83 and Invicible

 

As I join this exclusive and elits club, here's where I am.

At 83 I Believed I was totally Invicible, or so I thought!

Having beeen a Prostate Cancer Patient for nearly 20 yrs, it was a set back when my Cancer returned and to be treated by Zoladex Implant every 3 months. 

Although the medication is effective at control, it comes with a host of side effects:

Male Menopaused, Breathlessness and muscle wastage- for which Gym routines are recommended. Having been on the routines for  8 months I started to develop Breathlessness. Eventually a check up found a I had a waking pulse of 33 and sleeping at 23 on occasions, in addition High BP.

Recent ECG compared to one 10 months ago confirmed the above.

Scheduled fo a Pacemaker implant on Thurs 11- delayed due to Emergencies. Collpased in the afternoon- brought round and into bed. During the night a severe reaction with limbs like lead, unable to speak and total confusion.

Early next morning, confirmed Total AV Block and fitted with a this remarkable Life saving device.

All I am looking for is guidance from those more experienced, as to what to anticipate and any tips for the future

Many thanks

Garf

 

2 Comments

Young Man

by Good Dog - 2016-11-17 08:03:17

You sound like a young man! That is good, because as I'm sure you know that 90% of the battle is mental. It sounds like you are doing very well with that! I am happy to advise you that living with a pacemaker is a piece of cake. You should be pleased to know that there is little you can or should do as a result of having a pacemaker. Just be sure to communicate to the doctor exactly how you are feeling, because beyond insuring that your heart is beating properly, it is intended to allow you to feel "normal". In time, it should improve your energy level and just give you a better overall feeling of well being. Your doctor and/or pacer tech (the person that checks it) can make adjustments in an effort to optimize (personalize) the settings for you. So you should tell them how you feel when you try to sleep, wake-up and your energy levels when you are active. Your device has an activity monitor that can increase your heart rate during activity if it is needed. It can be turned on or off depending upon your needs. The device will also monitor and record your heart beat based upon the parameters your doctor sets-up.

So you can see that you now have a mini computer working for you. It is important to know that these devices are extremely reliable, so not to worry. I have had mine for 30 years and still doing fine. I also had a complete AV block.

I wish you the very best! This forum is great if you ever have any simple questions that can be answered by a layman. There are lots of folks here with lots of experience.

Sincerely,

David

Tips

by Cabg Patch - 2016-11-17 13:16:39

Vince ~ My advice/tip to you is get out and enjoy life, we ain't invincible forever.

You know you're wired when...

Your old device becomes a paper weight for your desk.

Member Quotes

I'm 35 and got my pacemaker a little over a year ago. It definitely is not a burden to me. In fact, I have more energy (which my husband enjoys), can do more things with my kids and have weight because of having the energy.