New member... 41 and sporting bling!

Hello-
I am six days post-op with a pacemaker/defibrillator. As a 41 year old female with no health issues, this came as a huge shock and I am still coming to terms with everything. Due to erratic heartbeats, fatigue, low blood pressure and a crazy EKG which lead to an Echo, I was recently diagnosed with Cardio Myopathy. Having 'An acute risk of Sudden Death,' nobody would let me talk my way out of this procedure. But believe me, I tried!
They put it in under the chest muscle (through the armpit to avoid scarring). A family friend who is a plastic surgeon assisted in the procedure but it took 4 &1/2 hours and there were some complications - in addition to very low blood pressure. And now it hurts like hell!! Just starting to feel like the pain is manageable but it's been a rough week!

Are there any other members out there around my age with sub-pectoral placement? When does it get better? This webpage has been a gift. I found it last week pre-surgery. If anyone can give me any tips or insights, I'd appreciate it!
thanks!
Tara

8 Comments

re 50 and have a sub-pec pocket

by tara777 - 2009-09-17 03:09:04

Thanks for the support and sharing your story. This webpage has been so inspiring. It can feel overwhelming at times, with so many angles that pop up and demand to be dealt with. If you had told me a month ago this is what I'd be doing, I would have laughed...but life's funny that way.
It is such a comfort to read these stories and see the steps others have taken. Glad to hear you are doing well. thank you for your response!

Thank you TraceyE!

by tara777 - 2009-09-17 03:09:27

Thank you for sharing your story with me. I have read some of your other posts and appreciate reading your insights and advice. It's really great to have such a resource! I'm sure I will have many more questions for you. Right now part of my incision looks like it may be infected so I will check with the dr and find out about antibiotics. Aside from all this stress, my fiance and I have had a horrendous week of fights. And while I was somewhat prepared for the physical pain associated with this, I didn't factor in the emotional crap! : (

Oh, well. It will all get better.

Thanks again!

welcome

by Tracey_E - 2009-09-17 07:09:33

Welcome to our exclusive little club! I'm 42 now but got my first pm when I was 27. I'm sorry (but not surprised) you couldn't talk your way out of it. I never tried to talk them out of it, I just stalled and procrastinated until I ended up in emergency surgery. Fortunately I lived to tell about it, it was not my smartest moment :o)

My pm is buried similarly, put in from the side and placed behind the breast. I had a plastic surgeon assist also, we are very much in the minority! A very fortunate majority, imo.

I felt a lot better by the end of the first week and was mostly back to normal activity by 3-4 weeks. I still felt it if I stretched/twisted the wrong way or lifted too much for about 3 months. I feel it was well worth it in the end! Read some of the posts here about ladies who hurt every time they wear a seat belt or get rubbed by a bra strap, or have visible lumps. I can't even tell mine is in there. I can hike with a heavy backpack with no problems. The only time I ever feel it is when I'm pms. It doesn't hurt, it's more an awareness.

No health issues??

by ted - 2009-09-17 07:09:43

While you start out by saying that you have "no health issues", it is obvious as you go along, that you do. Your doctors would have been real quacks if they had implanted you while having "no health issues". You will be just fine as you adjust to your new device and accept it as something that will improve and lengthen the quality of your life.

50 and have a sub pec pocket

by COBradyBunch - 2009-09-17 10:09:15

First I went through a lot of what you went through with the battle about getting it, even if it was a short battle. 50, had just had a checkup where my GP said he wished more of his 40 year old patients were in as good shape as I was and had a clean bill of health except for some IBS (irratable bowel syndrome). Suddenly passed out 2x in 3 months and after the 2nd the doc convinced me to stay overnight and boom, my heart stopped 3 times in 24 hours (always restarted itself, but the first stoppage was long enough to call a crash cart and team to my room, and the last one had my nurse ready to call a crash cart but she said she waited and sure enough, I started back up on my own) and while they said my chance of sudden death was slim, the fact these episodes came without warning and I passed out suddenly with each that I was a danger to myself and others w/o a pacemaker.

Once we decided to have it put in I said I wanted it tucked into the muscle because I backpack and do a lot of other active things so them made a little muscle pouch and tucked it away so while not totally under the muscle the vast majority of it is.

Now comes the fun part. Since my surgery was more invasive than the standard ones they do they didn't tell me that I would be in pain longer, and it was more intense than they told me. First week wasn't too bad and handled it with Vitamin I (ibpro) but week two I started getting a lot of pain and it was not just around the incision site up actually up my neck and over to my shoulder. They checked everything out but couldn't find a cause (thought I had thrown a clot at first). They put me on some good anti-inflamm meds and that finally took care of it.

So for me, it was about three weeks before the pain was totally gone and at 4 weeks I was given the okay to do just about anything I wanted to do short of full contact MMA fighting or anything else that would put direct blows on the pacer area. Been pretty good since (implant date 6/22) but still have some occasional discomfort and still don't like laying on my left side. Besides the scar the pacer just left a very small, not too obvious lump.

Finally the non-physical side of things. You will get used to it but you will go through what I can only call a grieving process. I went through some severe depression about week three that was almost debilitating. But once I got through that, with a lot of help from the people here btw, things are pretty good now. The pacer hadn't even kicked off at my one month checkup but since they had seen it 3 times in the hospital the doc says it is just a matter of time (had went three months between episodes of fainting but the got hit bang, bang, bang, bang so it appears mine come in bunches). Anyway, I figure that if this little buddy lets me do what I want with limited interference (and I like to hike, bike, exercise regularly, mt climb and kayak) then it is a good think. The danger from going down while doing any of those is just scary to think about, never mind going down while driving my car with my wife and kids in it.

Hope this helps.

redness

by Tracey_E - 2009-09-17 10:09:59

Redness needs to be checked out immediately. It's probably nothing but you don't want a little something to turn serious.

I'm sorry you've had a bad week with your fiance. This is stressful on everyone. I was a newliwed when I got my first one, I considered just killing him and being done with it! LOL Getting a pm is as much emotional as physical, doctors don't tell us that. Give yourself time to get used to the idea mentally as well as heal physically. And milk it a bit if you need to ;o)

I'm around if you want to chat. Feel free to send a private message, or we can use the chatroom here, talk via IM or email or whatever you're comfortable with.

stressed

by ma_kandanga - 2009-09-20 02:09:53

hi i m two wwks wiith icd need somebody to support me i have been ective nou what excisese can i do thanx marjoie

To TraceyE

by tara777 - 2009-11-29 10:11:17

Hi Tracey-
We chatted back in September. I had my ICD put in under the chest muscle with the plastic surgeon assist
- just like you... Anyway, the ICD has now slipped out from under the chest muscle and seems to be making it's way through the tunnel back to where the incision is under my arm. My body is trying to push it out like a giant splinter! It has been very uncomfortable and I'm thinking it has to get better than this.

I will be going back in on Wednesday for the cardiologist to reposition it (no plastic surgeon assist this time). Have you heard of this happening much? I just saw a posting for 'Pushing through the skin' and it is helpful to hear how other people with this issue are coping. My recovery from the initial surgery has been difficult and I'm dreading this new go-around. However, I remembered that you said you hardly know your device is there and there was never a moment that I could forget about the ICD - the positioning was so uncomfortable - so in the back of my mind I did think something was off. So this time I am hoping for the best possible outcome.

Any advice you have would be welcome.

Thanks, Tracey!

-Tara

You know you're wired when...

Muggers want your ICD, not your wallet.

Member Quotes

I just want to share about the quality of life after my pacemaker, and hopefully increase awareness that lifestyles do not have to be drastically modified just because we are pacemaker recipients.