Joined y’all Monday

Hi there. Got a Medtronic installed Monday, 5/21. I’m an active 45 yo woman who was suddenly feeling faint, dizzy, short of breath, etc. No prior medical history or meds (competed on the TV show Survivor twice in the past 5 years!). Went to cardiologist last week, wore a monitor 2 days and they called Friday and said to report for PM Monday. Still in shock but home now.

recovery question: pain is moderate but last night I was short of breath multiple times, dizzy/faint, and felt awful. Is this what happens when the pm kicks in? Mine is set to 50 due to my normal low resting heart rate. Only happened when I’m resting? Call doc for a reset? Don’t want to freak out over nothing but I almost had my husband take me to ER last night

Thanks in advance - love this site!

Kass

 

7 Comments

Stay Calm

by Grateful Heart - 2018-05-23 10:48:17

You probably need an adjustment already.  They usually wait a few weeks or months to adjust the settings for your particular needs.  But if you are already feeling SOB and dizzy, I would call and see if you can be seen sooner than your first device checkup.

Don't be surprised if you now need a resting rate set higher than 50.  I was a runner for years and when they set my initial rate to 60...it didn't feel right and they raised it to 70.  For me, that was much better.  We are all different and need different settings for our hearts and conditions.

Good luck...BTW, we are big fans of Survivor.  Mind, body, spirit.

Grateful Heart

Congratulations!

by tedd - 2018-05-23 12:47:56

Hi Kassandra,

Glad your dong well.

Guess what? I got a Metronic pacemaker installed also on Monday. Here are some things I learned that you might also experience since we got pacemakers on the same day:

i feel ok, no pain. Dr. Says puffiness by incision should subside in about two weeks.

i have a follow-up appointment in two weeks, mainly to check the incision.

You probably set up your Metroc machine by now.

I hope you get better fast!

Ted

It's safe to trust your common sense

by Gotrhythm - 2018-05-23 13:31:54

Welcome to the club. This is a good place to get the benefit of many people's experience.

Feeling dizzy and faint has many, many causes but it is not "what happens when the pacemakre kicks in." The overwheming majority of people can't feel the pacemaker working at all. I can't . But even even for the people who do, having the pacemaker kick in doesn't cause faintness.

Since you felt dizzy and faint at rest, like Grateful Heart, I wonder if a resting rate of 50 is too low. I also wondered if you're experiencing changes in your blood pressure. At any rate, I see no need to worry. Hopefully, you are already feeling better, and will continue to feel better as you heal.

Going forward, here's what you need to know. Getting a pacemaker has not added a layer of danger or a possibility of a medical emergency that never existed before. But it has eliminated the chance that some electrical glitch in your heart will cause it to stop suddenly. 

So take a firm hold on your common sense.

If the symptoms you have aren't what would cause you to rush someone else to the ER, then there's no need for panic just because you have a pacemaker.

PS. If you're wondering how I came to this wisdom...just call it the voice of experince. :-)

 

 

Thank you

by Kassandra - 2018-05-23 16:14:03

Thanks to those of you who responded with advice. I will give it a couple more days to figure out whether it is anxiety or bp or something else. Fortunately for me, my neighbor is my PA at the cardiologist (also the person who got me to see a cardiologist!).

Feeling better now ❤️

Possible meds interference?

by Sharon M. - 2018-05-24 13:47:06

Welcome to the club! I still feel dizzy on occasion (but not short of breath), but I take some meds that have side effects. Beta blockers (e.g. metoprolol) and other meds can cause this. If you have been put on any new meds, check to see if dizzyness is a common or uncommon side effect. And your EP and their team will not think that you're silly if you call to report your symptoms. I did that after getting my PM, because my usual symptoms seemed a bit worse after they tweaked it, and we decided I'd just pay attention to it, and wait until my next scheduled visit in July. But you can ask to go in at any time. Listen to your body, and let them know. It can take your body a while to adjust to having a PM. But never ignore your symptoms. We pay our medicos big bucks for a reason, and they're there to help you cope!

Welcome!

by Lana - 2018-05-24 14:28:11

This club is very reassuring, I found it two days before I had my PM inserted. I had similar symptoms the first few weeks. I am also on medicine and found out certain foods/drinks put my heart in over drive. You will learn   how your body works/feels more than ever now. I feel better than ever!! It will take some time to adjust but you will get there. 

Day 4 and feeling much better!

by Kassandra - 2018-05-24 19:29:40

Thank you everyone. I'm on day 4 and feeling much better. I honestly think I overdid it the first day out of the hospital and was anxious about the whole thing. 

I will ask the doctor about setting me to 60 instead of 50 when I have my follow up.

Happy to share my 5/21/18 pacemaker birthday with Tedd and Hal. Anyone else out there a 5/21/18 PM implant date?

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