Living with AF
My Life and AF - Bob's story
My AF probably started with a chest infection...I had my first symptoms on a work conference 6 months later when, at 3 am I woke up with my heart pounding my chest in a crazy rhythm.
Silent AF may not be recognised or detected . . .
. . . for James, the diagnosis of Atrial Fibrillation followed the shock of suffering a stroke when he was just 58.
Out and about with AF is not so easy as Liz found
After several years of “funny turns”, lasting from a few minutes to several hours, repeated visits to the GP etc, a serious episode in November 2006 with a heart rate of 160, cold sweats, breathlessness & feeling very faint, led to an emergency 999 trip to the hospital and finally a diagnosis of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation.
AF but no NHS, a distant dream to more help, John's story from India
In June 2006 I noticed I was breathing with irregularity, so went to a local cardiologist for a checkup. I already had hypertension and was borderline diabetes, now, after tests were carried out, I was diagnosed with Atrial Fibrillation. Current drugs continued with Warfarin being added to my daily cocktail.
Finding a Life I can enjoy alongside AF
"I went on working for two to three years after developing arrhythmias, during which time I had twenty + admissions, which rendered me unreliable for my nursing posts as it affected other team members. Hence my premature retirement at the age of 55 on medical grounds, after 37 years of service with the NHS!
It seemed to me once you had one arrhythmia it just followed on to others, although I knew this was not the case. I had an ablation for flutter, but soon developed runs of Atrial Fibrillation after the ablation. After a further ablation for another problem, I kept pretty well for nearly two years. However, it now looks as though I may need a third ablation for another type of arrhythmia.
Unlike many other medical problems, most of the time people with arrhythmias look fit and healthy, and even when you are not feeling brilliant, so you just try and get on with life. People keep telling you how well you look...and then you feel a bit of a fraud!
I've had other complications as well, with severe hypertension, and then was diagnosed with diabetes a couple of years ago. Thankfully, I'm managing to control my diabetes on diet alone, even though it is just something else to get your head around! Luckily I'd run Diabetic clinics for the past fifteen years, but it came as a bit of a shock!
I've found going to the Phase IV Cardiac Rehab class a God-send, and a positive experience, as no gyms or leisure centre would take me on with my medical history - but I'd put on a stone since becoming unwell! I also swim half a mile twice weekly which is excellent for the whole body, but especially the heart and lungs! I've also had to amend my driving - I've had several periods when I've been advised not to drive for several weeks or months.
Although it is a whole new world, and sometimes AF seems like a 'scourge', I can say there have been some pleasant surprises since my forced retirement. Almost by accident, a year ago, I set up a little jewelry business in my village, which has kept me occupied and very busy! I feel a success despite a forced retirement; and I no longer suffer guilt, embarrassment or worry when I am unwell, because I am no longer responsible for letting down a whole team of nurses. Fortunately, I now have someone willing to cover me, even at short notice! If somebody had told me two years ago that I would be a business woman, I would have laughed out loud!
I have kept my Royal College of Nursing membership and insurance up to date, in the hope that I might be able to return to nursing, but when I am unwell I am reminded I why I retired early!
So, my message is to keep positive, explore every possibility and you will also hopefully find a silver lining to your cloud!!!"
By Mary Anne Cochrane
How AF has affected my Life, by Rufus Dunne
Rufus Dunne explains the effect successful treatment by Catheter Ablation of AF has had on his life.
A Woman's Guide to Saving her Own Life by Melanie True Hills
# 1 Female Health Hazard Nearly Killed Her - Now She Helps Women Fight Back
Interview by Mellanie True Hills
(DALLAS) Heart disease kills more women than men in the U.S. and has for 20 years. How could we possibly lose almost half a million women each year in the U.S. to cardiovascular diseases (heart disease and stroke) and not hear more about it? The American Heart Association also reports that heart disease and stroke account for 40% of women's deaths.
That's almost 1,400 women every day-1 every minute-10 times as many as we lose to breast cancer, and 5 times as many as to all cancers combined. Forty percent of us - 2 of every 5 women - will get, and die from, cardiovascular disease. If you have a family history of heart disease, your risk is even higher.
Mellanie True Hills, author of A Woman's Guide To Saving Her Own Life: The Heart Program For Health And Longevity, is a heart disease survivor, nearly dying in emergency heart surgery several years ago. Using her second chance, she coaches individuals on creating healthy lifestyles and works with organizations to create healthy, productive workplaces. She is also the founder and CEO of the American Foundation for Women's Health, a non-profit organization dedicated to education and awareness about women's health issues.
Hills can discuss:
- Her surprising story of heart disease
- What a heart attack is and why it is happening at younger ages than ever before
- Why we lose more women than men to heart attacks
- Why women are more vulnerable to workplace stress
- The four main symptoms of a woman's heart attack & how they differ from men's
- What men need to know about protecting their wives from her worst enemy
- Why you're still at risk even if you don't smoke, don't have high blood pressure, high cholesterol or family history
- Stroke symptoms
- An effective health regimen for women and how people can create a plan they can stick to
A Woman's Guide to Saving Her Own Life is Hills' story and a workbook designed to guide readers through the process of making permanent and life-saving changes.
For more information, visit www.StopAfib.org or www.MellanieHills.com