CT Scan

CT scan

After my visit with the electrophysiologist I had a very early appointment to get to the Ottawa Heart Institute on August 17th. Here's the list of things I had to do before the appointment:

• No caffeine
• Fast for two hours prior to appointment
• Hydrate well during the two hours
• 1^st floor and wait in the waiting room until called by the nurse
• An injection will be administered
• Bring list of medications and health card

Of course the meeting with the electrophysiologist and then following up with a CT scan was tough so lack of quality sleep was tricky.

I got to the Heart Institute early enough, but when they said hydrate well I really overdid it as I needed to take a pee break as soon as I walked into the UOHI. Then went again like three more times before getting called. 😌😞

Once I got into the assessment room they wired me up for an ECG and bam I went into AFib. The nurse talked to the tech and asked if they could still do that with the CT scan or not.

A side bar the UOHI is under renovation and their regular CT scan was inaccessible so they had their older one which wouldn't be able to capture quivering hearts.

The room was well air conditioned to the point where it was meat locker cold. Of course this doesn't help matters when your heart is fluttering, the room is cold and you are being stuffed into a giant magnet!

How would you feel? 😨😨

Regardless of how it went I did NOT get the injection, but was instructed to just hold my breath so they could capture the image(s).

It worked to some degree, but I would not be surprised if I have to go for another follow up scan.

So I felt very deflated/defeated on that experience. Damn Bladder and Damn you Heart for not cooperating!

Next post Cycling...

The Electrophysiologist

The Electrophysiologist

August 16th

I met with my electrophysiolgist for the first time. I am very impressed at the turnaround I have been receiving since being diagnosed with Atrial Fibrillation.

The meeting started with his nurse (Aseel) who I met when I took the Atrial Fibrillation Class back on the 9th when I first learned that the Ottawa Heart Institute held these information sessions.

A bit of a side bar since I didn't post about this as it was held in their main auditorium at the UOHI that the class is for anyone wanting to learn more about this Arrythmia condition and the symptoms, diagnosis and potential way forwards.

I felt like the youngest if not the youngest in the crowd, but worthwhile session. However, I digress.

After my discussion with the intake nurse and going over family history and some of the medications and history thus far since the positive fitness test.

That was at least 30+ minutes of reviewing and notes on what my lifestyle was like at home, work and extra-curricular activities.

Once that interview was done I met Dr. Mehrdad Golian. This would be the cardiologist assigned to me to go over my options.

So here they are with how they were presented.

1. Do nothing and continue with the medications I am on and pretty much deal/live with the arrythmia (AFib)
2. Add another medicine to control my arrythmia, but at another consequence of side effects.
3. Proceed with an Ablation

The discussion was pretty much decided for me going into the appointment. However, there are always risks when you opt in for an invasive procedure as well as this is your main organ that keeps you alive!

So after some more discussion and of course more tests I asked to be put on the list for the procdure. In the meantime, I was to be schedule for and in no particular order:

• Thyroid blood test
• CT scan
• Echocardiogram
• Sleep Apnea test

Yep more testing to figure out where I am with this AFib. I'll put some links below on my cardiologist and what is Electrophysiology.

In addition the Ablation Procdure

Dr. Golian

https://www.ottawaheart.ca/physician-researcher-profile/golian-mehrdad

Electrophysiology w/ Standard Ablation

https://www.ottawaheart.ca/the-beat/2013/04/28/cardiac-electrophysiology-repairing-rhythms-heart

Ablation (Complex)

https://www.ottawaheart.ca/complex-ablation-patient-guide

Next post...CT scan!

The Holter Monitor

The Holter Monitor

So just a day after my visit to the ER I followed it up with a visit to the Ottawa Heart Institute to be fitted for my Holter Monitor.

As defined by the Ottawa Heart Institute:
https://www.ottawaheart.ca/test-procedure/ambulatory-electrocardiogram-holter-monitor

The Holter monitor is a portable device used to make a continuous recording of your heart rate and rhythm as you go about your daily routine. Information from the device is used to detect any heart rhythm abnormalities, to help determine whether your medications need adjusting, or to match symptoms with heart activity.

So I wore this appartus for two solid weeks and only removed it when necessary to shower. I was concerned I wouldn't have any "pasties" left as I was told to go about my activities as normal.
That included cycling, running and even my cross training at Orange Theory Fitness. That was a tough one to work around, but I managed and was able to gather a lot of data for them.

Sleeping with the Holter was a challenge as I was worried I would pull out/off the leads, but surprisingly they were pretty good. I never wore the passport holder they supplied I just used a pair of my running shorts and stuffed in the pocket and no problem.
The one issue was all the pasties. I only had three to put on, but for those that had more, you have my sympathy as I think I developed a bit of a rash. I don't think I was allergic, but it was definitely during the heat wave of the summer in latter July/August. I returned the holter on the 2nd of August as the last day and my last set of pasties was the previous day and the instructions were not to wear the day of return so it worked out.

I never did get an appointment to go over my results, but the beauty of the Ottawa Heart Institute is that you can login to your account and see all the reports and diagnostics that are posted about you. Very handy!
Onto the next post when I meet the Electrophysiologist!

ER

ER

Now onto the next story!
After wallowing for about two weeks and trying to track my BP and maintain some schedule of the meds I'm on. The beta blocker (BB), blood thinner (BT) and the BP meds. So I chunked it out to one of the BP in the morning with the BT and then the other BP/BT in the evening. It kind of worked for the most part. I definitely felt an immediate impact as I was trying to do my normal activities and definitely running was extremely hard as the BB kept me from pushing my HR higher. The meds were definitely doing their job as well as really holding me back which they were supposed to.
So fast forward to the morning of July 17th and this is where the story unfolds. I got to work at my usual time and of course I car pool so I had my SUV. I'm at work checking emails and I'm texting with one of the work wives. We were chatting and as I was also responding to emails I was feeling a bit off. My HR rate dipped down to around the 30s. Keep in mind that I'm a person who rarely takes medication so the side effects were huge to me! 😵 Dizziness and light headed are on the top of the list. I mentioned to her that I felt light headed and of course her momming me meant a call home. Of course Kiera goes call the pharmacist, pharmacist said hmm sounds like your BB is giving you problems. Keep in mind the BB was only half a tablet so half dose once a day. He then directs me to call my GP. My GP was too busy so the nurse takes my call and says what your describing sounds like you are having heart issues similar to that of a cardiac arrest. OK 😧 now I call back the wife and basically she tells me to head to the ER but what do I do? Yep you guessed it I drove home. Yes in retrospect probably not the brightest idea even after telling my boss he recommended if it got worse to pull over and call 911. BUT I made it home and we went to the QCH ER.
If you haven't been to their ER well it was under construction so it was a tad confusing to start. You had to check in with your health card then you sat while you waited to be called to the triage room. I was told to sit in the blue chair and not the other colour chair. I don't really know what that means, but I guess it meant that I would be called sooner? No clue.
I wasn't long in that room before I got called in and they took my vitals.
From what I can read on my ER report temp 36.5 and my HR was around 46. I told the nurse or rather she saw my meds and the blood thinner I was on she goes to me..."Do you have Atrial Fibrillation?" I'm like whoa you got that from all four of my meds. She goes "It's the Eliquus, that's the giveaway." hmm. obviously it must be used a lot around there. I had those taken and then got sent back out to the waiting room. However, I wasn't there long before I made it to a bed where they can connect me up with every tab for the heart machine.

Well there you go full disclosure and my vitals in full technicolor! After that episode I was instructed by the ER doc after consultation with the QCH cardiologist that I was to stop taking the BB. After two hours of monitoring and instructions to check my HR/pulse and since I was still full of the BB even the ER doc couldn't find it as it was so faint. 

Four meds down to three and I'm still sucking wind trying to find fitness and stay healthy and fit. It is definitely a struggle.

That's this chapter done. Thanks for reading.

Starting a Blog

What and who is the AFib Asian!

If you have stumbled across this blog then you may be wondering what the "Afib Asian" is referring to? Well that's me in a nutshell. It's hard to convey exactly to people on what has happened over the past few months so let's try to sum it up in this post here.

Where to begin? So about a month before race weekend I was helping my youngest shop for cloths and makeup for her dance recital. Our last stop was at Shoppers Drug Mart and I technically did not need to assist in choosing makeup so I decided to walk around the store and I came across the Blood pressure machine...hmm I think I'll test my blood pressure. I haven't done that in ages! So I sat down hit the magic button and boom! 196/119 OMG 😲that can't be right! I'll just walk around the store and try again in a few minutes. I went back for my 2nd reading...205/117 WTH! So I came home and talked to Kiera and she basically said call the doc and get checked out! This was on a Sunday. So two days later I got in and saw my GP and it took him five tries before he got me on the 5th attempt to lie down and see that my BP was way too high! This was puzzling as he knows that I am an endurance runner and I do a lot of activities. If you know me and follow me on Strava than you pretty much have seen my activities there or on any of the other social media channels! So of course he started me on my 1st blood pressure medication. My first prescription to lower my BP was done and was filled that day. So I started taking the medication at 1/2 dose and if it didn't lower within a week I was to take the full dose. After a week my BP did not go down drastically so I upped the dose to the full tablet. A month past and I was to visit him again for an update. Nope still too high so onto medication #2 😩 That same I received a call that I was going in for my fitness stress test at the Ottawa Heart Institute. This was on the 29th of June just before Canada day. So I went to the Heart Institute for a fitness stress test since my doc recommended I go and get one done since I have high blood pressure. Well that 30 min test turned into a 2 hr consultation as I have been diagnosed with Atrial Fibrillation (AFib).
It's fairly common in older people, but for me it's not so common. It's my electrical system that's sending erratic signals to my heart and making it "flutter" and could cause a disruption in the blood flow and could cause a stroke.
I was like WHAT! As the docs are grilling me on symptoms do you have dizzy spells, headaches, thyroid and a whole gamut of issues and I'm like no I don't get these symptoms.
So they left and consulted with several other experts at the heart institute and then upon their return :"they" are lumping me into the category of potential stroke which shocked the hell out of me.😱 The discussion was long and a lot of denial on my part, but the evidence was clear on the ECG that I have a positive test and I need to act. So onto medication #3 and #4. That's right four pills! 😥
I mentioned that I had a race on the weekend a simple 5K. As well a trail race that month. They definitely did NOT want me to do the trail race! So I bartered for the 5K race. They hesitated and allowed me if I promised to walk it. Of course this was the weekend with the super high humidity and crazy extreme heat.
So on Canada Day I walked the 5k and they said they were ok so a guy who doesn't regularly take meds I was put on two new meds in addtion to the two for high BP. A blood thinner and a beta blocker.
So my training and running is somewhat on hold but I'm trying to stay active but at a much reduced volume and intensity.

I'll stop there for now and will continue with my timeline in another post.
But you now know where the AFib in the name of the blog comes from.
Thanks for reading.

About Me

About Me

So that's a good question! If I follow my social media of Facebook and Instagram. I'm a husband to a microbiologist; Father of two daughters (Equine rider/Band Geek & Retired Gymnast/Coach); loyal dog walker; and a Marathoner!

Well that's good for now. I'm new to this blogging thing so bear with me while I enter into the uncharted territory.

Dan