second surgery second wire

I just had a pacemaker put in last week. It was pm with defibrillator. I am having second surgery next week to put in second wire thru the ribs to the outside of left ventricle. They could not attach thru the heart. I am experiencing crippling fear this time. Anyone had this surgery? Coping with the fear?

3 Comments

Epicardial leads

by golden_snitch - 2014-07-05 02:07:33

Hi!

If you use the search button in the upper right corner of the page, and enter "epicardial leads", you will receive quite a few results.

I have two epicardial leads, placed on the outside of my left ventricle and left atrium. Here is my response to another member who asked about these leads:

"I have had exactly the same surgery in 2008. Unlike the normal pacemaker surgeries, this one is done under general anaesthesia, with intubation. Doesn't take too long, probably 1-2 hours. No cardiac bypass needed. You'll probably spend the first night in the ICU. It can hurt quite a bit the first couple of days, because when they go in between your ribs below the left breast, they stretch the chest muscle quite a bit. But it's no pain that cannot be controlled with some good painkillers. I was back at home after 5 days, and needed hardly anymore painkillers after that. It did, however, take me 8 weeks to bounce back. But that was mostly because I had a little pleural effusion, a subcutaneous emphysema and then developed a pleurisy after four weeks.

Years before this surgery (in 2003), I underwent a right mini thoracotomy, with two hours on the cardio-pulmonary bypass, and just three weeks later was back at university studying fulltime. So, you can definitely recover pretty quickly from a mini-thoracotomy. I really think that I only needed much more time in 2008 when the epicardial leads went in, because I had these complications.

I have heard that they are now placing epicardial leads via an even more minimal invasive approach at the clinic where I got mine in 2008. They do not have to do a mini-thoracotomy any longer, I think it's rather a keyhole surgery. However, I have no detailed info about it. Ask Dr. Google?"

Best wishes

Inga

Fear busters

by Gotrhythm - 2014-07-05 03:07:35

Sorry this second time is scarier. Can you tell us exactly what you are afraid of, or what goes through your mind that makes the second surgery so much scarier than the first?

I don't know about epicardial leads, but I do know that the more you can look your fear full in the face, the less power it has over you.

The fear is always real, but a lot of times what's causing it, isn't. You find THAT out only when you look at the fear until you can see what's behind it.

The Fear

by reeno - 2014-07-05 04:07:14

In response to fear busters. The fear is a flashback to childhood abuse and being held down, stopped breathing on purpose and revived by abuser. I have claustrophobia that triggers off causing uncontrollable shaking. So this surgery unlike the pacemaker surgery is under general anesthetic with intubation. This has been a fear of mine since seeing and being with many loved ones in the same circumstances along with the fear of not waking up. I don't think I would rather die, but it feels like it. Fear infects all of the body and I don't know how to stop it when it comes. Nor, do I know how to move through with this surgery.

You know you're wired when...

You have a maintenance schedule just like your car.

Member Quotes

As for my pacemaker (almost 7 years old) I like to think of it in the terms of the old Timex commercial - takes a licking and keeps on ticking.