New to my life.

Welcome

by Gotrhythm - 2018-04-15 13:23:51

Welcome to the club. When I needed a pacemaker seemingly out of the blue, it left me bewildered. Especially since I had been assured repeatedly that there was nothing wrong with my heart! .......HUH?

As you start absorbing this life change, you'll have a lot of questions. This is a good place to come for answers.

How should you feel? I don't think there are any rules. Everyone is different. Hopefully, you feel better, but not everyone does. I felt much better, but still I tired easily, needed lots of naps, and it still took several weeks before I got my strength back. You have had surgery and It takes time for your heart to adjust to be being paced.

Some twinges and pain in the surgical site are normal. There's healing that needs to take place on the inside even after the wound looks healed.

The overwhelming majority heal without incident and are back to their lives within six weeks.

culture shock

by Dexter - 2018-04-16 13:31:09

Yes, it's a transition to becoming bionic. You're still in the recovery stage, so expect some uncomfortableness and need for minor pacemaker adjustments. Mine needed some finetuning. I also thought I'd never be able to sleep on my pacemaker side again, but once it's healed, you will without discomfort. I also was in shock over the whole thing. At 61 I'd been physically active and healthy my whole life, had normal BMI, and never dreamed that this would happen to me until I started to experience sporadic episodes of lightheadedness and shortness of breath. Discovered my heart was skipping beats and was diagnosed with Sick Sinus Syndrome, probably genetic. Discovered my maternal grandmother died unexpectedly of heart failure at 61, and her mother did the same at 55. We're at the mercy of our genes.

4 weeks for me!

by Jenni.k - 2018-04-17 22:53:30

Hi! Today I am 4 weeks in. For the first couple of weeks I was very tired, very aware of every sensation (chest tightness, "loud" heart rate at night, chest pressure, twinges, aches, etc). Over the past few weeks the pain has become more localized to my incision and pacemaker site, as well as what has to be related to not using my arm in a full range of motion (if I move it in a new way, it pulls, aches for a bit). At my two weeks follow-up, I had my settings adjusted, which helped some. And in the last week I've even started to forget about it. I can now see that in time the arm will regain its movement and stop hurting, the incision will heal and the pacemaker will move to the back of my mind. It will come! Good luck in your recovery!

3 days for me!

by AMinson - 2018-04-19 12:24:36

I am 31, fit and healthy all my life and had my AICD placed 3 Days ago! What an adjustment this has been for me! I never imagined I’d need something like this but after a congenital heart issue has caused a rare and dangerous type of arrhythmia, this was my best option!

I was told day 3 would be rough, but I woke up feeling as though I’d been hit by a truck. Chest and shoulder hurting, nausea and vomiting from the intense pain. Not sure if this is normal, but my follow up is today and I cannot wait.