Afib

Share your tips for safe hiking, surviving in the wild and managing hiking injuries!
Post Reply
stevenrbi
Posts: 35
Joined: July 20th, 2013, 10:39 am
Location: SE Portland

Afib

Post by stevenrbi » December 7th, 2015, 6:49 pm

I have just recently been diagnosed with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation. For those not familiar with this; Afib is a fairly common condition where your heart rhythm becomes irregular . It can happen any where and at any time. There are triggers: alcohol, caffeine, heavy exercise that can bring an episode on but it's not a given that any of these triggers will always cause you to have an Afib episode. I was wondering if anyone else has this condition and had to deal with this while on a hike and, if so, how did you handle it?

User avatar
aiwetir
Posts: 600
Joined: December 10th, 2014, 11:54 am
Contact:

Re: Afib

Post by aiwetir » December 7th, 2015, 7:29 pm

I've had and have a few different heart arrhythmias over the years but afib isn't one of them. There is nothing I can do about mine and so the only thing I have any control over is my reaction to them. As far as I remember, there are maybe a couple medications that may or may not help but essentially they are out of your control.

What I don't recommend is what I did. I started freaking out about them and developed an anxiety disorder over the whole thing. It's pretty long behind me, but I don't enjoy them at all. Then again I never did.

From what I understand, moderate intensity and volume exercise is a perfect thing to help with most heart arrhythmias and hiking for most people is moderate.

I'm not a doctor so, you know, disclaimer goes here.
- Michael

stevenrbi
Posts: 35
Joined: July 20th, 2013, 10:39 am
Location: SE Portland

Re: Afib

Post by stevenrbi » December 9th, 2015, 10:38 am

"What I don't recommend is what I did. I started freaking out about them and developed an anxiety disorder over the whole thing. It's pretty long behind me, but I don't enjoy them at all. Then again I never did.
From what I understand, moderate intensity and volume exercise is a perfect thing to help with most heart arrhythmias and hiking for most people is moderate."

Thanks for the reply. Anxiety around this is a real issue for me. I'll take your advise and try and not let it control me. My doctor has also recommended moderate exercise as a way to minimize this arrhythmia.
Steve

User avatar
Waffle Stomper
Posts: 3707
Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm

Re: Afib

Post by Waffle Stomper » December 9th, 2015, 10:58 am

I had a friend who had arrhythmias induced by a thyroid issue which has been resolved once the thyroid had been controlled. She had anxiety for a long time after when she hiked or did any physical activity, especially when alone.

I have occasional "palpitations" which the doctor is treating as a wait and see because I have no symptoms when I come into the office. Even at that I get concerned.

I'm curious, are you on any medication for blood thinning?
"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe." - John Muir

stevenrbi
Posts: 35
Joined: July 20th, 2013, 10:39 am
Location: SE Portland

Re: Afib

Post by stevenrbi » December 9th, 2015, 2:06 pm

The only blood thinner I take now is a 325mg aspirin daily. I also take 50mg of Atenolol for heart rate control. I use to take 100mg daily but it made me too tired. I wish there was a "pill in the pocket" solution for this but my doctor says there is nothing out there now.
Steve

User avatar
Waffle Stomper
Posts: 3707
Joined: May 28th, 2008, 10:03 pm

Re: Afib

Post by Waffle Stomper » December 9th, 2015, 3:01 pm

Bummer about not having a "pill in the pocket" solution. My friend did carry pills when she went out but her condition was related to thyroid. I was wondering if the doctor prescribed aspirin. Other products I find scary because of a family history of head injuries.
"When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the Universe." - John Muir

User avatar
4DMTNS
Posts: 158
Joined: September 26th, 2010, 7:05 pm
Location: Portland

Re: Afib

Post by 4DMTNS » December 12th, 2015, 7:16 pm

For almost two years now I've hiked with an unpredictable heart arrhythmia called SVT (supra-ventricular tachycardia) as a result of having emergency heart valve replacement surgery. As an avid hiker and snowshoer I also had anxiety over lifetime blood thinners (for mechanical valves) and an unpredictable heart rhythm would change my life as I knew it. My resting heart rate is 50-60bpm, when the SVT hits my heart rate jumps to 160-180bpm.

Complicating my situation more was that I work as a hospital nurse on a cardiac unit. Please keep in mind that this is my story, and NOT intended as advice.


I dealt with my situation by reaching out to my personal physician as well as my cardiologist and working with them to get my rhythm under better control. I struggled through dose adjustments to the heart rate medication, enduring fatigue at times on the higher doses and anxiety at times on the lower doses until we found the right dose. This took 3-4 months in my situation, and at times it felt like I would never see the trails I loved again because of my anxiety about having an uncontrollable heart rate.

Once the dose seemed balanced, we developed a plan to handle an episode of my rhythm getting out of control if I was hiking.

Throughout all of this I developed a strong personal relationship with the primary advice nurse and two of the physician assistants at my cardiologist's office. I openly shared my anxiety and fear with them about hiking BUT I also advocated to not give up.

While I sometimes find walking boring, I did find it helpful during all the medication adjustments. It allowed me to get out alone, test the new medication dose effectiveness, and I could be near people should something go wrong. You see my biggest fear was that if my heart rate got too out of control, I would pass out, hit my head or worse, and nobody would be around to help me.

Once the medications got balanced, the anxiety was reduced. Some would say my returning to solo hiking, road adventures and soon to be solo snowshoeing is insane. However, my reply is always the same ... I know the statistics, I know my risks, and my guy knows what joy this brings to me. I didn't have valve surgery to sit around, I had the surgery to live. And live I do these days.

Getting through the anxiety takes time. Education with reliable medical literature, advocating for myself with my physicians, developing an honest, open relationship with my care-team, and taking it slow made my anxiety subside. When I try something new, push harder than I have before both physically or emotionally (ex: solo BLM camping), I still have short SVT bursts. I engage my what-if plan and ride it out.

While this was long-winded, I hope it helps you in your situation. Please keep in mind that this is my story, and NOT intended as advice.
I'm almost always the sweep on my hikes ... it gives me an opportunity to taste test all the edible berries I seem to find.

Where's Chris?
Instagram WhereIsChrisNow

stevenrbi
Posts: 35
Joined: July 20th, 2013, 10:39 am
Location: SE Portland

Re: Afib

Post by stevenrbi » December 14th, 2015, 11:03 am

4DMTNS wrote: I dealt with my situation by reaching out to my personal physician as well as my cardiologist and working with them to get my rhythm under better control. I struggled through dose adjustments to the heart rate medication, enduring fatigue at times on the higher doses and anxiety at times on the lower doses until we found the right dose. This took 3-4 months in my situation, and at times it felt like I would never see the trails I loved again because of my anxiety about having an uncontrollable heart rate.

Once the dose seemed balanced, we developed a plan to handle an episode of my rhythm getting out of control if I was hiking.
This is great advise. I think being up front with your cardiologist on what you want to do while under medication and minimizing the impact to your quality of life is really key in being in control of your situation. I'm going to do the same and hope my situation turns out as well as yours.
Steve

Post Reply