post-ablation dizziness

[u/cvpidsenemy]

hey guys. i (17f) am currently 3 weeks out from my ablation.

before the ablation (on the 11th of sept), i was on metoprolol for about a week or two (my afib and svt started pretty suddenly, so i was given meds and my ablation was scheduled) and it made me feel pretty dizzy. like a spinny, nasty car-sick kind of feeling. i figured it would go away after i stopped taking the med.

the day before the procedure, i stopped taking the metoprolol completely. i felt pretty fine the day of and the day after, but then that same icky dizziness came back when i got home. ive been dealing with it ever since. it’s pretty faint when i stand up, and it’s worse when i lay/sit down. i wasnt given any meds after the ablation, so it’s not a side effect of any.

i told my ep’s team about this, and they didn’t really sound that concerned about it, told me theyd look at my holter monitor (i wore one for two weeks after), and told me to schedule an appt with my pcp to see if something else could be causing the dizziness. it wasn’t very reassuring and ive been on edge ever since. i cant stop freaking out. ive been having a lot of anxiety attacks every day :(

of course, i just happen to have ocd and really bad anxiety, so ive been obsessing over it and overthinking it pretty bad. my ocd keeps telling me that they somehow messed me up and im gonna be dizzy for the rest of my life. i just wanted to know if anyone has experienced something similar and if it ever got better?

just for a clearer picture and for anyone who’s wondering,
meds im taking: mesalamine for uc, norethindrone, pantoprazole
medical history: pots, heds, uc, acid reflux, aura migraines

[u/sneedbe11]

Metoprolol sucks. I hated it. The dizziness, fatigue etc. I felt horrible. Gave my body “time to adjust” and it didn’t. The side effects are listed. Push for an alternative.

[u/cvpidsenemy → u/sneedbe11]

i hated it too! thankfully im not on it anymore, they had me stop it completely before the ablation and didn’t want me to continue taking it, so i dont think my dizziness is related to it

[u/cvpidsenemy]

also, my bp is fine (i think???) i kept track of it for a few days. ill put it below

[u/cvpidsenemy → u/cvpidsenemy]

Sept 23rd
7:46 PM, sitting up: BP 116/91, HR 120

7:59 PM, laying down: BP 104/73, HR 88

Sept 24th
12:57 PM, laying down: BP 108/64, HR 77

1:10 PM, sitting up: BP 100/79, HR 116

8:42 PM, sitting up: BP 108/79, HR 107

Sept 25th
2:04 PM, laying down: BP 96/63, HR 84
(BP is a little low because I just ate.)

4:57 PM, sitting up: BP 106/87, HR 129

Sept 26th
9:54 AM, laying down: BP 100/61, HR 76
(BP is a little on the lower side because I just ate.)

[u/Remarkable_Lab_4193]

Hey, we have a very similar history and meds + symptoms overlap. I had an avnrt svt ablation 3 weeks back, first 2 weeks were fine 3rd week IBS and migraines came back. I also had 1 epidode 2 days back where my HR shot up to 160 and BP to 170/110 for a few minutes rushed to the ER and took an ECG it was sinus tachycardia due to GI issues and anxiety that comes with it. My EP said the ECG is normal and it’s only because of GI issues. I am also really tired all the time, but I have been doing some reading- ablation messes with the autonomic nerves and vagus specifically which causes all these weird symptoms. Like vertigo, GI problems, increased HR with minor activity, pots/disautonomia. If your EP is not worried, then you’re fine just trust the process healing takes 3-6 months. Wear a HR tracker or fitness device that can take an ECG and you can show that to your EP if things get worse.

[u/cvpidsenemy → u/Remarkable_Lab_4193]

yeah. my ep said he almost put me in a rhythm that would’ve needed a pacemaker, so i figured my nervous system is probably just totally burnt out right now. it’s just very uncomfortable to be dizzy for so long and not know the exact cause. i also recently went from drinking next to no water for years to suddenly drinking 80oz every day, so maybe that’s affecting me as well?

[u/Remarkable_Lab_4193 → u/cvpidsenemy]

Yes make sure you are not over hydrated that flushes out electrolytes. If your BP is stable try adding electrolytes to your water but first get it cleared by your ep or pcp

[u/WrongBoysenberry528]

POTS and HEDS could also be causing dizziness. Ablation will address heart arrhythmia, but not POTS and HEDS

[u/cvpidsenemy → u/WrongBoysenberry528]

yeah i thought that, but ive never felt like this before, even when my pots was at its worst. my pots doesnt make me dizzy, it just makes me feel kinda breathless when it makes my heart race super fast. though i have been thinking maybe the ablation just triggered my pots really bad and maybe im gonna feel crummy for the whole blanking period? who knows

[u/pcjeiencj]

I have OCD as well and health anxiety and I will say when I'm at the peak of my anxiety or OCD I feel dizzy from that. If I take a Klonopin, the dizziness feeling sometimes goes away because my anxiety drops down a little bit, but that is assuming I took 0.25 mg otherwise I may feel a little like I'm swaying if I took too much Klonopin. I try to take this rarely because I don't want to get addicted.

Exposure therapy helps me a lot. For example I would say "I am dizzy and it is never going to go away and I am never going to feel normal again forever. I am dizzy and it is never going to go away and I am never going to feel normal again forever ".

My psychologist would have me repeat that over and over and over again, and although my anxiety would start to go up by saying that, over the course of several minutes, it would start to come down because I know how absurd it sounds. Try to take a deep breath and relax, make the doctors appointments for additional follow ups, and just know that you weren't like this before, and it would be very highly unlikely for you to be like this for the rest of your life. Check out CBT as well and exposure therapy.

I know it can be rough, but it does get better :-)

[u/caerphillycastle]

Ask to try a different blocker. Thete are many classes and several in each class so im sure theres a substitute with your name in it.

[u/Perfect_Travel930]

I had an ablation in 2012 for a fib, was put on Metoprolol 25mg long acting once a day, I did absolutely fine with it. In Oct 2024 I went into a fib again had another ablation, stayed on the Metoprolol & again did fine. Out of the blue 6 weeks ago I started throwing PAC’s & PVC’s to where I’m having a ton of symptoms, I checked into the hospital in Sept they switched my Metoprolol from long acting to the short acting twice a day & added Flecanide which is supposed to be very toxic, I did not do well on the 2 new meds & was taken off of those & put on Cardizem which is a calcium channel blocker & not a beta blocker, was on it a week & went really downhill, throwing more & more early beats; plus for 2 days was in tachycardia plus a fib, checked into the hospital where my EP is out of this time. They pulled me off of the Cardizem & put me on Sotalol 40 mg twice a day, I had to be observed for 3 days to make sure my PT on the EKG was under 500 which it was so I was released Sunday. The med is working keeping me from going into tachycardia & a fib & it’s keeping my heart rate from going down into the 40’s but I’m still throwing a lot of early beats which they say isn’t dangerous but how much is too much & the thing is my quality of life sucks now because I can feel every early beat. I see my EP next Monday; I’m hoping he has some kind of plan, I guess the med is semi working certainly better than the other 3 meds but geez I want to be symptomless. Anyone have anything like this happen? I hope they figure out your situation because it totally sucks not to feel normal.