10 days post ablation and all was going so well until Saturday. Now I'm constantly having runs of tachycardia, AF and a strange slow beat. I know from the fact sheet this is normal. But it doesn't do anything for my stress levels.
Post ablation symptoms : 10 days post... - Atrial Fibrillati...
Post ablation symptoms
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Tommyboy21
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The mind, how it can torture us!!! Are you still on all heart rate meds??
Jean
Yes Jean, although they have never kept me out of daily AF anyway. Your right about the mind. I can't help thinking the worst about anything to tell the truth.
Try relaxation breathing techniques as anxiety will feed the issue (easier said than done I know.
Box breathing - breathe slowly in through your nose to the count of 4, hold that breath for a slow count of 4, then slowly exhale to th a count of 4 and again hold for 4. Rainfern posted a link but I can’t get it to copy. But sit comfortably & do try to relax - hope you feel better soon
Yeah I do that struggle with the 5 in 6 out though.🤣 anxiety has been a real pain for me since diagnosed.
I think anxiety is really common and normal with AF. And because we want the best after ablation it’s understandable that we focus on every skipped beat and change in rhythm. It’s important to remember that as human beings we are naturally wired to be alert to danger and the heart is first responder in the fight or flight reaction. It’s not simple and you should be patting yourself on the back for having got through this far!
The best way I could cope with fear in those first few weeks after ablation was to distract myself with every self-help practice going! I have meditated for years but was only able to relax if there was someone talking me through it on an app. I listened to my favourite Balance app quite obsessively! I explored a years worth of healthy recipes and bought one of those complex colouring books that bored the life out of me. And I kept a journal and wrote everything down and had a list of all the things I was doing to help myself, and the steps I should take if AF returned.
Ironically AF did return after a couple of weeks and I phoned the cardio team who had me in for a CV and I’ve been in NSR ever since. Funnily enough during the time I was back in persistent AF my fears dissolved because the worst had already happened! Don’t hesitate to contact your cardio team if you feel the need, mine have been so reassuring.
I have the balance app. It's great isn't it. Thanks for your reassuring words.
If you can beat this anxiety you will feel better as Rainfern and others have said. I used Headspace to meditate when I had my ablation which helped a lot. I hope your ablution will calm your Af as I am still on meds after mine, but feeling a great deal better now. Best wishes.
It is normal. You heart is healing - building up scar tissue. There's still inflammation there - that causes our HR to rise. It takes time for the heart to remodel its behaviour too - the fact you're getting different types of event is probably a good sign. I had all sorts of different ectopics after mine for about 4 months and even now get little bouts of tachycardia if I'm stressed or overstretched. Only between 100 and 110, though and they don't last for more than a few minutes.
Take it easy over Christmas - don't overdo things and don't let others persuade you to join in the fun if you're not up to it. Slowing your breathing down to 6 or less a minute really helps both ectopics and tachycardia.
'even now get little bouts of tachycardia if I'm stressed or overstretched'. People on this forum say that often. What does that really mean? That the arrhythmia the ablation was supposed to cure has only been temporarily suppressed? That the heart is trying to find alternative conduction pathways so that the arrhythmia may return? I struggle to understand why EPs say ablations are 'successful' when patients are still experiencing unnatural heart behaviours.
Lessening of AF burden is classed as a success by my ep.
EPs setting the bar too low in my opinion. Not sure many of them actually understand AF to be honest. They seem to know more about ablations than the actually disease its supposed to cure.
It seems that EPs now wait four weeks before worrying about recurring arrhythmias as signifying any kind of failure of the ablation, so you can expect these rogue conduction events to disappear over the next 2-3 weeks, as they most surely are likely to do.
How long and how fast / slow/ strange are these runs?
Steve
Low 51 tachardia 140 AF usual 130. With meds.
I have been taking bisoprolol (1.25mg) daily since March and my rate often drops to the high forties so I doubt that would concern your cardiologist. But when you say "constantly" are these switching around and always happening (i.e. no NSR)?
Steve
In out nsr. Low rate comes back as unclassified on kardia. It's weird because the low rate and my AF feel the same. Still on my daily twice dosage of flec and diltziam. In nsr even less Hey ho just more to sit out. Glad I'm signed off work for 2 weeks.
I bet you are glad. You might need more than a fortnight. It seems to vary a lot between people but taking life slowly during the first few weeks is a good thing for the heart, I should think - the first four seem to be important from what I have gleaned from several studies. Arrhythmias occurring after the first four weeks seem a little more likely to suggest possible future recurrence.
I feel much the same with AF as I do with ectopic beats although high rates send my anxiety higher. There's a different ECG device out called Well AI. It detects a whole lot more than Kardia and I'd recommend it if that kind of thing interests you. I think Unclassified on Kardia can mean ectopics over 100 or below 50 - but I'm not sure. Mine often used to say that as I have a wide QRS on my ECG.
Steve
Luckily work off 2 weeks Xmas holiday. To think I said last week I was feeling great and would be in this week.🙈
I've done similar. You'll be raring to go in the New Year. Who can believe it's almost 2024 already!? Let's hope it's a healthy and happy one.
Steve
You too Steve. All the best for Xmas.
There was a similar post recently that a few of us newly ablated found helpful, I’ll add a link below
healthunlocked.com/afassoci...
Hope you find this helpful and reassuring.
Thanks I've been following your progress all good I hope.
Okay at the moment thanks 🤞 I did have a meltdown when AF kicked off unexpectedly at day 6. That reverted after 16 hrs similar to pre-ablation episodes so maybe I was just due for one. I also had a few minutes of strange low and high for a few minutes a day or so later after a coffee but didn’t go in to an episode. I find the mindful slow breathing helpful when my mind starts overthinking.
Hope yours settles soon
Onwards and upwards. Your profile pic takes me back a few years 👍
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