Life after having PM

Hi All,

Will PM really make you do the activites that you havnt done for a long time because of your heart problem? My girlfriend, is now unconscious because she experienced shortness of breathing yesterday resulting to heart attack i guess,.. The Doctor recommends that she needs to have a PM,.. She has a cardiomyopathy.. does anyone of you have the same condition as her before? does it true that PM will add another 10 yrs for you to live? I guess this one will depend on you right? Please help us by sharing your thoughts on this...

7 Comments

Pacemakers

by hooimom - 2007-06-07 05:06:20

Sky,

If your girlfriend is passing out and having trouble breathing from her heart problem it is certainly time to do something. If her doctor has suggested a pacemaker it is because her heart cannot maintain a normal rhythm on its own. That leads to all kinds of problems and makes it impossible for most people to function. Before my pacemaker I couldn't breathe well and I was exhausted all the time. Just making it through a work day was an enormous task. Having fun was just too much work. The pacemaker has given me more energy because my heart is pumping correctly. I have as much energy now as I had before my heart problem.

As far as adding 10 years, for some of us it has added a lot more than that. I was 42 when I received my pacemaker last year. If my heart had stopped and I had a cardiac arrest, I could have died right then. My doctor says there is no reason now that I won't live to be 85 so my pacemaker could add over 40 years. Who knows how long any of us have, but the pacemakers can improve the quality of life and extend our lives for many years.

Tell your girlfriend that many people on this site are willing to help her any way we can.

Michelle

Living with Pacemaker

by sky - 2007-06-07 06:06:17

actually "sky" was her name, =) I'm glad that I found this website, this made me feel better, recently I don't know where I am. Just thinking,thinking and thinking about her... Right now? I dont know wats happening to her, I'm not with her, I only grab some news about her through her aunt.. I hope that she will live perhaps like a normal life after the PM Implant. As soon as she got her consciousness back, I will immediately tell her stories about you guys! I hope that everything will be alright someday... By the was she's only 23, we're planning to get married soon. Will her condition after a successful surgery prevent her from having a baby? we all know that if you had heart problems,having a baby is quite risky....

life

by jessie - 2007-06-07 06:06:46

everyone is different and some have other problems after having a pacemaker icd implanted. we never know what the day will bring. we will live until we are supposed to now that we have this second chance. it is wonderful but no guarantee we won't die of something else. i think that when this happened to me in some way i faced my own mortality at the time and am trying to make better choices for myself now. healthstyle choices. it still is no guarantee but we are a lucky bunch to have gotten thru the first hurdle. just think of the many people who did not. so be glad you can breathe now and go out and live your life. myself i don't drink at all. i certainly don't smoke but there is a certain peace in that knowing i am doing the best i can. so that is my view the best to you both. jessie

Too young for all of this

by hooimom - 2007-06-07 07:06:16

Okay Sky's Boyfriend,

Twenty three is way to young to go through all of this. There are lots of people on this site that have gone through this in their twenties. Please do tell her about the site and tell her that we want to help her if we can. There is a post about pregnancey with a pacemaker down a little past your post. There are women who go on to have normal pregnancies, but her doctor will have to help you all with that decision. Let us know how you are both doing.

Michelle

hello

by mytrose4444 - 2007-06-07 09:06:18

i got my pacemaker in 2005 before i got it i was dizzy all the time couldn't breath good slept all the time,i had some initial problems at first but as time has gone on things are much better i can at least stay awake and walk and do thing i could not before it was truelly a life saver for me and i am sure most people feel the same way,Best of luck .Valerie

cardiomyopathy with an ICD

by livingwitharvc - 2007-06-08 07:06:50

Having a pacer or defib is a good idea! I have both. It just depends on what kind of cardiomyopathy she has whether they will implant a combination. My ICD did not give me energy that everyone speaks of due to having heart and lung problems! But I do have peace of mind knowing that it is there. As other people say we are lucky to have such devices and live to get them. Everyone's experiences with pacers and defibs is different. My surgery and my recovery went well and my type of device has never given me any trouble and has just done what it was meant to do. I have had a lot of success with mine due to taking a great comination of beta blockers and such to help my heart rate. God has been great to me even though I haven't always considered everything I've gone through great, but he has brought me through it and saved my life many times before my ICD.
living with arvc

Update...

by sky - 2007-06-08 09:06:30

Thanks Michelle, Jessie, and Valerie! I hope that sky would get her consciousness back asap. I hope that her operation will be the same as successful as yours! I just don't know whether the cardiologists,operation procedures, and equipments here in the Philippines are as reliable as with other countries. It's not too late right??? Please pray for her... Thank you for your inspirational comments! may God Bless all of you!

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Member Quotes

The pacer systems are really very reliable. The main problem is the incompetent programming of them. If yours is working well for you, get on with life and enjoy it. You probably are more at risk of problems with a valve job than the pacer.