5 years after implant:

• by Tony Stark
• 2022-05-12 16:09:55
• General Posting
• 596 views
• 0 comments

In 5 years I have had two incidents causing my defribrillator to fire and re set my pace. The first time, I was driving, I had little response time as I cried out to my wife: I am passing out........................ I woke up to the car careening to a stop with mahem all around. I passed out at the wheel and  was struck by a motorbike speeding down the wrong side of the road. I easily could have avoided the idiot, but whammo. The car was totalled, but I was alive. The 2nd time was 18 months later, again with no warning and no obvious triggers..... while sitting at my home office desk, I felt suddenly felt extra light headed, I realized again from the last time, I was about to faint. I turned to my wife & business partner and said: I'm going, I'm going............ I passed out in her arms and 20 seconds later she received a massive jolt as the defribrillator fired and brought me back. The feeling of coming back after the defrib jolt is very creepy...... You feel as if you are dying and about to slip away, but instead you slide back to life, still reacting to the thoughts and visions of passing out. I now kinow what you feel & see when you die.......... absolutely nothing! It's lights out like you hit a switch and everything stops. I didnt feel a thing as I was defibbed, because I was dead at that moment. I am grateful for every day, as I have been since I had my initial heart failure. I am hopeful that within the year I will have my device & batteries changed out, and hopefully the leaky Mitrol valve surjury will enable me to resume a normal life. I used to gasp for breath non stop before I discovered Oxygen therapy,  I have found that an Oxygen concentrator, and Pure Oxygen tanks at the ready enable me to finally sleep for more than an hour without waking up gasping for Oxygen. I realized about a year ago, it was Oxygen I was gasping for, as for the lack of energy, exhaustion and inability to even walk through a super market...................... it must be the meds.

p.s. I thought I would throw this in: I moved to the Philippines, 3 months after my device was implanted. My Cardiologist in the US charged me a $175.00 co pay, and (God only knows my insurance) to read my device. Here at Makati Madical ctr. I pay $37.50 and the Cardilogist shows me every detail, every  nuance & send me home with a printout. Something my Dr. in US never did.............