I have been diagnosed with Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation and suffer from chronic fatigue. I know that fatigue is a symptom of PAF but I don't know if the fatigue is only meant to be present during bouts of Afib. I suffer from chronic and debilitating fatigue all the time. If I over exert myself, then a bout of Afib usually follows.
What I want to know is can this chronic fatigue be the sole cause of PAF or could there be another reason. I am 69 years old and have other underlying medical conditions, which clouds the issue. Does anyone have the same question they wanted an answer to? More importantly, has it been confirmed that PAF is the sole cause of chronic fatigue most of the time, even when bouts of PAF are infrequent?
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Cablecar
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You may find differing experiences but mine:- when I only had very symptomatic AF, was that I had fatigue, syncope and very high HR when I tried to exert myself during an AF episode and some degree of chronic fatigue for maybe 48 hours following an episode when I had to pace myself.
I then developed a neuro-muscular condition with chronic fatigue - which felt completely different - and had that feeling very, tired most of the time with no energy and brain fog.
Certainly the drugs to control AF made things a LOT worse and combination of three conditions meant I really struggled for about 5-7 years until my neuro-muscular condition was controlled, along with AF and I stopped all drugs for AF apart from anticoagulants. I can’t tell you how different I feel now - although I do still have to pace myself and take plenty of rest but now little or no brain fog, I do have days when I can go all day and then the evening!
Please go see your GP to get to the bottom of what is causing your chronic fatigue. Unless your heart function generally is affected you shouldn’t feel that bad with AF. It took about 5 months of seeing all sorts of consultants and doctors to get to the bottom of mine during which time I really suffered.
Unless you have had an Echocardiogram with a particular take on the 'ejection fraction' at the very least, nobody is gonna be able to say just what state your heart is in and therefore can't say what influence this has on your fatigue - or even on your AF. For instance my EF is around 62%, if your EF is down as low as say, 35% it may well be a clue as to the effectiveness of your heart and by implication ... fatigue.
In my very personal view ......... fatigue ( chronic or otherwise ) is unlikely to cause AF. AF may well be caused by other influences, such as other medical conditions, could be genetic, could be food/ even food ingredients or beverages/alcohol, could be exercise or whatever ...................
AF can be considered as a hydra headed monster and is all things to all people (sufferers ).
Thank you, Ben Hall1. I have to admit not being aware of the term "Ejection Fraction" before, but now that you have alerted me, I will check with my Cardiologist. I have had several tests, including an Echocardiogram, but this wasn't mentioned to me. I didn't think that chronic fatigue actually caused AF, but more of a result. Thanks, again
I wish you well on your journey. When you speak to your Cardiologist make sure he/she gives you answers to your questions and keep hammering away until you are satisfied. No cover ups ! Make sure you get copy of your Echo printout !
yes i also had been suffering from chronic fatigue for a good few years previous to suffering from Afib, the chronic fatigue came on after a lung infection in 2020 that may or may not have been covid related as there was no testing at the time, iv had bouts of Afib for around 18 months, after an episode i feel drained of all energy even worse for days, however i do feel that there is a relationship between them both, i also suffer from chronic pain in my spine, how is your sleep? do you wake up feeling refreshed? i certainly don't, other suffers of Afib have suggested that poor sleep may be the culprit, my suspicions is that i may have sleep apnoea or just generally very poor sleep due to pain.... recently had an virus that has caused a bouts of Afib episodes.....
I experience fatigue from rheumatoid arthritis and underactive thyroid. For me this is different to the tiredness I (used to) get from AF when the heart rate was over 120 say, and different to the tiredness related to poor heart function/ heart failure. But, we are all different. I find it fascinating how many types of tiredness you can experience with its differing qualities. I imagine there are interesting studies on it. Hopefully some will be based on patient experience, which is little represented and leaves people with fatigue often feeling misunderstood. It's a debilitating experience.
If you read about Flec .. as an anti-arrhymnic med it has mixed reviews.
I guess you can only go by your own experience in that it may assist your AF being shorter and less compact or it may (sometimes) aggravate the AF.
When you say -"I can't tolerate the side effects on a full dosage", it seems it is already causing 'troubling results with your AF ".
It would be a suspected med at the start. Why are you taking it?
AF in itself is tiring and I am in persistent AF.
Luckily I come as a single person and can nap when I have to or want to. I can't imagine working as I am. Also driving I'm careful with and take no chances.
Trying to 'box' into causes fatigue, tiredness is a complicated job.
But when the heart specialists ask me if I experiences flutters, palpatations, or pain from my heart I have to say no. They seem confused.
I say when I exert myself walking, carrying out a job, I have to stop because I am not breathless but 'run out of energy'.
Another Dr said "it's because oxygen is not circulating around the bottom evenly. That is AF actual cause.
With walking I can stop for seconds but in a job I have a drink, break and only occasionally can I return to the task.
On BBs it was because I was sweating profusely having a 186 or 156 heart rate. I had to sleep it off.
I hope this helps.
cheri JOY
I love the cablecar in Wellington - it helps getting up the hill as it is "doing" all the work.
Thanks for your comments. Luckily, at my age I don't have to try and hold down a job. Fleicanide I now realise is a stopgap. I can put up with the side effects on a PIP basis, but the bouts of AF are becoming more frequent. Apparently Flecainide is not recommended on a long term basis anyway, so I am now considering Ablation. Once more into the breech...
I watched a recent uplifting new ablation. It's success rate is so much higher.
A friend had an ablation years of AF. A catheter one to find what was happening. Two years 4 months no more AF except an odd flutter. They found with him that he had 2 rougue AF sites and the team ablated both.
In his early 60s he was happy to experience no more AF.
My AF was persistent from the diagnosis.
The latest new ablation procedure is a freezing of areas and it has no risks or so minimal.
I'm weighing up the pros and cons of Ablation, having been offered it recently. It's good to know that the freeze option can be beneficial. I've also heard that the latest (I believe) Pulse Field Ablation is the best yet, for several reasons.
I am 80 and was active and healthy until around 5 years ago when, as I’ve recounted here before, I had an episode of shingles with the excruciating pain coming before the rash and I was unable to get an appointment at our surgery for almost two weeks by which time the pain had gone, the rash had appeared and presumably it was too late to be given an antiviral or anything else that might have helped ( not even an apology!) My paroxysmal AF symptoms started soon after together with the increasing fatigue and the Flecainide which keeps my heart behaving well comes with added fatigue for some and I seem to be one of them!! Today, I am feeling particularly zonked as yesterday I had to go to a hospital with a 3D maze to navigate inside to have an ultrasound investigation. And I have a hiatus hernia but I do a morning exercise for that as not very keen on the drug for that.
Thanks, Cablecar. I was woken this morning by a text from a doc at our surgery giving the results of the ultrasound which we had already found on the crazy system online thing where I was told they would be and when I had written my reply it turned out it was sent from a number that didn’t accept replies!! With docs like that it’s not surprising we have problems! And they are supposed to know that stress is bad for us! You really need a good sense of humour to cope (and an understanding partner to share the joke with as my husband is). Hope you have someone like that too.
I've definitely experienced the same scenarios as you. Luckily, I have a retired husband who handles all my calls and correspondence. I only have to give permission for him to speak to them, as my P.A. He can always make me laugh at the absurdities, even when things are getting on top of me.
My husband is mostly working from home now though he has gone to our office today and I hope he’s back now and that he’ll get our lunch made soon though I have a selection of nuts and dry fruit to snack on til it’s ready. I have chronic fatigue too so am mostly resting in bed now, still recovering from Monday’s “outing”!
I think it can be that underlying health issues trigger PAF but it depends what they are ... so it's important to talk it through with your cardiologist if you have a chance to do that ..
AF episodes leave me exhausted but it depends on the severity and length of the episode - if it's banging away for 10 minutes I can be tired the next day, but if it goes on for hours it can wipe me out for a week. When I asked the question a cardiologist said ... yes you'll feel tired because from your hearts point of view you've run a marathon ..
Have you seen York cardiologist Dr Sanjay Gupta's videos online I've found him helpful. ..
I have chronic fatigue all the time , not just when l have afib. Because l have heart failure as well, plus arthritis and ruptured discs l presume it is all too much for my body. When it comes to moving, my brain says yes and my body says no. I find it very frustrating as l used to be very active. I think l need a new battery 😄. Sorry l can't be of any help to you . There doesn't seem to be any way to cure fatigue. In fact some medication for the heart can make it worse , especially beta blockers. People and that includes the medics don't understand how bad it can be. A little job can seem like trying to climb a mountain. I could put up with pain and all the other symptoms l have if only l could have some energy. All the best to you.
Thank you Dollcollector. Believe it or not, your comments are reassuring. I'm now more convinced that AF is causing the fatigue and not anything else. I am a kidney transplant patient and the medication I have to take is pretty virulent. I too am very frustrated that I can't do a lot of what I used to be able to do. Good luck and keep your chin up.
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