Tired after movement

Hi! I am a 50 year old female 4 weeks post implant. I feel really good as long as I am sitting. When I get up and move around some I get very tired. Everyone says I lose my coloring and get very white. At times, I feel lightheaded.

I have found a lot of comfort reading post from this club but I don't fit exactly into the categories I've read. My implant was an emergency surgery. Was getting dressed for work and blacked out and continued to feel strange. Went to ER and then BAM in surgery for a pacemaker. Heart stopped twice during surgery and they tell me that I am extremely lucky to be here.  They have also told me, if I pull a lead out, I will drop dead on the spot. Needless to say, I have followed directions to a tee!

Long story short, should I be worried about feeling exhausted when moving, at 4 weeks out? Has anyone else had a similar experience?

Thanks!

3 Comments

May be normal but don't take a chance

by MartyP - 2018-03-14 15:46:29

You've had significant surgery and your body has changed and it takes time to recover.

Could also be a touch of anxiety and/or depression which is quite common; it happened to me and for the first month or two all I wanted to do was sleep.

BUT, as you are concerned, schedule an appointment with your cardiologist AND EP to check your settings.

welcome

by Tracey_E - 2018-03-14 16:56:34

Glad you found us!

Dropping dead if a lead comes out is a bit of an exaggeration, phrasing it so bluntly that causes needless fear for you. First of all, it's rare for that to happen after the first 24-48 hours. You're well past that. After the first year, the leads are in so tight that it takes a highly specialized laser to get them out. The heart has an underlying rate so if for some reason it suddenly stopped pacing (virtually unheard of), you'd feel like you did before you got it and would have time to get to the hospital. Please don't lose sleep over the possibility of it suddenly stopping. My underlying rate is in the low 20's so if mine were to suddenly stop I'd be in trouble. But I'd still be able to call 911 and I don't worry about it. I'm the same age as you but have been paced since 1994, never even had anything close to a scare. These things are extremely dependable. 

When you get up and walk around and feel bad, check your pulse. If it's the same as at rest, you need your settings adjusted. They send us home with a good guess on the settings but no two of us are alike and it's common to take a few tries to fine tune it to our individual needs. There is something called rate response that senses movement and gets our rate up for us if it doesn't go up on its own on exertion. They may not have it turned on, or it may be turned on but not sensitive enough for you. Super easy fix, give them a call and tell them what's going on. 

Once you heal fully and get the settings fine tuned, you should be feeling your old self and able to do whatever you want. 

Thank you

by M.T. Coffin - 2018-03-14 19:42:11

I appreciate your posts and I do feel a little better about things. I did go to the Dr today and they did my first pacemaker check. I got to ask a lot of questions and that helped too. Thanks again for the info. This site is awesome for us newbies!

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I, too, am feeling tons better since my implant.