Is base rate too slow for me now?

Hi All,

I've had a pacemaker now for 3 year (for sick sinus), and after the first few months of regular readjustments to find setting that worked for me, everything has been mostly fine up until the last few months.

Immediately prior to having the pacemaker fitted I was very active (cycled 18 miles a day, lots of outdoor activities etc). Since having the pacemaker fitted I've not been as active (variety of reasons including having my first son a couple of years ago, plus getting into bad habits whilst unable to do so much while my settings were first ironed out), and as a result have put on a few stone (I know - I'm working on it as we speak).

When I had the pacemaker fitted, my base rate was set at 60 BPM, which was ballpark for my resting heart rate at the time (60 sleeping 60 - 65 resting). In the last few months I've noticed problems with feeling very tired a lot of the time, foggy / thick headed, and I also go very light headed for 5 - 10 seconds when standing up, to the point of almost passing out sometimes.

Is it possible this could be due to my base rate now being too low for my current increased weight and lowered fitness?

Just wanted some thoughts if anyone has had similar symptoms or experiences . I'm not due my annual check until November but will contact the hospital for a review if it sounds like my thinking might be right.

Regards

Mark


1 Comments

things change

by Tracey_E - 2017-07-07 11:23:33

As we age, our bodies change and it's not uncommon to need to fine tune the settings again. Being out of shape makes a huge difference in our energy, or something else could be going on. Best to get checked asap, both by the cardio and your gp. It's easy to get tunnel vision and blame everything on the pacer. 

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