appear to have had a lot of help or good advice since your cardio gram. From what I’ve read about sotalol, it isn’t lethal at all, there are far worse drugs you can take with Afib. Perhaps he was joking when he said it was lethal? I’m on a beta blocker, Bisoprolol -a low dose, but I don’t suffer from insomnia. I did in the very early days, but I think a lot of that was also anxiety. There are other meds out there and they may not give you insomnia and they may be more effective in stopping your episodes of these strange beats.
I don’t think you should accept what your doctor told you about insomnia - especially as you’ve suffered for many years now.
As you mention you didn’t get the strange beats very often , but now you are getting them more frequently, as you probably know, paroxysmal afib can be like that and a lot of people have afib, SVT and other strange things, altogether ( I do). I’ve had afib for 19 years now and currently get an episode once a year, but I’m always waiting for it or worrying it’s going to happen.
Once you get your new watch or monitor, as soon as your episodes start, monitor it as best you can and take it from there. Do let us know.
I will surely post what I find out , I am always grateful for the help . This site has done so much to relax my anxiety since I got Afib as I was feeling I was not getting answers else where . Thank you for your help and knowledge I appreciate .
My guess would be ectopics, maybe trying to go into AF and failing. I would get a Kardia if you can, otherwise you will need a monitor for a while to catch whatever it is. Or it could be slow AF if the Sotolol is effective. Come back and report if you find out what it is ❤️🩹
Thank you I am headed out to purchase that today . hopefully it will give me more answers I can then tell doc on tues . The one day monitor I had a year and a half ago picked up nothing but it was 4 months after I had it when they got me in to test . So this is a way better idea . Thank you so much , Have a great day
Hi , my husband hd invested the series 8 Apple Watch and it’s really good it has an ecg on there too the doctor said they are very reliable . We can also moniter his heart rate as he is in persistent AF . He s having problems with his stomach ie visiting the loo very often so we re trying to sort that at the moment . They are quite expensive but worth their wait I in gold I think as we ve had a couple of emergency visits because of the readings which have proved accurate with the hospitals . Hope this helps , take care
I forgot to mention his stomach problems are due to his medication we think so they have taken him off of digoxin and raised his bisoprolol to 10mg a day to see if that’s the problem . He suffered a stroke 10 weeks ago because of his AF so he s had a lot to contend with over these last couple of months .
No he wasn’t , when we went to A and E two days before his stroke , as his heart rate felt really fast when I listened to his chest thinking it was his asthma because he felt unwell. They put him on zero stroke risk scale even though he jd hd an ablation before and his heart rate was 160 so we left with verapamil and thst was it , I went to GP with him next day as still not happy but Jist prescribed him more verapamil, and the next day he had his stroke .
Oh I am so sorry to hear of your husbands Afib and the stroke , I hope he bounces back from his stroke , With nothing more to deal with . Seems like it’s one thing after the other for you both to deal with . Thank you for your knowledge and help I appreciate it. I hope things quiet and settle on your end . Take care
I would treat myself to a Wellue 24-hour AI ECG and run it hoping to catch these beats and see what it reports, then take the trace to your doctor. There's a smaller and cheaper version, too, which also has AI but can run for 5 minutes maximum, which might be enough. The AI is truly a revelation for what it can detect.
Thank you , I had thought about a monitor but had not investigated them yet , Thank you this will be my first purchase ,I am Upgrading my fit bit to an Apple Watch So it will be nice to take into doc and not wait 4 months for a test that shows nothing by then. Thank you for all your help , I appreciate it .
The excellent Apple Watch will produce a similarly good trace to any similar ECG monitor but won’t label what it finds except for AF, “Inconclusive”, bradycardia and tachycardia. A Kardia device is similar but for an extra £10.00 a month will label more arrhythmias, so that’s another option, but only the Wellue devices have AI analysis and that, so far for me, has been the best of all. If you do go for one, their website always has “deals” of one kind or another and, despite coming from China, arrives speedily, within a week or so.
Thank you for explaining that I will get the Wellue to start with , I prefer to with the A1 analysis to start ,Has more info . Thank you and I will order off the site , Nice it does not take to long . I have an old fit bit was going to get a newer fit bit that detected afib I just had not ordered it.Then this started . I think though the Apple may be a better option then the Fitbit , thank you so much again for the wealth of info I am going to order it now . Have a great day/eve or night , I am in Canada so only 4:20 pm here . Take Care
The Wellue 24-hour device needs a laptop for its software along with adhesive ECG electrodes when in use, placed on the chest; alternatively you can use a chest strap (non adhesive). Both come with the device, but extra are easily available. I got some from Amazon called "SKINTACT ECG Electrodes (Pk 30) - Made in Austria" that work even better than the originals as they peel off more easily. I am sure there are Canadian sources.
The smaller Wellue (the Touch Screen model) works using fingers, or can be pressed against the chest / knee / waist much like the Kardia device; this gives up to a 60 second trace and uses a mobile phone app; for the 5 minute trace, again, it needs ECG pads and the same laptop software as the 24-hour device. I've never used it like this , yet, but, again, a few are included in the packaging.
I ordered the first one , I am hoping to be around for many years to come ,So I thought I would get my use out of it lol . I also will be interested in what it shows , I will be sure to post Thank you for the knowledge and the info on chest straps and electrodes , I am sure that will come in handy down the road . I know what to order now . Thank you . Always easier to learn from previous testers . Thank you
It was a recommendation from two others here that put me onto it. I was a bit worried as I had the Kardia already and what with that being an American company, I did have more trust than in a Chinese one, I have to admit. In the end, however, they have turned out to be marvellous. They are both a bit less easy to use than the Kardia, because the mobile phone and laptop apps are less elegant and less well sorted, but the AI results are unusually good and worth that little bit of inconvenience.
I started having ectopic beats that progressively got worse plus edema in my left foot. It was all a magnesium deficiency . Started taking a mag citrate in the morning and a taurate about an hour before bed. My conditions resolved within days.
Thats great . I read on here shortly after I was diagnosed about magnesium deficiency, I watch Visio’s by Dr Gupta and started taking it then , I have been good except a week at Christmas 2 years ago , it just went away . Then I had this bout a couple months ago went to emerg but the last couple weeks just keeps happening , after I eat , before bed , in the morning sometimes last a couple hours or more then goes away somethings comes back a couple hours later . I have had blood work and my magnesium is good . I have taking it faithfully since I read up on it here . I am so glad it worked for you . Thank you
I shall post when I get some updates , Hopeful I can get it settled down , I feel it all the time when it’s happening and it agitates me reminds me when first got afib and could feel it all the time .until the med change and CV . I was so thankful when I did not feel it anymore .I do drink a lot of water cause I was told always keep well hydrated , I do not do caffeine or alcohol. It smoke . And I watch sugars so I can not think when it happens after I eat what was setting it off . Thank you ,
Hi there, I take Sotalol and suffer with sleep disturbances in particular. I often wake in the night with vivid dreams and get up to use the toilet about 3 times (usually at the same time every night). I also wake with a jittery, anxious feeling every morning. I never had this before so put it down to the sotalol.
I was diagnosed in an overnight study in hospital. I was never tired, none of the symptoms of sleep apnea except getting up to use the bathroom. I still has 17-25 stops of ten seconds or more per hour. I wasn't impressed tbh. An electrophysiologist referred me to the pulmonologist who did the sleep study.
I have had two , one said I had sleep apnea , the next time it said I did not . When I was diagnosed they booked me for that test and then started to tick off the box’s I was not diabetic , I was not over weight enough , they went through the list and I had a score of 1
Never had a reason as to why I got it , I was just one of the lucky ones . My husband who had a sleep study cause he snores , the test said he has sleep apnea , he tried the machine for months it spent more time on floor then he would wear it he just kept saying he could not breath with it on , Refused to wear it . He is in great health they keep telling him his blood pressure and heat is that of a young man , he smokes , drinks coffee w/ caffeine and works like a dog all day( siding/ roofing , Jobs he should not do at his age , has had 2 knee replacements and broke a hip falling off a truck bed w a wheel barrow He is 73 he was told he had bad sleep apnea at 64 . I thought he might end up w / afib
So far ge has not ( I could not make him use the resumed breathing machine . I was the one that got it lol. I am younger and at first when diagnosed slerp apnea was not as bad as his .
The sleep disturbances I hear you , mostly I take 1/2 a sleeping pill and usually fall asleep but I get up 3 times a night as well for bathroom breaks . I wondered if the stool caused the bladder issues as I could hold it at night before . I have only had a couple bad dreas . My insomnia I am awake till wee hours not tired enough to sleep is the feeling and if I take the pill too soon I don’t sleep . So when I feel more tired I take the pill fall asleep and usually wide awake and cannot sleep in 3/12 to 41/2 hours . I have bailed to the other bed , As if my husband gets up tues on nightlight or takes the dog out I am wide awake and cannot get back to sleep . So I was running on 3-4.5 hours way more then I ever got 6 and I could not nap . And it’s only been like this since sotolol . I though have felt good and had really no other complaints or side effects from the sotolol .
Thank you , I will post when I know what’s happening .
I have Afib which was diagnosed after I was bluelighted to hospital one evening a couple of years ago. That was fast Afib with heart approaching 150 beats per minute. That had a very definite signature of ferrets fighting in a sack etc. But I too also get something going on but I'm not sure what it is. It doesn't feel like the typical Afib feeling. More like my heart is labouring a bit or lurching as you describe. A bit lumpy. I'm certainly aware of it. I was wondering whether it's Afib but with a lower heart rate. Just thought I'd tell you, so you know you are not alone. I keep thinking I should get a Kardia device but haven't done so yet.
I will let you know as I figure this one out how it works . The ferrets that a great way to explain it when you said it I immediately thought bingo ! That’s it the feeling ( it does not hurt but I don’t like the feeling so it agitates me ,my heart rate not going up right now but when I was first diagnosed it was at 171 for like 12 hours I drove myself to hospital as I woke up in morning was seating had a fast heart rate and the ferrets but went to wrong hosp where they did not have cardiology ( I did not know ) so they stick IV lines in each arm , put me in a resuscitation room and tried yo get my heart rate down . With what they had . And then decided to transfer me to other hospital which would not take me as they were over welled with a big accident . So I was thrilled at 2.00 am when they got me transferred , I don’t know what they gave me but was discharged 4 hours later ,still w /afib but no SVT , and metropolol and digoxin ,I saw my GP a few days later and she immediately said your score is low your not 65 but in rare cases people still have stokes so put me on a blood thinner I’ve been on it ever since . But the ferrets are back and the burping or lurching or skipping or fluttering feeling is back . So I see my doc in the morn . I know though I will not find out anything that quickly lol thank you . I will post my news
Sotalol can be pro arythmic. Also you can definitely get afib on sotalol. You probably need a kardia device to catch what is going on, because it sounds like paroxysmal afib. A cardioversion is just a reboot of the electrical system of the heart. You were in afib when they did that. Paroxysmal is hard to catch, that's why apple watches, Fitbit charge 5 or sense 2, or the kardia will help you do an ECG to show your doctor.
I bout the Apple Watch that does katdia , I have to figure out the watch test as had a fit bit before,This I has way more on it lol , I also ordered a monitor . Looks like I will be needing in futurist as things move slow here for testing , will post when I have update. Thank you
I had read somewhere about it could cause other arhythmic’s . I hope not , Ugh, I do know That all the CV did but it worked to get me back in NSR , so they afib feeling was gone in my chest . I felt better on the Sotol than the other drugs so thought it was a win . Till this started . I will post when I get some more info . Thank you for your knowledge so appreciated
I also have a Kardia and have been able to. capture many abnormal rhythms. It’s very small and you can see the results immediately on your phone, can save a pdf and send it to your doctor or print a copy and it tells you 1 of 4 rhythms that it can detect. I captured numerous AF episodes which initially were not picked up on a 30 day monitor from the cardiologist. The cardiologist and EP both recommended it. Over several years my arrhythmias increased in number and length despite being on Flecainide, metoprolol . Also on Eliquis. My Apple Watch did pick up AF episodes but only after I manually started the ecg app. One nice thing about the Apple Watch is the fall app which you need to make sure is turned on. If it detects a fall it will shake your wrist and call your emergency contact /ambulance unless you answer the vibrating watch that you’re okay. Nice for someone who lives alone!
Oh I did not read that far to know about the fall app. Thank you for your knowledge Sounds like when I get this working it should help the doctor . Yah I guess hopeful thinking on my part it would nit do that increase in episodes. Thank you . Great site so
Much info from caring people and nothing better than people that experienced it .
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
More on strange nocturnal “quivering”
Difference between Ectopic Beats and AF
rogue beats
Ectopic beats
How long will my irregular heart beat last?
