Afib and alcohol: Holiday Heart?

Don't drink or smoke, what's next?

I don’t have afib but do have Supra Ventricular Tachycardia that happens when I go jogging. I’m replying as I’m a somewhat heavy wine drinker - 3/4 to full bottle/day. I’m 78. I’m sure I’m pushing my luck!!

I have never used alcohol and have AFIB and A flutter. I suggest you see a cardiologist. The ER doc is probably not qualified to give the kind of advice he gave you. I doubt if giving up your wine will solve your AFIB but it may help in other areas of your life

I havn't had a drop of alcohol in close to 20 years and I have afib. My ablation doc told me what caused my afib was that the electrical connections in my heart were metaphorically "rusty." And he had to ablate the "rust." When he did that the connections could be made and voila! my heart beat in perfect rhythm. Now as to what causes the "rusty" spots to occur, I havn't the slightest idea. For years I tried to figure out what made my heart go out of rhythm. Was it stress? No, on very stressful days my heart would beat regularly, and it would go out of rhythm when I was meditating and extremely calm. Was it the weather? No. It was out on hot days. It was out on cold days. Was it food? No. It was out when I ate Mexican food. It was in when I ate Mexican food. Was it when I exercised? No. It was out when I went to the gym. It was out when I didn't go to the gym. I don't think anyone knows why it goes out. Am I wrong?

I was diagnosed 3/8 after calling an ambulance & going to the ER. I see my regular doctor at 11 am today and then get a referral but I understand it takes about six weeks to see the cardiologist, so I may not have any answers for six more weeks. After thinking long and hard about it, I cannot believe that two glasses of wine would do this to my heart, unless I have been under stress and there were other factors as well. I'm not a heavy drinker. But, thanks for responding. This is an interesting journey so far. It's scary. I have been reading it can reduce your life span too. I was shooting for living for 20 more years, but between this and my osteoporosis I'll be lucky to make it 15 more. I wanted to see all my grandchildren grow up and be mobile and not have dementia--but we all can't get what we want.

You are pushing your luck. I do miss my nightly glass of wine while watching the news. I'm going to miss it a lot when I go visit family. Wine is big part of our family get-togethers.

Hi again, catmom! I wish I could drink wine but I am one of those people (maybe genetically predisposed) for whom alcohol is contraindicated. My heart will race and skip beats if I even have a bit of wine...or chocolate, too much sugar and any stimulant (Coke, coffee, tea, decongestants, epinephrine in dental freezing and stimulants in some supplements). It's all a matter of self education. Just keep away from these things and all should be well.
I, too was in the ER on a number of occasions when I first started with arrhythmia. I told you my daily aerobics story which cured my condition which the cardiologist had said was the worst AFib he had ever seen.
Believe me, if your GP thought your condition was serious, he/she would have sent you straight to emergency. As I told you, the cardiologist told me that he only treats one in ten of patients he sees who have arrhythmia, palpitations, tachycardia etc... (I was that one in ten) And unless it interferes with normal daily functioning in the sense of being short of breath or feeling dizzy etc..., he does not treat them.
My 38 year old daughter has some mild arrhythmia (and has for years) but still drinks alcohol and coffee. The day may come where her heart will tell her to stop.
The heart is strong and occasional skipped beats or racing don't necessarily mean it's about to stop. lol I think some of us are just more sensitive to stimulants. And the simplest solution is to cut them out which is not that great a hardship...and then carry on with life.

Good morning afrobin. It's quite a journey already. My doc appointment is in a few hours and it's the beginning of finding out why I have it and what I can do about it. My heart was quiet for two days at least, maybe three, then last night while I was watching a British mystery I felt flutters. I got to sleep OK at about 9:30 or 10, but woke up at oneish with it beating somewhat irregular but HARD (although not as hard as that night I called the ambulance). I can't think of any triggers. For dinner I had corn tortillas fried in olive oil with pinto beans, sour cream, and Tabasco sauce for dinner, then a few Girl Scout cookies +chamomile tea. So, I guess my heart just does what it wants when it wants to.
Do you ever get chest pains (upper left chest about 4 inches below the clavicle)? I will be asking the GP about that today.
Also, late last week I got a phone call saying I have osteoporosis. I had a bone scan done. I am 65.

I lay in bed awake some nights wondering how long I'm going to live with these two conditions. I'm guessing 15 more years. I might get dementia anyway, so if I go out from a failing heart it's better than suffering many years with dementia. I used to work as a caregiver and made up my mind that going down the long hopeless road of dementia was not for me. So if I had my choice, a failed heart is the better choice. Do you think a lot about death too? I am feeling like I am a morbid person, but with getting hit with these serious and irreversible issues all of a sudden, I'm too preoccupied with it. I started my bucket list yesterday.

Never heard that - but I do know that since my husband has reduced his alcohol consumption he snores less.

A Holiday Heart? Seems to me that if one had a holiday heart it should be connected with chocolates, flowers, presents. I've had afib for 2 years which earned me 3 visits to the ER and two hospital stays. Not one medical person said it was related to alcohol because it isn't so. Afib is probably hereditary. I was sick for a month and half before it was diagnosed. If a medical condition is that difficult to isolate before treatment how could anyone so quickly say it's alcohol related. Doesn't figure. I don't drink and I never have except the time I accidentally got into my dad's hard cider when I was 13. That was a shocker. A cardiologist would not tell you it's alcohol related. Best to you.