Anyone have 100% success with Ablation?

Well that all sounds very positive Danielle, you must be very relieved.  At least you know that whatever is causing these symptoms is not life threatening.  Hopefully the 48 hour monitor will pick up whether or not the ablation has been successful and you can go from there.  I still think it could be just a healing period for your heart and the anxiety you are understandably  feeling might be making things worse.  All the best.

Danielle, like Mary said, it sounds a lot more positive than it does negative. Its good that the scans didn't reveal any physical cause for the symptoms you've been having. And its also good that you're now back in the medical process until you get the right treatment for this. Keep in touch to let us know how its all going

Hey, you're welcome

Going to the hospital was definitely the best thing to do because you got all those tests done.

I don't think you said you'd been back to your GP. If not, I would definitely do that too. Not only to keep them 'in the loop' but also to discuss the anxiety issues again with someone who knows you for a while.

You might also discuss the 'anxiety medication' that you said had been stopped recently. I don't know what type of medication it was or how long you were on it, and you are well read and thorough so  you've probably taken it into account, but just in case its worth remembering that withdrawal symptoms from such things can be pretty awful and last a long time.

I was on a benzo called Ativan for a few months about four years ago. It was prescribed to help me cope with the stress of a rapidly fatal diagnosis I got for a rare blood cancer and the strong chemo/steroid treatment that followed  (I was one of the lucky few that have survived it because of early diagnosis).

The benzo made a huge difference I'm really grateful for, and wouldn't do anything much differently if I had to go through something like that again. But it took me at least a month, maybe two, of gradually reduced dosage to function calmly or nerve-lessly without it. During that time I had to increase the dosage a few times to feel less edgy before reducing it again.

Stress and anxiety can produce a pretty wide variety of unpleasant physical symptoms so it would be no harm double-checking that you're not still in withdrawal from the medication for it. 

 

My anxiety went unmedicated most my life primarily because I was without insurance. About 5 years ago I found a clinic doctor and they put me on Celexa 20mg, it worked miracles for my anxiety but then after I got pregnant I stopped taking it because of all the birth defects that medications can cause. After the pregnancy I decided to go back on celexa but it didn't do anything for me at all. I gave it some time to kick in and often I was just too busy to go back to the doctor to get something different. The last time I was on it was probably back in January of 2016. I ran out of refills and just got super uninterested in treating it anymore, kind of had this note in the back of my head that I would eventually go to the doctor. Strangely enough after being off the meds for few months I had my first SVT attack and called 911 cause I thought I was going to die and I had never had a palpitation so I didn't know what was going on. I was aware that I had SVT because they discovered it after I had my daughter but at that time I had absolutely no symptoms and they thought I was crazy because I couldn't feel anything but they said the monitor was freaking out with pvc's. My cardio assured me that it was fine and they wouldn't do anything unless something changed for me. I blew it off and actually convinced myself that there was nothing wrong with my heart and the hospital was just trying to make extra money. Of course that frame of thinking all changed almost two years later when my heart nearly blew out of my chest. I stayed the night in the hospital and of course I didn't have another episode while there but just that one episode was enough for me to have the ablation. It was a two month wait so they put me on calan which worked great the first month but then I stArted having these mini 5 minute palpitations that would happen 5 to 12 times a day. While this is all happening I still was not on any anxiety medication. Fast forward to one month after the surgery but prior to the pre syncope, I did see my regular doctor and asked about going on a new anxiety medication but he said he would like to keep me off of them until my heart condition is clear. I made it very clear that I wanted to be on a safe anxiety medication that has the least risk for my type of heart condition. So the moral of the story is that I would love to go back on something but I am also terrified that it might destroy whatever progress I have made. No offense to my primary care doctor but I would rather my cardiologist tell me which drug is the better option. Primary care doctors seem to have no clue about arrhythmias. At least the ones here don't.

I personally couldn't go the benzo route because if it works really well, I would end up liking it too much and I'd have a hard time stopping them. Like you said it took you awhile to manage without it, I couldn't do that. Plus I doubt the doctors would approve it, going from such a elementary drug like celexa to a full blown sedative. They'd think I lost it. Maybe not though I dunno considering how drastic my symptoms are now.

I'm starting to believe the whole anxiety thing, I was hooked up to this holter monitor all day yesterday and didn't feel like fainting at all. I got a minor headache in the afternoon but I didn't get sick. It was a nice day for once besides this holter monitor getting in my way. So I was thinking maybe my anxiety really is that bad. The relief of all the tests they did ruled out a lot of things that were causing me anxiety. I don't know, I almost hope it is just the anxiety because that I think can be easily controlled without surgery or heart medication. I think I just need to calm down and stop getting ahead of myself. I also need to stop looking things up on google cause it's making paranoid. My newest concern are these leads on the monitor cause this tape isn't sticking and I'm worried the results are going be choppy. I don't know how they expect people to do their regular activities with these things on because I can't even sit here without losing my tape.

Goosfraba!

Thanks for sharing that Danielle, I understand a little better now.

I would definitely follow your own advice and stop googling symptoms. A leaflet with a common painkiller will have a warning that it could cause liver or heart failure or something.....I don't think there's a limit to the amount of scary stuff you can find googling symptoms! We've all been there...

I have no real medical knowledge whatsoever, just whatever common sense stuff I've might have picked up through personal experience, so you can't really trust anything I say or advise. I can only guess, especially from this distance.

The mobile monitor should pick up whatever heart palpitations, flutters and jitters you get over the next few days. I now doubt that it will pick up SVT again, or any physical ailment originating within your heart.  My best guess now would be that anxiety, or something else coursing through your mind and/or nervous system, is at the root of most of the symptoms you've mentioned.

If I understand you right, SVT is the only heart condition you have actually been diagnosed with? And its still up in the air what is causing  other stuff like palpitations etc.?

If that's the case, and nothing to do with your heart is diagnosed from the mobile heart monitor results (i.e. in line with the reassuring scans you've just had), then I'd prioritise seeking an answer about whether anxiety is your main ailment.

Is there somewhere else to go apart from the GP you don't seem to have great faith in?

Wow you have really been through the mill Danielle!  I wish you all the very best and hope you get to the bottom of your problems very soon.  Take care.  x

That's good Danielle. Do try to stay positive; I'm a firm believer that is more important for recovery and healing than can be readily explained!

Wishing you much better luck than you've had recently, and let us know how you're getting on.

Wouldn't it be great if a pacemaker could be the answer to it all!  Let's hope for the best Danielle.  x

I'm not at all terrified of a pacemaker, from what I read it doesn't take long to put it in and the recovery is much the same as an ablation.

A friend of mine had a pacemaker fitted 6 months ago.  He said the procedure was painless (similar to an ablation) and from not being able to do very much because of lack of energy and very slow heartbeat he is now back to running again.  Let's hope it's the answer for you too.

Hi again Danielle. Mary's right, my elderly mother had a pacemaker fitted and it was no big deal, so I wouldn't worry about that if it does happen.

The sensation of heart stopping and restarting sounds quite like the  flutters that people often get after an ablation. I think I mentioned that I had them for a month or so after the ablation before thay went away (or I just stopped noticing them). I guess SVT folk are so tuned into heart rhythm and beats that we probably notice minor variations that other people wouldn't. Hopefully that's all it is.

If the cardio people are happy not to see you for two weeks then that's probably a good sign. Fingers crossed for you