Battery replacement recovery?

The cardiology nurse told me I shouldn't exercise my upper body for six weeks.  (I hate to admit what I have been doing the first week post surgery.)  Anyway, I am a passionate pickleball player and generally very active and quite bummed about this (not to mention a little worried about damage I may already have done).  I thought it would be good to increase my range of motion, but I guess not even that is indicated.  I would be interested in learning others' experiences and if they actually dislodged their pacemaker, etc. by overdoing it? 

4 Comments

just the battery?

by Tracey_E - 2018-05-10 10:33:46

If you only got a new device but not new leads, she gave you the wrong advice. 6 weeks upper body restrictions are for new leads. When we just get a replacement device, the only restrictions we have are waiting until the incision heals. I left for a hiking vacation a week after one replacement. I went to Key West two days after another, stayed out of the ocean but otherwise did what I wanted to do. This last one (#5) was a different surgeon and he told me to not work out for 4 weeks, not because of the leads but because of the infection risk from getting sweaty. I think that was overkill but 4 weeks away from the gym didn't kill me. 

Restrictions

by The real Patch - 2018-05-10 17:48:26

Sounds like you are indeed in a pickle...

By all means as TraceyE said if you didn't have a lead change or addition then the nurse is wrong and you needn't worry. The theory is that until scar tissue grows over the contacts inside your heart there is risk some movement will apply tension against the leads and pull them out of position.

That said, I had three new leads and a device implanted in the right side after having an ICD in the left for 10 years, when I asked the EP about restrictions he asked why? Said there is absolutely no reason to restrict activities. Point being even doctors can't agree on restrictions.

I really don't think you have anything to worry about.

If nothing bad has happened yet. . .

by Gotrhythm - 2018-05-11 12:26:53

When you said, "I hate to admit what I have been doing the first week post surgery," I had to smile.

1. You have already, innocently, done what the nurse told you not to.

2. You did it during the time period in which you were most likely to dislodge something--assuming you could dislodge anything at all.

3. You didn't do yourself any damage. (If you had, you'd know it.)

Tracey and TR Patch have a lot more experience with replacement than I do. They say there's no problem. I'm just pointing out that you have already demonstrated that there's no problem with doing what you feel like doing. Don't worry about what the nurse said.

Battery replacement recovery?

by wantok - 2018-05-14 11:49:23

Thanks all.  I should have mentioned they didn't touch the leads.  I'll be pickleballing tomorrow.  That is not the first mistake that nurse has made.

You know you're wired when...

You know the difference between hardware and software.

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