Advice please

[Floholmen]

I have only just been diagnosed with AF & am finding it difficult to deal/ cope with the actual palpitations and lack of sleep. I need help in this, and had hoped to find a local support group to meet up with. However these seem to be far & few between especially in the Glasgow area. Any ideas please.

[Rainfern]

Hi Floholmen and welcome to the forum. I was in a very similar situation to you three years ago - and I found this forum invaluable. Having a heart that you can feel jumping around like wayward frogs and at times racing out of control is both uncomfortable and scary. You don’t say if you have been diagnosed with persistent AF (the sort I had) or paroxysmal AF which comes and goes. But it really helps to know that both of these can be treated. And if your AF is symptomatic there is much that can be done to relieve it. The first thing I was told on this forum was that A F doesn’t kill you and I found that a big relief! I also learned that symptoms like mine were experienced by many people who were finding ways to cope and getting on with their lives. And I got so much help finding the right course of action. So please keep your questions coming. Hopefully you will have been referred to an Electrophysiologist (EP) who is a cardiologist who specialises in arrhythmias. If not, ask your GP or cardio department for an appointment. I booked in for a private consultation with an EP initially as I didn’t want to wait a long time without having my questions fully answered. He was brilliant and it was great having a 40 minute consultation.

Having AF is a journey. Some people are lucky and like myself have a successful procedure (I had an ablation) and no longer have AF, although it does have a habit of returning and one day I might need a touch-up procedure. Others are living with AF on this forum are able to provide heaps of good advice and wisdom. The AF Association also have a helpline which is very useful. I can assure you that on this forum you will never be alone again!

[Floholmen]

Thank you so much that was very helpful.

I suddenly had an AF attack & NHS 24 sent me to hospital on Dec 28th. I saw a cardiologist & am seeing him again on Feb 28th. I was on 2.5 Bisoprolol, for my BP & that was being increased & I am now on 7.5. The cardiologist wants me on 10. I do not know which type of AF I have been diagnosed with.

At present it is just my GP & myself trying to find a good balance without the side effects.

I find this all quite frightening and have a number of other medical issues & am on a lot of medication for these. I need someone to look at me as a whole!

[Vonnegut in reply to Floholmen]

You really need the advice of an EP as others have written and if an echocardiogram shows your heart is structurally sound and your heart just has this crazy intermittent electrical fault, you might be able to take Flecainide as I do. At first it was prescribed as a Pip ( to be used to stop episodes when they occur) and now that I take it irregularly it has put an end to episodes for me.

[ozziebob in reply to Floholmen]

And BHF (British Heart Foundation) also have a Freephone to talk to a cardiac nurse. Mon-Fri 9am-5pm.

[secondtry]

Anxiety comes with first diagnosis. I can only suggest you make space for it by reducing stress in other areas as much as you can eg stop listening to national news especially after 6pm, pay privately if you can for a trusted cardiologist to answers all your queries. Maybe get checked out for sleep apnoea; recently I have used magnesium salt in the bath before bed, nasal strips and a dentist made tooth block (to stop grinding) all of which seem to be helping.

[BJ24 in reply to secondtry]

magnesium tablets taken orally also help a lot...magnesium has an affect on irregular heart rhythms to stabilize it...it's given a lot to cardiac patients in the intensive care units. I have read that magnesium glycinate tablets are preferred by many with afib.

[LindaDaisy]

when anxiety stops me sleeping I listen to audio books. I choose something quite unexciting but interesting like Michael Palin, Gervase Phinn or Miss Read.

[HollieAdmin Administrator AF Association]

Hello,

Thank you for your post. Welcome to the forum. I am sure many of the members will make you feel welcome and offer advice based upon their own experiences.

It is perfectly natural to feel worried upon receiving news of a heart rhythm disorder. As a charity, we are here to offer support and advice. If you would like to find out more about us, please visit our webpage, including patient resources, videos and online patient Coffee Mornings:

UK and International: heartrhythmalliance.org/afa/uk

US: heartrhythmalliance.org/afa...

Alternatively, if you would like to contact a member of our Patient Services Team, please complete our contact form and a member of the team will be in touch:

UK and International: heartrhythmalliance.org/afa...

US: heartrhythmalliance.org/afa...

For further details regarding the coffee mornings, please visit: heartrhythmalliance.org/afa...

Kind regards,

HollieAdmin

[BJ24 in reply to HollieAdmin]

Thank you HollieAdmin for the link! I was not aware of the AFA and am glad to find out about it! 👍🙂

[OldTown]

There is also a UK Atrial Fibrillation support group page on FB which I find a great support as we are all in the same boat - well actually boats of many different kinds ! Best of luck on your journey .

[Ppiman]

Hi - can I ask, what are your symptoms when you have AF? What limitations does it cause?

Steve

[BJ24]

Hello - also, the cardiologist should have ordered something like apixaban, a blood thinner for you (or anticoagulant as some refer to as being the proper term), for you to prevent stroke. It seems like I sense less palpitations after I take it. Also, magnesium tablets that you can buy over the counter do help with irregular heart rhythms. There are different forms of magnesium but I have read where others with afib seem to like magnesium glycinate. Best regards!

[Floholmen in reply to BJ24]

Thank you. Yes he took me off my standard aspirin & put me on apixaban but I haven't noticed any difference in the rhythms, and it may cause problems with my other conditions. I will ask about magnesium glyinate.