Back to the ER

So yesterday I began to have flutters in my heart, I had some pressure in my head, my blood pressure went up and then I felt like the pacer was firing. Well, I managed to work myself into a situation and went to the ER. When I got there, nothing was showing. They sent me home and I saw the Medtronic guy this morning. The pacemaker showed nothing ever happened, the read out was perfect, and what I had perceived was a panic attack. My Cardiologist, said, this is very common and with a little time, it will stop as I realize that my heart is not going to do that really long pause I had in the hospital after my Afib conversion on my own, that is what the pacer is for. I did not know that they can read out any events that happen, it's like a constant EKG, they can see if there are events and that is the purpose of the checks and downloads. They are going to put in a in home unit that I can upload my pacer readings to. I feell SO MUCH BETTER. I have always had panic disorder, that is what I was feeling rather than Afib. They told me to Meditate it will do wonders just as a few of you have mentioned, I am going to begin doing that. They put me on Xanax for awhile until my confidence is up. My pacemaker has only been in for 2 day's and I am still getting used to the feelings associated with it, which truly are nothing, but I was imagining all this. I am so much better now after talking to them. Onward and upward AND thank you for this board, I am so happy you are all here. Doc said, that I am really young and otherwise healthy and "go and play and have fun" LOL. I just have to wait until I can return to normal activities such as raising my arm after the site heals.

4 Comments

It's so new for you

by Grateful Heart - 2014-03-20 08:03:37

It's good you got some answers and are feeling better.

The more you learn about your condition and device, the more comfortable you will become.

Grateful Heart

Glad to hear

by Theknotguy - 2014-03-20 09:03:28

Glad to hear you are feeling better. Glad it was "only" a panic attack. Amazing what the mind can make you think.

Hope you continue to get better.

Theknotguy

You'll Feel Better & Better

by NiceNiecey - 2014-03-20 11:03:43

Despite the diagnosis of a panic attack, I think most, if not all of us on this site, had some serious anxiety after we got our PMs. The new sensations are so weird and initially felt much more uncomfortable to me than anything I experienced in my chest before the device was implanted.

I think you're doing quite well since you sought help from the "club" from Day 1. I was initially a snob and thought this would be just for whiners or wimps. After a few weeks, I realized I needed more help than I was getting from the cardiologist's office and my friends (in their 40s & 50s) who only knew what their parents and in-laws had told them. Thank goodness I got over myself and found others who could help me.

Keep posting. The next few weeks will be important to your recovery.

Niecey

The Unknown begets STRESS.....

by donr - 2014-03-21 08:03:15

.....STRESS begets anxiety, anxiety begets panic attacks. (Thus sayeth Donr)

Marnid - BTDT. You did not get into the panic mode of living overnight, you will not get out of it any faster.

XANAX will NOT cure panic attacks, it only masks them by killing the symptoms. It is also rife w/ lousy side/after effects & is highly addictive. It is, however a good Med to use to regain control when one is coming on. Split whatever size pill you have been prescribed down to the lowest dose that will just take "The edge" off your attack & allow YOU to gain control of your rampaging subconscious mind that is bringing these attacks on.

ONLY YOU can get yourself over the panic attacks by learning how to relax. Meditation is a good approach.

Below is a comment I made a while back, giving one method for doing it,



Begin Paste:
Let me give you a suggestion for bringing this mess under some level of control. It's called learning to relax - essentially it's self hypnosis.

Go lie on a bed on your back in a quiet room. Put a pillow beneath your knees so they are truly relaxed & comfortable. Head on a low pillow to ease muscular tension in neck. Hands at your sides in whatever position they feel comfortable. Do this AFTER sensing an event that disturbs you. Shoes off, belt loose.

Close your eyes & engage your mind by slowly working from the tip of your toes toward your head. Very slowly as you scan upward, examine each limb & each muscle to determine if it is relaxed - if not, relax it! Toes, feet, calves, knees, thighs, stomach muscles, fingers, hands, lower arm, upper arm, chest, neck, head, etc.

All the while you are doing this, you absolutely control your breathing. Start counting to at a 1 second pace; inhale from 1-4; hold your breath 5-8; exhale 9-12; hold your exhaled condition 13-16. Start over. do this to the exclusion of everything else. Plan on staying exactly 20 minutes.

What this does is relax the body, bore the crap out of your conscious mind to the point it gives up & turns itself off, leaving you in a hypnotic, relaxed state.

Try it - it just might help you w/ the anxiety you suffer.

This will work for you - or anyone else. But you have to be dedicated - takes a while to become effective.

YOu still have a lot to learn about the pacer world. It does not really come w/ a manual or a travel guide. You have to learn by yourself & by asking questions, no matter how trivial they seem.

I promise you -f if you were anxious before, it will NOT get any better just because some guy w/ a knife sliced you pen & stuck in a PM. That will fix the PHYSICAL problems, but will give you a whole new set of mind problems to conquer. Your subconscious mind has a whole bunch of NEW things to latch onto to get you all agitated. Only by learning all about them will you truly reap the benefits of the PM.

Don

You know you're wired when...

You get your device tuned-up for hot dates.

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