Pregnancy

I’m six months pregnant, and I’ve had my PM since I was 3 years old. Obviously, it’s not very common for someone to have one of those at such a young age, but I’m 18 now, and six months pregnant. The first question I had for my doctor was about the complications that could arise with my PM. He just said he wasn’t concerned about it. Any ladies give birth with a PM? What’s the norm for us? 

Thanks!

2 Comments

Pacemaker and pregnancy

by Gotrhythm - 2019-01-14 15:56:48

We have a number of pacemaker dependent members who have had successful pregnancies. Just having a pacemaker does not increase the amount of risk. So accept your doc's reassurances. :-)

A number of women have posted similar questions. Use the Search function, the little magnifying glass in the upper right corner, to locate previous posts on the subject.

babies

by Tracey_E - 2019-01-24 11:34:24

If your cardiologist cleared you, then you should be fine. My ob flipped out a bit, they don't see many paced patients, but my cardio called him and told him to treat me like any other healthy mom to be. I worked out up until I delivered. They let me deliver in the birthing suites instead of the main hospital. The only concession to my heart was a heart monitor during delivery and the cardio said that if labor was drawn out, or if my heart showed any signs of distress, it would be an immediate c-section. That didn't happen, btw, both deliveries were perfectly normal tho I had a lot of people popping their heads in the room because they don't see a lot of pacer spikes on the labor & delivery heart rate monitors lol.

I know of a few women who were told to do an epidural so the delivery would be easier on them. I chose the opposite. I tend to react to meds and have been allergic to most every pain med I've ever tried so I wanted as little as possible, didn't want to risk a reaction while I was trying to push out a baby! Possible side effects of an epidural are longer labor and decreased blood pressure. My bp was really low to start and I was afraid it would get too long so I decided not to go there. My doctor would have given it to me, it was my choice to do without. 

If your cardiologist/ep isn't worried, then don't worry! For many of us who are congenital, the pacer fixes what is wrong and leaves us with a normal heart rate. Good luck to you. 

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Member Quotes

At age 20, I will be getting a pacemaker in few weeks along with an SA node ablation. This opportunity may change a five year prognosis into a normal life span! I look forward to being a little old lady with a wicked cane!