Hello!
Hi Everyone
My name is Linda, I live near Manchester in the UK and I have just been told I need a pacemaker. Im in denial at the moment because its a bit of a shock. Went to the doctor as I was getting palpitations, expecting some medication or something but she sent me for tests. The heart scan was ok, the ecg was ok but when I had the heart tracer on for 48 hours the consultant says that it flatlined twice, once each day for 7.9 seconds each time. Apparently this is called ventricular standstill. Unfortunately when I wore the tracer I had a particularly stressful weekend with some family problems which I know would not have helped and I told the consultant this but he said it would have made no difference. I also told him that one of the leads came off twice due to the heat, and I thought this was possibly the cause of the flatline but he said that it wasn't and he could see where the wires had disconnected.
Im a fairly young 52 in my aspect to life, I love music, wine with my friends, going out for meals etc.
I have never been ill and this is all a bit of a shock.
It seems such a drastic decision that I be fitted with a dual permanent pacemaker after just a 48 hour trace.
I didnt pass out when these flatlines happened, which puzzles me, if I had passed out I would understand.
Im sorry to all of you for rambling on a but in short Im frightened. Not like me at all, I usually am the main stand for the family so Im out of my normal comfort zone completely.
Any feedback would be helpful to me. I am having it fitted next Wednesday and I am so worried.
Thankyou all
Linda
11 Comments
Thanks
by LindaB - 2010-07-14 02:07:39
Angelie
Thankyou for your comments. No I dont want to wait until I pass out but found it strange that I didn't. I am grateful for your comments, very grateful. I did ask the consultants secretary if I should go for another opinion but apparently I would get referred back to the same cardio consultants for the area..
Cheers and thanks..Linda
PS Just some more info on me..I spent 1 year in USA as an exchange student in NY just before you were born!
welcome
by Tracey_E - 2010-07-14 05:07:01
What, exactly, has you worried? As Angelie said, living with a pm is not bad at all. I go out with my friends, love music, enjoy wine. I also ski, hike, rollerblade, run a business, volunteer way too much and am a mom of two. I've been completely dependent on a pm for 16 yrs now and I don't let it slow me down at all! Most people don't even know I have it.
I'm no dr so take my advice with a grain of salt, but stress wouldn't cause your heart to stop for that long and the pauses were well over the amount of time considered safe, you're not a borderline case and I don't think your dr is being hasty.
It's always a big shock to find out we aren't as healthy as we thought we were, but take comfort in knowing you have a problem that can be fixed fairly easily. The pm will make sure your heart doesn't pause, think of it as your safety net. Your heart beats on its own but the pm will always be there watching, stepping in to cause a beat if it misses. It's likely you won't use it much at all, it's more of an emergency back up plan. Me, I pace every beat I take. :o) If you have questions about the surgery, recovery or living with a pm, please ask away. We've all been there.
Sometimes the decision is forced on you
by Edouard - 2010-07-14 05:07:18
Hello Linda
I've had my PM for 6 weeks now. Apart from the usual post-operative stiffness which lasted +/- one week, I've had no problem. I was awake through the whole procedure and felt very much at ease throughout.
I had been warned for some time now, perhaps 3 years that I might eventually need a pacemaker. Unlike you, I did faint a few times, but was never really concerned. I always resisted the idea of getting a PM.
This time, however, the decision was somewhat forced upon me. I had a syncope at home and fell on the hardwood floor - hard. I busted my nose, cut my lip, chin, and elbow and broke a rib. I needed stitches and ruined a perfectly good pair of pants and a favorite shirt.
At the hospital, they monitored me and discovered that during the night, my heartbeat had gone down to 31.
When the electrophysiologist came to see me, it was pretty much a foregone conclusion.
The moral of the story is that if you wait too long, the consequences may be more serious than anticipated.
This being said, the end results are usually satisfactory and the vast majority wind up like me, returning to their normal lifestyle very quickly.
Good luck, and don't worry too much.
DONT DRIVE WITHOUT PACEMAKER
by pete - 2010-07-15 03:07:57
The first time you pass out because you decided not to have a pacemaker you could be at the wheel driving your car. You could then have a major crash wish could be fatal to yourself and others. This happened to someone I know who had exactly the same problem. Please get your pacemaker or stop driving. Cheers Peter
Try not to worry
by andyuk - 2010-07-15 08:07:16
Hi Linda,
Nice to see another UK member. Just had my first PM fitted 24th June & this is my first post. I'd gone to hospital for tests earlier this year following irregular/slow heartbeat, palpitations, tiredness, breathlessness, sometimes light-headedness, but never passed out. Cardiologist suggested a PM (my HR didn't respond sufficiently on treadmill test - only went up to 78 and I was by then getting disorientated), but he discharged me from hospital, and arranged to see me again in 2 months. Before the 2 months were up I got an earlier appointment because I was feeling quite ill at times. Put me on list for PM; in the days leading up I thought "am I doing the right thing?". On the day an ECG confirmed my condition had deteriorated and this at least eradicated those doubts; from there on I began to feel positive that it was the right course to take.
The op went well - I was awake throughout and relaxed (without a sedative, only the localised anaesthetic by injections). Op took 1.25 hrs; I was able to talk to cardiologist, ask questions, etc - great! While I'm always aware of the PM, I've slept well every night and not suffered much discomfort throughout. The experience has not been anywhere near as unpleasant as I had feared. While movement of my left arm is restricted by cardiologist's instructions, I felt much better in myself immediately and was able to walk up hills following day without getting breathless or stopping for first time in months. Glad I got it done before I started to pass out - who knows what damage you could do then (to you or others if driving, etc)! When the PM is in think of it as a little friend rather than a foreign object in your body - as you will see on here, a lot of problems can be emotional rather than physical - try to be positive but don't be afraid to look for support here when needed - these people are a great help!
Andrew
Thankyou
by LindaB - 2010-07-15 08:07:59
Thankyou all for your feeback, very much appreciated....Linda
Hi
by Genie - 2010-07-16 06:07:40
Dear Linda,
Hi, just wanted to say hello because I am in the UK too (London). I had my PM fitted in March (I'm 31). I was only having 2 second pauses, and if I had pauses of 7 secs I would definitely go for the PM.
I really struggled emotionally when I had the PM fitted - I was overwhelmed. So I know how you're feeling. It seems like so much. It might help you to think that you have not suddenly becoming ill - this has been going on for a while. And the PM is not a problem - it's a solution to the problem that you have now. My cardiologist put my PM in because he didn't want to wairt until I had symptoms: it might be unlikely, but you could be unlucky and the first time you could pass out you could be driving, you could hit your head. The PM procedure is routine and low risk. It's nothing to be afraid of. And everyone here is going to support you - we know what you are going through.
Good luck - and let us know how you are doing.
Genie xxx
Hello
by mrskid - 2010-07-19 05:07:04
Hi, I'm from York, 41, normally fit & active and I received my Dual Chamber PM 6th July 2010. Like you it was a shock, my whole experience from 1st signs to implant was a mere 2 months!! Whilst in YDH on the coronary care ward my hr went down to 13, and on the morning of my op a lengthly pause of 10 seconds...which scared the s**t out of me... I''m hopefully trying (badly I admit), to say, don't be scared....... it has changed my life, for the best, I get to watch my kids grow up! Walk without dizziness etc... When my consultant first uttered the words 'pacemaker' I said no way, I want a second opinion.... one week later I was admitted to hospital in the nick of time, and looked after by the most underrated, kind, efficient Nurses I have ever encountered! I'm reading through the positive comments on this forum smiling that there are so many people with such positive comments and help to offer.
Good luck, and relax..
Hello All and Thanks..but have you ever heard of this?
by LindaB - 2010-07-19 06:07:32
Hello and thankyou all for your comments..Wednesday morning approaching but went for a second opinion tonight...
He explained everything to me, third degree heart block and ventricular standstill but cannot understand why I didnt pass out at 7.4 seconds/
When I got home I started looking at the dates I had noted from the heart trace monitor, 21st and 22nd May.
The first flatline was at 14.20pm on 21st May and second at 15.30pm on 22nd.
I checked my diary, my appt at the hospital was not until 14.30pm on 21st! Yet my heart was supposed to have stopped at 14.20? I didnt have it fitted until after 15.00 hous on 21st.
I am in total shock, is this really my reading?
I have managed to call him back tonight and he says that sometimes the times on these things can be incorrect!
HAS ANYONE HEARD OF THIS BEFORE??
Then why do we have to keep a diary IF THE CLOCK IS WRONG?
I also told him that due to a previous back injury I may need another MRI scan and he said I would need a special type of pm fitted for that. He works alongside the NHS surgeon who is going to do the procedure and called him tonight, they have one in stock so its all systems go but the NHS surgeon has no idea that I have noticed this incorrect time reading, I mentioned it to the specialist who rang me back tonight and he says sometimes these devices can have a wrong time setting??
I will have to find out more about this reading, doubt I will sleep again tonight, just as I was beginning to get my head around it...
Thanks
and another UK!
by Hot Heart - 2010-07-21 06:07:15
think you got your pm today welcome to the club, hope it went well.
HH
You know you're wired when...
Your device makes you win at the slot machines.
Member Quotes
Hang in there; it does get better every day!
sorry
by Angelie - 2010-07-14 02:07:05
a pause of any kind over 2 seconds is abnormal. If it would make you feel better, obtain a second opinion before going through with the pacemaker implant.
You didn't pass out on those 2 occasions during the tracing period, but are you going to wait to get a pacemaker until you pass out? You might be driving your car, injure yourself, someone else, damage your car and/or property. 7 seconds with no heart rate at all is WAY over the range of 2.
I'm young (30's) and my pacemaker implant was a very gradual occurance that took 8 years. I can't imagine what you must be going through being healthy with no prior heart condition. Learn all of your options, understand what exactly is going on, and obtain a second opinion.
Living with a pacemaker is not bad, or by no means a death sentence. Everyone goes through an adjustment period, but it's what keeps us able to live our lives. Life would be so much different if we didn't have our little titanium tickers to help us along.
Welcome,
Angelie