Hi Pam, I was diagnosed 4yrs. ago July. I vividly recall the shock and emotional stress I felt. I had never heard of afib...and I also knew no one who had it. I got depressed, partly because of the Metoprolol (beta blocker)...I had no energy to do anything. But, mostly because I had enjoyed good health and I didn't know what to expect.

After several months having an episode about every 23 days, I found I knew a Lot of people with afib. A Dr. I like told me not to go to ER when I had episode, or call the office...and that I wasn't going to die from it. I started to adjust.

My strategy has changed over the past 4 yrs. on how I handle it. It is quite unpredictable for me and still stressful at times. But, 'one day at a time' my life is Good.

You are Not Alone!!! Take it one day at a time, and you will be Fine!

Pam, so sorry to hear about your husband. Probably every person on this site has been right where you are right now - totally freaked by the weird feeling in your chest and this strange new diagnosis. The first thing to do is take a deep breath and try to relax. For the most part afib by itself is not life threatening. It's scary and it's annoying but it's not going to kill you. The Xarelto will help you avoid the most serious potential issue which is an increased risk of stroke. Atenolol will help with your heart rate with the added benefit of having some anti-anxiety qualities as well. Your cardiologist will work with you to decide the best course of action for you. I encourage you to ask a lot of questions, educate yourself on the condition and be your own advocate. This group is a great place to start and folks here are genuinely supportive and ready to share their experiences - good and not so good. That has helped me so very much. Hang in there!

Mike in NC (aka MDNC)

Sorry about your husband and that youre now a member of the Afib club. You will find that everyones experiences are a little different. The main risk of afib is stroke and since you are on a beta blocker and anticoagulant you are reducing that risk. So try not to get too anxious although as myself being a person who tends to be anxious alot afib doesnt help. Afib seems to induce anxiety and when not in afib every strange feeling in your chest makes you worry its coming back.

My experience is early 2014 noticed periodic strange beatings of my heart about every few weeks. Got a 30 day monitor and they discovered Afib. I was diagnosed with Paroxysmal Afib which means it comes and goes on its own. I was put on metoprolol which seemed to reduce the episodes to about every two weeks, lasting anywhere from 30 minutes to 4 hours. I also had an echocardiogram to be rule out any heart issues or causes and was given a Chads score
of 1 for having high blood pressure. Be sure and get your Chads score from your doctor as it is used to calculate stroke risk and treatment plans.

My afib get coming more frequently until it was 3 or 4 times a week. Eventually early 2015 it came and didnt go away right away. Since cardiologist wasnt sure I had been in afib less than 48 hours they put me on Eliquis (anticoagulant) and said in 30 days they would cardiovert me. After 13 days it went back to normal. The next stage in treatment for many is to try drugs for rhythm control, which means they try and keep the heart in rhythm. I was put on Rythmol which required a three day hospital visit because it can actually cause worse problems so you need to be monitored. (. Somewhere in here I had a stress test. The results of that help determine what antiarrythmia drug to use.). For a week I had no afib on rythmol but then came back a few times a week. So my cardiologistic sent me to an electrophysiologist and we scheduled an ablation for June. I had the ablation, which creates scar tissue in your heart so bad signals cant get through and so far so good. If it works I should be able to get off all the drugs and maybe just take an aspirin because of my low chads score. So thats where Im at now.

If you read through all the previous discussions youll find a wide range of experiences.

Just want to say "Welcome". You will find lots of support here, and also lots of information. Start reading some of the older posts too. There's lots of info there. Remember, we've all been there...you're not alone.

Welcome. I am in Virginia beach. Will send a longer message when I get back home. Have afib 4.5 yrs ago. Still run and lift weightweights. At Junior Olympics with my son. You will be fine. Petey

I'll basically echo what others are saying here. But the most important things to remember are:

1. Afib, in and of itself, is NOT life-threatening.
2. Since you're on Xarelto, you're taking care of the biggest risk factor or afib (stroke)
3. Anxiety begets afib, which begets more anxiety.
4. Your depression is normal and part of the grieving process. There is no one correct timeline for the grief of losing a loved one. Just don't let it consume your life.

So trying to stay calm as best you can is very important. I'm sorry you had to join our little group here, but folks here have a lot of knowledge and compassion.

You're in the beginning phases of your treatment, so things will be new and scary for a little while, but now that you're here, you have a network of friends who can help with personal experience, advice, and support.

Hi Pam
Welcome to Afib....you ll find its a long and winding road of ups and downs but the more you learn the better you ll feel. I started by reading as many posts here as I could. Everyone is a lil different yet we all struggle with the same thing. I have huge problems with anxiety and depression with all this since dx a couple of years ago.
I kinda didnt take it seriously enough because i was without insurance and was told to do the aspirin a day thing. I ended up having a silent stroke ...so now take it very seriously.
The support here will help alot....it did for me. I handle the depression day to day and get help with meds for the anxiety.
Im sorry for you loss but I think you ll find you found the right spot for support. Dont be shy about sharing your up n downs and questions...We all learn from each other....Welcome to our group!
Vinny

Welocme Pam. Great site here and helpful info. I was diagnosed in May 2010. To date, I have not and still do not know any people with AFIB. With the exception of those on this forum. Be sure to exhaust all the tests and advise from Cardios and EPs. Best of luck. ;)

Thank you all so much for your support and advice. The increased atenolol did not work so the cardiologist started me on sotolol.. The doctor said it could take 5 days or so to work. Taking it 1 day at a time.