More problems

I have a PM and have had it a little over a year. It is a Boston Scientific. After a while, I could feel it kicking in and had pain every time.

A Boston Scientific tech checked it along with my EP. They decided to adjust the settings and it worked for a while.

Now, lately, I have what feels like a flutter in my chest. It comes and goes. I can't stand the feeling as it is in my heart.
I had it checked again with the EP and was told it was working fine and I am on the PM about 80% of the time. That has gone up from 30%.

All my life I have had skips and flutters that I was told were benign. I am very heart aware and this newest flutter just takes me back to a long time ago.

I guess a lot of people can't feel this, but it is driving me crazy.

Does anyone else here feel this or keep having to have your PM adjusted?

7 Comments

flutter

by Tracey_E - 2012-12-25 09:12:32

Flutter is usually not something the pm can control, it's extra beats/partial beats your heart does on its own. All the pm can do is add beats when we miss or go too slowly. Sometimes decreasing the amount of time the heart is given to beat on its own before the pm kicks in can make it less noticeable. This will also increase how much you pace.

Anxiety can make it worse. I know it's hard, but try to focus on something else when it happens.

Have you noticed a difference in your diet when it happens? Sometimes avoiding caffeine can help, and make sure you stay hydrated.

Good luck! I know it feels awful but many of us have the same thing, it's not just you. It's a harmless nuisance.

Thanks for the posts

by RetCop - 2012-12-26 08:12:26

I'm going to make another appointment with my EP and Boston Scientific while they are at her office.

I slip into such a bad depression with this, I don't want to do anything.

I did have two ablations when the PM was put in. Maybe those ablations wore off?

They probably think I'm nuts. Trying to explain what I'm feeling is not easy. I do get some odd looks.

ablations

by Tracey_E - 2012-12-26 09:12:24

It's possible for something that's been ablated to come back, or the heart start acting up in a different area.

I'm sure they don't think you're nuts! I find it helps to write down the date/time of symptoms, and to have a written list of what I want to ask. If you stay calm and factual, and give them details to work with, they will take you more seriously. Also sometimes it helps to have someone go with you, as moral support, as a witness, as reinforcement.

There is a difference between being tired, frustrated, or having a bit of the blues and clinical depression. If it is affecting your daily life, if it's not going away, if it keeps you from enjoying life, get help. You can talk yourself out of the blues, but depression is a disease and needs professional help. It's not uncommon for heart patients, especially young ones, to have some depression and need a little help to get over the hump. Don't suffer needlessly.

For me? The two things that helped me adjust and move on were learning all about my problem and how the pm fixes it, and getting out and doing things I wasn't able to do before. The more active I got, the better I felt, and eventually I stopped noticing the fast hr (I went from low 40's to double that resting), stopped thinking about the fact a computer keeps me going.

Cut yourself some slack. It hasn't been that long, you're not feeling 100% yet. It'll come. That said, if your dr is not listening to you, or is trying unsuccessfully to tweak your settings, it might be time for a second opinion, a fresh set of eyes to maybe shed some new light on what's happening to you. A good dr will welcome this, not be threatened by it. There are not a lot of patients like us out there, it's not really a surprise when one doc doesn't have all the answers for every patient.

medication

by RetCop - 2012-12-26 11:12:10

I think it's the Dilitazem. It was 2 years in September I have had the PM. I just realized that. I think 2 years is too long to still have problems. I didn't take Dilitazem today and feel better. Don't know how long I will though. I'm calling my EP tomorrow.

I am on both this calcium blocker and a beta blocker. I never did well with calcium blockers anyway, but why be on both??

I am on so much medication.

PM

by RetCop - 2012-12-26 11:12:29

I can still feel the PM kicking in and how long it beats but it just doesn't hurt anymore. This is driving me insane because it was adjusted and now I have the flutters.

Thanks

by RetCop - 2012-12-27 10:12:59

You're right, I should stay busy. I stooped taking the Dilitazem for two days now. The flutters are gone and I feel much better. I'm just waiting for the other shoe to fall.

I will call my EP tomorrow. Could it be so easy just to be a medication?

Me too.

by clockman1 - 2012-12-28 09:12:09

Hi Retcop, I have the same problems and have had it since my PM was fitted. I had it checked out at hospital with all the usual gadgets, but the PM is fine. The Doctor has said I have ectopic or extra beats,uncomfortable and worrying but apparantly not dangerous. I now only drink de-caff coffee and tea and avoid caffeine in anything else and that seems to help a lot.Also my Doctor has but me on 5mg a day of Beta Blockers and that helps also. Also found that laying on my left side where the PM is implanted always starts it off, but it stops after a few minutes. So all in all I am getting the hang of the twitches and can more or less ignore them now I know its not likely to be a serious problem.I suppose its just the downside of our individual medical conditions. Hope all goes well for you.
God Bless.
clockman1

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