Hello fellow pacers. Great informative club,Ive learned a lot. very positve attitudes.
I have a sleep problem since Feb28-2005 day of implant. found next to impossible to get any medical assistance from medtronics tech, cardiologist, doctor etc. lunesta, tylenol pm plus trazodone gets me 11pm to 3am per night, nap is impossible. Ive requested pm settings, bpm change and was informed by many medtronics techs over the years now that settings are not available.
desperate. any suggestions please. also any one know of any legal action that could force a solution from medtronics ?
sorry to complain but, work, home and personal life can not degrade any more due to fatigue.

 

 

What is keeping you awake? I'm serious, there are many things that can affect our ability to go to sleep and they sometimes give a clue to the problem.

The trazodone leads me to believe you have been diagnosed with depression. Both depression and the drug can affect your sleep. Here is one warning about side effects of the driug:

"Trazodone works best if you take it after a meal or a snack. Call your doctor at once if you have any new or worsening symptoms such as: mood or behavior changes, anxiety, panic attacks, trouble sleeping, or if you feel impulsive, irritable, agitated, hostile, aggressive, restless, hyperactive (mentally or physically), more depressed, or have thoughts about suicide or hurting yourself".

The reason you can't get help form Medtronic is that your sleep problem isn't caused by your pacer. Since it started at the time of your implant it could have triggered the onset of symptoms. Having a pacemaker implant is an experience that is very unsettling for many people.

best of luc,

frank

 

I have had several yrs of poor sleep & altho I had not tried all the meds you did ('cause I am on Coumadin) I either was so exhausted I slept 6 hrs after several nights of the 3-4 hrs middle of nite stuff you describe or woke up every 2 hrs all night long. Finally went for a sleep study & have mild sleep apnea ( there is a corelation between Afib (I have Afib & apnea) & wear my CPAP machine every nite & get much better sleep & as a plus I do not have the respiratory infections I have had for years. Dr says that theory is that probably have GERD & when wake up with apnea whole resp. system goes into spasm & aspirate food from the esophagus (GERD) into lungs. Whatever, it works. Try & get a sleep study & see if you have apnea. Much more common than we ever knew.

Good luck getting some zzzz's,

Janet

 

I doubt that you could force Medtronics to do anything. Medtronics only makes the pacemaker. Although techs from the pacemaker manufacturers do things to our pacers at the doctor's office, it is the doctor who has the ultimate responsibility for the settings. Even though the tech may know more, the doctor is in charge.

 

My mom is on pain medication and she has problems all the time sleeping, Im no expert far from it, but I cant believe the pm has anything to do with the sleeplessness, meds your on could be the culprit, as much as doctors hate to admit that they dont know everything maybe the pills are doing it you make me wonder now about my mom, I know Im worried about her taking the pills shes on all the time. I think sometimes docs prescribe somethings because they have no idea what the problem is and create more problems.
just my two cents worth and that is probably all its worth if that
dave