Oh, my goodness! You were exactly what I needed to hear this morning! A person after my own heart! I absoluely agree with almost everything you said! And once the docs lay a diagnosis on you, it never goes away! I am a retired nurse and I know how to read, research, discern and make a reasonable decision for myself. I know how to ask questions and advocate for myself; this is something that most lay persons don't know how to do or are afraid to do. My husband is a case in point! I have to give him a list of questions that are reasonable to ask when he goes to the doctor and even then, the one doctor said to him "why don't you just bring your wife next time!" So insulting! I am 79 and I can out-exercise a lot of people 1/2 my age. I will not take this A-fib as an excuse to be medicated to death. I decided to take what I am comfortable with and see what happens. I have made life-style changes that I can live with--1/2 caf coffee, no alcohol, lost weight, exercise every day faithfully, eat right and make certain I get decent sleep at night. My B/P is fine all the time--except when I go into see the doc when I get white coat syndrome from being ticked off and then he can't understand what is wrong with me! Anyway, I loved what you said; wish we were neighbors!