It was the nightmare I had been hoping to avoid. I had arrived at the inescapable conclusion: I would have to go to the emergency room. Questions that I had been worrying about now needed quick answers. Where was the nearest ER? Would they speak English? Would my insurance pay for medical treatment in Kosovo? Who should I call for help?

I had already experienced three episodes of atrial fibrillation dating back to 2009. The first two times, my heart righted itself with little effort – some IV hydration or a dose of a fast-acting beta blocker. The third time was a bit more dramatic. The easy fixes didn’t work and I was sedated for a procedure called cardioversion – the application of two electric paddles that deliver a shock to the heart to jolt it back into rhythm. The attempts were unsuccessful and my heart continued to go rogue through the night until it decided on its own to return to regular beats. These two instances left me feeling uneasy and, although I had not had a reoccurrence in many years, it had remained a background fear as I traveled to unusual places such as Kosovo and the Caribbean Island of Nevis. read more…