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Post Ablation Recovery – Need Help!!
Heart Rhythm Conditions | Last Active: Jun 11, 2019 | Replies (30)Comment receiving replies
sayaboleh….thank you! Your response was very reassuring, especially when you said you thought you understood what I meant about the deep breaths. You have been through so much more than me, I'm really impressed with your outlook. I think I said that from the time I was diagnosed with AFIB until I had the ablation was only 5 months! YOU are talking about YEARS of enduring AFIB and multiple ablations and cardioversion's. I am just beginning my third month post ablation and already my episodes are SO much less frequent, less intense and don't last nearly as long.....the relief I feel is sometimes overwhelming. But.....being the anxious person I am, I think "But what if my EP says it hasn't "worked." NOBODY has talked with me about that. I don't even know how they figure out if it has worked or not. Do they just go by what I say? Do they do an EKG, which is OK but those tests only tell you what your heart is doing AT THAT MOMENT, do they have you wear a Holter or event monitor for awhile? I know if it hasn't worked, they will discuss "the next step" with me at that time, but I wish I knew NOW what those "next steps" might be so I don't have to keep worrying about the "WHAT IF'S!" I know I should just take your advice and distract myself...….just be happy with the improvement, and take it one day at a time as I finish healing. Unfortunately, having anxiety disorder makes that more difficult. (And yes, I've been through years of therapy for the PTSD that has left me with panic disorder) I WILL try, Mary, I will try very hard to focus on the improvement rather than the negative possibilities. I will reread your post every time I feel myself slipping into anxiety...…….(((HUG)))
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@rubywitch67 So glad you're slowly feeling and doing better. Actually the cardioversions are the easiest thing to deal with - I've had to deal with much more - open heart surgery, lung issues, etc.. BUT - they were all manageable and behind me and and it certainly could be a lot worse. I feel fortunate that I am able to do the things I like -- bake, exercise, hike etc. and only have to deal with the occasional bumps in the road (as my EP calls it) You raise an important question about how success rates are calculated for ablations -- there really is no consensus in the EP medical community (someone else can call me on that!) There is the blanking period of course of 3 months. Then you need to be free of sustained episodes (where you do not come out of it for days/weeks) for a year. Based on that definition my second ablation was a success, never mind that I will most likely need a third one either this year or next. Most of it really is based on how you feel and how the episodes impact your quality of life. My doctors are fine if I am in persistent afib or flutter if my symptoms are tolerable and my heart rate stays below 120 at rest. If you get a lot of episodes that come and go they might order a 2 week heart monitor called Ziopatch which will tell them what's going on. You are right that an ECG only captures for that moment in time and only helpful if you are not in sinus. BTW, my EP did not want to raise my expectations so he only gave me a 50% success rate for my ablations. Some will say that is huge - I thought it was dismal! The EP who actually did my ablations (mine was super booked up) said he would be happy if it lasted 2 years and it has been 3 months shy of that. So what's next? It depends of course. My EP laid it all out for me in an email and I will see him in a few days to discuss the 3 options he proposed. I suggest that you not worry too much and focus on getting well because anxiety and stress is not good for overall health. I know that is difficult if you have an anxiety disorder but good to hear you are going to try and stay positive. That is so important I think. Cheers and hang in there! Mary