Afib advice

[Lisarose80]

hi looking for some advice

I’ve been referred to cardiologist to check for Afib

After covid I was getting flutters on an off then in July the flutter started but didn’t pass I cud feel my heart go into an irregular rhythm like I cud feel beating in different parts of the heart hard to discribe but it was like I cud feel it from inside my heart of felt like my heart had flipped round it lasted about 7 mins I was feeling faint an after my arms and legs were so weak after just back to flutters until last nite another episode lasting about 6 mins with arm weakness after

I’ve rang to chase up the referral

Anyone with Afib can you relate to my symptoms

Thank you Lisa

[Teresa156]

Hi Lisarose80,

From what you describe, it could possibly be Afib, but it might not. It might be down to other things such as ectopic beats, anxiety or many other things that’s caused your heart to behave like this, so I wouldn’t jump to any conclusions just yet.

What might happen and is quite likely, is that you will get fitted by Cardiology with a 24 hour monitor to wear which will take an ECG and then you’ll return it to the hospital for results. You can only hope that whatever it is, happens whi,le you’re wearing it, but the chances are, it won’t. It can take many weeks to get a monitor unfortunately.

Your episodes, if they are Afib, are quite short, but it isn’t unheard of. You could wear a smart watch, such as a fitbit or an applewatch, to try and capture what might be happening if you don’t have an episode when you wear the monitor, which may help, if you are very worried.

[DiyChas]

Could be AFib but may not.

Best to see the cardiologist, and try not to be concerned.

If it is AFib, you may be given drugs to help control the heartbeat.

Many of us in the drugs have very normal lives.

If your episodes get worse, call your GP for advice.

[Buffafly]

As long as the weakness is on both sides then it is probably from the speed your heart was going at. If you get it on one side only, call 999. As you are referred to cardiology you should make notes of how often and how long the episodes are. If the monitor doesn’t show anything you might be able to buy or borrow a device called a Kardia which records a rhythm strip and is accepted by doctors.

[Lisarose80]

thanks so much for the reply’s

It’s definitely not anxiety I’m probably the most chilled out person ever I never go to the doctors , when the flutters started I looked it up and it said about etopic beats and they were harmless so I never bothered with the doctor and kind of got used to them then that first episode happened and I did ring the doctor sent me straight to a&e the waiting time was really bad so I left but they put a referral in an because it was just the fluttering after I never chased it up until I had the episode last nite , most of today I can feel it coming an going I have been sick with the flu and now a throat infection and wonder if that’s wats brought on wat ever this again I Will definitely look at getting a fit watch and look up that Kardia and ring the hospital the marra again to chase up the appointment

[Omniscient1]

Hi, you really do need to persevere with the drs and get them to acknowledge,or discount, that you have a problem. Though you can cope with it now, as you get older that may change, and the longer you have it without intervention the more difficult it will be for that intervention to happen.

[secondtry]

Maybe best to get an earlier private appointment with the same cardiologist. Cost around £250 but early advice will hopefully mean earlier stop to AF before the heart develops bad habits and early action will reduce anxiety before it exacerbates the situation.

[Lisarose80]

i rang yesterday to chase it up the booking appointment guy said I sud of had an ecg done already before I got an appointment he put me thru to cardiac investigations to query that but no answer I did leave a voicemail ,will try again today, it’s funny my 17year old daughter is under cardiology since covid to she’s on bisopolol and midodrine she took POTS and FND from covid and when he was explaining to us that palpitations were harmless I have never worried about the flutters but those 2 episodes were different and although there’s no pain and there hard to discribe I no there not normal both of them started with my normal flutter then it’s like it’s kick started a beat party all round the inside of my heart

Covid really does have a lot to answer for

[Ppiman]

You won't likely be able to believe this until much later and you look back on this first event from a different angle, but much of your feelings are - almost certainly, I would say - down to the natural high anxiety that the mind creates when it perceives the heart to be out of kilter. The anxiety magnifies the feelings many fold.

The feelings you described are similar to what many of us here feel, I expect. They're hard to put into words but yours are as good as any I could come up with. I also get discomfort under my left ribs spreading into my back. If you heart was racing when you got them, there's a chance it was atrial fibrillation (AF), but if not, there's a chance it was palpitations caused by ectopic beats. These are both essentially safe things, but the former (AF) does often (depending on things your doctor will determine) need to be treated with an anticoagulant as blood clots can occasionally form in the top of the heart as it vibrates and shivers away when fibrillating.

If you heart is racing, this is the bottom of the heart that is doing this. It can be its response to the chaos going on above. It seems odd to say, but AF is not really all that important and won't shorten your life, even though it feels very much that it will, so long as the racing it can cause to the bottom can be kept in check. This is usually easily achieved with a small dose of a beta-blocker type drug, and usually one called bisoprolol.

You will be fine as time alone will prove but to speed that along, your doctors reassurance is what you need now most of all.

Steve