My Catheter Ablation

The seminal moment came when I decided about 8 weeks ago to try the catheter ablation just once more. My Doctor wasn’t successful in 2003 and I never thought I would consider another attempt. Something call it a voice from beyond inexorably drew me to Saint Francis that late morning in early spring.  And when I consulted Doctor Joseph Levine again he assured me that the technology had changed so drastically in the last decade he felt without guarantees that I would be free of my A-fib. I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I was not prepared to live the rest of my life on meds and feeling so less than my natural exuberant self. Some days I just had no get up and go. No desire no enthusiasm. A couple of years ago I would only have these “events” once a month. Lately though they were happening every day without warning. At first I thought I could ‘exercise’ through it but that was like playing with dynamite loaded dice bound to come up snake eyes. * 

For those that don’t know A-fib it’s an irregular and often rapid heartbeat that can have you living a nightmare. There would be times I’d be sitting on my couch watching a game and my normal HR of about 48 would shoot up to 138 in a blink. My neck and chest would start to throb uncontrollably and I could actually see my body vibrate.  I never got used to the fact that however remote that maybe this time the lights might go out. But my Higher Power was watching and I intuitively knew that I had more to do before God called me home. 

Medications worked for a little while I was taking beta blockers and for a time they seemed to do the trick but in the end all they wound up doing was lowering my already low heart rate at times into the 30s and left me light headed. Don’t play around with this if you have a similar condition. The statistics show that A-fib patients are 5 times more likely to have a stroke.  Those figures might end up being small but ask your family if you think you should take a chance.  Catheter ablations aren’t the panacea but besides medication and holistic alternatives the chances that you can be ‘cured’ rank up near 80%. I liked those odds. And I couldn’t help but think that my life would be shortened if I didn’t take that second shot. 

The procedure itself didn’t take long but the preparation was more arduous on the sub conscious at least that is how it was for me.  I knew that I would wake up out of my twilight when the procedure was over but whenever the heart is concerned I wasn’t going to be cavalier about it. I was well scared.  The procedure itself has the hospital staff inserting a probe a catheter into your blood vessel via the groin and it is then guided into the atrium of your heart in a non-invasive procedure.  They send radio waves that burn the inner wall and scar those where the irregular heartbeats are occurring. In my case I went into A-fib during the procedure as if God was showing Dr. Levine just where the spot was.  

I knew as I was rolling out of the procedure room that I was cured. There was just no doubt in my mind that I had made the right decision. I always say that in terms of human years at 63 ‘the stick is getting shorter’ but with the ablation behind me I just added a few inches. Now I feel like my heart is 45 again and when I climb the stairs I am winded no more.  

Today I have visions of being fitter than I’ve been in 20 years and without those confounded beta-blockers my metabolism might have gotten a shot in the arm. I am so grateful and the paradigm shift of a lifetime has just begun.  

*Snake Eyes:  A roll of two dice in which both show 1.