Hi, @tinkercat. I'm 10 years older than you and dealing with similar circulation problems. We may have very different types of A-fib though. Mine is now almost asymptomatic -- no feelings of irregular heartbeats, no breathing difficulties -- although I suffered a "small stroke" 7 years ago that put me on an anti-coagulant -- in my case, Warfarin (Coumadin). That drug brings with it periodic lab tests to make sure its anti-coagulation effects stay within a range that prevents extreme symptoms (bleeding or blood clots). In short, I have no fear that the drug is risky for me to take. As to my hypertension, my special recipe involves several specialized medications -- Carvedilol (a beta blocker to tune down A-fib heartbeats), Amiloride (diuretic that is potassium-sparing), and Eplerenone (diuretic that also addresses my overactive adrenal glands). It has taken a series of medical teams several years to derive my special anti-hypertension recipe, and that emphasizes the importance of bringing a group of cooperating physicians together in search of a stable, reliable treatment plan. My team includes a nephrologist, a cardiologist, and an endocrinologist in addition to my Primary Care Physician and -- at one crucial time -- a genetic consultant on some variations I inherited. I hope you can find a way to have that kind of a medical team to remove your concerns about the risks you feel. Martin