Posted by Carl Plaskett on May 13, 2002 at 13:22:05:
In Reply to: Rythmol does seem to work posted by Tim Hawkins on May 13, 2002 at 09:52:25:
Tim: It's great to read that you are doing so well. You are probably realizing that all the "hand-wringing" and worrying you did for over a year was pretty much for naught.
I agree with Terry, in that I have not heard of the "beta-blocker rebound effect" you describe. It was explained to me that one's heart is less "flexible" after all of the cutting and scar tissue creation, and that it has to "work harder" to pump a given amount of blood until it regains that flexibility.
I did find that when my resting HR was around 95+, I couldn't walk as fast as when it started out at around 75-80, so I would take approximately 1/4 of a 50mg atenolol within a hour before I was going to walk, and then I could walk faster.
Exercise is supposed to promote that flexibility, and it sounds as though you are getting a fair amount of that. What HR are you getting up to one your walks? Is the altitude in Albuquerque enough to affect your breathing while exercising? If so, you may already be conditioned to that, and your resting HR is low because of your conditioning.Let us know how you feel when your Rythmol is reduced and again when it is stopped. My energy level went up when I was reduced to 75mg, and even more when I discontinued the Rythmol. My resting HR went down as well.
At 29 consecutive days of NSR, I would say the odds of having any more afib are rather remote, but keep up the walking and perhaps some jogging, and you'll soon be ready to take the FAA flight physical (without having to schedule it around afib episodes!).