So guy's I am probably not following some forum etiquette on another and for that I apologize.
But I am a 39yr old guy and well my fitbit's ECG program just said I had an AFIB episode the other day, currently held out of work waiting on a stress test, echocardiogram and holter monitor because my doctor is chasing down issues.. that started as me being tired and out of breath at work.. then developed to chest pains that only went away with aspirin since january until now.. (also have had 3 ecg's done in the hospital one showed possible arterial faction? and abnormal q wave.. other two were clean and 4 sets of blood.. cholesterol borderline high and it shows im dehydrated too)
my afib reading came during my attempt at chopping up some wood for a bonfire.. my other issues came while i had been up in excess of 20hrs or working hard.
so couple queries.. how likely is it that my fitbit is wrong?
How realistic is my ability to go back to work operating heavy machinery on a on-call basis were im expected to protect random calls at random times and then work 12hrs...
also I've read my chance of death by stroke go up 8-900%?!?!? and heart attack up by 200%?!?!? and I am likely to die 11yrs sooner all things being even?!?
yeah im stressed, worried and confused.. what would your guys' positions be? ive read a few posts on ablation and medicine and it doesnt look good.. I live in BC Canada.. what could my wait times be to get a fix done?!? been waiting since february for the stress test and it may happen this month or the next...
any help is appreciated
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OK ~ let's slow down a little and put this into perspective. First of all, this:
also I've read my chance of death by stroke go up 8-900%?!?!? and heart attack up by 200%?!?!? and I am likely to die 11yrs sooner all things being even?!?
Your chance of a stroke does NOT go up by 900%. You haven't been Googling by any chance, have you??? Google is in a Cycle of Doom. Sure, your chances of a stroke increase if your AFib is not diagnosed (5 times more likely ~ not 900%). However, you may be given an anticoagulant (commonly called a blood thinner) to help prevent this. It's unlikely you will be at your age as your Chad score is likely to be zero. Your Cardio will tell you if you need to be given one.
Regarding dying 11 years sooner? All AFibbers should make a few simple lifestyle changes. I'm years into AFib and have never been fitter in my life. I work out ~ eat well, and as a result, I stand a better chance of living 11 years more, not less👍
my fitbit's ECG program just said I had an AFIB episode the other day
Fitbit is often right, but sometimes it gets things wrong. I had one and chucked it in the bin🤣Yeah, you may have had AFib at the time. It's no major stress. It sounds like you have Paramoxal AFib (comes and goes).
How realistic is my ability to go back to work operating heavy machinery
I would say pretty good. However, let your doctor have the final say.
Afib research is moving fast ~ very fast. New and better treatments are being introduced all the time. At your age, you'll walk it, given everything that's going on behind the scenes.
You'll have your ups and downs, but it won't be a fraction as bad as you think now👊😎
I am 66 years old still work full time , on apixaban and bisoprolol , the secret is to get your mind off the subject, put your apple watch in the bin and plod along as normal. You will soon forget you have afib. The more you think about it the worse it gets.
Hi Paul, the 5 per cent rise in stroke risk , do you think is the 5 per cent over ones lifetime or is it 5 per cent increase year on year ,ie 10 years would give a 50 per cent risk increase.
The chances of getting a stroke are up to 5 times higher for Afibbers who are unaware they have AFib and are not on an anticoagulant. This depends on several factors such as age, etc. Over 65, and it's a yes ~ Much of it depends on your Chad's score. I was touch and go as I'm under 65, and my Chad score is zero. The Cardio in the hospital said I didn't need to be on them. I thought it through and decided the benefits outweighed the risks and insisted I was put back on them. He was reluctant to do so, but I did insisted on that one.
So to sum up: With the right treatment, your risk of stroke goes right down. However, you are still at a slightly higher risk than non-AFibbers, even if you return to sinus. The only exception to this rule is if you undergo a successful Wolf Mini Maze. As far as I'm aware, you'll come off all meds if it works. IMO it's the Gold Standard treatment for AFib.
Thanks Paul, i turn 65 in may my chads score at present is 0, i too would insist on anticoagulant, never thought i would say that i want meds , but afib is a game changer as far as im concerned, about my question i wondered out of curiosity is the 5 per cent accumalitive each year.
I would see your Cardio as soon as you can to discuss starting on a AC. The 5 times more likely doesn't accumulate every year, ie in 10 years time you'll be 50% likely to have a stroke,
Chuck the fit bit thingy, mate. Anything that makes you stressed may, and I say may, cause a 'jumpy' heart beat. You don't want some "Made in China" el cheapo device telling you that you may have had an odd mis-beat in the last 24 hrs. Wait until the doctor has gone through all the tests. After all, if you do have a dodgy heart, the doctor's report is the best way to go; a paper trail to show specialists, employers, etc. may be helpful. Look it might be as simple as eating something like licorice or a preservative in a food item that's causing the problem, if one exists at all. And try not to read much about strokes etc, online. Any anxiety is not good for anybody's heart wherever you read it. Take it easy.
Hi and welcome. Paul has talked you through your anxieties which are natural considering you are at the moment in suspense and have no certainty of anything. The stress test will give you some answers and treatment options will follow accordingly.
If you have AF then your stroke risk may increase but there is a lot a controversy about the exact number and there is an algorithm that helps doctors determine you personal risk by allocating points if you have high BP for instance, Diabetes are over 65 etc.
Lack of knowledge is your biggest stressor at the moment so suggest that you inform yourself from informed sources - this forum is a good start.
First you need a diagnosis, then an assessment, then a treatment plan from your medical team and take heart from the fact that you are not in the emergency room - AF is NOT immediately life threatening but more a such as coronary vascular disease (the plumbing) but an electrical issue which needs management. Before a treatment plan can be offered you need a full medical assessment as before some of the treatments can be offered the medics need to be sure you have no other issues.
At the moment your biggest risk factor for heart attack, stroke and AF is your stress levels and lack of quality sleep so focus on those and find strategies for managing them.
Your work load at the moment is impossible and will be the biggest factor in causing your health so I would suggest you go talk to your Human Resources Manager (if employed) and ask for an Occupational Assessment. If self employed then you may need to rethink your current position and put some boundaries in place so you get uninterrupted sleep and enough down time to recover from a hard working day. It’s not the work per se, it’s the pressure you are putting yourself through that will do the damage.
Please go to the AFA website and do some research so that you can ask reasonable and informed question of your doctors. Make suer you see an expert in the field of Electrophysiology, not just a general cardiologist. I know some parts of Canada do not have an option of seeing a specialist privately but do, if you can as even the opportunity to sit down and talk through a lot of your concerns will help.
Some people do like to monitor themselves, I am one of them, whilst others find self monitoring raises their stress levels so throw away their monitors but I would suggest you learn to monitor and journal as it will give you something positive to do and do take your records to your medics as it will help them determine what needs to be addressed.
I find Kardia - a small mobile ECG recording device excellent for capturing episodes of AF if you are someone who becomes symptomatic with AF - not everyone does!
A BP machine which can cope with AF essential and a small oximeter to measure O2 sats.
An Apple Watch is good for warning of AF, a heart rate monitor and an integrated O2 sats recorder.
I suspect you are a ‘doer’, doers need a plan of action.
Hope some of that helps and do come back with any specific questions.
re. contacting medics if you have chest pains. Yes, if they last longer than 10 minutes. I didn't. I then had a heart attack which might well have been avoidable if I'd contacted EMS earlier. My reason? I was also in the middle of my first bout of Covid and put it down to that, for a period of a couple of weeks. Until I couldn't, and it was too late. Yes I regret that. 'Cos even though on the surface I recovered well from that, consequences have flowed from it: AF that I never had before, and unable to be prescribed the normal first line of Flecainide (or similar) to treat it.
So absolutely don't overly stress about the AF right now, and certainly not the increased stroke risk from it. Do make sure you take chest pains seriously.
TBH I wouldn't wait 10 minutes. Even if it was just a call to 111, I would react to any chest pain there and then. The odds are it wouldn't turn out to be anything serious ~ I wouldn't chance it though.
Thank you for your post, you have not breached any Forum Rules, you are just reaching out for advice from fellow AF individuals for their advice, of which I am sure they will offer their support based upon their own experiences.
Atrial Fibrillation will affect everyone differently, and no two individuals will experience the same identical symptoms, this is due to trigger's will vary and also pain tolerance. Sometimes just a few changes to your everyday can make all the difference. From what you have described, both occasions are common triggers, such as over exertion. Fatigue, stress and dehydration are also very common triggers.
I would encourage you to discuss alternative treatment options with your doctor.
Thanks guys, it is appreciated following the link posted above now too.. I will also admit I have shared my medical documents to chatgpt and that was a fun rabbit hole. My wife is on the avoid stress bandwagon too for me and change jobs to were I can sleep regularly (apparently judging coffee by the litre for the last 8yr's isn't healthy)
The unknown is the stressor here, got a couple kids and not knowing how it will play out is the stressor. I don't think I'm done for and this is just a wake up call, but it still weighs heavy. I am one of those chaps if the mortality risk info was accurate.. I'd just jump on my boat and sail the world now, but if it is seriously overstated (as one PM I got leads me to believe) well I may have to be a touch more responsible
Hi, just for reassurance and 44 with 3 kids. Got diagnosed about 15 months ago. Yes, it is a wake up call and yes you will have to take a bit of time to process it. However, it really does not have to be particularly dramatic. On my part I started eating more heart healthy diet and cut out the booze. Generally get an episode every few weeks and they vary in intensity. At worst it will be uncomfortable and leave me feeling tired afterwards (a bit like a hangover tbh). Still able to do pretty much everything I did before. Try not to street too much. You'll learn as you go how you individually need to handle it. There's lots of options out there to help from lifestyle changes to medication to surgery. Do some reading up and this site is a good source of info too. All the best. I remember how freaked out I was and I assure you it will not be as bad as you fear.
Hi and welcome! I really cant add anything to the answers you have already received, the only thing I can tell you is that I was diagnosed at 54 years old and still here today at 81 and if you want to know my history of events you can read my profile lol cos its been a long time..........now, what I would say is this, I too wear a Fitbit and it states quite clearly that it is not for those diagnosed with A/F so you can discount its readings in my opinion, instead try and hurry up the hospital tests and appointment with the Professionals because this is the best way forward. Make a note of all of your questions before you go and the answers. Most of us on here have done research into the condition and learned from each other how to live with it but, in the main A/F , is just a bloody nuisance and at 39 you have a lot of life to live so first get it properly diagnosed and medicated, look at your work/lifestyle balance and make any necessary changes. My cousins live on Vancouver Island, I speak with them every week from the UK and I know the lifestyle over there, in their case mainly take outs lol so take a look at what you are eating as some foods and overeating for example can be triggers, same with drinks, work well thats more difficult all I know is that work stress was the main cause of mine and yo-yoing weight so maybe their are decisions you need to make going forward. My message is definitely take control don't let it control you, do everything that you want to do, remember everything in moderation and live your life.
Good luck x
ps my son has recently been diagnosed with A/F and we have had this discussion, he has now been assessed and diagnosed and given the appropriate medication and settled down, he has been hyper most of his life so you can imagine the highs and lows but he has come to realise that we live with these conditions but learn how to live with them and not be ruled by them.
I live in B.C. bordering Vancouver. The trick here is not to let your GP manage your condition. Ask to be sent to an electrophysiologist, bypassing a cardiologist who does not have the training for AF and might delay proper treatment. You may already know that St. Paul's has the broader cardiac department. Have your GP refer you now because you know how the wait times are here in BC. You are young; you have been given very good advice from the members above. You will be fine.
Welcome to the forum. I’m also a newcomer and have found this site invaluable.
I have very little to add that hasn’t been said by other members.,
I stress too much too and Google unfortunately… usually in middle of night which does not bode well for sleep.
You have already taken first steps to diagnosis. A lot of people only find out about their AF after suffering a stroke.
I myself was in my 50s when diagnosed but can think back to times when I didn’t feel quite right and now realise the symptoms were AF related. albeit short lived but could have been tiny episodes popping up once in a blue moon.
Sometimes I think the common enemy on our AF journey is ourselves.
I wonder if you’ve checked out various famous people that suffer from AF…..amongst them, footballers, athletes and entertainers. I know of a few footballers who have had ablations and gone on to play a month later, names escape me I’m afraid, Keyboard player in 80s group AHA (forgive if you may be a little young to remember in their heyday) and I think Elton John suffers from AF or similar. These people have very fast pace lives and manage so you will too.
hopefully i can help you with my history. I too found out i had an episode of AF when i was quite young at 35, my was as a result of a big night on red wine then chased our dog down the road. I was tired and felt odd in my chest like a hop skip and jump. I was sent the next day to do all the tests. In my case it flipped back into Sinus after a went for a run. This continued for the next 29 years.. yet only happened once every 5 years on average always as a result of too much coffee or alcohol then doing something strenuous. Each time i would self convert through exercise and would regularly see a Cardiologist. I lived an absolutely normal life along the way played soccer till i was 58 and took up Ocean ski paddling in my 40's. I even kept drinking alcohol and coffee and after a few years of careful consumption i'd forget i ever had it then bang its back.
In 2022 i had 2 episodes following some stress and dehydration. Then another couple of episodes in the last year. I decided to give up alcohol in 2023 and now only drink Decaf coffee. I kept a log of my episodes since i was 35 and identified my triggers so now try to mitigate the risk of more regular episodes. I was also prescribed low dose Flecanide 25mg and Metoprolol 12mg a year ago and though they sound serious drugs if your heart is structurally sound you can take and in my case without experiencing any side effects.
I also did blood tests and identified i was low in Vitd3, magnesium and Coq10 so now supplement the three.
I decided to wear an Apple watch which alerts me if it detects a sequence of AF. It randomly checks throughout the day when you are still and if it picks up more than one AF occurrence in the day it sends you an alert. Im now 67. Just remember AF affects us all differently so when you google it does not always give the 'other' more encouraging experience with AF
It might well be that your hectic stressful lifestyle (and perhaps a similar diet?) has initiated your current arrhythmia events including shortness of breath. And perhaps this is also reflected in the dehydration you mention as this is a well-known and common cause of arrhythmic events.
I hope within your 4 sets of bloods a Vitamin D test has been included because such a test is not routinely offered by GPs in UK, and an unknown Vitamin D deficiency was an important factor in the aetiology of my paroxysmal AF. I see Canada recommends a level of 20 ng/ml (50 nmol/L) and above as adequate, but recent research indicates much higher levels than this are required for optimum health. (My deficiency was found at a level of 22 nmol/L, but I'm now in a much happier place at 160 nmol/L). And this issue doesn't just affect the older population like me.
Don't chuck the Fitbit out as advised by someone else. If you feel your heart pounding do an ecg, because the more information you have for the cardiologist the better. You can chuck it out if you wish after an official diagnosis. If you have AFib your specialist of choice is an Electrophysiologist otherwise known as an EP. He's a cardiologist with extra training in the electrical system of the heart. Buy the AFib cure by Dr John Day and Dr Jared Bunch super information in it.
Prof Sanjay Gupta London cardiologist recommends magnesium taurate excellent supplement for us with AFib or even without.
Co enzyme q10 reduces inflammation loads of research on Google scholar about AFib being linked to inflammation.
Try to find triggers, may be impossible but mine were caffeine, and cold drinks or food, eg ice cream or cold water, others are dehydration, spicy foods, alcohol, etc etc etc
Also might be worth getting a sleep study done as that may be why you're tired. And highly linked to AFib
Following recent diagnosis, I now know I suffered from Paroxysmal AF since my 30s, always occasional short episodes (5-10 mins) of rapid heart beat and then natural conversion back to NSR. But back in the day (I’m 72) we didn’t have any electronic gizmos to monitor (and may have been less stressed lol). Think of conversion back to NSR as rebooting the heart’s electrical controls. In my case it’s an excessive heart rate during exercise and/or excess adrenaline through stress that kicks it off, but I take no medication for rate control or rhythm control and am fortunate that a short rest sees my heart return to normal rhythm. Once you get into older age you may be advised to take anticoagulants to avoid the risk of a clot developing in the heart (blood pooling in the atrium) and travelling to the brain to reduce AF-related stroke risk, if indeed you do suffer from AF.
Chest pain is a different matter. If you have a problem not with the electrics but with the blood supply to the heart through the coronary arteries, angina may be the issue. If there’s a higher than normal risk of a clot forming in the coronaries (heart attack) or the small vessels of the brain (ischaemic stroke), and you’re borderline high cholesterol you’ll probably be put on statins to reduce it. It’s good that you’re having a stress test to see how your heart performs so as to work out whether blood supply to the heart muscle is a problem.
Just remember that many of us have navigated this journey and are still going strong! Best advice is to chill out when and how you can, and don’t over-exert yourself.
Thanks again guys, still digesting but this helps.
As far as diet goes, not as bad as a lot of people, but not perfect (aside from 2-3litres of coffee a day that I have cut back on).. so I am improving it.. also from a doctor that specializes in Dementia I have been told not to overly demonize cholesterol because my brain needs it. So I am not sure how serious borderline high is, my Doctor basically said just add in peaches, oatmeal etc and not worry about it.
Now it may not be AFIB but the presented AFIB by fitbit may have been misdiagnosed and it is actually something else that presents the same. So I am trying to hold off, but for now I am trying to get healthier so I can go harder before the issues show up.. starting with walking, then hiking, then rowing, then weights etc... also of note Vit D, Mag etc are all okay. I actually take Magnesium daily to help with my sleep, vitamin D and a Multi Vitamin too because well.. it is northern BC lol
I agree with your caution re starting statins unless you've got artery disease or had a heart attack. I have decided similarly. Others on the Forum think differently, but that's life. We are all trying our best to find some truth amidst a lot of big Pharma coercion and the funding of "research" that supports their purposes.
There's likely little I can add to the many excellent responses but just to say that the AF is an issue with the relatively safe upstairs part of the heart, in which the electrical activity goes a little crazy causing the atrium to twitch randomly and quickly, instead of beat. This turns off the heart's natural pacemaker, a bundle of cells in top right of the atrium called the SA node (sino-atrial). Instead the fibrillating cells around the pulmonary veins in the left atrium acts as a random pacemaker, sending a barrage of pacemaker style signals downstairs to the atrium.
The part of the heart that matters, the downstairs, or ventricles, are left pretty much alone to get on with things, which they do amazingly well. This isn;t so very well during the episode itself, though, when the part upstairs upsets things a little since the blood it needs to pump to the lungs and body is no longer smoothly pumped to it; instead, it has to fall there under gravity and through suction, which, luckily, it does almost perfectly.
Also, the AF upsets the heart's second natural pacemaker, a bundle of cells just above the ventricles called the AV (atrio-ventricular) node that passes electrical signals to the ventricle muscles, left and right, and makes it go irregular and faster (85-200bpm); the effect is for the blood coming from the heart to be temporarily reduced and the heart to become less efficient.
The effect on the individual is various but in the initial stages is often dominated by a "panic" type response - all entirely natural as the mind is carefully tuned into what is going on in the heart. This can make you feel like death is knocking at your door - a panic response (indeed it's a theory that some so-called "panic attacks" are actually arrhythmias like AF). So death out feels like but it absolutely is not deadly; indeed, all is well enough so long as the high rate doesn't carry on for too long (how long is a piece of string - mine initially went on for weeks, with little problem except tiredness, needing to breather more deeply, and... anxiety!). The anxiety adds to the heart rate and makes it all feel much worse. However, once some sense of calmness re-enters the mind, the rate will fall to a more comfortable level. This occurs after either going into A&E for reassurance, or after taking a prescribed beta-blocker such as metoprolol or bisoprolol.
I have two older friends who have AF permanently, one now 92 and well apart from a gammy hip. As I write this, I have AF.
You will be fine. The chest pains you had rightly needed to be checked for a heart attack but are in fact discomfort caused by the reduced heart output - no more. I call them "chest aches".
I can understand your concerns. I had my first heart attack just after my 39th birthday. I was working on sites as a hands on foreman. I am now 61 and retired early as a senior projects manager.
You have 2 choices. To worry yourself to ill health or to say::: it happened and its one of those things and get on with your life. My children were still young at the time and now I love looking after my grandchildren 3 days a week.
Life is to be enjoyed. Have a forward attitude and enjoy life.
By the way I have had 8 heart attacks and 2 heart procedures. I took early retirement because I could and wanted to help out my children by looking after my grandchildren.
I wish I could narrow it down to two options... I see mine as
1) Hold the line and continue with what created the issues aka my career.
2)Use my disability insurance top up to retrain into something new and stay where I am.
3)Sell everything, move to somewhere cheap and try to slow down and spend more time with the kids but at a serious financial risk albeit I could always go back to my old career.
4)hybrid options of the first three in multiple combinations... which basically goes out to 20 options lol
Once I know how bad it is, or is not.. if it is AFIB or something else.. I can shorten up my list lol I also have a very strong case for an extended stress leave until I am healthy from work.. so maybe ill go that route and just try to cut back work.. but I am a workaholic lol
Hey there Architect86 - am in BC, Canada as well (Vancouver to be exact). If you have any questions re: BC health system and what you can expect moving forward re: AFIB diagnosis feel free to DM me as I have been through multiple ablations, cardioversions and multiple meds. Am still kicking and doing much better now since first diagnosed with AFIB approx 7 years ago (age 45). Lots of options out there for you just remember to educate yourself and ask lots of questions. Cheers
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