Anyone have a Defibrillator Implanted?

[Sackett]

I'm not one to post personal issue's online, but I am looking for some personal experience from some fellow TBH'ers. 8 years ago, I had heart surgery for an enlarged heart. Well, 3 weeks ago, I had to be taken to Methodist Hospital in Houston due to Takycardia. I spent a week in the Hospital until they finally found what they were looking for and the decision was made to implant a Defibrillator for my heart. I chose to put it behind my pectoral muscle for cosmetic reasons and won't be able to effectively use my left arm for another couple months (which will be just in time for fishing!). My problem is, although Dr's do their best to tell you the limitations you'll have, I feel as thought they aren't always upfront with you until after they performed the procedures. I tend to think, a lot. My mind is racing on how the rest of my life will be affected by this and what I might not be able to do with my kids and such. I'm looking for someone that has had a defibrillator implanted to give me some insight on what i'm in for. Maybe i'm just having some anxiety about and nothing will change, other than the obvious.

Thanks for any responses.

[Deerhunter30]

No real advice or information here. My wife's grandfather had one, but he was also old, had a previous bypass surgery, had a pacemaker and a LOT of arterial blockage. His situation was drastically different than yours.

Prayers sent.

[Teuf]

Let me check with my brother and get back to you. He's a Cardiologist. Tough thing to go through at any age, especially a young age.

[bwssr]

Father in-law has one...12 years so far, had the wires replace 3 time now..he's 80 now and does great!....
If you have it deep, it'll be more recoupe time each time they have to do something with it. batteries, or wires...something to think about...I don't worrie about prety, as long as things work!

[Tuffbroadhead]

Russell, I hate to hear that you are having to go through this......and to be honest I cant even start to give any advice on such a matter, but what I can do is pray for your well being and for the best recovery possible...

[wilded]

I have had a pacemaker since I was 32 and I am now 52. About all you need to watch is rodeo sports or something that could tear it loose. You can still do crazy things just not the ones that put a strain on the wires in your chest and heart. I had them put mine in upside down so I could keep shooting a shotgun on the pro circuit. Hang in there and survive. Ed Thomas aka WildEd

[Solocam]

My Fiance had one put in Nov. 10th of last year and has made a HUGE differance! She also has an enlarged heart and WPW. Before the pacemaker her doctors said that her numbers were way to low at 23 or 24 (I will have her correct me if I am wrong) and since the Pacemaker her numbers have gone up to 36 the last time she visited the doctor.

From what little experiance I have with the pacemaker I would not put it under your pectoral muscle. All I remember is hearing bad things about putting it there any time it was mentioned to her doctor. So they decided to put the pacemaker in the standard place and it doesnt look bad at all. You can see a little bulge when looking at it from the side and can barely notice from looking straight at it besides the scar.

I will let her know about this post when she gets home and can maybe give some more insight on it.

[Walker]

A pacemaker is different from what you have. Your "defribrillator" is supposed to cardio-vert when your heart goes into tachycardia. Its designed to syncronize its charge on the R wave of your heats rhythm. I'm sure you will feel it when it fires.

[wilded]

I feel my pacemaker everytime it goes off so they have lowered it to 2.5 volts.

[helibow]

As stated previously, a pacemaker is vastly different than an internal defibrillator. They do two different things. The good news is that many folks have both and are active with VERY LITTLE restrictions. The pacemaker helps maintain your hearts RATE so that it doesnt drop too low. The defibrillator essentially "re-routes" the electricity in your heart once it gets going in down the wrong paths. Quick cardiac anatomy lesson here... there is an electrical circuit in your heart. The electricity that triggers your heart to beat, does so in a specific order, by traveling down the correct pathways. When those pathways get disrupted (genetics, heart attack, enlarged heart), then you start having an irregular heartbeat. Some irregular rhythms - called arhythmias, can be fatal... Everyone has an irregular heart beat every once in a while, deep breathing, caffeine, exurtion etc can cause all that. The internal defibrilator identifies those irregular rhythms that are fatal and corrects them by sending an electrical pulse through the correct pathways. If you have seen any medical show, you've seem them take "the paddles" rub them together and the shock the person. The person jumps from the electricity, or the "shock". This is the same process, except MUCH MORE energy (aka electricity) is needed for the external paddles method versus the internal method. For any of you electricians, the energy used is "Joules"... externally it requires 200-360 joules of energy to "shock". The internal method typically requires 2-4 joules to shock.
Here is the long and short of it... i've been a Critical Care Paramedic for a long time... this all sounds really bad, but I promise you this will only enhance and lengthen your time here on this great earth. Your life will be better and you can rest better knowing that you have an advantage over many folks who have cardiac disease and dont have an internal defib. The key to surviving a potentially fatal cardiac rhythm is defibrillation. It must occur immediately, if not sooner. You have that ability now... Joe Public has to wait for someone to call 911, initiate a response, and get "the paddles" on them... it can take minutes, in some cases MANY minutes... time is muscle, the heart is muscle. The longer you go without defib the less likely you will survive an event. I hope you see this as an added value to your situation and that you can get your arms around the benefit of having this machine implanted in your chest. Dont let this scare you!!!

[Cotton]

The good news is that many folks have both and are active with VERY LITTLE restrictions.

That’s the case with Steff (Solocam's Fiancé) and it sure seems that she has a lot more energy.

[wilded]

Helibow is giving you great advice. You may feel like it is the end of the world for a while but it is not. You can go on with your life. My pacemaker only goes off when my heart stops but when it does I say a little prayer for I know it just saved my life again.

[Sackett]

I really appreciate all the advice guys and gals. Thanks Helibow for the remarks. I think what makes it hard is the type of person I am. I can't stand still and like to be active and don't want to be restricted by anything.

Thanks again.

[Seemore]

My wife has Takycardia, But only when she is pregnant, the doc said it will probable come back when she gets older. She has an uncle that has it to and he had a defibulater put in when he was about 35 and has had no trouble since. Good luck and keep us updated. My wife is planning on having it done after to baby comes.

[Solocam]

As solo cam said before I had my pacemaker put in Nov 10th 2005 and things have been great. I was 15 when I was diagnosed with heart failure and I was 18 when they put the pacemaker in. I was back to work in about 5 days but you cannot lift anything not even a gallon of milk for a little while I can't remember how long that went on for about 3 months I think.
But I was told not to get it under the muscle because it is very uncomfortable. Many women who get it there for cosmetic reasons regret it in the long run it is just in the way. If you want I can get Matt to take a picture of the scar and so you can see if you think it is very obvious. We can just e-mail it to you.
If you ever have any questions just e-mail me at SKF815@yahoo.com or even give me a call 214-914-1504 I would love to answer any questions