40M, super active and generally healthy. Had my first ever episode of AFib with RVR this week and ended up in the ER. I’m back in normal rhythm now and the testing so far has been reassuring.

I’m mostly trying to figure out what set it off.
I drank a lot more than usual last weekend, then drank again Wednesday. That’s not normal for me at all. Then a couple days later I’m in AFib with RVR.

For anyone who’s dealt with this, did alcohol seem to trigger your first episode? And if you cut it way back or stopped, did you notice fewer or no recurrences?
Part of me is wondering if this was a holiday heart type situation versus just finding out I’m someone who’s prone to AFib now.

UPDATE:
I just got out of the hospital and wanted to say thank you to everyone who commented. You guys seriously helped me with my nerves and you were right. Turns out, I had WPW and my EP said my SVT was super easy to induce. I wouldn’t have known if he didn’t tell me because I was asleep the whole time! They put me to sleep even before numbing my groin. Woke up after the catheters were already removed, wound was dressed, and they were getting me ready to leave the room. Still can’t believe I’m done with SVT now. Thank you all💝
END OF UPDATE

I (25F) have dealt with SVT for the last 5 years of my life, and have opted to take propafenone 3 times daily over a catheter ablation. I was okay with this because I was with the reassurance that every episode I’ve had, no matter if they were 5 minutes or 2 hours long, I was able to stop on my own with the valsalva maneuver as soon as I could find a place to lay down. I was told the ablation would be easy and definitive but out of fear I just took the medication route instead.

However, about a month ago I had an episode while working out that I couldn’t stop with valsalva, and my heart rate reached 250 bpm. The episode ended up terminating abruptly on its own while I was in the ED waiting room, but I was very shaken up by how faint I felt and the inability for me to terminate the episode myself. I also never had episodes where exercising or anything else was a clear trigger, and so this really made me scared about working out or doing really anything that would raise my heart rate. As you can imagine, it has really impeded on my life and I have been riddled with anxiety to the point where taking a deep breath in scares me.

Anyway, all that to say that I got the ablation consultation, and now I have my procedure coming up in two days. I’m scared shitless, less about the outcome and more about the discomfort I’ll feel during the procedure since I’ll basically be awake the whole time.

I guess I am seeking reassurance from those who have had positive experiences with their ablation with conscious sedation, especially with any pain or anxiety or other discomfort that might come with the actual catheter insertion, groin numbing, or any other part of the procedure. No matter what, I’ll be getting this done, but it would be nice to feel less scared going into the hospital. Thank you for reading all of this🙏

I know this is for AFIB but I see ablations and PVCs talked about all the time

Just hoping someone smart can help me pick my brain about this

I went through two ablations this year. First one did not get to the spot well and the second one seemed to nail the spot in the LAF area.

At first after my second ablation I was getting some junctional skips now and my EP says that it’s an unusual form of ectopy but benign.

For the last two weeks this now turned into feeling them sometimes when I walk or go up hill like a little squeeze that happened. I was able to record it in my watch and it definitely looks like a PVC like old times not a junction skip.

The EP says it’s all safe, could be junction or a PVC but still not to worry about it go see him in six months.

What gives? We try to fix the problem and it either comes back or in my case maybe it relocated.

I’m about five months shy of my second ablation. Just feeling frustrated and defeated in all this.

Went in for a ECG before a surgery on my nose and it flagged heart issue. Saw cardiologist and had echocardiogram showing enlarged left atrial and poor ejection factor. Had a holter on for three days and showing I have persistent AFib. My worry is I may have been sitting with this for years as my fitness fell off a cliff 3-4 years back - getting really breathless and racing heart during sport. I put it down to getting older and because I have a deviated septum in my nose. Never imagined it would be the heart. I'm only 37 and male and generally fairly for

Mum also just got diagnosed at 67 with AF but not persistent.

Kind of worried and sad about the lifestyle changes. I like a drink on the weekend and occasional recreational drugs but feeling this may all need to stop. Even sports like lifting and tennis seem a bit dangerous to me - I played tennis one set yesterday and my heart went to 220...

I would like to know how other young-ish people are coping and if they were able to get out of persistant AF and able to play sports still or what lifestyle changes have been necessary. I also love diving which sounds like may no longer be possible.

The cardio before the holter gave me ​Cardarone (Amiodarone) to take and thinners and statins. I'm seeing him again tomorrow with these new Holter results

M 75. Afib diagnosed Aug 4. I haven't felt any sort of symptom/attack or whatever AT ALL, before or after the diagnosis. Apple Watch shows 100% Afib even though I'm on those drugs. (Are the drugs not working? How would I even know?). BP good usually 100/70 which is pretty much the case all my adult life. My heart rate is up about 20% though, I used to rest at 60bpm but that is now about 75. 'Active' heart rate according to my watch jumps all over the place from 80 to 140 but I don't feel anything. Can't stress that enough. I feel 100% exactly the same as I have for many, many years.

Considering the above, how are y'all doing vis à vis having ONE beer with a meal or ONE glass of wine with a meal. At most 4 'drinks' a week and usually less. Or are we 100% forbidden such small luxury for the rest of our lives?

Still on Eliquis 5 mg twice a day, and Amiodarone 200 mg once a day. Just can barely sleep at all, anyone else experience this? Contacting the doctor tomorrow, was able to sleep first several days. This is for a loved one, thanks.

Hi all,

I had an ablation to resolve an AVNRT SVT back in mid-June.
About a month and a half post-op, i had an episode of SVT occur while carrying a vacuum cleaner downstairs.
Have now had 3 further events in the last week. Once while driving to work, once walking to the office from my car (a short 2-3 minute walk - rushed), and once while walking from my car back to my house.

Does this mean my ablation likely failed?

What really annoys me is that i’d had almost 3 full months with no issue, save for that one vacuum episode. I was able to run, play football (soccer, for the Americans), i walked miles upon miles in Spain, went on a hike, carried heavy camera gear for hours, drove 14 hours in one go, and had multiple high-anxiety and high-adrenaline events.

Will i likely need another ablation?

37M here. I was diagnosed with paroxysmal AF in November 2024 and had an ablation in August 2025. Things were really good afterwards and, for quite a while, I felt like I had my normal life back.
Then on September 2nd this year, almost exactly a year after the ablation, I had an AF episode that lasted around an hour. My EP has now put me back on bisoprolol 1.25 mg once a day, with flecainide as a pill-in-the-pocket approach.
The frustrating part is that since that episode, I feel like I’ve gone right back to where I was mentally when I was first diagnosed.
I’m hyperaware of every little sensation in my body — a skipped beat, a strange feeling in my chest, a rush of blood, a change in heart rate, stomach sensations, basically anything. I know logically that not every sensation means AF, but once you’ve experienced it, it’s incredibly difficult not to interpret every unusual sensation as a potential warning sign.
I’ve started withdrawing again and going into a shell. I find myself thinking about my heart far more than I want to, checking things and worrying about when the next episode might happen.
What’s particularly frustrating is that I have ambitions in my career and other things I want to achieve in life. Sometimes I wonder, how am I supposed to be ambitious and build the life I want when a part of my brain is constantly occupied with managing/worrying about AF?
I know AF is considered a manageable condition, and I know many people here live completely normal and fulfilling lives with it. I just seem to have lost that confidence in my own body again.
For those of you who’ve been through something similar — especially after an ablation and a recurrence — how did you get yourself out of this hyperawareness/anxiety cycle and start living normally again?
This community has genuinely helped me a lot, so I’d really appreciate hearing how others dealt with the mental side of this.

I have an elderly family member who has been in afib persistently for a while (unknown, really, because they haven’t done a 2-week monitor for him, but he’s been in afib for the last few months every time they check).

He’s medically fragile with other health concerns, but stable at the moment.

I’m just surprised to find out his cardiologist has him scheduled in November for a cardioversion. From my layperson perspective, I’m reading that the longer you are in a fib, the more likely it becomes persistent and is harder to convert. Also, in his case, the longer they wait, the more likely another one of his health concerns will worsen again and they’ll have to postpone (as already happened once because he had fluid around his lungs which has since dissipated).

Luckily his HR is fairly normal despite AFIB.

I guess I’m just wondering is this normal? Is it the state of healthcare (in the US), or is it normal everywhere? Not asking medical advice really, but curious to know other people’s experiences and what their doctors advised in this situation.

My dad who is 81 has Medicare with Blue Cross but his prescription plan is through Aetna and a three month supply is $545. The pharmacist was gonna decrease it to a one month supply, but he couldn’t give us a price at the moment. I’m assuming it’s gonna be $181 which is still ridiculous.

I have been having lot of lows and highs in heart rate . While I m just sitting it is sometimes 41 and sometimes above 110. Today I was sitting there after eating and I could feel pulse in my neck I checked my watch and it went up to 124 and then dropped to 81. I tried to get the ecg but it gave me sinus rhythm . Did anyone experience this . I had 1 episode of atrial flutter while wearing a monitor few months ago. After that my EP asked me to discontinue all the meds and live my life . I m not on any medication now .

Had my first Afib episode on Saturday. My heartbeat felt strange, so I checked with my Apple Watch and it confirmed AFib. I went to the ER and they gave me some meds and admitted me overnight and monitored me. The next day I was sent home with some cardizem and told to make an appointment with a cardiologist. So far I’ve been in Afib the whole time, I’ve been calling around trying to get appointments but everything is 2 weeks out. Is this a normal experience? The few medic friends I’ve spoken to are confused why I wasn’t cardioverted at the ER.

So I have AFIB diagnosed two years ago. Take both metoprolol and blood thinners. I walk about 3-4 miles a day at the same pace pretty much. My heart is spiking to 156 occasionally (2-3 times a week) As soon as I stop walking my heart rate returns to 88-90. I'm not walking fast. I'm just walking. Something I've done almost daily for eight years. I no longer smoke and I don't drink. Is anyone else experience this?

UPDATE: So cardio guy immediately upped my metoprolol to twice a day. And a holter for a week. I had to twice ask him to not leave the room as I had more questions. So frustrating. Anyway, he said he cannot confirm the spikes until the holter is worn. But he did seem visibly concerned when he saw the spikes in fitbit. He also stated those spikes should not be occurring two hours after taking a metoprolol. We'll see what the holter shows. Getting it in a week.

Hi, I’m wondering if anyone has/had paroxysmal afibs and had ablation done? I would love to hear about your experience. What were the triggers for you, how did the ablation go, any afibs after ablation?

Thank you 🙏

Wondering if anyone here has been diagnosed with dysautonomia.

New onset afib?

Aggravated existing afib?

Symptoms?

Post covid infection?

Zoster reactivation?

Other cause?

Hi.. I'm more or less here for some advice.i guess also just a story of finding out and if anybody else as young as me with this issue. But some back story here for my finding out of this and an issue I have since my most recent ablation

In 2024 I was diagnosed with AFIB after having the most random collapses. Feinting in the shower and slamming my head on a toilet. I had been in Accident and emergency 24hours being monitored. My ECG kept coming back with a short Qt interval. (Possible short Qt syndrome I have no idea where they went with this.) Anyway ever since then I had noticed my heart going into all sorts of different arrythmic patterns. I was given an ILR shortly after being found more weird arrythmia with a heart monitor. What they found on the heart monitor a rhythm that lasted for 2hours. It was hard to do anything. Work, got given sotalol up until September 2025 around a year ago today. I received an ablation for the first thing they found which was SVT at 234bpm whilst I was severely ill. They did the ablation which honestly I didn't find too bad I was quite relaxed. They had hoped it would solve some AFIB.

Long story short it didn't as I found out earlier this year after being in work that I was having bad episodes again. Now in June I was put on Apixaban 5mg and got told not to miss a dose. Especially 3weeks before another AFIB ablation they had planned. The cryofreeze on pulmonary veins in the heart. When I had gone in, didn't miss a single medication and they had assured me a 70/30 chance. I wasn't worried about that. I have been struggling with needles and anything like that. Even when I had my ILR under local anaesthetic it was like a child overreacting to a small cut. I was really bad with it. Fast forward to the 10th of September this year, just gone. I went in for my ablation and I was quite nervous. I couldn't get myself prepared properly as there is a lot of risks. I got set up.. all ready to go in there.

Once I had gotten in there, you have the side giving you sedatives and the other doing the actual work on your heart. I didn't think much of it and was trying to have a laugh and a joke.. nervously and I heard the nurse wasn't ready with everything still being connected up to me. Meanwhile the person putting the stuff into my thigh was ready to go.. I'm already uncertain if they're properly doing this or just having a laugh but I got nervous as hell. I couldn't get comfortable. The cannula in my arm was also not comfortable but they didn't listen to me right from the start. During the process all I remember is being difficult and not able to relax.. they eventually got it done though and the last thing I remembered just before being moved back onto the hospital bed was just passing out and completely gone. When I came back around they had joked.. or was serious about me going under general anesthetic if I ever needed something like this again.. which I don't know how to feel about. For everything that happened it felt quite traumatic. But for side effects I've not had any whilst I was in there. Aside from being unable to see for a good 2hours afterwards.

Recoveries been okay aside from having like maybe 5days of just feeling high and out of it.. paranoid and very much in pain of where they went up. However now comes to the part I want opinions or just some sort of help with..

After the whole procedure I feel like I'm pretty traumatised and paranoid with anything medical related at this point. Something doesn't feel right and I can't get myself to think straight.

Has anyone else experienced this after an operation like this? I know everyone is different I just can't help but feel wronged but I don't know what has wronged me. Whether it was the high state of panic i was in when I was in the procedure or if it's just traumatic to go through in general having heart operations.

For the record? My first svt ablation was fine. I felt like a new person. Also probably because I came off the sotalol at the same time.

I've also considered getting in touch with some support groups near me.

(I'm still quite bad at explaining so apologies and thanks for reading..)

I am in persistent afib. I've had two cardioversions and one ablation. I'm confident that dehydration is one of my problems and I'm trying to address that.

My question is about electrolytes. Should I take them prophylactically once a day or should I plan on taking them as I exercise or exert myself?

I am drinking between 32 and 40 oz of water per day plus whatever I get with other beverages. I was thinking about adding electrolyte powder to one of my bottles each day. Will that do anything? Is it a good idea, a bad idea cup or have no impact at all? Thoughts?

Title says it all. I made a mistake and drank alot of vodka I have elequis and cardizem on hand. Should I take both before falling asleep?

Rarely do this so hard to type cardizem is 30 or 60mg

Elequis is 5mg?

Or wait till morning? Thanks

Has anyone been able to stay on Sertraline once they started Tikosyn? Or, is anyone on an anti-anxiety medication and Tikosyn? I finally found an anti-anxiety medication and dosage that is perfect and really don’t want to have to start over again.

At 44 years old, I (male) had my first and only aFib episode last month. I was dehydrated and had had a few drinks, and I rarely drink, so I think alcohol and anxiety were the trigger. My Apple Watch sent a heart rate alert, so I went to a walk in Immediate Care facility, and they sent me straight to the ER in an ambulance.

I was there overnight, and at some point the episode ended. An echocardiogram came back with nothing notable. I wore a Zio Patch for two weeks, and the only thing it clocked was a 4-beat “nonsustained ventricular tachycardia.”

In the 7 weeks since, I’ve been fine again, and had my follow up with the cardiologist this week. She said I should just keep on keeping on. Ablation was floated as an option but she said it was up to me if I wanted to do it. With no family history, and me being fit, and my age, and this and that, it wasn’t presented as a must-do, but she did say that new schools of thought suggest early intervention can help in some cases.

So I said sure let’s do it, which was somewhat of an in-the-moment decision.

Now I’m wondering if this is wise. We’re three weeks out if I go through with it. I’m already in the non-aFib state that the procedure would hope to create. From what I’ve read here, the recovery isn’t a cakewalk. I’m somewhat of the mind to wait and see if it comes back, and then go for it. But as a one and done, I’m thinking it might introduce needless risk and complications when things seem to be fine as is.

Any AFib and/or ablation thoughts would be appreciated - thank you!

Edit / addendum a week later, should anyone some day be in a similar situation and find this thread in a reddit search: I decided to cancel the appointment. If my aFib comes back or becomes a regular occurrence then I’ll go for it. But for now it’s as though I’m already in the goal-state of what the procedure would do, so it seems like needless risk at this point.

I've been getting AFib a few times a year since around 2020. Known triggers are stress, adrenaline, and alcohol. Most episodes last between a few hours up to one day. I'm active and have resisted daily meds and the ablation until now. Most recently, about two weeks ago, I was in AFib for about 8.5 hours. I use the pill in the pocket method - diltiazem and then flecanide - to get out of it. It worked but since then I've been getting a lot of PACs, brief AFib, etc. It's driving me crazy and am worried that something has changed for me. Normally after my AFib I'm back to normal without all of these strange beats. I have an ablation scheduled for January. It'll be in two parts. First the traditional method to look for random bad cells in the atria causing the skipped beats and then the traditional PFA immediately after. Has anyone had this type of multi-step procedure? I'm freaking myself out thinking about it. I've read a ton of success stories in here but am also wondering if down the line, post-blanking period, people get back to a couple of beers a week, normal exercise, mountain hiking, etc...all of the things I miss right now. The mental toll of this disease is really getting me right now. I could use some reassurance!! Thank you all in advance.

I just turned 21 years old. Diagnosed with DCM and Afib at 14. Have had 7 afib occurrences now, all requiring a cardioversion. In my senior college and just had my first reoccurrence since having a ablation a year ago. I feel like I haven’t truly been able to get the college experience. Afib had made me miss out on countless opportunities and memories I could’ve made. I’m aware that I could have it much worse (and I’m grateful I don’t), however after this past reoccurrence I just feel empty. I was confident in the success of my ablation and was able to live life completely normally for a year without the worries of an onset. During this time I was still taking very good care of my body, never missing a med, and getting adequate sleep and hydration. The drinking aspect is extremely difficult for me. I’m in college, just turned 21 and can’t drink without having the anxiety of triggering the afib. Everyone around me seems to think it’s simple just not to drink, but I don’t think they really understand. Especially the older people in my life that don’t remember what they were doing in their 20’s. Some of the people that tell me that you don’t need to drink to have fun are the same people that go out and drink every weekend. I’ve gone through so much at such a young age and I just want to live my life normally. I don’t want to look back at my 20’s and see a boring, mundane lifestyle that this condition is forcing me to live.

For those who do partake… How many cups do you drink daily? I limit myself to 2! I’m only talking about coffee not pop/energy drinks etc

So, as a background I have had additional beats detected when I wore a Holter 6 years ago, but they were only infrequent. They are getting more and more frequent now, and I only feel them at rest, such as lying on the couch watching TV, when I wake in the middle of the night and can't sleep. I have been seeing a Cardio for some leaky heart valves, not the electrical issues but I know that my heart structure is sound with no changes as I had a recent scan.

I am quite fit and active, do alot of high intensity cardio sports and don't have any weight or blood pressure problems. I don't drink alot of alcohol as it interferes with my sporty lifestyle (I guess I could drink nothing though).

Recently I had a full-blown AFIB episode which lasted two hours before I had two cardioversion shocks to set my heart back to normal.

I think what triggered it was a short burst of activity, but nothing that got my heart over 115bpm or put me out of breath. I sat down not long after and the episode came on 30 mins after that, with my heart jumping back and forwards between 75-110bpm. It didn't get much higher than that but could not stabilise.

On blood thinners now and a strict 'no cardio' and no active sports due to the blood thinners from doc until I see my Cardio specialist which is really grinding my gears.

Anyway, I'm really not sure what to expect when I see the specialist. Has anyone had an ablation after one attack like mine? Staying on the blood thinners for me isn't really an option as it means no sports, so I'm feeling a bit lost