Life Watch ?

Has anyone out there heard of Lifewatch? that's the company my dr has ordered my 3 week monitor from, so far I haven't heard anything from them although I did call the dr's office yesterday and they said sometimes my insurance co takes along time to process and approve. Apparently they will contact me after insurance authorization and fed ex the device out to me to wear for 3 weeks. Hopefully this will get to the bottom of why i'm feeling so lightheaded again. I am so tired of feeling this way but so far they can't figure out why?? Everything keeps coming back normal! I walked around today almost like I was drunk but never drink anything stronger than diet pepsi ha! Primary doc thinks it may be due to a low heart rate this time?? seems I've got the a/fib flutter controlled with meds but now low?? I am so done with this!

12 Comments

Yes

by Bostonstrong - 2014-02-06 10:02:06

I wore one of these for a month, soon after that I was sporting a lefty. They gave it to me in the cardio office, I didn't think to ask about the price then. Big mistake. 5,000.00. But that's how they found out I was having sinus pauses, severe brady, and SVT. How low is your heart rate when you feel drunk?

Life Watch

by KathyB - 2014-02-06 10:02:06

Hi, I didn't have Life Watch, but I was on a 3 week monitor also. It came within a month of order cause it did have to go thru my insurance first. the monitors are real easy to use and it really doesn't bother you cause they are pretty light. You can press buttons and tell them machine how you are feeling and it will register it with the heart rate. My doctor got a continued feed at his office and he could tell me on a daily basis what I was doing. It was the determining factor for my pacemaker. Heart rate down below 40 with 5 second pauses at night time, Welcome and keep reading on the site, a lot of valuable information

Bostonstrong--heart rate

by kmom - 2014-02-06 10:02:32

When I had my last "episode" at work (I was taken from work in ambulance because the whole upper half of my body went to sleep and I was very dizzy) they couldn't find anything after 5 hrs in ER but had a follow up on Monday (the event happened Friday) when I got to my primary drs office he said my heart rate was in the lower 50's and said it was too low and thought that's what caused the problem. When the "episode" started a lady that was sitting behind me took my pulse and said it was 45! however by the time I got from my desk to the front of the office when EMS got there it was up to 88 so I don't know.

a-fib / flutter

by Theknotguy - 2014-02-06 11:02:13

Know what you mean about the a-fib/flutter. That was the stuff I battled for eight years. You get really tired of it.

Hang in there. If they can keep the a-fib under control and get you a PM you'll feel a lot better.

I understand the waiting around to get tested, then the waiting for results can drive you crazy. However it's better than waking up in the hospital from a coma. So enjoy the frustration while you can.

Fortunately there's a lot they can do since your heart problem is on the electrical side.

Hang in there. Life gets better.

Glad

by Bostonstrong - 2014-02-06 11:02:47

That they are working on this. The monitor will catch whatever is going on.

Not in great shape

by kmom - 2014-02-07 07:02:07

I just wanted to add that Iam not a runner or in super great shape I know a lot of you out there are very into sports and see a heart rate in 40's and 50's and think that's ok and it is (according to my PCP ) if you're in great shape and running or cycling ( I wish I had the energy!!!) but if course Iam not

Fitness

by Bostonstrong - 2014-02-08 02:02:57

When I was a certified couch potato my rate was 38-40. No cardiac conditioning. No vegetarian diet. No diet period. I live where we eat heartily in winter to keep warm and for recreation and social reasons. Good friends, a snowy night, catching up on the week. I am blessed and graced the people in my life who minister to me with wonderful meals and their love and friendship. So I choose this over being thin.
I had lost 40 lbs but they are creeping back with not being able to run now.
Oddly mine ca me up when I started running, every time I was in the cardio office last year it was 50's.
No running or walking now until I see ortho backin a couple weeks. Thrown back into couch potato statusat least if I have to sit out it's -7. It would be worse in the summer spring or fall.
If your provider knows you are not a runner they shoukd take that into account.

Low heart rate

by Bostonstrong - 2014-02-08 09:02:09

That might be normal in a runner but pauses, black outs, and dizziness are not!
Did they check your thyroid? That can drop your heart rate too.

thryroid

by kmom - 2014-02-08 10:02:30

When this whole thing started with the arrhythmia last year the first thing my PCP did was run a bunch of blood work including my thyroid which all came back normal. when I was in the ER a couple weeks ago they ran it again and was normal. I just wish they can get this whole thing figured out and I can get back to feeling normal again--Seems I do really well for a while then I get a set back and I struggle for a while--of course i'm sure me being sick for 3+ weeks doesn't help the situation ( I was doing ok before I got that sinus infection crap) although I've been over that for a while now. (although that's why the ER doc thought it was Vertigo from that sinus stuff) but that still didn't explain why the whole upper half of my body felt like it went to sleep for about 15-30 min. They'll figure it out --I think i'm just too impatient.

Bostonstrong

by kmom - 2014-02-08 12:02:30

That's what my PCP did--when he listened to it that Monday--he said he was saying it was too slow "that is unless you're a marathon runner" (his exact words or there abouts ha!) that's exactly why he was saying that. If i'd been a marathon runner they wouldn't have worried about it because it is so normal to have a lower heart rate if you are.

update

by kmom - 2014-02-10 10:02:26

My monitor's coming on Wednesday! Yippee! Now maybe they can find out what is going on and why I am having these symptoms! Hopefully something will show in the 3 weeks.

AM wired!

by kmom - 2014-02-18 10:02:28

at least on the monitor! ha! at least so far. The one thing I did learn today was my husband told me that my dr. had told him last April or May when I had my ablation was that I was a good candidate for a PM! I guess they just need this monitor to prove it?? I'm ready?? I just want this constant lightheadedness to stop! I think someone posted on another thread about the ups and downs of your heart rate and I'm beginning to think maybe that's what's happening to me?? sometimes I feel my pulse and it will be like in the 40's or 50's then sometimes it's normal and sometimes its a little fast--hard to explain but it will beat normally a few times then go slower and then faster like it's got to catch up after it's gone slow for a little bit--I know that doesn't make much sense or does it?? and for those who might think i'm obscessed by this i'm really not i'm just trying to "tune" myself to my body and trying to figure out why I feel the way I do. sometimes I don't even know if it's my heart at all but rather a pinched nerve or something because that can make you lightheaded. but that doesn't account for the slow heart rate my primary doc detected either?? just venting I guess

You know you're wired when...

Your signature looks like an EKG.

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