The symptoms have returned this week -- the slight breathlessness when being a little strenuous physically, the feeling that there is a hand pressing on my chest just below my throat -- the fluttering in my chest that signals a pvc or a pac...
I returned to my EP doc about a year ago. He was surprised to see me. His exact words when he walked in were, "What the hell are you doing here?"
What a way to greet someone.
Their office is brand new, and in a word, gorgeous. There are posters of my EP cardiologist touting his latest cardiologic philosophy. I forget what research he has been doing, but he is no longer primarily concerned with treating Tachycardia and SVT, which is what he was known for about 4 years ago.
"Sure," he confided in me, "It feels good to know I can cure SVT, but there are other issues out there that need looked into."
I had my catheter ablation when I was 39. It was a grueling process, lasting about 4 hours, with catheters inserted in both sides of my neck and groin. I had to remain awake, although I was sedated. When the situation became more painful than I appreciated, they would up the sedation. I hovered between consciousness and sleep, watching the little cursor of the ablator move across a huge video screen, almost like the doc was playing a game as he stimulated then burned different areas of my heart.
Need I say it was unpleasant?
Anyway... so here I sit, nervous, not really wanting to be there, to be greeted like such.
"It is good to see you too," I responded drily, to which he gave a small smirk, then asked me what was going on.
I had started to have more palpitations. Not as much as before and no SVT. Just.. palpitations. He asked me if it were enough to be placed back on medication. I said no.
"Well," he said as he stood and shook my hand. "If it gets to the point you need to go back on the Rythmol, give me a call. Until then -- you are dismissed from my care."
I left the office in somewhat of a daze, embarrassed that I had even made the recheck appointment and deciding I would never return. What a timid nurse I can be sometimes!
And now this -- the recurrence of symptoms. Not as bad! And still.. not quite bad enough to be on meds. But I am so tired of feeling.. so tired.
I try to blame it on the heat. Perhaps it is in part due to the oppressive heat and humidity. Perhaps it is not. I shall wait a bit longer and see if it is better before I break down and call, and ask for the medication that I hated taking before.
I just dunno yet.
8 comments:
Was it atrial flutter for which you were ablated? I vote you go to another EP doc and talk to him. Infrequent PVS and PACs should not make you quite so uncomfortable or so tired. Are you sure you are not having short runs of arrhythmia instead?
Sorry. The EP nurse in me couldn't help it. But seriously--docs who condescend to patients really tick me off. They need to get past their research studies--for which they are handsomely paid--and take care of their pts. It is quite possible you did not qualify for any of his research and thus he wrote you off. That happens in the world of EP a lot. AND--I have had to ablate pts who already had an ablation in the past. It is not unheard of for the arrhythmia to recur.
The catheter ablation was more for pvcs, and pacs. Where as a normal person would experience 100 or so of these in a 24 hour period, I was averaging something around 120 an hour. Then I began to have runs of tachycardia, where my pulserate would skyrocket over 200 beats/min even though I was on rythmol at the time.
After the surgery, I still had some arrhythmia, but then, so does everyone. This though, feels like short bursts of arrhythmia. I feel a little short of breath and on edge, as though I had just consumed huge amounts of caffiene. I shall likely have to cut back on caffiene again, although to be honest, I really don't have much in my diet to begin with.
I will wait and see if this passes in a week or so. If not, will bite the bullet and call. I am just so reluctant to ever go back.
(please note, I should not have said surgery. It was an ablation, not surgery.)
Keep an eye on it and feel better soon. Don't ignore it for too long. You do not want to end up with a dilated atrium from too much arrhythmia. That's your lecture from one nurse to another for the day ;-)
I hope you're better. Not fun when you feel something's wrong. I just found out that my sister is now being treated for mild depression. I'd be taking her ballroom dancing since she wanted to do that, might help her a bit, I hope.
We nurses are the worst patients. But I'd find a way to hook myself up to a monitor and see what's happening. I can't beleive he didn't even want you to try a holter monitor, or at least an EKG?
But, even though I'm not an EP nurse, I don't think any dysrythmia should be written off if it makes you tired, and your having symptoms so often! Second opinion!
Call, call, do not let a doctor push you around. Heather has some good advice there.
In fact, I know a good doctor to see. Email me.
Post a Comment