Feelings of anxiety post ablation

My husband and I went on vacation to France in June; he had a bike accident there, got a pneumothorax and spent five days in ICU. We were then forced to stay in France another two weeks after the chest tube came out before we could safely fly home. Talk about stress! Hospital stay, major communication issues, severe heat wave, finding a place to stay, finding a way to get medications refilled, laundry done, grocery store for cooking, transportation, insurance paperwork, cancelled airline tickets, small town 90 miles from Paris--the list goes on! But we made it and if that didn't trigger an attack of A-fib, I don't know what would. So stress can sometimes be a good thing because I didn't have time or energy to worry about my condition; and surprisingly I never missed a beat in all the time we were there--30 days! You will make it; try not to worry and just enjoy the your success. I am really looking forward to getting this done! I'll let you know!

How terrifying and frustrating for you! I started my AFib journey nine years ago and am a 79 year old female. It might be a different experience for a female but not sure. I’ve never owned a smartwatch but knew right away when the palpitations were starting up. For whatever reason the artery in my right side neck would start hurting like I was getting strep throat. Then the heart would starting racing and it would continue for one to two hours but with no pain in the chest or arms. I was told to wait it out if there wasn’t a tightening in the chest so I would put my feet up in a recliner and just try to be calm. I got this twice a month and it was always brought on by worrying and stress as I am a perfectionist and a worrier. I was on a beta blocker and blood thinner for nine years. A few years ago I asked to be put on an anti anxiety pill Sertraline - which kept the palpitations away but made me feel drugged. In Canada one has to be tested for AFib for quite sometime before qualifying for an ablation because our universal healthcare pays for it. My cardiologist finally booked me for a catheter ablation last March and so far so good except for some anxiety in the morning. I tend to over think everything and I will always be a perfectionist and worrier - so I did mention it to the surgeon yesterday and he said I’m fine and not to worry. Ha! I sure hope you get things sorted out - hopefully you’ll get a doctor who understands what you are going through. Maybe having a smart watch is making you more anxious and of course thinking about your family history doesn’t help. Take care. xo

Thanks for your very reassuring reply! I appreciate your taking the time, to help ease my concerns. I, also, am a perfectionist and a worrier! I am, also, 79! Additionally, I am a caregiver to my wife! My wife was starting to have a heart attack about 30 years ago, when she was working in the Emergency Room, of a hospital, in Cleveland, Ohio. A wise Doctor tested her, when he saw her becoming symptomatic. They put her in an ambulance and sent her to The Cleveland Clinic Heart Center! The Cleveland Clinic is known for it’s outstanding heart disease expertise! They performed a quintuple bypass operation, that saved her life! She’s had 3 minor heart attacks since, and has had 4 stents put in her arteries, at the regional hospital, where we live now. She’s is in heart failure now! My wife also suffers from metabolic systemic disease, where she has Diabetes, and kidney problems. She can basically care for her basic personal needs, but, being so short of breath, I do most of the other chores etc. So, there are several reasons for my anxiety! Ironically, my dog, a Bichon Friese, was recently disgnosed with diabetes, so we give him 2 shots a day! My wife, also, is a Canadian citizen. She and her parents emigrated legally, to the United States when my wife was a youngster! We cancelled our annual trip to Canada,🇨🇦 to visit relatives, this year, because of the difficulties at the border. We love Canada, and wanted to see her first cousin, especially, this year, because last year, she had lost her business and house, in the horrible Jasper Park forest fire, 🔥 where the whole town was burned to the ground! I believe stress and worry added to my A-fib attacks! Thanks again for your wise advice. It will help me cope better! Take care!

Wow! Life throws a curve! When I had my ablation scheduled for March 4th after waiting for two years - a waiting list due to funding here in Canada - in February my husband fell on black ice walking the dog and torn his knee tendon and had to have surgery - so when I got home from my surgery I had to nurse him back to health while I recuperated myself - a definite test for my heart and marriage! Ha! We made it through okay. So yes, let us know how you do after the ablation - they will tell you that there is a blanking phase after it when you can get palpitations and that this is normal as the heart is healing, etc. You’ll be just fine. xo

Thank you for the encouragement. Hope your husband is doing okay. Isn't it funny how we think things are rough until something really happens that is "rough" and we somehow make it through. (BTW: dear Canada, how we normal Americans appreciate your decency and courage standing up to our present bully administration.) How was the recovery period from your ablation. I was told no heavy exercise for at least a week. We go to the gym every day so this is going to be a change for me. My husband is thrilled, however! LOL Did you feel better after a few days? I'm not too worried, but I am a do-er so I don't know how long I can just sit still! xo

What you are experiencing is normal. As much as it feels abnormal, it's natural...for you, particularly. If I can switch it around to me for a minute: after both a work-up angiogram (catheterization through the wrist in preparation for an ablation, and then after the first of two ablations I had seven months apart, I had trouble falling asleep. Well, not quite accurate...i was sleepy and wanted to sleep, and did fall asleep, but only for ten seconds at a time. I would awaken gasping for air. I had what is known as 'sleep onset central apnea'. Central apnea, unlike obstructive apnea, is a problem with CO2 regulation in the blood, and the central nervous system doesn't respond to rising concentration of CO2. You don't breathe because you're running out of serum oxygen. You breathe because your levels of serum CO2 rise above a threshold and if makes you start breathing to flush more of it out! Strang, I know, but it's a fact. But, to continue, for several days after the angiogram and after that first ablation, I would fall asleep numerous times and then come awakes several long seconds later gasping for air. As you would understand, this was not fun. I was desperate to get some rest!
But my main message is that it passed. In both instances, it passed after a week or so. If things go well, yours will, too. What you must do is self-talk. Have a talk to yourself, aloud if it helps, and tell your mind that you have been relieved of AF, that you feel well, and that you have the best science and technology at your disposal for this problem. You are well, you are fed, you are clothed, you are sheltered, and you have the means to conquer the problems you encounter in your life. This is but one of them, hopefully to be a closed chapter after your Holter assessment showing no further arrhythmia.
Another strategy is to begin to claw back 'normalcy' in your routine and former practices and enjoyments. Make sure you get between 30 and 60 minutes, generally, of walking or aerobic exercise each day (if you have no physical limitations). Eat well....meet with friends. Restore your life to its former glory. You have been granted a reprieve and should celebrate. Allow yourself to feel good about your life, your overall health, and over your many successes, this being just the latest.

Gloaming, what is treatment for central apnea?

The only treatment currently approved that sufferers say works best, and I'm not talking about any medication that might be known to help, is what is called an 'adaptive servo-ventilator' or ASV. It's the same beast that the hospitals use for COVID patients who are in a bad way and unconscious, not able to do much of their own breathing. I don't know what the professional machines cost, probably USD $4K or so, but the RESMED version are about $2K. That's two or three times what a regular CPAP machine costs. But the ASVs do a much better job at both detecting that a central event is happening, and then puffing down the hose and stimulating the unconscious patient to resume breathing. That's the mechanism. The machine monitors flow via a 'manometer' in the hose, and if it senses that there is an 'open airway' (no obstruction), then it knows to send several higher pressure pulses down the hose as a nudge. For the most part, most patients with diagnosed and otherwise poorly treated CSA, the ASV works well. Note that your insurer, if you need help from them, will want a formal diagnosis in all cases, and they may even resist purchasing an ASV until you have exhausted all other forms of PAP therapy, including Bi-PAP and AutoPAP.

Thanks for sharing this! I’m just starting on this journey of being diagnosed with A-Fib! My first episode lasted 5 minutes, and I felt my heart flop around in my chest. I ran an ECG with my Apple Smart Watch, and it stated that it was arterial fibrillation ( very erratic heart beating on the ecg graph line ). The watch stated in a message that I should calk my Doctor and 911 emergency. It was 5:30 am. So I woke my wife up. I had pain in my left shoulder, and felt light headed. She said “take a Propanolol capsule medicine”! I took that, and was going to call 911, but then my heart suddenly reverted back to beating in a regular manner. I took another ECG reading that stated back in regular sinus rythym! Anyway, I’ve been anxious ever since! After a cardiologist appointment, where I was told that A-fib patients have a 4X greater chance of having a stroke, than other people, that made me have an anxiety attack, cause my Mom, Dad, and Sister had all died from massive strokes! The Cardiologist put a halter monitor on me for 14 days! During that time, I had a 45 minute attack of A-Fib, that left me terrified! So now, when I went to my first neurology appt. with a new to me Doctor, just a few days after the A-fib attack, he diagnosed me with a ‘mental’ disorder ( either anxiety or depression ). That appointment did not go well!!