Fatigued

Fatigue

by Gemita - 2020-09-30 04:22:42

Hello Loulou,

Fatigue is very common and can have many causes as you will know, although I see you have felt fatigued and winded ever since the pacemaker was implanted (in 2018), so we have to assume it is being caused by the condition which your pacemaker is trying to treat?  The other possibility is that your pacemaker implant procedure itself may have caused some damage to surrounding muscle/nerve tissue affecting your diaphragm which is involved in breathing causing you to feel short of breath or winded?

I am assuming your doctors have carried out tests like lung function tests, blood tests (to check for anaemia and other causes for fatigue/breathlessness), X-ray or other imaging like an echocardiogram to check your heart function, a heart monitor to look for any arrhythmias ?  I presume you have had several pacemaker device checks to look again at your settings to see whether they are correct for you ?

It would help if you gave us a little more information about why your pacemaker was required ?  I do hope this can be resolved quickly because from personal experience, feeling fatigued and short of breath is difficult to manage.  It took me several months to feel well after my implant for tachy/brady syndrome.  I still get tired and short of breath sometimes but this is wholly due to my intermittent arrhythmias although these are now much better controlled.

I hope you feel better very soon.

Thank you

by Loulou - 2020-09-30 08:15:23

Hello Gemita, 

Shall definitely broach this information with my doctor.

I was diagnosed with tachycardia and bradycardia in 2018.  Preliminary tests showed that my heart would stop for 6-7 seconds; this would explain the sudden blackouts and falls that I was frequently experiencing, especially when walking the dog, I'd simply trip and fall.  

However, since  the pacemaker operation ( over 2 years ago)  I have not felt quite right.

Upon reading your message, I immediately felt it could be a setting issue, It's been a while  since the settings have been checked. 

 Thank you very much for your helpful and informative message. I'll be seeing my cardiologist next month.

I'm so glad to hear your keeping well. Thanks again. Blessings, Loulou. 

Good luck when you see the cardiologist

by Gemita - 2020-09-30 12:44:59

In the meantime Loulou, try to find out as much as you can about your settings and what they can do for you.  Medtronic will have a website where you can download their pacemaker manual.  It is a lot to read.   Put your Serial number in the search box on their website for your particular model.  I will come back and attach a link.

http://manuals.medtronic.com/manuals/main/en_AU/home

In this manual there will be lots to wade through gently, some won't mean very much to you, it doesn't to me, but slowly we will both understand more.

Additionally you can learn by searching this site.  Go to the search box, press "Q" top right of Pacemaker Club and type in questions like say Rate Response or AV delay to learn more about some of your settings and what they could mean for you.  Then if you have any queries, come back and ask here.  The more you can learn about your settings and your condition before your next appointment, the better position you will be in to have a meaningful discussion with your doctors (and impress them at the same time).

We have a few things in common:  age, tachycardia/bradycardia syndrome.  I also suffered from pausing and syncope prior to my dual chamber, Medtronic pacemaker implant in May 2018.  Although a pacemaker will not be able to stop an arrhythmia or control high heart rates, it can prevent your heart rate from falling below the pacemaker set minimum heart rate and therefore help prevent the pausing and blackouts from occurring.  Hopefully your cardiologist or EP (Electrophysiologist) will be able to help you control/treat any ongoing arrhythmias which may be partly responsible for your symptoms.

Loulou and issue with fatigue and rate responsiveness of pacemaker

by Kpflma - 2021-09-16 12:23:40

Hi there, I just a week ago had my third pacemaker implant and the first one was when I was 41. I never really recovered and I was incredibly exhausted. Turned out, I figured out after doing some research that I actually had dysautonomia in addition to the sick sinus syndrome. I found a neurologist who specialized in this and did tilt table testing. So I've been dealing with that over the years, however there's no real treatment. I've made a lot of lifestyle changes. The dysautonomia actually has improved! However, I've remained fatigued. My cardio team are always messing with the PM settings and trying to optimize the pacemaker's functioning. However I learned something, this time, for my second generator replacement. My initial pacer was a St Jude's model, and it turns out that St Jude's models are not great in terms of rate responsiveness. When I was 41, the year I got the pacemaker, I ran almost every day for three to five miles, worked at a job I loved for about 60 hours a week, had a dog, was married, had a very active life. So sad to lose a lot of that. This time, they put in a new model. This model leads the field in its rate responsiveness ability. That means when my heart rate needs to increase, it will! Myself and my team are very optimistic that this will help my fatigue and lethargy. So perhaps ask your EP about the rate responsiveness of your PM and also ask about the variation in your heart rate when you go in and have your device checked. With my old pacemaker, the variability was incredibly low. So I'd be out walking or even just going up and down the stairs, and My heart rate would barely increase. Good luck and keep us posted! Kathy