Also getting a PM tomorrow!

Tomorrow I will officially join your group of fine people! I have no regrets as I am anxiously awaiting to get back to my exercise routine - and life in general which for me, is active....

Oh, I have my anxiety and second thoughts like anyone else, but I was born with a condition / surgery that led me down this road.. Now, there is only one road back to normal for me, and I travel it tomorrow.

I have heard (mainly here) it is an easy surgery, but wish me luck anyway! I will post tomorrow after it is over...thanks!

13 Comments

Best wishes

by Sue H. - 2012-11-08 08:11:37

Good luck to you! And check in after your surgery. Everyone here is so supportive....keep in touch.

Sue

HI

by Moner - 2012-11-08 09:11:24

Hi USMC,

I'll be thinking of you tomorrow, you'll be getting the same kind of PM like me.

I hope it goes as smooth for you as it did for me, in hindsight, I probably would have just gotten the novacaine, instead of getting the mild seditive, I would have prefereed to have been fully awake.

I think you'll do fine, since your very athletic.

Please keep in touch.

Moner
>^..^<


Not bad at all...

by USMC-Pacer - 2012-11-09 06:11:51

Surgery is over! Took about 45 minutes. Only pain I felt was when they were inserting / removing the catheter. I haven't seen the EP yet, but I saw the paperwork for my initial setting: 50 / 130 DDD - anyone care to translate?

Thanks again for all the support!

Good

by Moner - 2012-11-09 10:11:56

Hi USMC,

It's great to hear from you.

I'm sure Electric Frank will weigh in on this, when he signs in later tonight.

The 50/130 indicates this:

50 bpm is your low setting, if your heart beat goes below 50bpm, your pacemaker will kick in.

130 bpm is your high setting.

It sounds to me you probably received the factory settings, you should talk to your doctor at your next visit, which I'm guessing will be in 3 weeks.

The DDD indicates your pacemaker is not set at rate response. If it was, it would have read DDDR.

I'm confident some of the resident experts here, will also weigh in here.

Take care,

Moner
>^..^<



welcome to the club

by ohiolaura - 2012-11-09 11:11:11

Glad to hear you did well with the surgery.
Now comes the rest,accepting the change,and embracing it,being thankful for the chance to live and get back into life.
Good to hear you sound in good spirits,remember to be informed and ask alot of questions if you have them.
I am still new with this,and have questions,alot of unchartered territory for me,good luck and God Bless!
Laura

Yep on the settings

by ElectricFrank - 2012-11-09 11:11:23

If you are the active type you will likely want to have that upper limit moved up to around 150.

As long as you keep the pacer side arm below shoulder height for a few weeks you can pickup on activities using pain as a guideline. I was out running around in my 4wd in the desert a few days after the implant.

frank

I second that

by ElectricFrank - 2012-11-09 12:11:04

I had mine implant in 2004, and replacement in 2010 with only Novocain. I was studying a technical book when they came to get me for the surgery. I marked my place in the book and when I returned picked up where I left off. Sure nice not to be doped up.

frank

Thank again everyone!

by USMC-Pacer - 2012-11-10 01:11:55

The doctor actually raised it to 150 just before I left the hospital. He is going to tweak my resting heartrate at the one week checkup. It is at 50 right now and is pacing 40% at that so he wants to lower it slower to see where I am at without pacing... I have always had a low rate due to running / exercising...taking it for a test ride in a while :<)

Don't be surprised

by donr - 2012-11-10 03:11:27

if your % pacing stays about the same.

The 50 floor is a number that the PM uses to determine how long it will wait for a P wave to show up to initiate a heart beat. The PM is ALWAYS monitoring your heart function now - ALWAYS. It is NOT a USMC PM (Semper Fi), but a USCG PM (Semper Paratus - always ready). As soon as that little P wave is late, BANG! the PM sends a pulse to initiate a beat.

The PM, just like your heart, works on a beat by beat timing system. Each beat is an individual thing, individually timed. So, a PM initiated beat merely indicates that your naturally expected beat would have been late.

That 40% means that 40% of your beats did not have an initiating P wave show up on time. Could still be the same, don't be surprised.
Don

Whoops, forgot

by donr - 2012-11-10 03:11:59

and no one else has told you.

The DDD means that you have a Dual chamber PM, w/ Dual pacing turned on; Dual chamber Sensing turned on & Dual chamber Inhibition turned on. The lack of an R at the end says that Rate Response is NOT turned on.

Dual pacing is obvious - means that the PM generates pulses for both chambers - FIRST D

Dual Sensing is less obvious - means that the PM senses BOTH chambers for naturally occurring activation pulses. If there is a natural pulse, it does not fire. If there is NOT, it does fire. - SECOND D

Inhibition is even less obvious. Means that when it senses, IF there is any kind of voltage sensed, the PM dies NOT fire.
IF no voltage is sensed, it DOES fire. NOT a trivial setting. If Inhibition is OFF & Pacing is ON, the PM fires Every time a pulse is due., whether there is a voltage present or not. Lack of inhibition can lead to some messy effects under some circumstances. THIRD D

Don

Sounds complicated...

by USMC-Pacer - 2012-11-10 06:11:13

But I appreciate it. I am trying to learn as much as I can about it.

BTW, I went out to give it its first trial today. What a difference! ALL my symptoms are gone. I couldn't jog because it irritated the surgical site too much. But I walked quickly up and down every hill and set of stairs I could find. Surprisingly, I didn't feel as though I was exerting myself at all. Very pleased so far....More to come! Thanks again.

It is complicated!

by donr - 2012-11-10 09:11:09

Here, try this link for a decent, full explanation of pacing modes. This one is the most straightforward I have found.

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=pacemaker%20modes&source=web&cd=15&cad=rja&sqi=2&ved=0CIQBEBYwDg&url=http%3A%2F%2Fanesthesia.slu.edu%2Fpdf%2Fpacemaker.pdf&ei=IvueUNiUNpSI9ATb-IGADA&usg=AFQjCNExVdxjK7_0sX8MirSO5gLPiaGOcg

Don

That's a good feeling

by ElectricFrank - 2012-11-10 11:11:04

I remember when they turned mine on in the ER. I could have jumped off the table and ran around the room. I could hardly wait to get home for some decent food and then out for a walk.

Somehow our bodies like to have proper blood flow.

enjoy,

frank

You know you're wired when...

Your pacemaker interferes with your electronic scale.

Member Quotes

Yesterday I moved to a new place in my mind and realized how bad I felt 'before' and the difference my pacemaker has made.