quick question

Hi everyone,
I hope you are all feeling well today.

I have one very quick question. A couple of weeks ago I posted that I was still having pains around the pacemaker site after 8 months,
One doctor I went to told me it was all in my head. so when I went to the clinic to have the PM checked they suggested that I go see the clinical psycologist. Do you all think this is normal? do they think it is all in my head & that I am imagining it all? should I go talk to this person?

thanks

Katherine

12 Comments

head

by Alma Annie - 2013-06-12 07:06:16

Hi Katherine,
I get so annoyed when doctors say its all in your head. You know your own body. Sometimes a nerve is cut and that can irritate for a long time until it heals. (That happened to me when I banged and sliced my head open last January. The scar still irritates and I have to keep rubbing it!) Can you describe the sort of pain you are experiencing. Please do not give up trying to get this sorted. Find another doctor. I don't think it is normal, but someone else might reply that it is.
Please let us know how you go.
Alma Annie

Pain

by Selwyn - 2013-06-12 07:06:51

Hi Katherine,
The problem lies in their head! It is totally wrong to suggest a psychological cause for pain until organic illness as been excluded.

It would be useful to know more about your pain ( character, duration, associations etc.) 8 months of pain is no laughing matter- the medics should be taking this seriously. If you search this site there are others that report similar problems.

I would go and talk with someone who can do this for you.
There is nothing normal about your situation.

another dr

by Tracey_E - 2013-06-12 09:06:49

I'd find another dr, but another cardiologist, not the psychologist! Pain after 8 months isn't common, but it's not unheard of either. I'd find a dr that takes you seriously, not one that writes you off as a head case when they don't have the answer.

pain near site

by aldeer - 2013-06-13 01:06:28

I have had my pm for almost six years and often get a short lasting "pain" just around the site. Sometimes it has been when pm "migrates" (moves down a little) and often it is a nerve pain. I get the pain less often since it has moved down because it is not pressing against the nerve. I have told the Dr. that when it is time for the replacement, I do want it just where it is now...much more comfortable. I do not want to go thru the risk of moving it now because of possible infection. To me it is normal to have the occasional pain. Good luck to you, Katherine.
aldeer

I had some "discomfort" after

by janetinak - 2013-06-13 01:06:38

my 1st PM for about a year. I asked at my EP's ANP & she told me as the EP has to make an opening to fit the PM into the place it stays, many people have some discomfort up to a year. On the + side, it went away & after PM #2 & #3 no real discomfort. But I guess saying that I would try & find a sympathetic Dr or ANP & make sure the site is OK before you try & live with it. Maybe if all OK, a trip to a psychologist might help, that depends on you. But I just want to weigh in with my experience.

Hope that helps. let us know how it goes.

Janet

in your head translation

by Hope - 2013-06-13 01:06:54

Hi! Katherine, Translated, 'in your head means I know but if you know I'm liable, I'm not educated/experienced
enough to know or I just do not want to go to the trouble to find out. A reputable doctor, if he thought your pain were mental, would approach the subject differently. Cemeteries are full of victims of doctors who told the victims it is 'in your head' until it was too late. Pain is the body crying 'help', and yours has been doing that for 8 months. Please find the source of your painfor your health and peace of mind. I hope you get an answer and relief soon. Hopeful Heart

find a new doc

by ja_doll - 2013-06-13 03:06:48

After getting my 2nd device I had pain come and go for a year and a half. I also had developed bruising around the site every time I asked about it I was told it was fine. until the day that the device broke through the skin. The said the pocket shifted and it was now infected. I had to have the device and lead removed and take IV antibiotics for six weeks before I could get a new pacemaker. I would find a different doctor, one that is willing to at least check everything out.

Grrrrrrr!

by Casper - 2013-06-13 12:06:54

All in your head, don't get me started.

Find another doctor who respects your concerns.

Hope you're feeling better real soon.

Casper

Greg' s Response again

by miller1 - 2013-06-14 05:06:28

PS I am the guy with the Walnut blood Clot in my heart attached to the lead and awaiting open heart surgery due to improper placement. Greg

Greg' s Responce

by miller1 - 2013-06-14 05:06:57

Let me tell you Kathy its not in your head and you need to realize the this is a foreign body and a machine inside of you.

Often I apply pressure to my chest from rolling over, hugs, clothing. The Pacemaker is a floating device in your chest and it does move around and cause discomfort.

You have nerves and pressure impact areas caused many activities in day to day life. I have had pain in the flesh when I hit my chest on a chair back that lasted a week.

Tell the doctor to kiss your grits and find another doctor who has better bed side manners.

The last doctor that told me it was all in my head and to see a shrink was wrong, two days later I had a massive stroke and two after that I had a pacemaker put in., in my head right. Doctors are only people. Good Luck Greg

re quick question

by ajay - 2013-06-14 07:06:11

When I first had my pm put in I had severe pain for about 18 months - I heard it all from - its all in your head, to, lets cut the nerves and the problem will be solved... nobody would take me seriously. Finally, when an abscess exploded out of my chest, they took me seriously. Six weeks in the hospital on seriously heavy duty antibiotics and a new pm put in on the other side because once a site has been infected they can never use it again. My advise is, if you know in yourself that something isn't right, then it probably isn't right and you need to keep fighting until you get help. I could have easily died because nobody took my pain seriously. I do not want to freak anyone out, but, I do want people who are having problems to seek out the answers, do not let yourself be railroaded into thinking you are going nuts!!!! cheers ajay
ps anyone who wants further info please msg me.

A quick Answer

by donr - 2013-06-15 08:06:20

KBL: I'm just a simple engineer, aplying engineering principles to medical issues. You have to help yourself if the medics you see are not giving you reasonable answers. So - here are three rules to use to help yourself:

1) It's called "Occam's Razor." Has absolutely NOTHing to do w/ shaving your legs, face or under arms. It says "The simplest explanation for a problem is most likely the CORRECT explanatioin for the problem." In general, a psychological explanation is far more complex than all the physical explanations - therefore, it should be considered LAST on the list of possible explanatiions!

2) Don's rule of troubleshooting. "When something goes wrong, revisit whatever you fixed most recently!" Well, guess what you fixed most recently - your PM was installed. Revisit that procedure FIRST!

3) Sherlock Holmes' Rule of analysis. "Examine ALL possible reasons for the symptoms. Rule out those which are impossible; whatever is left, no matter how improbable, is the explanatiion for the situation."

Hope this gives you a bit of confidence in your own mental health.

Don

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