Ralph, you should take the guesswork out of Potassium supplementation and just use a Cardymeter, I myself have had an Afib episode from too high a Potassium level....so I know too much can be a factor. I know the new meters are not cheap...but well worth it if you are paying high deductables for Afib related procedures.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Sam, sounds to me like the Antibiotics wasted your Magnesium....same thing happened to me after steroid injections for my neck, I would convert with the PIP but it would only last around 36 hours....then back to Afib. The third time I just stayed on a regular dose of Metaprolol and Flec to stay in NSR and built up my Magnesium for a couple of months...then weaned off of the meds...back and forthby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Travis, having an ablation makes it easier to get back to NSR if you do go into Afib using the PIP method, and the things that triggered your Afib in the past will most likely have higher thresholds.....however you most likely will have Afib issues again after your Ablation, especially if you don't supplement with lots of Magnesium, but it will be easier to deal with. Now that being said yoby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
I agree with Shannon, Flec is a great drug staying in NSR or using as a PIP with the loaded dose.....but after a few years you have to keep taking more and more to acheive the same results.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
George, do you find that over the years you need more and more Mag to stay in NSR?by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Doreen, you are fortunate to have Dr. Schweikert and his staff to see you through your Afib journey. After years of dealing with Afib, I have concluded that having the right EP you can rely on when you need him makes dealing with this condition a manageable health issue.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Beware of too much Potassium...one time too high a level from just eating lots of Avacodo foods and Coconut smoothies(on vacation in Carribean) caused me to go into Afib. I had my Cardymeter with me to confirm levels higher than 6.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
George, by prone do you mean you stay still without moving or do you mean you have a stance like you are ready to start a footrace and stay in position? Thanks to you and Jackie for the information. Tom Cby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
George, do you use a beta blocker first, then the loaded dose of Flec., and how much do you use? BXGPSY, you have found the best place on earth for dealing with Afib, you might check into a Potassium meter, unfortunately, the less expensive Cardymeters are no longer available, however Spectrum Technologies Inc. sells one called LAQUA Twin Potassium meter. I myself rarely need to supplement wby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Thanks Jackie for your explanation...now I understand why Doctors Best was fairly useless for me. Short of having a serum or tissue test, the two factors we can easily understand to let us know that a particular mag is working are bowel intolerance and missed beats. I am going to stick with the Solaray Glycinate for now as it seems to be working.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Recently I discontinued the Bluebonnet mag that I had been taking for years, about 800 mg. throughout the day, mainly because of the info here about them going cheap and changing from Glycinate to Oxide, I believe that was the change. Well I bought a couple bottles of Doctors Best Glycinate/Lysinate and started to take it...same dosage 800mg a day.....wasn't the same, bowel intolerance chanby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
OK Travis, after reading all of the above posts you should probably stick with your ablation date as it is worth its weight in gold to you. If it was me I would follow his advice and just stay on the Flec. the next time you have to go PIP.The dose that kept me in NSR until my ablation was100 mg. of Flec per day and 25 mg. of Metaprolol (a beta blocker) I would cut each pill in half and take a dosby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
To Smackman: Personal experience...need I say more?by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Shannon, thank you for all of your advice, hoping for a quick recovery for your wife. Tomby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
After Bluebonnet changed I switched over to Doctors best, however I found that if you crush the pill up it is more effective, as it is a very hard pill that can pass through without total absorbtion. And it is a much better value.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
I do believe that on an individual basis taking care to avoid your particular triggers for afib AFTER AN ABLATION is the key to its long term success....and the only way to find out is by trial and error learning what gives you missed beats ect. Alcohol is a major trigger and I suspect that if that were taken out of the equation the "success rates " for an Ablation would increase dramby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Take a look at your diet, what you are eating. I was on vacation a few years back and was drinking coconut smoothies at beakfast and avacodo dips during lunch, this spiked my Potassium and put me into afib. I had my Cardymeter with me and the readings were a little over 6. I then took a beta blocker and 300 mg. of Flecainide and this brought me back to NSR. At that point I started eating highby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
I have switched to Dr. Best but I am concerned that it being a rather hard pill some of it might just get passed thru....so I have been crunching it up first. The Bluebonnet was a powder in capsule...I do like the fact that Doctors best is a better value.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Jackie, I knew it was just a matter of time, I know how much you disliked those meds, best wishes, I'm sure all will go well Tom Cby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Sorry to hear about your afib episode, I have been there twice now since my ablation and have learned that for me at least, red wine starts to give me missed beats, white or blush, beer seem to be okay, but just a couple at that. Meds like steroids either oral or injected wipe out my Magnesium levels and put me into afib. High Potassium levels also cause afib, you have to use a Cardymeter....noby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
I totally agree with Ron, you can get all the Potassium you need from diet, and it is still possible to get too much if you are eating high Potassium foods as I found out when on vacation when I had a bout of afib because my K levels were extremely high from eating too much coconut, guacomole and beans....and how did I know my levels so far from home? I brought my Cardymeter with me. I agree wiby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Ralph, in the book Wheat Belly by Cardiologist Dr. William Davis, Chapter 8 discusses in detail the effects of acidic foods on pH. This is a good book with a wealth of info on how what we eat effects our health.....namely the "new" strains of wheat.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
The reason I had an ablation was to be off of the drugs, they do have side effects.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
I have successfully gotten off the Flec twice now, the first after an ablation that probably was not that big a deal, however the second time was a bit more interesting as the afib episode was caused by medicatiions that sapped my Magnesium stores, the PIP method would last only 36 hours then back into afib. So at the advice of my cardiologist I stayed on a minimum dose of Flec and Metoprolol foby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Ron, eating acidic foods will bring down your Potasium level very quickly, meats, breads, beans just to name a few.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Just to add my 2 cents, a colonoscopy, most likely the prep and the anasthetic, put me into afib the first time.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Ron, a high Potassium level has put me into afib in the past, the only good thing about this cause for afib is that you can swiftly and easily correct it, especially if you have a cardymeter, low Magnesium is much more difficult to correct, I think that taking Magnesium (you have to take if you want to stay in NSR) has something to do with absorbing the Potassium more efficiently through routineby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
After awakening from my first colonoscopy I was told I was in afib that I believe was most likely triggered by the prep for the procedure that flushes out your Magnesium and Potassium. After looking back on the whole experience, I am amazed at how little I was told about Afib by the hospital people, I found all the info on this site.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
Deb, bowel intolerance is perhaps the easiest way to measure Mag levels.by TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM
George, thanks again for posting about the Cardymeter, I would be lost without it. Potassium is an easy fix, especially with the Cardymeter, and you can control your levels with diet alone, without supplementing regularly with Potassium. I rarely take a dose of Potassium powder, but I always have it available, and yes I did go into afib once when on vacation eagting high potassium foods that Iby TomC - AFIBBERS FORUM