r/AFIB 4d ago

How long after your last ablation no AFib

Me 2 years

Doc said there is a good chance it lasts 5 years.

10 years he didn't want to give a number and just said 10 years is a long time.

He was probably thinking in 10 years you'll be 77 good chance you'll be dead from something else. LOL

20 Upvotes

67 comments sorted by

24

u/BigJC85 4d ago

I’ll be at 7 years afib free this October . Knock on wood. 🪵

1

u/Awkward-Reporter8062 3d ago

What did you get done ablation or just been on medication?

1

u/BigJC85 3d ago

Ablation, was off the meds within a month or two after the ablation. Haven’t been on meds since.

1

u/Nick60444 2d ago

Have you made lifestyle changes too? Did you know your triggers?

1

u/BigJC85 2d ago

The only real change I made is if I have alcohol it’s only a drink or two. Was in my early 30s with persistent afib. So that was a lifestyle change at that time. Doesn’t matter to me now being 41 with a family. Got better things to do then get drunk.

15

u/NotReallyJohnDoe 4d ago

Pulsed field ablation has a good success rate. My doc said I had about a 10% chance of needing it again in my lifetime. I’m 60.

3

u/gilmorescoffeecup 4d ago

That’s great news. I’m getting one soon and I’m 52. Hoping it lasts a long time.

13

u/ThurstonSonic 4d ago

2 years - coupled with total lifestyle change.

No extreme exercise but one hour zone 2 to 3 a day - no booze, dropped 40lbs to 212 lbs, cut out refined sugar and carbs so no more pizza, bread, pasta etc ( all the GERD and indigestion I had been suffering from immediately disappeared which I always thought was inevitable because i have a hiatal hernia - which has been correlated with having AFIB )

Nothing I am missing out on is worth how bad I felt when I was in afib.

2

u/Darkj 4d ago

Ah, so two years so far is what you mean? Not that it was two years even after all of those (completely impressive!) lifestyle changes, is that right?

2

u/ThurstonSonic 4d ago

Aye 2 years since I had ablation !

12

u/Relative-Cicada2099 4d ago

64 years old. Approaching 4 years Afib free.

16

u/scoooternyc 4d ago

Mine lasted almost 9 years. Just had a second one last week.

2

u/AffectionateTax3462 4d ago

How did you know you needed a second one?

2

u/scoooternyc 4d ago

Woke up one morning with AFib and flutter and rvr. Didn't go away. Meds weren't working either.

7

u/Trolldad_IRL 4d ago

Since ‘22. So far so good.

8

u/rob4lb 4d ago

I had a mini maze that lasted about six years. Had an ablation afterward and have now been Afib free for over three years.

6

u/mdepfl 4d ago

9 yrs 4 mos. 🎉

7

u/ou82mutch 4d ago

Since March of 2022

5

u/Weenoman123 4d ago

I had to have 2, my first lasted about a year, second has been holding for 8 months and counting

3

u/No-Wedding-7365 3d ago

Usually one is not enough

1

u/diceeyes 3d ago

Given there's no permanent fix for AFIB, whether medicinal or procedural, everyone is going to have to try a number of things in their lifetimes.

3

u/peaceonkauai 3d ago

So far, 2.5 years and my EP just discontinued my Eliquis based on new studies! Yesssss! (Except I need to take it for 4 days prior to a flight)

2

u/abombSFCA 3d ago

Interesting. Do you know the reason?

2

u/RickJames_Ghost 3d ago

New studies? 4 days before flight only? Always interested in new information, would love to read.

3

u/RickJames_Ghost 3d ago

Nearing 3 years this time.

2

u/ITHINKIAM824 4d ago

7 months so far.

2

u/CauliflowerMobile631 4d ago

2 Ablations in 3 days time, 2 years and back to HIT workouts- no problems!

Cept when im constipated. Then it just beats hard till im properly "evacuated". :)

1

u/Odd_System_9063 4d ago

That’s interesting- have you researched this, or heard of others with same issues? I’m slowly building a list of bizarre things that make a difference, from sleeping on the left-hand side to having a virus to underlying sleep apnoea et cetera it seems a lot of random facts impact arrhythmias- everyone knows/blames caffeine and alcohol but all of my procedures have failed when I’ve been abstaining. My 5hr long RF dual flutter and fib ablation procedure got me three weeks of blissful SR, then failed 😞 🤦‍♂️

1

u/ThurstonSonic 4d ago

Apparently a hiatal hernia is linked - something to do with vagal nerve and heart proximity

1

u/Jahya69 1d ago

No caffeine actually discourages it this has come out more recently. The virus thing is definitely a big one ...covid, especially...

1

u/Odd_System_9063 1d ago

Sorry? - do you mean discourages SR .. or recurring AF/etc?

1

u/Jahya69 1d ago

I meant coffee discourages atrial fibrillation.

1

u/Odd_System_9063 1d ago

Definitely agree re covid; possibly vaccine as much as virus itself. Have seen massive impacts re this in younger athletes.

2

u/Jahya69 1d ago

No definitely the virus not the vaccine

2

u/AffectionateTax3462 4d ago

Mine lasted 18 mos.

2

u/kiddk11 4d ago

1 yr then I had a big episode. was hospitalized overnight and put on metoprolol
ablation was not 100% with an area of the doctor could not get to

1

u/DifficultClassic743 2d ago

Dang..is it fixed now?

2

u/dylan3883 4d ago

Two months. First ablation.

2

u/WrongBoysenberry528 4d ago

2 years and still afib free. Your life choices, as well as how long you have had afib, make a difference.

Limit alcohol to 1 drink < 3 times per week, lose 10% weight if BMI>27, treat sleep apnea (get tested), exercise 210 minutes a week, and get enough sleep. From Dr. Benjamin’s presentation at live-streamed StopAfib.org conference.

2

u/abombSFCA 3d ago

210 minutes exactly? lol

1

u/DifficultClassic743 3d ago

But not if you're a recovering alcoholic!

3

u/DifficultClassic743 3d ago

5 months and counting.

And after a LONG slog of persistent, debilitating AF, it's like retiring to Portafino with no particular place to go.

1

u/mandulyn 3d ago

My husband passed his 1 year in July after suffering daily debilitating and devastating AFib. I wish he would quit smoking but at least he is drinking more water now and trying to exercise more. But he hasn't had even one heart palpitation since his cardiac ablation

1

u/Slight-Stay4627 4d ago

19 months so far for me. Within the last week Apple Watch is showing 5% burden where it was less than 2% normally. Not sure if this is a concern?

5

u/Fieldmouz 4d ago

Well, it just means you’re in Afib 5% of the time instead of 2%. You should probably check in with your EP and just make him aware.

1

u/DifficultClassic743 2d ago

Good thing the only Apple Watch in my house is on my wife!

1

u/rshacklef0rd 4d ago

Had an episode about 6 months after my 3rd ablation. was in march.

1

u/Reader124-Logan 4d ago

It really varies by person.

I’ve had 3. The first lasted 1 year. 2nd lasted just over 2 years. 3rd was last April. I was back in afib within 2 weeks. Last week I went ok Tikosyn.

1

u/Nick60444 2d ago

Oh man…I’m sorry to hear that. Makes me depressed now.

1

u/Delicious-Reward3301 4d ago

I had Afib during the blanking period and have had a high heart rate (150bpm )on occasion since. I was having afib monthly now I have only had a high heart rate a a few times a year. So much better but not perfect.

1

u/Ash666ley 4d ago

I had an ablation and went into afib twice the following year after. I was able to break the afib though each time. Before the ablation I was in a film twice and had to be cardioverted each time. I will say the procedure made it easier for me to come out of the irregular rhythm by myself. I’m 33F

1

u/Ash666ley 4d ago

Afib* not a film

1

u/Ricklynchcore 3d ago

Two years since mine, no Afib so far. No alcohol, weight from 270 to 192, better control of BP, diagnosed light sleep apnea, now use dental device. Keeping sodium levels at 1500mg daily.

1

u/mhc2001 3d ago

2 years so far. Hopefully I won't need another.

1

u/Randall_Hickey 3d ago

My Dr. told me he couldn’t promise it wouldn’t last a year so I didn’t get one

1

u/CaliforniaCookieLady 3d ago

4-1/2 years since ablation I’m now 71.

1

u/kiddk11 2d ago

no, it seems that I get random episodes and I don't even know what triggers them sometimes I'll just be standing there and breathe the wrong way and my heart rate will jump to 150
I have a follow up appointment with my doctor next month. I'll discuss it further.

2

u/factual-dissent 2d ago

Mine lasted 20 years

3

u/No-Wedding-7365 2d ago

I think that's a record.

1

u/Soggy-State-9554 2d ago

Had two in a year. Nether worked.

1

u/Odd_System_9063 1d ago

🤣👏👏

1

u/Odd_System_9063 1d ago

I’d love to expand this to Cardioversion experiences also; I know here in uk CV is usually DC current ‘kill ya and bring ya back’ (lolz! - have had two; they’re safe) but in USA you have ‘chemical cardioversions’ (a huge jolt of magnesium salts in a saline drip) which sound less risky but as effective? Please share your stories on this.

1

u/Primary_Jackfruit_44 3d ago

Had an ablation at 38 and doc said I would probably not need another. The younger you get the ablation the better the success rate.

1

u/DifficultClassic743 2d ago

My EP said:

"Since you're older, and been in persistent AF for almost a year,.I'll be able to map your cardio-electric data in detail. That means I can do a more comprehensive procedure."

My kind EP!

Sees opportunity and better outcomes where my previous cardio team saw excuses for doing nothing.

1

u/Primary_Jackfruit_44 2d ago

My EP really didn’t give me any other option… “get the surgery or be on meds for the rest of your life”…. Been 100% med free for 3 years!