I am joining this site for my mom

Hi everyone,
I would love for someone to help me out with some information.
My mom received a pacemaker last Monday, June 22nd. She needed the pacemaker because of a very irregular heartbeat. She was so determined not to get one that she almost waited too long to finally give in and have the surgery. In her case, her heart was beating much too fast, and her shortness of breath was almost killing her. She retained so much fluids that she needed to stay in the hospital for an extra night. Her problem is that she thinks that she is unique with her problem of a too fast heart rate. Instead of the opposite. She is very active and wants to walk and be better but she is now very depressed because she thinks something is wrong because she is so tired and still feels bloated. Is there anyone out there that can let me know how long it takes before you feel better after surgery so that I can let her know not to feel as if the operation was not a success. Did anyone experience fluid retention even after the surgery.? I know that it has not even been a week since she had this done, and I can tell her to relax and it will be bettter. However, if someone else has actually gone through the same thing, it would help so much to be able to tell her that I know from a person who actually experienced the same thing as her. Maybe, if I hear some good , positive information from someone, I can get her to join this club herself. Thank You for any help you can give me. Kym

6 Comments

fast heart rate & shortness of breath

by aldeer - 2009-06-28 01:06:06

Hi Kym... this is great for you to enquire for your mom. I am 81 and had my pm almost two years ago. One of the first things I learned from our many pals is patience. A pacemaker will not slow your heart down, It will keep it from going to slow resulting in fainting. I am in constant A-fib still and always will be but have a total heart block with just the ventricle working hard but very successfully. The shortness of breath can often be helped by deep breathing exercises, and the bloating does not have to be water retention. I am sure someone much wiser than I will write soon and give you a much better explanation. Tell your mom that it does take time to heal and try to keep a happy and positive outlook and find out all she can from her new friends in our great club. aldeer

Activity

by WBoudreau - 2009-06-28 01:06:12

I am 73 and walk 4 miles a day. I do all the work in and outside of my house. Having a pacemaker is no problem at all. In fact I am on my forth pacemaker. I never give it any thought.

Keep looking up

Give it Time

by ediepgh - 2009-06-28 01:06:12

Hi Kym,

I have a bivent-pacemaker. My heart also beat too fast (over 105 bpm) and was erratic. I gained 15 lbs in a few weeks and was always out of breath and fatigued. Life was basically at a standstill for me. I dropped down to working two days a week and did little else.

I thought I would feel better immediately or in a week or two and was very discouraged. I felt better after a month, and I don't remember when exactly I felt back to normal, but I am back to normal now and then some.

My bloating decreased some before my surgery due to taking a diuretic. Afterward, I did lose all the rest of it but it took time.

I've had my pacemaker for four yrs. I work full-time, go to the gym three times a week and take both a yoga and a pilates class weekly.

Tell your mom that she will feel better. Everyone recuperates at a different pace. The key is to take care of herself, eat right, follow-up with appts. and know her body. The body needs time to heal. I haven't talked to anyone who has a pacemaker who regrets it. I consider it my lifeline.

Oh, by the way, my Ejection Fraction had been 15 for five years. Normal is 55-60. Mine went to 30 after one year and has been 55-60 the past three years.

Edie

rate control

by heartdoc - 2009-06-28 01:06:30

aldeer is correct in that a pacemaker cannot slow the heart rate. There must be something else going on with your mother. Could it be that the pacemaker is to permit the administration of medication to slow the rate? The pacemaker could be to prevent it from beating too slowly once this medication is started. If that's the case, the pacemaker would have been just the start of treatment, and it could be taking some time for the new medication to have its effect. This should be discussed with your mother's cardiologist.

it takes time and rest

by teen - 2009-06-28 02:06:30

hi kym
i joined the club when my 17yr old son had a pacemaker fitted. it came out of the blue. in saying that, he had symptoms of dizziness since he was young but it was put down to things like ear infections. he got fed up with the turns that he went and asked the dr to check him out. he had a monitor on for 24hrs and in that time his heart had paused for 7 secs during the night. he couldn't lay flat on his back without feeling dizzy. we got the results on a tuesday and by the friday he was in having it fitted. his heart slows down to a pause.
he is nearly 20yrs now and he has not let it interfere with his life at all. if anything, its his dad and i that still cant relax but we are getting there.
we are from east kilbride, scotland and he is going into his final year at university studying bio-medical sciences, he works part time as a lab assistant in the local hospital. he wll also be sitting his 2nd dan grading in aikido (martial art) this year, and he plays bass guitar in a band and he plays football on a monday night with mates. he has had no trouble with it except inflamation around the lining of his heart at easter this year which disappeared wih rest. he does not let it get him down, the very opposite. if your mother joins this site, she will see the range of people and ages that have pacemakers. if she could just relax and rest up, i am sure she will be ok.
i hope she gets better soon but you need to take care of yourself too.
god bless
christine. x

It just takes time

by roy haycock - 2009-06-29 06:06:44


Please tell your mother that I am 70 and have had a PM/ICD for 10 years and am still alive and kicking and enjoying myself.
Last Sunday my family bought me a flight in a Second World War fighter trainer which gave me my first experience of aerobatics in 50 years. I got down thrilled to pieces and knew just how great it is to be alive ... all thanks to my PM.
Please tell your mother to be positve because recovery can take time , but it does happen and you wonder why you used to worry about it.
Best wishes to her,
Roy

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Member Quotes

In fact after the final "tweaks" of my pacemaker programming at the one year check up it is working so well that I forget I have it.