Recovery from pacemaker implantation

Just had my pacemaker fitted over 2 weeks and still feeling tired now; I think this may be because sleeping is uncomfortable on my back. Is pain in collar bone normal?

[health-is-vital]

Hi Bev - Had a pacemaker fitted in August 2015. Did feel tired for a good few weeks and didnt feel like eating so lost weight which was great. I found it uncomfortable sleeping and was conscious that I did not sleep on my left side but got used to sleeping on my back for a while. You are aware that there is device inside of you which is keeping you going and at times I do get darts of pain in the areas around the collar bone. But we are blessed that such a device has been invented and improved with each passing year and is alowing me to walk, move and still be alive. Good luck. Dee

[Bionic_swimmer]

Hi Bevvles27,

Everyone is a bit different, partly because of device location, amount of swelling, bruising etc and also whether it's under the muscle or not. But 2 weeks in is very early days so go easy on yourself. You've not even healed properly yet, and having woken up during the pocket being made in my first op and the generator being put back in during second op, I can promise you it's pretty brutal so you are going to be more bruised than you may actually see!

It does get more comfortable I promise and you will probably slowly adjust to not being able to sleep on that side. If you're struggling with sleep, maybe try different pillow placement to try and give some more support.

Hang in there - but any concerns call your centre and just ask to chat to one of the nurses or cardiac physiologists who will be able to answer pretty much any question (and trust me they'll have heard pretty much most of them!).

[Hidden in reply to Bionic_swimmer]

When you say you woke up, do you mean you were under general anaesthetic for your procedure? x

[Bionic_swimmer in reply to Hidden]

Hi ☺ no I was under heavy sedation and local. X

[Hidden in reply to Bionic_swimmer]

I see. My hospital don't do sedation, so I was awake throughout and found it very uncomfortable,and actually painful at a couple of points where I had to ask him to stop and put more anaesthetic in. It is a rough time for your body. Everything I read beforehand said it wasn't painful and recovery was fast..and it referred more than once to patients in their 70s and 80s feeling fab thr next week. So i expected being so much younger, that I would recover in no time and not feel a thing xx

[Weejenny]

Hi Bev, I had my pacemaker fitted in April. I naturally slept on my left side 😕 which is annoying now. I found propping myself up with pillows really helped this stopped me turning on to my left. I must say it's not the same anymore but I hope one day I'll get more comfortable. I get darts of pain too. But I too am just so grateful for my diagnosis and have my life back. I find each clinic appointment very reassuring that I'd definitely behaved myself as it's not easy not getting on with daily chores. Take care, Jen x

[Hidden]

Thanks for the responses, things are getting easier movement wise but having just gone back to work, my tiredness has come crashing back down on me again. Having a full time job and two kids means I'm used to being on the go doing more than one thing at a time most hours of the day! My gp says my low blood pressure isn't helping the situation and is doing cortisol tests to see whether there s a separate blood pressure issue causing me to feel unwell still xx