Upper chest discomfort

Anxiety

by Lee Burbidge - 2018-08-28 03:04:28

hi SBANNA

Actually I understand how you might be thinking. I have had the anxiety thing and the discomfort for me is expected. Everyone is different and so I am guessing healing and or levels at which you feel the ICD will differ from person to person.

You are not alone. Have you discussed this with your family. What is your family like for support?

You bet - it's like changing and these are some of the things I've learned over the past 15 months

by MartyP - 2018-08-28 12:02:55

Every now and then I update something I call lessons learned and have posted it here in hope that it can help some of the newer members who have so many questions and are looking for answers.

 I hope this helps and doesn't add to any concerns you have.

So I’m a 73 year old male in reasonably good health and this is was first major health “episode”.

On Wednesday May 28, 2017, I fainted dead away at a diner having breakfast with my wife. Ambulance to the emergency room, all kinds of tests on Wednesday and Thursday but nothing showed - I never got to the “tilt table" test. On Friday, May 30th at 6:30 AM in the hospital, the nurse woke me up saying my heart stopped for 31 seconds - 3rd degree heart block, thank God I was in the hospital - I could have killed myself, my wife and may be others - there was NO warning. Four hours later I received my Medtronic’s Dual Chamber PM (now called Sparky) after the nurses woke me up at 6:30 AM.

First, I am glad I have it. But over the year I learned some things (and I hope I’m on the right track) that I wanted to pass on and also to ask for a “gut check” to see if I have it right and they can help others.

Generic Settings - When my Sparky was put in it was set with a “generic” set of codes. In my case it was set for 60 BPM. By Tuesday I felt like my heart was hurting - I called it a “heart ache”. I went back to the cardiologist and after looking at the numbers they did some adjustments and it helped a little, but not enough, I was still getting that “heart ache”. It wasn’t until July 26th when I went back to the doc that they reset it to 55 BPM and that was a lot better. ----- So the lesson learned … “if you have any doubts, there is no doubt, go back to the doctor” both the cardiologist and the electrophysicist.

PVC’s - Premature Ventricular Contractions - wow, no one told me about these. For me they felt like my heart was pounding and if I check my pulse it feels like a skipped beat, but it’s actually a PVC. I remember “Tom” saying that he had them for ten years and his doctor said “they won’t kill you”, but for a newbie they are uncomfortable and scary. For me, before I knew what they were, I thought something was very wrong and at 1:00 AM my wife took me to the emergency room - 5 hours later, nothing found. ------ So the lesson learned … Either before or after your PM, talk to your doctor and ask lots of questions about what you could / should expect and what you may feel … your heart won’t stop, but it will be different”.  What I think I found a little later on, at least for me, when I’m not doing much and my heart rate gets into the high 50’s or low 60’s; again my lower rate is set to 55) I tend to get more PVC’s sometime 2 a minutes - they are scary until you know what they are. I do take Magnesium with Taurate and while I can’t be sure, I think they keep the PVC’s in check for me.  Usually none, once in a while perhaps 1 a minute at most.

Caffeine - I used to drink “Black Magic” coffee and caffeine diet soda, PVC’s here they come. ------ So lesson learned, some drinks and maybe some foods (high sodium and high sugar content foods) will have to go, do some testing to figure out what may give you trouble and cross them off your list. More recently I’ve started to add back some caffeinated coffee, but they do tend to kick off one or 2 PVC’s. 

Stress and PVC’s - for me it’s like oil and vinegar, they don’t mix. One morning was particularly stressful, nothing special just rushing to get a few things done before I had to go out. The PVC’s started right in and lasted on and off for a few hours. ------- So lesson learned - try hard to reduce stress as much as you can, but if your heart starts to pound at least you know what may have caused it.

Anxiety and Depression - For me it hit pretty hard. At the beginning, I napped a lot and felt just lousy. I would tell my wife my head was “fuzzy”. It was hard to feel “OK” with myself, particularly in the mornings. I went to my GP and after talking with him, we decided to start taking an anti-depressant, in my case the 50 mg Zoloft generic. I had been on it for about 3 weeks and it started to take off the lows, for me there are some side effects, some can be troublesome, but make sure you ask your doctor about what you might experience.  I’ve also started seeing a psychologist, Melvin is 82 and I love him!  I knew from past experiences they could help me through the next few weeks / months until I’m fully OK with myself. ------ So lesson learned - if you are anxious and or depressed, see your psychologist and/or psychiatrist. Your body has changed, your life has changed, it will pass, but you may need some help until it does. If you need to talk with someone who has the experience and talked with others, seek out a psychologist who can help you - there is no shame, it’s usually just a chemical imbalance in your brain.

Panic and Hyperventilation - On August 23, my oldest grandson was leaving for college the next morning for the first time and we are very close. Family dinner was at our house and I started to feel dizzy and weak and my heart was pounding. Went to bed and started to hyperventilate - wow that was no fun at all, couldn’t catch my breath. Called 911 and back to the hospital. A whole bunch of tests, but nothing found. I asked for a psychiatric consult and met Daniel, a wonderful psychiatrist. He upped the Zoloft to 150 mg and prescribed Ativan for breakthrough anxiety and that helped a lot. I was on Zoloft till March when I started to wean off, and now I’m off completely. It really has helped. So if you are depressed the meds can help, but wean off when your can – but work with your doctor and you don’t want to come off too fast – assume at least a month to 6 weeks.

On November 15, 2017, my wife and I had gone shopping at Kohl’s and after about 15 minutes I started feeling faint, my heart was racing, and I had to leave the store.  Got home and my blood pressure had spiked to 152 over 97 with 57 BPM.  It was a major anxiety attack that lasted till November 24th.  In addition to the Zoloft I did have the Ativan and it helped a lot!!

So as a summary, depressed from July 26th till September 4th, Panic and Hyperventilation on August 23rd and depression again from November 15th till November 24th.

So lesson learned -anxiety and / or panic and/or depression can occur and sometimes return. Your life has changed and needs time to adjust. It passed once it will pass again, you just have to muscle past it. But, if it really is stopping you from doing what you must do, seek help.

OCD and FitBit's - Yup, it can happen. For me, I started checking my blood pressure and heart rate many times a day, some days 10 or 20 times  or more.  I created a spreadsheet to track the data. Everyone told me not to do it, but I did it anyway. I got the Fitbit and the information is very detailed. It lets me know when Sparky was pacing and for how long, pulse history, sleep patterns, etc. Should I have gotten it? No way! NO WAY !!!!  The last time I saw my electrophysicist I gave it to her and was glad to get rid of it. ----- So lesson learned - if you have OCD tendencies, you may want to stay away from FitBit’s and things like it.

Time ------ So Lesson learned - time is a wonderful healer. It’s been about 12 month’s now since my near death experience, I’m off Zoloft and Ativan and I rarely think about Sparky and the sometimes difficult road it has been to get here.  I’m back to working with a trainer and lifting heavier than before Sparky arrived (210 on the bench press).  I feel good and while not knowing what lies ahead, I’m at peace.

Finally, I’m alive, not dead. My family cares about me, and I care about them. I’m grateful that the problem was found and that Sparky will keep me alive. Am I still fearful, maybe once in a while, but I’m hopeful that there are many years ahead and that when it’s time for me to go, it will be for something other than my heart simply deciding to have an “electrical short” and stop.

Good luck, be healthy and as Spock said “LIVE LONG AND PROSPER”.

Advocate for yourself.

by Gotrhythm - 2018-08-28 15:39:39

I'm sorry you're having such a hard time.

Here's what you need to know. After 6 weeks the leads should be completely healed and held in place by scar tissue. Ditto your pacemaker. But there's a difference between your pacemaker "working fine" and having the pacemaker settings that are right for you.

"Working fine" just means that the pacemaker is preforming according to it's programming. It isn't broken. But if you don't have the settings that are right for you, you won't feel to best you can. Some people do fine with the factory settings, for other people it might take several adjustments to find the optimal settings.

Could the wrong settings be causing your symptoms? Yes they could. So could a lot of other things. But if the problem is settings, the fix is easy, just a few keystrokes while you sit with the "doughnut" over your pacemaker. It may take several tries to get it just right, but very slight changes can make a big difference in how you feel both physically and emotionally.

This is where you have to advocate for yourself and if possible take along someone to advocate for you. Don't be afraid to go back and if neccessary ask that different setting be tried.

Regaining Your Life/Answer to Robin1

by patriciadavenport9@gmail.com - 2018-08-29 12:46:11

I agree with your advice on Pen & Paper use to write down what is bothering you.

I agree with the early morning walk. Good for a person's physical & mental state.

I agree with reminding yourself not to expect too much of yourself or of what can be done.

The rest, I am unfamiliar with but I'm sure it's all good advice that should be helpful to any person who is in the early stages of adjustment.