too early or failed?

Hi.
Everywhere I search on the Internet I read I should feel an immediate improvement after CRTD. I certainly don't feel any better. Is it too early or has it been a waste of time? Implant was 40 hours ago and I feel even more tired and weak than before.
Thanks for reading.

11 Comments

Don't blame the PM!!!!!

by donr - 2015-02-08 01:02:39

Good grief - you are but 40 hrs out from surgery where someone opened up your chest, ran a bunch of wires down into your one & only heart, harpooned the heart walls & then buried half a brick in your chest. You were either fully or semi zonked out via some drug that made you feel either happy or hung over. To be exact, for a CRT-D they crawled into your heart & wormed a third wire through a tiny vein down to the lower left corner of the heart. You were probably under for two hours.

If you needed a CRT-D, you had serious problems going into the procedure, so it may take a little while & a few tweaks of the device to feel like the Duracell Bunny again.

For the moment, forget the CRT-D & attendant leads. Just ask yourself how you would expect to feel if you'd been in a knife fight & been stabbed & underwent surgery to repair the damage. Probably pretty shabby.

Then throw in the cardiac part & it would complicate the way you feel.

You did not tell us haw you felt before the surgery or how bad your heart was pre-op. that will have a bearing on it.

It's a bit soon to be expecting to being that bunny again. Some of us are like that. The day after I had my PM implanted, I was back working around the house & felt great - but I was the exception, rather than the rule.

Give yourself a couple more days, then start making noise at the door of the EP who did the job.

Donr

:(

by duracellbunny - 2015-02-08 01:02:40

Thanks for replying Donr.
I see your point - I do feel like I have been battered by 10 guys with baseball bats. My chest and collar bone area feel fine - I can handle that. It's my left arm - the pain is unbearable. I feel like it needs to be in a sling. The doc said to use it gently but I cant even hold an empty cup with it. even now im typing my reply with one hand because the other cant reach the keyboard. Im 44 yrs old and im looking and acting like a geriatric 95 yr old unable to sit without loads of assistance. this is just not what i expected - i wasnt prepared for this.

sorry for ranting - i just feel so down - ive cried more tears than the niagra falls

You just ran your horse through...

by donr - 2015-02-08 08:02:52

...a paintspray booth - it came out a different color!!!!!

Now the arm hurting like that should NOT be happening - you need to get to someone about that right now. Sore, stiff, uncomfortable - all expected. BUT unbearable is beyond expectations. Is there any discoloration in the lower arm/hand? How about numbness & feeling cold or turning slightly blue? That all happened to a man named Dave in here just in the last week.

Also, where the leads go into the subclavian vein right next to the collarbone there are a ton of nerves that supply the arm w/ feeling & motor control. There is a slight chance that one of those got damaged during the procedure. If you can handle drawings/photos of an opened up body, Google "Subclavian Vein" & it will show you all the "Stuff" that runs through that area of the body. Quite crowded since it is right at the base of the neck.

I'm no Dr. but as an engineer, that's the first or second thing I'd look at based on what you say. You did not give us any details about why you got the CRT-D device or who manufactured it. That can have a big influence on this problem.

Go to near the bottom of the opening page for the Dave H thread called "Blue Tinged Hands" to see what he experienced from a constriction in the vein caused by 4 leads being inserted.

We have had a reasonable number of people w/ problems SIMILAR to yours, but nowhere near as significant & debilitating. I'd say it's worth a call for info from the surgeon - or if it's that bad, a trip to the ER (Or A&E, whatever you call it in Worcester.)

BTW: Are you a Canadian or US ex-pat living in the UK? I'd have expected you to describe it as cricket bats, rather than baseball. Beats me what you'd use for waterfalls vice Niagra.

Hope you feel better in what is left of the weekend.

Donr


had one too

by capecod - 2015-02-08 08:02:53

hi there
I'm not sure about an "immediate improvement." I am 10 months out from crt-d and am feeling better. I cannot say i felt better after 40 hours!

give it time as others have said. this is a tricky procedure. mine took nearly 7 hours from beginning to recovery so our bodies went through a lot! I assume you will be going in for a weekly check? but if not, I would check in with your doctor to be sure you are progressing as expected.

my best
patty

Too Early

by Grateful Heart - 2015-02-08 11:02:38


Like everyone said, it will take a little time. If the pain is unbearable, you should be seen.

Get that sorted out and then use your arm so it doesn't tighten up, don't use a sling. You don't want to develop frozen shoulder.

For comfort, a pillow under your arm may help but get the pain checked out.

Grateful Heart

grateful for your replies

by duracellbunny - 2015-02-08 12:02:43

I've slept an awful lot since this morning and Ive awoke feeling better.

My shoulder feels much less sore than it did and the swelling has reduced considerably.

Before my operation I was suffering tennis elbow and was already in pain somewhat at the wrist. It's possible that the muscle has aggravated this further. My arm feels colder than the rest of my body.

My body temperature was cold pre-op and my blood pressure was very low - can't remember exactly but I think it was 112/58.

I've been fitted with a Boston Scientific inogen x4 according to the patient id card.

I appreciate all of your responses and I think I now need to find some positive mental attitude and pull myself together. I guess this is not the time to dwell on feeling sorry for myself.

Tomorrow I will actively make sure I get out and about and see if some fresh air will help.

Ive only booked 2 days off work so I think I had better take the sick note for the week and take a financial hit - but that can't be helped as I already know that I won't be ready for such an energetic job.

Some Normal, Some Not

by donr - 2015-02-10 07:02:58

If you can see your chest "Pounding away," that's NOT normal. You should ask about it. Do you FEEL it "pounding away"?

Every step "Pulling at your stitches " is NOT normal - BUT - if you have severe bruising, also. it may imply that the surgeon had a tough time of the insertion & had to climb up on your chest & jump on it to make things fit correctly. Actually you know that's an exaggeration, but a lot of bruising in the "Correct" spot is indicative of a tough time during the insertion. Bruising follows the law of gravity - pure & simple. Look at where the surgeon was cutting you - just below the clavicle. When sewn up, the blood is all sealed inside & if there was any internal bleeding, it has to go somewhere, so it follows gravity. If you spent a lot of time flat on your back, expect to see a bruise that is DOWN from the cut area - that would be toward the armpit & down the shoulder area. After spending time vertical. it would flow down the length of the arm & down the chest area. So that could explain your extreme soreness in the incision area. There are plenty of spaces in the body where blood can slowly travel. Between individual muscles there are very thin spaces that it can ooze. Do not ignore it, ask about it, but if it's there, it can explain a lot of soreness.

BTW: As a data point for you, I suffered a severe "Bump" in my butt. I had bruising that ran all the way down to my BIG TOE! And, especially behind my knee & in the ankle.

Some time lok at a large roast beef (Before it is cooked) notice the space between the muscles? that is a natural path for blood to flow through.

Glad the vital signs are improving for you.

You will make it just fine.

Donr



is this normal?

by duracellbunny - 2015-02-10 12:02:57

I can see my chest pounding away. Perhaps it's always done it and I've just never noticed?

Went to the docs yesterday - sobbed my heart out to him and felt better for it. Had to walk really slow because every step pulled on my stiches.

BP was better than ever though - 120/84. :)

Resting pulse rate at the moment is 78 - now that's something I haven't felt for years because it's normally about 35.

Arm is feeling quite a bit better now but some massive bruising has suddenly appeared and I've no idea how.

It's nice just to have somewhere to off load - so thanks.

Been to GP again

by duracellbunny - 2015-02-11 06:02:07

Went to see the doc again yesterday morning - OMG what a change in appearance - I'm quite a skinny guy but now I look like I need a training bra. A bruise the size of a dart board has appeared and the swelling really does make me look like a woman LOL.

The GP didn't seem to think it was serious but I'm wandering whether to ring the hospital for their opinion.

My pulse is a lot weaker this morning - can't really find it to measure it.

During the night I had a night-sweat - this is not something I've had before without suffering from flu or something. My sheets, pillowcase and duvet covers were that saturated I had to change the bedding before I could go back to sleep.

As always, I very much appreciate your replies so thank you x

It's time for an ER Visit

by donr - 2015-02-11 07:02:58

Or the surgeon who did the job.

Losing your pulse on that arm is serious & implies some blockage /excess swelling somewhere along the arterial path.

ALL THIS is not something for the amateurs to treat - EXCEPT to say "Get thee to an ER - NOW!"

BTW: That is a bit much in the increased swelling dept. This implies a lot of blood where it should not be. Discoloration w/o excess swelling is acceptable. This seems to me to be a case of continued leakage at the site where the leads enter the vein & you should consider that. It is serious.

Donr

How about....

by donr - 2015-02-13 02:02:50

....a status report. You were having some serious signs there a couple days ago.

Donr

You know you're wired when...

You can finally prove that you have a heart.

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