Leads

I doubt it

by Protimenow - 2020-07-04 18:51:06

After I got my PM, I forgot about the restrictions, too. When I sleep, I sometimes put one arm or another over my head. 

I often reach, with my left arm, to a shelf way overhead (about 8 feet up). 

I even partially lost my balance and 'fell' into a refrigerator door, with the PM taking most of the impact. 

Like you, I worried about damaging the PM, pulling the leads out of my heart, and the 'usual' stuff. 

I use a Fitbit - if you have one, let it tell you instantaneous heart rate, and look at the app for a resting heart rate. These should be close to the rate that your surgeon set it to work. 

If you don't have a device like this - take your pulse - fingers on wrist or, perhaps more accurately, fingers on neck. 

I found (and still find) that feeling a fairly regular beat when I put fingers on wrist -- steady, consistent beat (with a few arrhythmias) is strangely comforting. Before my ablation and PM, my heart rate was all over the place. With the PM in my chest, it's comforting  just to feel that heart beating almost like it should. 

Check it out - if your heartbeat is about the same as the rate that the surgeon set it for, you're probably okay. 

Also, I suspect that if you actually pulled a wire, you may have felt it. 

Highly unlikely

by AgentX86 - 2020-07-04 19:59:37

All of us have absentmindedly reached for something we shouldn't have.  It's rarely a problem so relax.  Damage is exceedingly rare but it's still a good idea not to push fate.

Depending on why you have your pacemaker, you may, or may not be able to tell if you''ve pulled it loose.

Since you're 2-1/2 weeks post surgery, you probably have an appointment with the device tech coming up soon.  They can tell if there are any problems.  In the mean time, relax.