Ectopic heart beats

[colingee]

I suffer from April fibrillation and in March I had a cryoablation and I’ve not had any AF episode since but following a Cortizone injection into my hip a week ago plus my go increased my Sertraline as I lost my wife recently and I’ve been very stressed and low and now I have had ectopics constantly every day I would be grateful for any support My blood pressure is normal my pulse rate is normal but I just it ectopics all the time

[BobD Volunteer]

Yes, they may be benign but boy are they annoying. Do try the slow deep breathing. Use stomach (diaphragm) not shoulders and slow to no more than six breaths a minute for at least fve minutes. Don't forget to squeeze the last little bit of air out by trying to make your stomach touch your spine. I have found the exercise very effective.

[colingee in reply to BobD]

Thank you BobD I’ve just tried your advice on breathing Exercises and it’s helped

[HANDY1 in reply to BobD]

Deep breathing exercises are very effective. The longer you do them, the more effective they are.

[marcyh in reply to BobD]

Thanks for this, BobD. At my last ablation the EP treated the ectopics but I still get them. once in a while Is it important to try to stop them? Mine aren't a bother so I ignore them.

[BobD Volunteer in reply to marcyh]

Everybody gets ectopics I'm told upto 200 a day but it seemwe AFers are highly tuned to notice them.

[jeanjeannie50]

Bless you Colin, I can quite understand what you are going through. The sadness of the loss of your wife and then those hateful ectopic beats being a nuisance. Know that we understand them totally and BobD has given you a good breathing exercise which should help reduce them. We AF supporters are a caring group and we will always be here to support you in any way we can, so never feel alone. Jean

[Frances123]

I couldn’t agree or add any more too what Jean and Bob D have said. Such a sad time for you and those blessed ectopics are so very annoying. You are not alone and please stay in touch and let us know how you are. We will support you in any way we can. x

[Responsable]

Hi! I also have Arterial Fribullation from time to time but keep it under control with taking bisporol twice a day (25 mg in the morning + 25 mg in the evening). So far so good apart from nausea, vomiting, shaky hands, brain fog, dizziness, shortness of breath, struggling on inclines and some other ailments which are not worth mentioning... Always look at the bright side of life! Wishing you to have a nice day! P.

[lawspear in reply to Responsable]

Try and be serious.

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to Responsable]

Surely you mean 2.5mg of Bisoprolol? I think 25mg twice daily morning and night would probably kill someone.

Jean

[colingee in reply to jeanjeannie50]

You’re right my mistake thanks

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to colingee]

Colin you've done nothing wrong, I was answering Responsable re his reply which he saw as a joke, sadly it mentioned a high of dosage of Bisoprolol that could probably be dangerous if taken.

Jean

[Responsable in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Just intended to joke, Jeannie! You'r such a lovely woman... Peter

[jeanjeannie50 in reply to Responsable]

Hi Peter

Some people on this forum may not realise this is a joke and think they can take more than the highest dose which I believe is 10mg of Bisoprolol daily. Please an occasional joke is fine but not when it relates to a medication dosage that could seriously harm someone.

Some people find their minds dulled by the taking of medication, but have such strong faith in their doctors that they carry on taking pills that have been prescribed thinking they must be needed. We often witness this when people pass out in the street when shopping etc. This can sometimes be caused by beta blockers or other medications taking their blood pressure down too low.

So please no jokes mentioning dangerous drug levels please.

Thank you.

Jean

[AussieHeart]

Sorry to hear about your loss Colingee. I too get ectopics since having a cryoablation. Bob’s breathing regime has helped me as well as keeping hydrated. I notice being overtired or dehydrated can be a trigger. I have a Fitbit and use it’s coach section to listen to some good meditations which also help as it guides you on breathing deeply as per Bob’s advice. My fave meditation on Fitbit is “the reset”. Love the line telling me in my outbreath to settle like the snow flakes in a snow globe. I can picture that! I know you’ll find your way through the grief. It takes time and kindness… to yourself. Sending you a virtual hug from down under.

[colingee in reply to AussieHeart]

Thank you for your support

[Cavalierrubie]

Sorry to read your post and hope we can help you in some small way. Grief plays havoc on the body with all sorts of physical and possible mental symptoms. Undoubtedly, your ectopics are caused by this and the stress of the pain in your hip. I lost my husband so l can relate to the pain you are going through right now. Be sure to look after yourself and eat well. Ectopics are horrible but not dangerous. I am having a run of them at the moment and they really are worse than AF for me. I have to sit down and take deep breaths until they subside. Bless you Colin and hope in time you will feel stronger and that your emptiness will be filled with love from others.

[colingee in reply to Cavalierrubie]

Thank you for your support I agree ectopics are worse than Afib I’m taking BobD advice on breathing and the rawness of grief is awful

[maurice2]

I get loads of them everyday, it doesn't bother me, they tell me my heart is working and I'm not in AF 😀 At night I do breathing exercises (inhale 5, hold 5, exhale 5 or if you're ambitious inhale 4, hold 7, exhale 8) for ten minutes or so and i usually go straight off to sleep. I'm on apixaban, I bruise a bit more easily! Eat a good diet and exercise if you can. Keeping fit and healthy is VERY good for your heart.

[colingee in reply to maurice2]

Thank you Maurice I appreciate your support

[Ppiman]

"Benign" simply means that these extra beats won't lead to long term issues with your heart. AF is different inasmuch as it can cause blood clots to form in the top of the heart, which means an anticoagulant needs to be taken. Other than that, the feelings from both can be very difficult to cope with. For me, frequent palpitations are worse to deal with than AF. I get them pretty much daily.

Flecainide is said to be helpful for these if they are overly troublesome, and you might ask about this if they are really bad. Also, an ablation can stop them. I am on a waiting list for this.

The tragedy you have suffered in the loss of your beloved wife will be making everything seem much worse, of course. You have my heartfelt sympathy for what you are being forced to go through and live with. It must be so very difficult to deal with. Do you have any family nearby who can help you through this very tough time?

Sertraline is known to have as a side effect an effect on the heart, however, and might just possibly be at the root of this issue. Perhaps an alternative to this can be found? I was given a similar drug in the early 2000s following a number of deaths in my own family, but I reacted very badly indeed to it and, frankly, I came to doubt that these drugs should be prescribed as freely as they are. Of course, most people don't suffer the side effect issues that I did. They were awful and long-lasting.

What I would say would likely be of more help to you is some form of "talking therapy", with a regular meeting perhaps of others who have suffered similarly or with a counsellor. Your GP ought to know of local groups.

Steve

[colingee in reply to Ppiman]

Thank you steve that was very very helpful. I might speak to my Gp about Flecinide your suggestions are very interesting and I will try to make it happen I’m trying breathing exercises and I think that this is helping Colin

[Ppiman in reply to colingee]

I do hope you find some help. People will say time will help, but that is too long to wait. In fact, my own experience is that it really doesn't help at all. Something now is needed to give you some comfort and rest - such as is possible, anyway.

Steve

[Sixtyslidogirl]

So sorry to hear of your loss. I used to get more ectopics but started taking magnesium which made a big difference to me, and many on this forum.

[HANDY1 in reply to Sixtyslidogirl]

Magnesium is great to take if you have ectopic beats.

[pottypete1]

Yes Ectopics play mind games as does AF.

I found this meditation video on YouTube really helped me.

youtu.be/_jD3VxSGM-k?si=bgp...(Not working as expected?)

Pete

[RichMert]

Hi Colingee,

I believe the Ectopic beats are a byproduct of the ablation but when they get to 2:1 then, they are not funny.

I take 1.25mg of Bisoprolol for mine but, I will be totally clear from them or not notice them once I have a distraction.

Yes the Ectopic Beats are real, yes they will double if you are stressed or stress over them.

You need a distraction for a few weeks even if that means transferring the stress to something else to stress over. Once they stop, you should get some respite for a long time. You will need to follow this same theory however, the next time you get a session.

Good to hear that you are over the AF and that the ablation was successful.

[colingee in reply to RichMert]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and insights I’m going to stay with my family from next week after my wife’s funeral and all the stress hasn’t helped and grief