Strange Episodes

[dh1120]

Does anyone have strange symptoms when their arrhythmia goes crazy?

[pip_pip]

Such as ?

[dh1120 in reply to pip_pip]

A rush or a strange wave coming over me

[CDreamer]

Symptoms I had with AF:- Feelings of Adrenaline rush; bubbly stomach, acid reflux, syncope and near syncope, strong palpitations, frequent peeing, fatigue and muscle weakness, breathlessness on slightest exercise and generally feeling very unwell.

Another common one I have heard was ‘a sense of doom’. I think that was what I called Adrenaline rush, my perception of the sensation just differed.

[RajaRua in reply to CDreamer]

All sound familiar!

[Padayn01 in reply to CDreamer]

That Adrenaline Rush is an interesting one, at the start i use to get these 2 to 3 second zapp right across my body use to scare the living daylights out of me not sure what is was the Beta Blocker or the heart

[CDreamer in reply to Padayn01]

Beta blockers are also Adrenaline blockers. Adrenaline production is just one essential part of our Autonomic Nervous System which helps keep us alive. Without Adrenaline we probably wouldn’t survive!

I think of the perception of Adrenaline Rush as a continuum with excitement at one polarity and anxiety at the other. How you experience an Adrenaline rush is purely down to your perception as to whether it is scary or exciting.

If you can place yourself in the observer position you can train yourself to perceive the experience as an sensation, without the emotional loading of either anxiety or excitement.

It’s not easy to do and it’s requires practice but is possible, once you have a vague grasp of the physiology and therefor able to recognise the sensation as purely a sensation or a ‘feeling’ it is much less scary. You a customise yourself to the sensation and call it something other than scary. I call it my vagal alert - something is happening in my body and requires my attention. Purely focussing on, rather than trying to avoid, sooth or be scared by the sensation, helps cope with it. Counterintuitive I know, but affective for me.

[Padayn01 in reply to CDreamer]

So can i ask when something in your body that requires attention how do you go about doing that?

[CDreamer in reply to Padayn01]

I can only describe what I do - focus on the sensation and ask my body what is this about? If it is only that sensation what was the trigger? Was it a startle reaction? An unpleasant thought or is it a precursor to an arrythmia in which case what action may I choose to do? Deep breathing is my first go to. Avoiding stressors or stressful ‘what if thoughts’. Self talk - how can I put myself in the best possible position where I feel safe and supported and that may well involve stopping what I am doing, resting, taking some water, telling someone else I’m not feeling well and need a moment - in short - self listening, self talk and self care.

[maxred1 in reply to CDreamer]

Everything you describe I also live the dream. There are times that I actually cannot believe how awful I feel. It does pass, may take days, but it does pass until the next time! In terms of what it is like, someone, it may have been on here, described it as your body suffocating internally. I always thought that was a perfect description of the feelings I, and others, have had.

[meadfoot]

My symptoms are excruciating chest pain which I am told is fairly unusual. Near syncope, high anxiety and fear, pounding heart, stomach issues ie wind, lots of trips to the loo, shaking, shivering, completely overtaken overall, feeling of being out of control of my body also impacting on emotional state.

[dh1120 in reply to meadfoot]

Thank you for sharing, I experience a lot of the same things. So very scary.

[jeanjeannie50]

Yes, just about all of us get them when out heart rate takes off in an abnormal rhythm. I used to be feeling fine, but suddenly a wave of darkness would pass over me and I'd feel like I was going to pass out, just at that point I'd revert back to normal. There are so many different types of arrhythmias and symptoms.

What are yours?

Jean

[dh1120 in reply to jeanjeannie50]

Severe PACs and PVCs that I can feel, but I feel that the have turned into something else.

[Rienij70]

Good morning my friends, I used to get all of them above. But I have been in persistent AF since March. And feel better during the day. Except at night. The trips to the bathroom!!

[irene75359 in reply to Rienij70]

Rienij, how good to hear from you after some time! How are you? x

[Rienij70 in reply to irene75359]

Thank you for asking, still alive and doing ok. Got my Cancer check up tomorrow. So fingers crossed!

💕🙏xx

[Palpman]

After suffering from this for many years I now keep saying to myself that next time I will not care and carry on as normal.

This is impossible as the feeling of doom prevails every time and I have to look for a space to fall if needed. Fear takes over always.

Next time I'll just carry on as normal.

[dedeottie]

I hadn’t put words to the feeling before but feeling that I am about to lose control of my body is perhaps the worst thing for me. Before ablation and medication I was heading towards persistent AF and I wasn’t as bothered by it but now that I have 1 episode every month or so, I feel much worse while I’m having it. However, for the rest of the time I feel good so I wouldn’t like to back to how it was. X

[doodle68]

I think of an episode of AF with so many unpleasant symptoms as my body going into shock .

AF is a horrible condition and in my opinion the symptoms that some of us experience are vastly underestimate by many doctors .

[dh1120]

Thank you all so much for your replies. It is nice to know that what I go through daily is not me going crazy! I’m not alone.

[Buffafly in reply to dh1120]

Definitely not 🦋

[Cha275rL]

I feel like my head and shoulders get a rush of boiling heat, and feel like I’m going to pass out.

[Tomred]

I feel most of what you describe horrible as it may sound we have to learn to live with it sometimes that thought alone helps me carry on