Is there a difference between atrial fib and skipped beats? i have both at different times. skipped beats may proceed atrial fib, but not always.

Yes: Atrial fibrillation is a special kind of irregular heart rhythm. Skipped beats can occur for a variety of reasons such as simply a normal beat that comes early, to a beat coming from a place in the heart that is atypical from the normal beat. Some people may also have other rapid irregular heart rhythms that are not atrial fibrillation. A heart monitor usually can distinguish among these.