ICD placed in 5 days ago.
I had ICD placed 5 days ago. I was feel ok but today I started noticing my heart beat and even when I am reclined I feel it. I will be contacting my heart dr and let them know. It is hard to explain what I'm feeling but i will explain it and someone can make sense of it and be more direct.
I feel a heart beat that appears to last a couple seconds. It is like my heart beats and is like in slow motion. It has happened quite a bit today.
I also have issue with sleeping. Sleeping in bed is rough as well as in recliner. Sleeping on my back with upper body reclined is kind of ok but it is that I just cant shut my brain off. Anyone have some tips?
Thanks and God Bless
4 Comments
5 day-old ICD
by AgentX86 - 2020-06-16 18:15:05
You're only five days into this adventure. You're doing well and everything you're feeling is perfectly normal (you'll be hearing that a lot from now on). Often we're too wired to sleep or the pain is nagging at us. Ya' gotta expect some of that. A recliner is a good idea. I slept in one for a couple of months after my PM implant and five months after my bypass surgery. You can get used to it. I put a pillow under my calves so I wouldn't get leg cramps in the middle of the night (magnesium supplements have since fixed that problem).
"Skipping" beats is also normal. It happens to everyone, even those with perfectly healthy hearts. They just aren't wired and waiting for something to go wrong. Your heart has been assaulted and may throw off some PVCs (Premature Ventricular Contractions), which feel like a skipped beat but are just early beats. It's very rare that these are dangerous. They're so frequent that pacemakers can't even be told to register them unless there is a (long) string of them. By all means, tell your EP about them but don't expect them to get real excited.
ICD
by islandgirl - 2020-06-16 20:44:52
Are you also paced? When you go back to the EP they will do some adjusting. Tell the EP what you're feeling and write down the times and dates. It takes awhile for your heart to heal and adjust.
You know you're wired when...
Like the Energizer Bunny, you keep going.
Member Quotes
I've seen many posts about people being concerned about exercise after having a device so thought I would let you know that yesterday I raced my first marathon since having my pacemaker fitted in fall 2004.
Anxiety Plays a big role.
by Piggers365 - 2020-06-16 12:22:47
I had my ICD placed 10 months ago and can relate to what you are saying.
The lack of sleep is normal as laying on your back all night is often unnatural. In a few months you will find yourself sleeping in all positions and I regularly sleep on my side and front with no issues.
I often feel like my heart would skip beats or beat irregularly however all my check-ups to date show my ICD hasn’t even switched on. I think the anxiety will cause you to feel things that are not always real.
If there is a problem the machine should correct and it will flag up when you have a check-up in several weeks.
In short, try to relax. In 10 months I have gone back to the gym, played cricket and golf and even swam several KM in open water.