hi everyone,
im new and i was wondering if it is okay to post about my atrial fibrillation(diagnosed in december after a 17 hour episode)?  im not sure if this is the right place to get advice and i recently had a very bad experience on a forum after asking for help with the anxiety this condition has caused me.
i hope you can help.
take good care
kelly

wow thank you so much for the reply and the interest.
i will try and give you the facts now i know that it wont upset anyone. firstly i am a 35 year old female with no history of childhood illness.
i have suffered from prolonged episodes of svt since i was about 17 years old, they would last from anywhere between 3 hours to 48 hours with a steady very fast heart rate.  they occured approximately once a month usually coinciding with my periods i tried to talk to many doctors over the years but struggled to be taken seriously and was labelled as anxious.  as you know unless the episode is actually monitored at the time it occurs the heart appears perfectly normal.  i did try to get to hospital on many occasions but by the time i did the episodes had stopped.  i would hvae an ecg and be told tehre was nothing wrong and that i had had a panic attack, it was a very hard time for me as i knew that prior to the episodes i was in no way feeling anxious and that usually a certain type of movement or a very deep breath would strat it off.
anyway to cut a long story short one day they did manage to hook me up to and ecg whilst my heart was misbehaving and they diagnosed me immediatly with psvt.  it was a relief and they assured me it was not dangerous and whilst i really didnt like the epsiodes i learned over the years to live with them.
unfortunately about 18 months ago i had an episode that was very different, my heart was beating very very fast but it was irregular and seemed to have gotten into a wierd rythymn i laid down as i always do when my heart is playing up and it just went on all night in this very fast chaotic way, i eventually fell asleep and when i woke it had stopped, i was scared but did nothing.  about 2 months later it hapened again and lasted about 4 hours again i was scared but kept it to myself.  then in novemeber it happened again, i hadnt been drinking although i had just had a cigarette and my period was due.  i called an ambulance because i was feeling really bad.  as soon as they hooked me up in the van they diagnosed an episode of afib before i even got to hospital.  this lasted for 17 hours  my rate was 160-200bpm and irregular.  i was given lots of diffenet meds and nothing worked eventually they gave me flecainide in my drip and after about 6minutes it stopped.  they advised me to take 50mg twice a day and come off my contraception pill.
since novemeber i have had no more episodes of afib but i have been getting tiny very short clusters of chaotic beats that make me faint.  i feel my mental capacity is not as good either i find concentrating really hard and i feel really spaced out.  when my period is due i get these fainting spells which originate in the heart.  and i am getting wierd pains in the heart too, achy feelings.  i have seen the cardiologist for a follow up and he was completely disinterested in my case, did an ecg and said yep fine come back in 12 months.
im really struggling and dont know wher to turn.  i have no faith in doctors anymore and im scared that something bad will happen to me and my heart is struggling.
im really really sorry this is so long i just need to get it out.
thank you so much
kelly
p.s
i hvae had a echocardiogram in march and heart structure normal.

Okay, thank you for answering my questions. Based upon your description, this is not classical atrial fibrillation. AF gets worse over time, not less frequent. Several studies clearly support the onset ofparoxysmal supraventricular tachycardia (PSVT) during the luteal phase of the menstrual cycle and this may well explain the case where you're concerned. The fact that testing confirms the heart tissues and function to be healthy may well lend further support to a menstrual-related arrhythmia. Because of the age of onset, I would have suspected something called Wolf-Parkinson White syndrome, but this is readily detectable on diagnostic testing and also has a characteristic presentation on auscultation. So they would have certainly expressed the possibility prior to now and even if it were WPW, it's not a life-threatening disorder.

Anxiety disorder can also produce dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system and patients misinterpret the accompanying physiological changes as symptoms that something is wrong, typically something very serious. GI discomfort wherein forceful eructation (burping) is experienced, is also common to persons with anxiety disorder and the circumstances can produce palpitations of a rather dynamic type and you should be careful not to confuse this type of palpitation with those associated with AF or other arrhythmia.  I would be somewhat concerned that if the aspirin you are taking is uncoated, you may be irritating the mucosal lining of the stomach.

So your present symptoms are due more to the anxiety disorder and your heart is not under any strain as a consequence. This type of cardiac disturbance originates from outside the heart through the vagus nerve and will never damage your heart or cause you to suffer any type of cardiac event. Failing to achieve a deep inspiratory breath is extremely common among persons with anxiety disorder and it's further complicated if indigestion and trapped air presses against the diaphragm, restricting full expansion of the lung cavity.

With regard to not feeling anxious, be very careful not to confuse the sensations associated with situational anxiety that is common to all people, and the somatic effects of an anxiety disorder. They are clearly different. Anxiety disorders that produce somatic features, and panic disorder, are both associated with an intense irrational fear, the origin of which is most often borne out of a misperception. This is often a very confusing premise for persons trying to understand the nature of their difficulites while making erroneous comparisons to support their beliefs. It can extremely reinforcing to the patient, but clearly inaccurate. So "feeling" anxious has no bearing on whether the physiological effects of an anxiety disorder are taking place.

Lastly, although I'm sure you may not care to hear it, but if you're presently smoking tobacco products, this should concern you far more than any presence of AF. Changes to the body as it ages are directly affected by smoking and it is 100% counterproductive in all cases.

So if you're worried about your heart not coping, then you'll need to find a way to pass on the cigarettes. Realize that testing to confirm function and health of the heart muscle cannot detect negative changes taking place within the vessel walls of the cardiovascular system. High blood pressure and increased stroke risk are also directly linked to smoking.

My opinion at this point is that you do not have classical AF and I would not be apprehensive that it would return. Dealing with the physical effects of an anxiety disorder are often supported by time with a professional counselor trained to deal with anxiety and panic disorder.

You're going to be just fine.

Best regards and Good Health

i know you must be so busy RLR but i would really really appreciate your thoughts on the questions i posed yesterday.
if you get time please can you advise me on what you think about the use of the long term medication as discussed above.
thank you so much
kelly

no need to be sorry, and thank you so much for taking the time to reply.  i have weighed it all up and i think that considering the impact the drug has had on the ectopics alone with relatively minimal side effects it is probably wise for me to continue with it for the time being.
i have also started to supplement my diet with magnesium and b vitamins and this seems to have had an almost instant effect on my anxiety and my mental clarity.  possibly a placebo effect, who knows.
Also i want to let you know that reading your responses not just to myself but to others too has helped me see things in a totally different way.  i feel that since i found this site i can see in my own case that even if the diagnosis of afib proves to be correct, i must be mindful of the fact that when my heart isnt in afib it is beating strongly, never letting me down, carrying on regardless.  before i spoke to you RLR i felt that i was in a prison with my faulty heart, that i couldnt trust it at all.  i didnt feel safe in my own skin.
im not saying that i wont feel anxious about this ever again, this anxiety has taken years to build and im sure it will take a long time to totally subside but i can honestly say that you have helped me in a way no other person has been able to.
the way you write and express yourself in such a gentle yet instructive, informed way has a very calming effect.
it is an incredible gift you have, the ability to gently lead strangers by the hand and help them to understand and ultimately find peace.
and to think you find the energy to do all this when you are approaching 84!!!!!  
you are truly a remarkable person.
i wish you happiness and health in the many years to come.
take good care
kelly x

Hi RLR,
what a special person your wife was & what a lovely story about how this all started! I didn't realise you still did some work at your clinic but I agree with you about keeping a purpose in life. I have seen so many people age quickly if they retired & did nothing.
I'm glad to hear that you enjoy the forum because I come on here most days just to read your replies & see if there is anyone who needs support & there always seems to be alot of new posts & then I wonder if it's getting too busy for you! Your post reassures me that it's something you're still happy to be doing.
I think you can see that everyone here very much appreciates your support & advice & thinks very highly of you.
Your wife would be very proud of you!!
Take care
love Seffie xx

what a beautiful story, thank goodness your wife gently(with a glint in her eye!) guided you towards the keyboard that day.  she knew that you had a gift and an ability to help other people.  she sounds like an amazing person.
i love to think of your patients growing old with you, and your nurses being with you since the beginning.  i hope you never close those doors.
take very very good care
you are a shining light.
all the very best
kelly  

RLR,
Well, aren't you the cat's meow!!! What a wonderful woman you were blessed with and I agree on how proud she would be of you. You have been a life saver for me and now my 38 year old daughter is having palps and I sent her to the site (only after a Dr. visit and test).
Bless you and your wife for the for the time and effort. Your life sounds fun and fulfilling.
Glen

You are a gift to us all