My Afib episodes are getting closer and lasting longer .I know I should have an ablation and my cardiologist implies that I will be up and running the next day. However I tend to believe more what the advice is from all of you on this forum , and the advice is always ' take it easy '
My question is ,what does this mean ?
I am 70 years old , live on a small holding , have two Springer Spaniels that I walk every day and am involved in different dog sports
Will I have to give all these up for a while and for how long ?
I know everyone is different but always good to hear others experiences
Even with my Afib episodes I do not feel my quality of life is being affected
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Summerlily
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I've just turned 80 and had my 5th RF ablation in June . This last one was endo/epicardial ( entry through chest wall as well as groins) so took a little longer to get back to normal. Otherwise I felt pretty much OK after a couple of days.
Allow yourself a week to rest up and gradually get back to normal in the following 2/3 weeks. Don't overdo things! Take up any offers of assistance , get all your chores up to date beforehand and easy to.prepare meals available.
I'm a carer for husband with Parkinson's and still managed ok. I'm not sure about walking 2 dogs daily too soon though. Maybe someone else can advise here. Have you someone to help you?
I took the hospital leaflet seriously and was out shopping for Christmas a few days later (with help to push the trolley). I then ‘did Christmas’ for the family which meant having people to stay followed by more visitors at New Year. Then I got a chest infection followed by a bowel infection courtesy of the PPI prescribed as standard after the ablation. So although you may think you are ‘up and running’ I don’t think your body necessarily agrees!
I was going for a short walk the day after my ablation (which was very extensive). Those walks gradually got longer and after a month I could start lighter exercise such as swimming and cycling. Then weights etc after another month. I would get someone else to take the dogs out for a couple of days after your ablation. Then I would have thought you would be OK. Springers do most of the work after all!
I would leave beating and agility for a month though unless you're just picking up. You will probably get a pain in your chest on deep breathing after your ablation. That lasted 2-3 weeks for me, and I would wait for that to subside before doing too much.
I'd think you won't be able to walk the dogs for a few days, so get help with that for up to a week. Thereafter short walks on the flat should be fine. Biggest thing I found - avoid bending a lifting. Anything that tips you forward over your upper chest can trigger things while the scarring around your heart is healing I found. Good advice from others re chores and meal preparation.
Cuddles with dogs on sofa? Definitely a plus I'd say 😀
Not sure if I'll be a great help, but I talked the recovery question through at length with my cardiologist and the rehab recovery team prior to my ablation last Wednesday (Nov 13th).Key is the site of surgery has to heal prior to anything too strenuous. It's now the 16th, and the last day for me to change the dressings before leaving them off tomorrow.
I walked for about 30 minutes yesterday (slower pace than normal) with no issues.
My goal is to be back to gentle aerobics during the next 10 days, but no heavy weight lifting until after that.
I teach indoor cycling and I'm hoping I can get back to that by the 27th (with my own bike "turned down" a bit).
I don't have dogs, but walk my son's (he has a whippet), and I wouldn't want to be walking him until the wound is healed, simply because the movement on the lead is not predictable.
If anything untoward happens, I'll pop in an update, just in case it helps.
“Even with my Afib episodes I do not feel my quality of life is being affected”. In that case, why even think about an ablation? After all it still is a rather invasive procedure with a risk of serious complications and different kinds of arrhythmia, no guarantee of success and a considerable dose of potentially harmful radiation. Moreover, it is irreversible.
I have to say I was in my mid 40s having ablations, pretty fit and otherwise healthy, and it took me months to fully recover from each one. Being on your feet is not the same as being recovered.Please do take it as easy as you can, if that's possible given your situation.
Oh man! If you are anything like me it is three months before I felt well enough to really have a fully active life. I'm currently at 26 days post-ablation number 4 and I still cannot walk for more than a few minutes without losing all strength. It's very odd. I have days where I feel good and days when I can't do much at all as I am so exhausted. BUT many recover far quicker than me - I saw a guy the other day walk/running ParkRun after three weeks...!!!!!
Can’t you have Flecainide? 100mg would stop my episodes in a few hours but now I take it regularly, it has virtually put an end to episodes. Of course, we are all different but it might work for you too.
Thank you so much to all of you for taking time to answer my postQuite varied experiences so I do feel I have a better idea of the range of recovery times
In answe to the question about taking Flecainide. I have been on slow release Flecainide 150 for 2 to 3 years and had very few episodes , perhaps I or 2 a year. However this year I have already had 7 and they are lasting up to 5 days , so need to do something
The dogs certainly like cuddles on the sofa but love their walks better , as do I !
Your quality of life may not be affected now, but uncontrolled AF will lead to heart failure. Getting an ablation sooner rather than later tend to have better success rates. I was a very active 52-year-old when I had my ablation, and I was not able to put in full workday for two weeks. I could not work out for 4 weeks.
You have to limit activity for a day or two after the ablation. I had a general anesthetic and it took a couple of weeks for me to recover after my ablation at age 71. From there I went from moderate exercise to brisk exercise over a months span and have remained fairly active since, one year post ablation.
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on holiday with afib episodes and still enjoying it. 
Flecainide and Bisoprolol - contre indicated?
Root Cause of A-Fib. 
Yikes
