new A fib patient scared

[cisted]

Hello,
i am a 28 year old male in reasonabily good shape and no underlayign heart issues, last night i had a bout of a fib with like 1000's of pvc's i was cardioverted with electricity, which was totally scary and painful even though i had drugs.  i am a non smoker non drinker and non drug user.  the ER staff was completely dumbfounded as to why a 28 year old had heart problems. that didnt do much for my confiedence and ability to cope with this.  Is there anyone else on here that is younger that has the same problem.  the other thing that is funny about this is i have a pattern to this, i have had less severe episodes, they always happen at night right before bed or when i am sleeping, when i am at rest or after a bout of diareaha ( i have IBS).  any other time, i am fine exercise is fine, jsut at those time it happens? is this weird? or normal?

if anyone can help me out or at least calm my mind a bit to what is going on i would appreciate it

Thanks everyone

Chris

[mml78]

Hey, Chris--

I'm glad to hear you're going to an internist tomorrow.  I will try to post some more info soon.  I have the ablation tomorrow, so if all goes well I'll be back online.  You'll be in my thoughts.  Good luck at the doctor tomorrow!

[cisted]

hey guys thanks for the info and support. i an also a square i have never drank, smoked, or done any drugs that have not been perscribed to me.  I have an appointment tomorrow with my internist, to discuss further actions. as for now i am on coumadin only, nothing else.  the ER said i was free to go because they couldnt do anything more for me anyways and i would most likely rest better at home. i dont drink caffine, i dont add salt to my diet, i eat pretty healthy, except for maybe cheeze, its my weakspot.  i have a b it of chest pain tonite but i think its due to the cardioversion as it seems to be in my muscles under where the pad was.  the cardioversion last night was my first time to the hospital with this, i had a similar episode abotu 6 months ago but the paramedics said it was an anxiety attack and i didnt need to go to the hospital. but i believe i have had smaller less sever episodes quite often over the last couple of years that always sorted themselves out in about 5-10 minutes, this lasted 11 hours, and i was scared out of my wits.

so i was on no medication prior to last night, not rec drugs alcohol, caffine, medication anything, the only thing and pardon me saying this it came on about 10 minutes after sex with my wife. i was joking telling her that she worked the last 5 nights straight that the site of here was to much for my heart to take. LOL i guess we have to laugh a little bit at it.  the ER doctor said i would have to do a follow up but he said it is most likely LAF as they could not find any underlying cardiac problems. and also FYI i did not start throwing PVC's until after they administered the cardiziem to me.  i have 4 or 5 before that then they gave me that and like poof i started thowing them like crazy.  it was weird.

Glad to hear that i am not the only 20 something person to have this issue, at the ER it seemd liek i was a annomaly i recall one nurse saying " dude your only 28 this si so weird this shouldnt be happening to you." it was most reassuring. LOL
anywho thanks for the input please post anymore information you may have i appreciate it

Chris

[mml78]

Hi, cisted.  I'm sorry to hear about the a-fib.  I am a 29 year-old female and I've had a-fib since I was 17.  I have a structurally-normal heart and no other problems, so my doctors don't know why I have it, either.  When I had my first sustained episode and went to the ER, I heard the nurses talking about how they thought it might have been from cocaine, but I was a total square and never even had a sip of beer!  :)  I've been on meds for years and I'm going in for an ablation on Tuesday.  Did the doctor prescibe anything?  A lot of times, it's a matter of experimenting with the drugs until you find the right one.  Lots of a-fibbers get episodes at night and after they've eaten.  It has to do with the vagus nerve in the body that's involved in digestion and sleep.  Are you going to see a cardiologist?  They'll do a bunch of tests (probably an event monitor and an echocardiogram, an EKG, blood work).  Then you can talk about treatment options.  For me, the drugs were ok for a while, but now they don't work any more and the side effects are pretty bad (I got blurred vision from them, constipation, difficulty urinating, nausea, weird heart rhythms as the medication levels changed, etc.).  Let me know what happens with your doctor.  You'll be ok.  

In the meantime, stay away from caffeine, alcohol, nicotine, drugs (especially cold and flu medicines) - unless your doctor prescibes something of course - and try to ingest lots of potassium from foods like bananas, orange juice and potatoes (a plain baked potato has lots of potassium and if you don't dress it up too much it isn't that high in calories).  Also, stay well-hydrated.  Oh, and also stay away from artificial sweeteners, too.  I know it sounds like a lot, but it does make a difference.  Good luck!  You'll find what works for you, I know it.  :)

[Artaud]

Hi,

You saying that you had AFib and thousands of PVCs, and that you were cardioverted just last night? Did they prescribe medication for you to continue taking or are you already on medication?

Do you consume caffeine, alcohol, or use medication, prescribed or otherwise? If you have an arrhythmia, medication such as Decongestants or diet pills may cause significant problems at times. Also, not saying you do, but illegal drug use can be major problem for people with normal hearts, rhythm wise, but with someone with a known arrhythmia, engaging in illegal drug use is asking for major problems.

Also, when I go to the dentist, since I have an arrhythmia, I always ask that they use a local anesthetic (like Novocain) without Epinephrine, which is related to adrenaline. Epinephrine helps to sustain the anesthetic, but can cause heart rhythm problems.

Many people probably don't realize, but Cocaine has a useful purpose in hospitals, as, you guessed it, a local anesthetic. The ending letters of a drugs generic name (all drugs have generic names, even if they're new), denotes what drug family the drug belongs to. Several of the heart medications end with caine, such as lidocaine, as does cocaine. Lidocaine is used to directly effect the heart’s rhythm, being injected into the blood. Cocaine, even though it's commonly inhaled, also enters the blood and effects the heart.

Have you worn a Holter Monitor or a 30 Day Loop Event Monitor to record your problems. You mention previous problems, such as when sleeping or due to your IBS, are you under the care of a Doctor for your Heart Rhythm problems?  I would guess that the hospital felt confident in releasing you, that your Heart Rhythm is stable. Did they ask you to follow up with a Cardiologist? Did they give you any more specifics about what they believe may have caused your arrhythmia?

Best wishes for Health.