Have you felt like this

For the past few weeks, after placement of my pacemaker (I call her PacieMay), I feel like I have a nervous condition. It feels like "butterflies in your stomach" only it is in my chest area. It would only happen once a week...but this last episode has lasted 3 days.

When I asked the tech at the clinic, she said it was because I can feel my heart beating. No. I don't think so. I am nauseated from it. It doesn't happen when I am sleeping. Only when I am awake.

I plan on seeing my cardiologist this week, but I just wanted to know if anyone else has felt like this.

Thanks for any help you can give.

9 Comments

Butterflies

by jeroling - 2013-05-15 02:05:43

I'm a Device Clinic Nurse. You didn't give specifics about your device, single or dual chamber and your pacing indication BUT my best guesses are
1) you are having palpitations, possibly episodes of atrial fibrillation.

2) if a person is primarily atrial paced, sometime they can feel it when they pace in the ventricle. Pacemaker syndrome.

Either can be diagnosed by a competent pacer person. #2 can be eliminated if it is just a programming problem. And as Tracey commented, lead dislodgement is always a possibility with a new pacing system.

Good luck.

leads

by Tracey_E - 2013-05-15 10:05:32

Talk to the dr, not the tech. Sometimes one of the leads ends up in a less than ideal position and it can cause things like this but only in certain positions.

Thank you, leads and Butterflies

by Bobbi - 2013-05-16 09:05:07

I went to the ER that I work in yesterday. Spent 15 hours there. Stress test. Blood work. All normal. NO ONE offered to have my pacemaker looked at. I asked questions about it, but I was poo-pooed by the ER doctor (won't be on my Christmas card list this year). PCP did think to go upstairs to talk to my cardiologist but he was already gone for the day. I have an appointment next week with cardiologist.

I have a single device. For a non-clinical person, I can say that the lower part of my heart is not working right in getting a signal to the upper part.

be persistent

by Tracey_E - 2013-05-17 08:05:10

If a lead is out of place, or not in an ideal place, I would expect a stress test and blood work to be normal because you aren't sick! A pm interrogation might catch it, an echo would be best.

Lead

by jeroling - 2013-05-17 09:05:15

A pacemaker check should catch lead dislodgement because the impedances and thresholds should be way off. A chest xray when compared side-by-side to the post implant xray will show regular dislodgement, but not micro-dislodgement. However, I would think these symptoms would be unusual for micro-dislodgement.

Tracey is right, be persistent.

single chamber

by jeroling - 2013-05-17 09:05:27

Do you have "normal sinus rhythm"? And are you in the US?

In the US we usually put in dual chamber pacemakers for complete heart block. And that is a condition where the natural electrical signal or impulse that causes the heart to beat, is block between the top and bottom of your heart.

We usually only put in single chamber devices in the ventricle for chronic afib, or if there is a medical problem that interferes with placing the second lead.
In Europe they put single chamber devices in the atrium for sinus bradycardia, but NOT heart block.

If you have a single chamber ventricular pacemaker AND you have sinus rhythm, it could very likely be pacemaker syndrome because the two chambers aren't working together.

Butterflies

by cdanamc - 2013-06-21 12:06:50

I experience the same when in the pacer lab and they turn my unit "up" to test thresholds. I've had a pacemaker for almost 40 years (I'm 42) and all 15+ units from various manufacturers with a variety of leads gave me the same sensation..... Obviously it's not the unit / leads, it's the setting lucky for me I don't have to have it that high and Im very comfortable at my daily settings. Ask them to play with settings to eliminate the feeling (I feel mine at the base of my throat and my stomach feels nauseous for a few seconds.
Hope this is helpful.

butterflies

by SUPERSTARDJ01 - 2013-09-08 02:09:25

Hi, was this ever resolved? I'm having the same issue, its making very nervous.

I found out the reason for it

by Bobbi - 2013-09-08 05:09:07

I went to see my electro-cardiologist. He put a gadget on me that whenever I had an "episode", I was to record it and tell what I was doing at that time. Seems my heart is also "skipping" a beat. I still feel it from time to time, but it helps to know WHAT it is. My primary care is of no help.

Thank you for all the replies and input. It comforts me.

You know you're wired when...

You trust technology more than your heart.

Member Quotes

I am 100% pacemaker dependant and have been all my life. I try not to think about how a little metal box keeps me alive - it would drive me crazy. So I lead a very active life.