Anyone with occasional Afib NOT on a blood thinner?

What you say is true. But I know many people who are ignorant of any type of prevention or natural ways to be healthy. Many doctors only dole out drugs. What you are saying is from your experience, and the same for me. I throw in my 2 cents for those who it may help. I have seen and experienced too much to not want others to go through needless pain and health issues that can be simply alleviated. It is not my intention to offend anyone.

@lindy9 I declined blood thinners 10 years ago and take magnesium, drink low sodium V-8 for potassium, and various other supplements. I don't eat after 5, exercise daily and only lie on my right side. The AFib Cure book is a great resource supporting these approaches. (For other meds, like osteoporosis meds, I work with doctors to keep doses low and monitor effects on kidneys and heart. I took cancer meds for 5 years and am still here.)

I do expect to be on anticoagulants at some point. For now I am grateful to have finally received some for short term use if ever needed. Dilitiazem IV in the ER for episodes brings heart rate down from 200 to 90.

I just don't want it to seem like a moral issue whether drugs are used or not. I have a kid on insulin who would be dead a long time ago without Big Pharma! My personal experience with medications and doctors is complex- and flexible- and sometimes there is not other option but medications- for many people. Many things can go wrong with our complicated bodies and natural approaches, while they might be tried first, don't always suffice- but always good as supplements.

Did the hospital that did they use a TEE. Note TEE has a much better diagnosis for a blood clot.
https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/heart-attack/diagnosing-a-heart-attack/transesophageal-echocardiography-tee#:~:text=TEE%20can%20give%20clearer%20pictures,the%20heart%2C%20than%20standard%20echocardiograms
"If blood clots are in the chambers of your heart, in particular the upper chamber, such as those caused by atrial fibrillation."

What I meant was that most of us have episodes that are not symptomatic from time to time. The only way to rule this out would seem to be full time monitoring. I think the rationale for continuing anti coagulation even after successful ablation ( as is the case for me) is that it can come back and not be sensed by the patient. I think there is some discussion about stopping after a number of years of repeated monitoring but not sure where that is at the moment. I know there are risks to either approach. I do not think physician liability is an issue in Canada where I live but could be in the US.

@harveywj no they did not use a TEE.

@roba7 my thorax is tiny and I have several spinal fractures that have altered the thoracic structure. Net result is I feel afib and am clearly fortunate in that. Nevertheless I have monitoring once in awhile to make sure I am not having afib that I do not feel!

The biggest issue with Dr Google is that you are being both physician and patient. Yes, there is some good info on the net mixed with a lot of misinformation or outright lies. It had long been said that the physician who treats him/herself has a fool for a patient. Your choice

It is my choice. I am 75 and have had a lifetime of bad experiences with doctors. It is not foolish to investigate the side effects of medications. It is foolish not to. They are also printed on the labels usually in print so small that you need microscope to read.

When someone writes that they need help with a so-called disease that has a name I never heard of, and I look up and it simply means low potassium and her being sold something that she cannot swallow it is so horrible, looking up what FOODS you can eat instead is not foolish. It is a simple solution. I had the similar experience and and was also given some gobblygook and could not drink it The pastor's wife told me to eat bananas. I did and viola I was fine.!

I have had so many bad experiences I could write a book. How I take care of myself has resulted better than most people I know. I have a list of 34 people that I knew that died, and almost all younger than me, died early because of their bad health decisions. Just this morning as almost every day, I cut down weeds for an hour and a half and then walked to town up and down hills. I know people my age that can barely creep around and are full of meds.

This morning, I went to visit my friend who told me she went for urine tests this morning because she said she was not urinating much!. I asked her how much she drank daily. She said very little.!!! I told her, if you only put in a little, only a little can come out!!. She got laughing so hard, she about wet her pants. She also has other problems because of wheat and too much sugar. etc. But there on her table was a cake pan with only one piece left. She said she could not resist.

The net and google is not the only place that gives misinformation and bad advice. - doctors do too, because of what the drug salesmen tells them, what they are taught, or mandated procedures that are profitable.

We all have choices. And we will all experience the consequences of the choices we make.

@lindy9 - you have made many good points here. And you are one of the few who appear to be “walking the walk” on many of the basic essentials for good health: exercise, diet, sleep, etc. That in itself is inspiring. My reference to the “physician having a fool for a patient” was not meant to discourage people from becoming informed about the details of their care, including side effects of drugs versus the benefits for your particular condition, and other recommendations for surgery or other treatment. The point is that in the course of our lives, and particularly with health care, there are times when we need the unbiased diagnosis of a health care practitioner. I don’t know your story, but mine has involved many such situations. Despite having both the internet and health care education, in the end it came down to whether I was going to trust my caregivers or just go it on my own. That is where, after all the questions and answers, we have to choose who to trust. Doctors are not perfect, but many other practitioners also have a history of the same faults. I wish you the best.

Tuve una fibrilación auricular en un momento yque me hizo sentir muy muy mal Tuve que internarme y quedé medicada con rivaroxaban, flecainida y bisoprolol. No tuve ningún episodio más a pesar de estar sometida rutinariamente estudios y controles. Justamente ayer conversé con el cardiólogo sobre la posibilidad de retirar la medicación. No está de acuerdo a pesar de continuos controles durante un periodo de tiempo y sin repeticion. Pero realmente no lo veo con intención real de quitar los medicamentos. Justamente al día siguiente de mi episodio de arritmisa , se me diagnóstico COVID. Puede haber sido un episodio relacionado con el covid ,pero dejar la medicación sin hacer exhaustivos controles antes, es arriesgado. Veremos. cuál es el siguiente paso a largo tiempo.

@mecha how long did that episode last?

My episodes land me in the ER or hospital with very rapid heart rate. But they generally last 45 minutes to two hours, with one lasting 7 hours. After 10 years I am still not taking any medications, with the recent blessing of an electrophysiologist. Maybe your episode lasted a long time. I did finally get a prescription for Eliquis to take after an episode, short term, and diltiazem to try at home (vs ER) if I have an episode with blood pressure that isn't too low. If blood pressure is low, I go to the ER.