Most Recent Messages

Living with a shocking life!

Hello All: I am a new member as of today 12-4-09, my ICD was implanted on 6-17-09 and it has been an experience. I was diagnosed with CHF and arrythimthmia and believe me its been
shocking to say the least.

My first episode was in May and the next two was in November at work, once when I was sitting at my desk and the next just
after the EMT's got me on the gurney. It can be difficult learning
to live with our devices but, if we didn't have them, we just might
not...

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PM on right shoulder, left arm pains

Hello,
It is very helpful to read all of your posts! This is my first time posting.
I just turned 39 last week and have had my PM planted 6 weeks ago. My pm is on my right shoulder because I am left handed.
I have read here that chest pain can happen after the implant for awhile but will subside and probably fade with time. Thank you for those posts I was able to read!!!
I have continued to have chest pains and left arm pain and I told the Dr.about these pains and...

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Fast Heart Rate

I just transmitted over the phone and the tech called me back a few hours later to set up an appointment for an EKG and follow up Dr. visit due to several incidents of fast heart rates. I have not felt the fast heart but I have felt slightly dizzy a few times lately and a few weeks ago I felt like I was going to faint, which has not happend for the last many years since I had the pm put in. My battery life is fine. I am on no medication.
Is this something I should be concerned about?

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2 Beta Blockers?

Just had a PM installed on 11/18. Went for follow up this week. Dr. added a second beta blocker, Nadolol on top of my Inderal LA. Has anyone else beenon 2 beta blackers at once? To my understanding, it is contraindicated. It has not helped my tachycardia and now my BP is sooo low. I feel like I'm going to pass out but can't. Would appreciate some feedback on this. I have a call intot he dr. now.

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New to site with new PM complication

When looking on the internet for info about a recent DX I was given, I stumbled on this site. I can't seem to find the info I am looking for. Perhaps, u can help?

St. Jude PM was implated in 2004 when I was 31, following an ablation I had in 1997. I hoped the ablation would control my crazy heartbeats of 220+, but my heart was damaged during ablation. I survived for long time w/o PM and had 2 kids. But alas, it did not last. I was in 3rd degree heart block with a rate of 30 when...

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New Pacemaker pain at site

Hello All,

I am 40 yrs old and had a pacemaker/defib placed about a month ago. I am doing well, but have pain at the site. It is not enough to stop my daily activites, just annoying. It almost feels like it is moving. Is that normal? I also got a horrible blood clot in my left arm after the pacemaker was placed on the left. Did anyone else experience this?

Thanks
Sonosue

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Insurance

I am between a rock and a hard place with my insurance co. and my medications!

I have been taking a name brand medication for more than 2 years. At first we tried the generic form and found too many side effects and the medication proved ineffective for me. So my Dr. switched to the name brand version and I evened out and am doing fine. Stable. Great!

Well now my insurance co. says oh wait! you haven't tried the generic within the last 180 days so we will only give you the...

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Hi all a friend needs some thoughts

A buddie of mine David has a lung infection and could use a few prayers his way. He is a good friend and comes on here a few times, and forgive me David I cant remember his sign on. He really has been dealt a bad had with his heart condition and now this. Thanks to all who keep him in there minds and hearts he is a good person, whom I lean on from time to time like he needs that.

Get well my friend
dave

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Very very scary

I am officially the mother of a teenager! My oldest daughter is 13 today. Can my heart take it!?

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"flat" heart rate

So I went in for my second visit with this new cardiologist (fired the first one). He was very perplexed by my readings. I am still having a fair amount of activity intolerance with feeling like I am exhausted from walking very short distances. I know that I am still having a lot of racing of the upper chamber. They are trying to get my PM programmed right so that he can catching these episodes and record them so he can see what I am doing before and after the tachycardia. Him and his tech...

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Biventricular PM..

I am 40 years old and had OHS 4 months ago to implant an On-X mechanical aortic heart valve, repair the mitral valve with a ring, and a LIMA bypass (not required now, but while they had me open..)

I have been recovering well, and exercise daily, aerobic and weights. My heart and LV has shrunk back to normal size, but the EF remains too low at ~40%, and is not likely to improve any further by itself.

Since I have a left bundle branch block, my cardiologist has suggested a b...

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TEST ONLY

Just testing this site as last night it was not accepting spam filter codes for some reason no matter what I tried. Had just typed my longest post so it was extremely annoying to loose it. Cheers Peter

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newbie

getting ablation and pacemaker on friday 11 Dec, so I will be pestering you all for recovery plans as I am targetting the scottish 1/2 marathon in may 2010

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Boston Scientific

I'm scheduled for a CRT-D shortly...maybe next week and being anal, I still have questions which have not been answered to my satisfaction...God Bless all who tried. Therefore I contacted Boston Scientific via their 24hr hotline and had every question eagerly and professionally answered...no rush, no intimidation, all in laymans terms. You guys probably already knew about contacting the reps, but I didn't...it helped alleviate my jitters tremendously.

It's comforting knowing they'll...

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Checkup Tomorrow

Hi all,

Just after some advise please, i have asked to go in for a checkup tomorrow.

Something seems to wake me up around 5 - 5.30am most days, My PM tech thinks it could be the PM doing a test or something that it has to do everyday.

So im going to see if they can change the time to the day time so it doesn't disturb my sleep as im knackered.

Also im going to ask them to turn it down to 40bpm at night, so that doesn't wake me either, as when it was fi...

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seat belts

I have heard about the leads dislodging so will pulling down
some (hard to pull) seat belts affect the leads, pulling on them too much?

ECB

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why do i still feel tired?

my pm is implanted about a month ago. but the prob is..i still feel light headedness after walking about 300 m. i feel dizzy..n tired. my heart rate is still normal. so there shouldn't be any problem wif the pm rite? but why do i still feel tired? even when i don't go out..i feel dizzy n tired at home in the evening. it's like there is no difference. im jealous wif those who hav a big difference after their pm implantation. shoul i wait longer? wat if there is still no difference?

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Pacemaker replacement complication


I recently had my pm replaced. First one lasted good 9 years. The doctor who did the replacement said that he was unable to unscrew one of the leads from the pm and had to cut it off and insert a new lead. The second lead was unscrewed easily. Now I have an extra lead which is serving no purpose. He said he decided not to take the lead out because it is complicated. Has any one experienced any problems while unscrewing the leads? The doctor, who is doing these procedure has experience of...

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dislodge and eroded through skin

I was recently scheduled by my employer to lift in excess of 100 lbs repeatedly over a 4 day period. My pacer/defib dislodged and broke throught the skin pocket on the 4th day of this. My implant was 2 years ago and have had no comlications up to this point. My employer gave me a reasonable accomodation of restriction to 25 lbs lifting.I also requested prior to being scheduled to exceed the accomodation
that my employer not schedule me to do this in regards to mu disability. This request wa...

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monitor

Thanks for the input...the monitor they sent me is called a "Latitude Patient Management" there is nothing to hold over the pacer or any kind of arm braclets to put on like on Ryan's old medtronic call in machine had. From what
i'm reading it's like a touch screen device, it even displayes your next scheduled heart check. New Tecnology I guess.

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You know you're wired when...

Your kids call you Cyborg.

Member Quotes

The pacer systems are really very reliable. The main problem is the incompetent programming of them. If yours is working well for you, get on with life and enjoy it. You probably are more at risk of problems with a valve job than the pacer.