UPDATE ON BETH54

Happywanderer · The Master

RE: UPDATE ON BETH54

Sheba · Guru

Started to do this four and a half hours ago, when the power went off.

So glad you're back home Beth. Take care, and don't over-do things.

Cheers,

Sheba.

_wombat_ · Master (of Mischief)

Beth54 wrote:
Thanks Sheba. Hope you're safe from the floods.

HEY Beth, I thought you were supposed to be resting biggrin biggrin

-- Edited by _wombat_ on Wednesday 27th of February 2013 01:34:36 PM

Beth54 · Guru

Thanks Sheba. Hope you're safe from the floods.

Beth54 · Guru

_wombat_ wrote:
Beth54 wrote:
Thanks Sheba. Hope you're safe from the floods.
HEY Beth, I thought you were supposed to be resting

-- Edited by _wombat_ on Wednesday 27th of February 2013 01:34:36 PM

My puter chair is very restful. wink

Happywanderer · The Master

How are you feeling today Beth, take it easy.

neilnruth · Guru

Yes, Beth, the computer can also be restful... as long as you stay on this forum....LOL

gypsy rover · Senior Member

I have been off the Forum for a while so didn't know you had been sick Beth. Hope you are feeling much better now and that you will soon be back to your old self. (Sorry, young old self!)

Cheers!

Chris

Sheba · Guru

Beth54 wrote:
Thanks Sheba. Hope you're safe from the floods.

Thanks Beth. I'm OK. Not in a flood-prone area, and I have at least 3 ways to get to Rocky, when I need to. If one way is blocked, at least one other will be OK. Went to my friends' mothers' funeral yesterday, and had to come back a different way, as water was starting to come over the road in a few places on the way out.

Hope you're taking things easy.

Cheers,

Sheba.

Esmeralda · Guru

Beth, glad to hear you are on the mend. There will be good days when you are full of energy and others where you can hardly get out of bed; but persevere and you will soon strike a happy medium.

By the way, my friend also got AF just after Christmas and spent some time in hospital. She has asthma too and the cardiologist is of the opinion that she was taking too much Ventolin - she had been having breathing difficulties and both she and her GP kept upping her Ventolin, she ended up with lots of fluid retention too. Talk to your doctor if you have been increasing your Ventolin just to be sure, as apparently this can trigger AF.

Beth54 · Guru

Good to hear you can still get about Sheba.

Thank you Esmerelda and Rosie. I didn't say so earlier, but I've always felt that the Steroids..Prednisone..caused this problem. When I had Tachycardia in the late 90's, I'd been on big doses of Prednisone for Ulcerative Colitis. I had an ablation in '08, which rectified the Tachycardia. I've recently been on Prednisone for 2 months, again for Ulcerative Colitis. I've had short courses since '05, when I was diagnosed with Asthma, but it seems to be okay as a short course. It seems to be the long courses that interfere with the electrics of my heart.

Prednisone to me is poison. I get most of the side effects that are listed. http://www.drugs.com/sfx/prednisone-side-effects.html But it's a necessary evil.

My daughter took me shopping yesterday, and I found that rather slow and tiring, so I just kept stopping to rest when I needed to. Then she took me to my GP. She's hopeful that the Cardiologist will do an ablation again. Apparently they prefer to give out the drugs because it's cheaper. And with the state of our hospitals at the moment, who knows!

Rosie, that foot massage and pedicure sounds lovely!

Rip and Rosie · Guru

You are 100% correct re the ventolin Esmeralda. We used to use it when I worked in hospitals, and the side effects are tachycardia which leads onto the other things.

However, its 6 of one and half dozen of another, as if you cant breath you need ventolin.

That's why asthma prevention and symptom management are so important.

Nice to hear you have your feet up, Beth. While they are up, you need a foot massage and a pedicure. ..... make you look great as you improve.

neilnruth · Guru

Well, I had one of our boys overdose on Ventolin and another who overdosed on Symbicort. Neither of them really listened to what the Dr had said - they didn't deliberately overdose. But both ended up in hospital because they didn't use their meds properly. And the first one, come to think of it, also had a heart problem one time so maybe he'd again be using too much Ventolin. If I haven't taken Ventolin for a long time, a nebuliser with Ventolin will get my heart pounding too well.
And I agree, Beth, prenisone is nasty - does strange things to older women - and yet there are times when we need it to save our lives.

Hang in there Beth and keep getting well.

-- Edited by neilnruth on Thursday 28th of February 2013 10:01:27 PM

Beth54 · Guru

Hmmm. Don't know what happened there. I wrote a big long reply, hit submit, only to be told the moderator would have to allow my post..something like that.

So here I go again.

That's good to hear Sheba.

Esmerelda and Rosie...I totally agree. I've been saying this for a long time and no-one in the medical industry seems to agree, or if they do, they're not saying.

I was first diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis in '98. I then had almost 3 years on and off Steroids..ie Prednisone. Within a few months of starting it, I started getting Tachycardia. I was given Verapamil to control that. In '08 I had an Ablation, which 'fixed' it. Along the way I've had short courses of Prednisone for Asthma, and Ventolin of course. None of this effected my heart rate, I think because these were short courses.

As many of you know, the UC flared up again while I was travelling in November, necessitating 2 months of Prednisone again. Towards the end of this course, I had an infection in my upper respiratory tract, which meant Antibiotics and more Ventolin. That's when the irregular heart rate and breathing difficulties started. I thought it was the infection causing the breathing difficulties, but it was the heart rate..sometimes as high as 170, and regularly over 110.

Prednisone causes all kinds of side effects and I've suffered with most of them. But, as Rosie says, it's necessary for many inflammatory diseases.

http://www.drugs.com/sfx/prednisone-side-effects.html

For the Consumer...dangerously high blood pressure (severe headache, blurred vision, buzzing in your ears, anxiety, confusion, chest pain, shortness of breath, uneven heartbeats, seizure).

This is just one of the side effects. I just hope the Cardiologist decides to do another Ablation instead of me being on these heavy duty meds for the rest of my life.

Beth54 · Guru

Oh, and Esmerelda, my GP says it's better to up the preventor..Symbicort in my case...than to keep puffing on the Ventolin. I can have several doses of Symbicort a day, when I feel the Asthma getting worse.

Duh · Guru

Beth54 wrote:
I was first diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis in '98. I then had almost 3 years on and off Steroids..ie Prednisone. Within a few months of starting it, I started getting Tachycardia. I was given Verapamil to control that. In '08 I had an Ablation, which 'fixed' it. Along the way I've had short courses of Prednisone for Asthma, and Ventolin of course. None of this effected my heart rate, I think because these were short courses.
Prednisone causes all kinds of side effects and I've suffered with most of them. But, as Rosie says, it's necessary for many inflammatory diseases.
This is just one of the side effects. I just hope the Cardiologist decides to do another Ablation instead of me being on these heavy duty meds for the rest of my life.

I had Prednisone late last year for Psoriatic Arthritis (along with Methotrexate), stopped taking both because of side effects. It is also a drug widely used by organ transplant patients, known for lowering the immune system and making the user being more prone to catching all sorts of bugs etc.

With my Tachycardia, I was started on Verapamil, didn't like it much, it felt like something was holding me back all the time, ended up being on Sotalol twice a day (still). My ablation didn't work out, they got inside the heart but couldn't reach the offending node, I was told that even if they did ablate it, they can grow back in time and the problem can come back.

I don't think they can do an ablation for AF, that is more a pace maker type fix as far as I am aware, but I could be wrong. Unless it is your Tachy that has returned. Good luck with your Cardiologist and other specialists, I hope they find a better treatment solution for you.

Beth54 · Guru

Thanks Ruth. I feel almost back to normal now.

Vic, I remember us having a discussion about Tachycardia some time ago. This is definitely not Tachy, it's irregular. One minute it's 90 then it jumps to maybe 140. Then back again. I was on Verapamil too, and it worked very well, as long as I remembered to take them. In those days I had trouble remembering to take meds, not anymore.

My GP says they can do the ablation again. We'll see what the Cardio bloke reckons.

The bloke across from me in hospital was to have a Pacemaker. He had AF but his also dipped very low, causing him to black out. (As an aside, he'd blacked out and fallen flat on his face at home. Luckily a family memeber found him and called the ambulance.) He was told by the Cardio doctors that the Pacemaker works on the low heart rate, jolting it to 'wake up', whereas the tablets would control the high heart rate. That's as he and I understood it anyway.

I hope they can do something else too Vic, i don't want to be on these extra meds.

Rip and Rosie · Guru

Now Beth, you and I both know that there are much more social things that can make your heart race. While it may be a doctor, it should be a "social" event... if you understand.

Perhaps less medication, and more "social" activity????

Rosie

pauline · Guru

Rosie you are a dream...........Beth take her advice.

Beth54 · Guru

Rip and Rosie wrote:
Now Beth, you and I both know that there are much more social things that can make your heart race. While it may be a doctor, it should be a "social" event... if you understand.

Perhaps less medication, and more "social" activity????

Rosie

Rosie Rosie Rosie, behave yourself! disbelief On second thought, misbehaving is a whole lot more fun isn't it!

Beth54 · Guru

pauline wrote:
Rosie you are a dream...........Beth take her advice.

biggrin biggrin biggrin

Duh · Guru

Good luck with the Cardio Beth and keep us posted on what he is recommending etc.

I hope it can be managed somehow satisfactorily so you can get on with life....

Hmmm......I think bedroom gymnastics would be the last thing you would want (at this stage) he he !

jetj · Guru

Look after yourself Beth!

-- Edited by jetj on Sunday 3rd of March 2013 04:27:17 PM

Rip and Rosie · Guru

Duh wrote:

Hmmm......I think bedroom gymnastics would be the last thing you would want (at this stage) he he !

Rubbish Duh!

No need to swing from the chandelier, Beth, but everyone needs excercise, its the road to health!

Duh · Guru

Rip and Rosie wrote:
Duh wrote:

Hmmm......I think bedroom gymnastics would be the last thing you would want (at this stage) he he !
Rubbish Duh!
No need to swing from the chandelier, Beth, but everyone needs excercise, its the road to health!

I didn't say forever R & R, and where this is a will there is a way as they say. However unless you have had a similar heart condition to Beth and myself and understand the implications then I would only do what the Cardio Dr suggests. Explained to me by my cardio, the faster heart rate is like a washing machine motion, the agitation can kick up blood clots which can travel to the brain or elsewhere so you are a good canditate for either stroke or even death.

Recovery from some heart conditions recommend "mild" exercise if you want to call it that as part of your recovery, each condition has it's own problems and recovery strategies. Ask your Cardio about it Beth and be guided by them and them only.

_wombat_ · Master (of Mischief)

Rip and Rosie wrote:
Now Beth, you and I both know that there are much more social things that can make your heart race. While it may be a doctor, it should be a "social" event... if you understand.

Perhaps less medication, and more "social" activity????

Rosie

Dougwe just emailed my saying that he is able to do a bed bath every 30 mins, if you cannot do the social activity Beth

Beth54 · Guru

You're all mad, but good for cheering me up.

As for some 'exercise' of the kind you mean Rosie, there's nobody in my vicinity to 'exercise' with. So I'll just have to stick to walking.

Wombat, hopefully I'll get to meet dougwe on his way north, so I'll be asking him all about the stories you tell about him. evileye biggrin

_wombat_ · Master (of Mischief)

Beth54 wrote:
You're all mad, but good for cheering me up.
As for some 'exercise' of the kind you mean Rosie, there's nobody in my vicinity to 'exercise' with. So I'll just have to stick to walking.
Wombat, hopefully I'll get to meet dougwe on his way north, so I'll be asking him all about the stories you tell about him.

Don't waste your time Beth, he is a known liar, you ask dazren he's the guy that will tell you the truth, Dougwe also said that he can do a bed bath in his A van the mind boggles biggrin

(if he does do the bed bath can you post some pictures here please)

Beth54 · Guru

jetj wrote:
Look after yourself Beth!

-- Edited by jetj on Sunday 3rd of March 2013 04:27:17 PM

Thanks Janette. smile