Adjustment

Hi, I'm new here. I'm 32 and just had my pm implanted June 24th. I'm either to emotional or forgetful to ask my Dr. all of these questions.Sometimes I get contradicting answers also. My first question is..when you get an adjustment will you know right away wether it will work for you or not? How long should I wait to feel an improvement before I go back for another? Also, I had an adjustment that I thought was perfect. I was feeling back to my old self for about 7 days, but after a night of drinking a little to much for a friends b day I felt like the slate was wiped clean and I was feeling like crap again. So my second question is can you do things to alter how your settings work? Or can a setting just stop working for you ? I get very emotional when discussing these things with my Dr. I really want to believe that it takes time to get adjusted but some days I feel like this is just my new normal. Just a little background- I had open heart surgury as an infant and have not had heart problems until now. All the sudden my pulse was in the high 30's low 40's. Dr. says scar tissue from my previous surgury was just now causing a problem to my natural pm.

5 Comments

Questions

by Zia - 2014-08-13 07:08:48

Angry Sparrow is right, the only way to get answers is to make a list of questions ahead of time, then ask them until you get a satisfactory answer. Some "caregivers" seem to think they should keep secrets from us. Don't let them. If you have problems remembering what they tell you (I have sometimes) a small recorder ie tape, smart phone, etc will help you with that.

Good suggestions

by Grateful Heart - 2014-08-13 09:08:21


Good suggestions from both Sparrow and Zia.

After the swelling goes down and your heart adjusts to the new pacing it is typical to need your settings adjusted. The pacemakers come out of the box with standard settings but they are not always the best for each person.

Noticing adjustments: it depends, some you may notice right away while others may take time to notice. If exercising for example, I find it may take a few days of exercising to notice if it feels better but we are all different.

You have to gage how you feel, as long as it is not interfering with your breathing or giving you discomfort, I would give it a little time before going back for another adjustment, at least a couple of weeks.

When I have a lot of questions I write them down and bring it with me because it is so easy to forget when you are in the office.

Grateful Heart

Keep a list

by Lurch - 2014-08-14 03:08:06

I keep a list of questions I come up with between visits. I have a document on my computer where I list the questions, then print it out when I go for my visit.

Many of the questions arise from things I read on these forums!

Give it a bit more time

by NiceNiecey - 2014-08-15 12:08:08

Welcome to the site. In time, you should feel better and better. I truly didn't think it was worth getting a PM until I was about 2 months into the "ordeal" which I no longer think is so bad. At 7 months, I am feeling better all the time.

At 32, you're at that very vulnerable, emotional, hormonal age. At that age, I'd walk into a room and hear the music of a commercial for 3 seconds and I'd be in tears. I'm sure your tears are a combination of being in a funk over having had your heart "poked" (to put it mildly), being hormonal, and just being plain scared that you've had to get a PM at such a young age.

Some of my early adjustments seemed awful because it was all new. Now, it seems to take a week or two before I adjust to them. Give yourself plenty of time. I figure that at the one year mark, I should be skating right along and I suspect you will too.

All the best.

Thank you

by Leesh - 2014-08-16 02:08:40

Thank you for your replies and all the suggestions. I'm glad I came across this site.

You know you're wired when...

You have a maintenance schedule just like your car.

Member Quotes

A pacemaker suddenly quitting is no more likely to happen than you are to be struck by lightening.