Atrail Fibrillation ( A Fib)

I am very interested in anyone who has or knows about A Fib. I was
told I have chronic A fib about a month or so ago. I was in the hospital
for 9 days and cardioverted. It worked fine for 5 days then right back where I started. Now I'm waiting for a call from Darthmouth. I think they are going to destroy the trouble area and put in a pacemaker.
Has any ever had this done or know of anyone who has. I have no quality of life. A walk across the room leaves me breathless. The other symptoms I could live with but not that.
Please I really need some one who isn't a Doctor or something to talk with.
Thanks

 just wanted to stop in and say hang in there.  we have several people on this site who will be a good source of info, unfortuanatly(or fortunately) i am not one of them. bye

Hi mimi,  I wanted to tell you welcome to healing well forum, we are happy to have you.  I just got a pacemaker myself this past September for Bradycardia, which is slow heart rate.  On the visit to my cardiologist before last when they checked the pacemaker they downloaded all kinds of information on arrhythmias and A Fibs that had been going on.  I have an autonomic disorder that causes me to be short of breath all the time and dizzy, and tired so I pretty much missed most of these feelings.  There were a few times that I did know of some very sharp chest pain and couldn’t catch my breath, which were periods of A Fib.  By the way I am 32 years old.  So for now my doctor is monitoring it and reluctant to start meds or anything as I am already on a ton (literally) and have severe low blood pressure problems.  And I'm not having the A Fib or arrhythmias all the time or on a consistent basis, just spastically.  I don’t think my heart knows anymore what to do.

Anyway, I just wanted you to know that I understand what you’re going through.  I don’t know what treatments or options there are for you out there but I am sure that some of our veteran members will be along shortly to post to you regarding it.  Please do let us know how you get along.  Take care

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Elisha

http://www.healingwell.com/donate

Thanks to both of you for the warm welcome. Elisha, you have so much going on that you have me confused. How is the pacemaker working and why are you still on so much meds. I'd really like to know what your quality of life is. You are so young. Today is a bad day for me, I may have overdone it this week. I'm exhausted and extremely short of breath. The heart specialist is setting me up at Darthmouth with a heart surgeon. I've been told that they will go in and destroy the area that is causing the problem and that I will need a pacemaker. They make it sound like a walk in the park but then again it's not their heart. They also said I could get rid of my medicine except the blood thinner. I am taking an awful lot and it doesn't seem to be helping much or maybe it is and I'd be a lot worse without it, I don't know.

Hi mimi,  I'm sorry I didn’t mean to confuse you.  I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis 5 years ago.  So I take several meds for that.  Then last summer was when I became sick with the low heart rate and low blood pressure, which is actually due to an autonomic disorder called Multiple System Atrophy (MSA).  So the MSA is the reason my heart is not functioning properly and getting all the crazy rhythms.  I am on 13 different medications for these things now, four of them are to help keep my blood pressure up or else I will just pass out.  As for my pacemaker my heart is about 90 percent dependent on it right now so 10 percent of the time my heart beats on its own without the pacemakers help.  I gather from the last appointment I had with my cardio that a percentage of that my heart was going into some fast rhythms or irregular rhythms. 

My quality of life...well? that is depends on the day really and what my blood pressure is doing but for the most part it isn’t too bad really.  I was very sick for the first 9 months or so and struggled everyday to get out of bed and shower and do everyday necessity activates.  But the last few months I have gotten stronger and improved greatly and am trying to walk everyday..well not now since I broke my ankle    but usually.  So, you can live a pretty normal life with it.  I just have a double hard time with the MS and blood pressure problems.

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Elisha

http://www.healingwell.com/donate