Atrial Fibrillation And Sleeping On Left Side

I have a long list of af triggers for my heart.

Atrial fibrillation and sleeping on left side. I have skipped dinner many times when i felt that vulnerable to another af attack. Come to think of it afib has a mind of it s own and comes and goes on it s own schedule. At first i couldn t sleep on my left side but it seems now that i can without a problem although i am a right side sleeper. I can t sleep on my stomach because the apnea dental device falls out if i m face down cpap users can t sleep face down either so now i m down to sleeping on my right side.

I ve suffered with atrial fibrillation attacks for 12 years. In one study a team led by dr. Gregory marcus of the university of california san francisco tracked data from millions of patients to assess the link between poor sleep and atrial fibrillation. A quivery heartbeat or flutter in your chest.

I m guessing the left side thing happens because the vagus nerve can be stimulated in that position. We are all different. Atrial fibrillation is an irregular and often rapid heart rate that can increase your risk of strokes heart failure and other heart related complications. During atrial fibrillation the heart s two upper chambers the atria beat chaotically and irregularly out of coordination with the two lower chambers the ventricles of the heart.

In contrast when you are on your left side the heart is pulled to the chest wall and you may feel every irregular beat of your heart. Two telltale signs you could be in atrial fibrillation or afib that means your heart is beating out of sync. Ive had my pacemaker on my left side for about a year and a half. Anyway the sleep apnea doctors say not to sleep on your back to sleep on your side.

But if you find that laying in one particular position sends you into afib don t do it. While many atrial fibrillation patients have noted that they have fewer arrhythmias when sleeping on the right side i could find no studies supporting this finding. Like you mentioned lying on my left side is a trigger for me. So i don t sleep on my left side because of its effect on afib.

Atrial fibrillation also known as afib or af is an electrical disorder of the upper chambers of the heart.