First Timer

Hello, my name is Patsy and I became a member of the club on Dec.28th when I received my pacemaker. I hope this works for me as I’ve had a couple conversions and an ablation. The Dr. thought this was the way to go. I sure hope it makes a difference. It is years since I was in sinus. I feel every once in awhile a flutter like the a-fib wants to kick in but it stops after a couple flutters. Is this what I will feel and does it eventually straighten itself? I also didn’t think it would hurt. I have gotten better in the pain department but it’s still painful. I haven’t been taking the painkiller as directed. I don’t want to become dependent on them. I’ve been trying Tylenol.  I’m very itchy around the incision area if that makes sense. I’m also having trouble sleeping since I have to do it sitting up. A couple times I felt like a pin prick, could that be a shock? Or is that in my head? Does anyone else have any of these problems?  I’ll be waiting for anyones comments or suggestions. Thanks

2 Comments

Hi Patsy

by AmyS - 2011-01-05 08:01:06

Hi Patsy,
I'm kinda new here too. I'm about 6 weeks post-implant now. I also had to sleep almost sitting up, since it felt like I couldn't breathe when I laid down flat. I still have some over-sized, dense throw pillows that my husband put under my mattress at the head of the bed, so at least I wouldn't have to sleep on lumpy pillows. And I still sleep with 2 baby sized pillows arranged in different ways through the night to feel more comfortable. I really haven't slept well either, since I got this thing. I woke up 2 nights in a row feeling so dizzy and strange at about 4 weeks post-implant. I went into my cardio's office only to be shamed about them "just" being panic attacks. He was a real jerk about it, but most are (I know bc of my husband's experience and a different cardio). I don't think they're really panic attacks because mine never occurred with any associated anxiety. I just don't think they know what to call them, so from now on, I'm calling them "pacemaker attacks" (but they are harmless).

As for pain, I took ibuprofen, instead of tylenol, because it works much better for me. I'm not sure if you have any restrictions on what you can take, so check first if you switch. You're only 8 days post-implant, so I think pain at this point is still normal. Also, it's normal for healing skin to itch, as long as everything is dry and not weepy or infected looking.

I'm not sure where you felt the pin prick like sensation, in your heart? That's normal too. At one point, even 4 weeks post implant, I felt like I'd swallowed nails and they were stuck in my chest. Just now, I've gone several days without that sensation. It's so weird and it doesn't feel like that can possibly be normal.

Hope you adjust well. Read this forum, but not too much. Sometimes it can make you more hypochondriacal than is good for you. Pace yourself. Haha.

Amy

Pain, Itchiness & Sleep

by Pookie - 2011-01-06 12:01:12

Pain or would you describe it as extremely uncomfortable? If you say pain, then you need to be seen by whoever implanted your pacemaker as pain is the body's only way of telling us something is not right. And I must add that everyone's pain threshold is very different, so what I may say is pain, someone else may describe as just soreness. Again, you shouldn't be trying to get through the healing process without any pain medication because this will effect your sleep. I find pharmacists a wealth of information when it comes to finding out what could be more suited for pain.

The itchiness is a common problem. I can't remember the name of the cream, but I know it was pink and it is usually used for mosquito bites - worked for me like a charm, but I had to be careful not to put it directly on the incision site - again, it was my pharmacist who helped me with this:)

The pin pricks you are feeling could be nerve damage. That is very common too, but given time, it will go away.

However, I am not a medical doctor and you really should be discussing all of this with a professional.

Take care,
Pookie

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