Need Help

Freaking out a little bit. Have a call into the dr but I thought I would try here while I was waiting for a call back. Basically before my pm was implanted last week, my symptoms were 4-5 second heart block that I would feel then a rapid heart beat on its way back. I am feeling "something" happening today. Today is the 1st time but it has me so rattled I am becoming unraveled. I think I am feeling the 4-5 seconds again but I am not 100% sure. I am feeling something...maybe palpitations but I thought I wasn't supposed to feel anything anymore. Haven't in a week. Went to the post op and they tested it, interrogated it. It was working fine and I had used it 1% of the time in 6 days. Could it all of sudden stop working? Could this just be nerves? Panic?

10 Comments

Hang in there!!!

by ela-girl - 2009-09-19 01:09:11

Hey there, Wenditt.

Take a deep breath! You'll be okay and we will help you along with your frustrations!

I by no means am trying to make light of anything you are thinking or feeling by saying "take a breath!" Getting a pm for the first time is frustrating. I know from my experience that I was hyper-aware of everything that was going on with my heartbeats etc. when I first got my titanium buddy. I had to learn to trust my pm before I drove myself nuts! It took some time. I was always feeling these very strong beats. Turns out that I was feeling the ventricular beat when I was being paced because it is the stronger of the beats. If your pm is working the way it should, you shouldn't really feel anything, though.

Personally, I think your pm is probably working just fine. It is probably more reliable than your own heart at this point. It might have to be fine tuned some more to your condition--that takes time and some trial and error on the part of the doctor/pm tech. But by all means you should contact your doctor's office when you are worrying about anything. It's their job to help you along, too, and check things out. Maybe something is off. Maybe not. At any rate, they are there to help you alleviate your concerns.

On another note...just because you have a pm doesn't necessarily mean that you won't have symptoms of your condition from time to time. It may not "cure" everything.

Plese keep us informed of how you are.
**Hugs**

ela-girl

feelings...

by Pookie - 2009-09-19 01:09:25

Hi wenditt,

so sorry to hear you're having some feelings, the worst is not knowing what they are!! I know, for me, that the first few months after having my pacer, I'd have little panic attacks, and that would send my heart into a lot of weird patterns, it wasn't fun. So, yes, it could be your nerves and a bit of anxiety.

However, if you feel very uncomfortable about it all, perhaps you could go to your emergency room and they could do an EKG. Might give you peace of mind.

The only way your pacer could possibly quit working is IF the leads somehow got out of their original placement. A chest Xray would show you that.

I just know that if I were you, just for my sanity and sleep, I'd go to the ER or Urgent Care or whatever you have available to you so you can get some answers. That's why they are there!!!!

Good luck and keep us posted.

Pookie

pm four weeks

by Ms Deutschland - 2009-09-19 03:09:19

I've just had my pm for four weeks now and have had two strange episodes. I am having my first follow up on Tuesday and plan to ask if there is any way that the pm maybe should be tweaked a little more. I'm not worried about it. I'm sure they'll figure it out. My biggest issue is that I had the pm put in, in another state and am seeing a local guy about it. I hope he's good at his job.

Good luck with your pm. They'll get it adjusted correctly for you.

Delia

I'm curious...

by dward - 2009-09-19 06:09:06

I don't know WHY they tell you that "you won't feel anything." Some of us do, at least while we're healing.
I was ZAPPED awake the first night (in the hospital after my PM install) and immediately thought "no freakin' way am I going to go through THIS every night!!!"
But the nurse said to me, "the surgery isn't a big deal, but your body still need to heal and get used to what has been done.
Bottom line is - I went through a few strange episodes that freaked me out a little. Yes, I went to Emerg' a couple of times (just to be safe and to ease my mind).
I would advise that to anybody - but chances are, it's fine and your body just needs some time to heal.

I totally agree with ela-girl. Get it checked out for peace of mind, but it's all probably fine.

Cheers,
DW

PVCs

by ecf2xtreme - 2009-09-19 06:09:18

Hi, I agree with everyone above that if you are worried or frightened you should definitely see a doctor. Having said that, what you are describing to me sounds like PVCs. PVCs are sometimes referred to as "skipped beats" because that's what they feel like. They are actually premature ventricular contractions, and they are (except under extreme conditions) harmless but unpleasant.

Take Care,
Ellen

Wend... Hang in there

by COBradyBunch - 2009-09-19 08:09:20

Hell you seem to get going through everything I went through. Turned out, even though I felt that the damn thing was going off all the time, 10 days after implant I hadn't fired once. 30 days after implant still nothing. But according to my head I was constantly firing or not firing when I should be. Hell I was positive that my leads disconnected, the pacer was bad or that I didn't need it to begin with (even though I personally saw all the evidence and had a great nurse who helped me by advocating for me and not letting anyone bully me into having the pacer put in until both she and I were sure it was needed).

Anyway. talk to your doc and get checked out, but at the same time take a few deep breaths and understand that your mind and your body both have had a trauma and it will take time to heal. Feel free to contact any of us if you need to but you will, and we will, all get through this.

COBradyBunch.

Calmer...

by wenditt - 2009-09-20 06:09:57

Thank you everyone. Dr called back and when I asked if I was supposed to be feeling something...anything he said "I dont know." Um...time to find a new cardiologist ASAP! I agree with the hyper-aware theory....my finger has ben on my pulse non stop for a week. I agree with the anxiety idea because one moment I feel great and the next I feel something and go into a complete tailspin which probably wasn't helping. When I left the hospital, they gave me some Ativan to help me sleep. I took one a little early yesterday and just went in my room. The baby and I snuggled up and took a nap. God only know what happened with my pm while I was sleeping but I woke up feeling more calm. So I think that might be my plan of action until I see the dr again on Tues.

Taking deep breaths and feeling more confident now with all your good thoughts and feedback. You are all more informative than the dr.'s. Kudos to you.

We will get through!
xoxox
Wenditt

Hang on there...

by dward - 2009-09-20 09:09:57

Would you rather your Cardiologist make something up than say he doesn't know? I would consider appreciating his honesty!! He didn't become a Cardiologist overnight.
He is actually CORRECT - his CAN'T know if you are supposed to feeling something - because we are all somewhat different. Different pain thresholds, different muscle tones, different conditions, different anxiety levels, etc.
PLUS - unless he has a PM himself, he can only go by what he is told. That is why when it comes to possible "feelings" or "issues" - you CAN get valuable info here on this site BUT NEVER REPLACE THAT WITH YOUR DOCTOR'S ADVICE and don't let it make you feel like your Doc doesn't know what he/she's doing.

It's like the race car driver and the mechanic. They have to work together to get the ultimate result. YOU'RE the driver, and you have the car, but you have to let the "Mechanic" know when something's not right because HE'S not driving the car.

Been There alittle recently

by Jmiller - 2009-09-20 09:09:58

I tell you my story recently, maybe it will help. I've had this pacemaker (dual lead) 4 weeks and 3 days now, but who's counting. First 3 weeks I felt confident the PM was working fine. Then all of a sudden I was feeling very irregular heart beats, episodes would last 2 hrs. Call the cardiologist and he set up an appointment two day out. Every day I had the same, was freaking my wife and me out a little. Made it to the appointment and of course it wasn't doing it at the time. He made some small adjustments and checked the internal logger and there was really nothing he could find, no PVC's or any of the other acronyms. I haven't had anything since (5 days later). He said my PM could of been reacting to some other electrical activity going on ??? He did tell me to get up and move around, that might help. All I can say is it is scary stuff, hang in there. Get in there, get checked out and ask your questions.

Good luck
Jim

Palpitations

by newby2009 - 2009-09-26 03:09:55

My pacemaker is a dual lead installed 09/09/09. Previously, I had had an ablation performed. It is possible that scar tissue build up from the ablation caused my sinus node to not function properly. The ablation was beside the node. After installation, I came home, quit smoking, cut my coffee from 15 cups per day to 5, began drinking a log of water, and began riding an exercize bike. I did use my arm more than was recommended, mainly to keep from having the shoulder lock that others have mentioned. But, I was very careful to not raise it above my shoulder or stretch it behind me. Even with all of these changes, I have had moments that felt as if something was tapping on the lower part of my chest. I am not sure at this point if it is my pacemaker firing or missed beats. My pulse was ranging from 30-155 with missed beats before installation. I was also told that I should not feel anything. The palpitations have almost disappeared and were most likely caused by the excess caffine and cigarettes. But, I am curious if the tapping feeling will continue after recovery. I will find out after my interrogation if the pacemaker has fired. I would like to know if anyone else feels a tapping sensation.

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