ok doc said I can lower to 50 mg 2 times a day instead of 100 mg 2 times a day...flecainide...cool...now im worried in might be to low of a dose..lol..I hate being nutts

Hi Eddie, Having afib is scary, having to take meds is scary. The fear and anxiety can be overwhelming and all you can do is baby steps, I imagine your doc is giving you a dose that he feels will help you, it is your call if you take them or not, they cannot force you to take them. So the question to ask yourself is do you want to control it with the drugs or deal with it without meds.Did you ask your doc about using the flec as a PIP that may be an option for you. Explain to your doc that you would rather not take any meds daily and are there other options for you. If your doc is not listening to you then go seek a second opinion until you find one that is listening to you.

Godd luck!

Eddie: I was thinking... it doesn't seem like your symptoms are that bad... it is more about how you react to your fast heart rate, the idea of taking a rhythm drug, and the worry about just having afib.

Many athletes have afib. They take their Flecainide and get on with competition. You can do that too. This is a perfect time to start exercising. Many people self convert when they exercise, and their is a great chance that you might be one of those people too. Usually young people that are in good shape react that way.

I think you will feel better, feel better about yourself, and you will be less nervous. Fight back. Don't let it overwhelm you. You passed your heart tests. You have a long life ahead of you. Afib won't kill you. You are at low risk for stroke (no-one is immune).

Go to a Steelers game. Hang out at the gym. Do things that are fun. Afib doesn't have to be scary.

petey

yes your so right

Eddie one day at a time my friend

Eddie,
If it helps, you aren't any more nuts than a lot of us who have suffered with this. The reason I got an ablation so quickly was that I couldn't stand the idea of being on the drugs the rest of my life...I was on the drugs for a year. THEN, I was afraid when the doc told me to off the drugs! So I guess in a way I was emotionally addicted (I am sure there is a better term than that, but don't know what it is offhand). So whatever you are feeling, just know that many out here have gone through the exact same amount of "crazy" that you are going through now. But you will be fine, and you WILL get through this. Petey always has wonderful advice...the only bad advice he gave you here was to root for the Steelers!

Ravens Fan Bill

lol thanks

Notice Bill isn't talking about baseball and the Orioles now. :-)

My experience - if that helps anyone.
I'm 6 ft, 180 lbs and 62. My afib went from after holiday meals to getting triggered by the usual triggers, caffeine, MSG, wheat gluten, stress and so on. Heart stress test good - no issues. So I found Drs. Rath, Hoffer and Sinatra and started the vitamin and mineral programs they suggested and that helped a lot. See this link:

http://www.drrathresearch.org/testimonials/physicians-speak.html

I did blood thinning by vit E & cod liver oil, controlled afib episodes by Rythmol, but only when triggered. I could go 1 to 3 weeks without afib, but would get triggered by something. Episodes would last from 1 hr up to 6 hours, but typically 4 hours and usually needed 1 to 2 Rythmols of 300 mg each.

But what the actual cure for me was the IV EDTA chelation. See this link:

http://www.centralparknaturopathic.com/chelation.html

I've had 30 now and have switched to oral for maintenance. I'm totally off the meds and have no issues. The urine analysis showed the metals coming out was lead, cadmium, aluminum. Plus I had high blood iron and I needed a pint of blood drawn every week for 8 months to get my blood iron (ferritin) down from 1350 mg/l to a normal of 50.

About blood thinners, my father-in-law is now in intensive care due to bleeding issues, his arms and legs look like angry purple balloons, he was on Warfin and one other blood thinner. He was doing this for 10 years and then suddenly - critical condition. He's likely not going to make it.

My summary: get your metals checked and get them out. EDTA has very low risk and a huge success rate in almost all cardiac issues. There is not much published on EDTA benefiting afib, but my experience shows it does. By the way - also HUGE benefits in arthritis as well. For a while there the arthritis was so bad in my ankles I thought I was going to need a walker.

It is totally Personal...each of us has to know ourself to know what is Best for our Self!

For me, I have changed my life style since diagnosis.
At first I got 2 episodes a month for several months...then for 2 yrs. dropped to once a month. In the past yr and half I have had 3x that I was in NSR for more than 2 mos.

I've had 2 very bad episodes caused by meds. I took for other issues.

My EP says one day I will be begging him for an ablation. But, Today, it is Not on my 'things to do list'




I take it a day at a time.

Petey,
Oh, that broke my heart. I was SO happy watching the celebration after the Orioles clinched the division. Adam Jones running around the stadium, and pieing (is that a word?) some of the fans. I am a firm believer that there are teams of destiny. I thought the Orioles might be that team, but geez, the Royals haven't been there since 1985...so I hope this is the end of their drought. This wasn't as bad as 1979, when the Os were up 3 games to 1 over Pittsburg and LOST in 7 games! I was stationed at Fort Hood at the time, and before the series started everyone was telling me how Pittsburg was going to destroy the Os..so oh wasn't I talking a LOT of crap after they took a 3-1 lead! So I had to hear it for a few weeks after they lost. Sigh....

No Joy in Baltimore (well, except for the Ravens!)

Bill said:

"Adam Jones running around the stadium, and pieing (is that a word?) "

I think you meant "peeing"!

Hahahaha! Only kidding.

How bout that Derek Jeter though?

Hi Eddie, I think others have covered the subject pretty well. By coincidence, I'm 6'1" and 180 Lbs. I feel pretty lucky right now because, like you, I'm in pretty good health. I run long distances and do some other exercises to stay in shape. Unlike you, I'm a tiny bit older - 64.

My own perspective on AFib is that it isn't that bad. Inconvenient but not bad. My pulmonary embolisms hurt like hell but not as bad as the pleurisy I had. Of course, finishing my first 100 mile run hurt some too but that just helped me learn how to deal with pain. Running races with plantar fascitis on both feet wasn't easy and more recently having heel pain bad enough that I couldn't talk or answer questions about what was wrong was not fun. Passing out from shoulder pain also wasn't much fun.

So what was AFib like for me compared to those other things? A little scary but no pain! Yeah!!! It pretty much brought me to a stop but I could still move. I was conscious and able to speak, think and make decisions. The ER confirmed my own belief that it was AFib but I refused their offer to zap me and I was lucky to self convert the next day.

My biggest fear was blood clots leading to a stroke or worse. The cardiologist said all I needed was aspirin and after visiting this site and a few others I decided to go off aspirin and request Eliquis. My choice and the doctor honored it.

One last thing about my choice. I also have high cholesterol. My doctor put me on statins. I believe the statins were causing me some physical problems that were interfering with my ability to run so I took myself off them and probably won't take them again. Again, it's my choice. My doctor can talk all he wants about what he thinks I should do but it's up to me to make the call.

I'm willing to take the responsibility for learning all I can about how best to live my life. I'm not willing to cede that responsibility to anyone else just yet.

Health and wisdom to you Eddie,

Todd

Todd,
Have you tried the naturopathic route for the cholesterol issue? I have never had a cholesterol problem, but my triglycerides (sp?) were 405, and they wanted to put me on Lipitor. I went with the RESQ products instead - the 1250 (omega-3 fish oil) and red yeast rice. Tris went to 147...then I thought I had it beat so I stopped and now they are 225..so back on the RES-Q 1250 and Red yeast rice...my next blood test isn't until March, so won't know if it worked again until then.

LOVE reading how you can run 100 miles...I failed my last PT test cuz I couldn't do 2.5 miles in less than 38 minutes...so sad. Will try again in 2 weeks. At least I did pass the push ups (18 minimum at my age) and sit ups (28 minimum). We have a bunch of old farts in my unit who walk these days. I think 5 or 6. I was the only one who didn't make it, so even among the old and infirm I have to take a bunch of crap. Sigh...

Old and infirm Bill

I switched Cholesterol meds in July several yrs. ago. Had a fasting blood test a couple if months later....the results were a big drop. 6 mos. later, I had another fasting test and the results were same as they were in July.
I know now....it takes several months for the real results.

I hate to hijack Eddies thread, but...
I have taken Cholesterol meds for about 14 yrs. Cardio Dr. doubled the amt. to get my HDL raised. It did not change. I went back to m original amt. a yr later.

3 weeks ago, I stopped taking any Cholesterol med. Studies show that older females do not benefit from it. I did have severe let pain when I took long walks. My dr. and I both thought I would be fine w/o them.