Myopericarditis how long to recover

[Spinning2021]

Hello. Wondering how to write this first post and actually still trying to figure out how I got to this point.

I was a very active, working mum. I used to teach 4 to 5 spinning classes and play netball every week. Yes I'm 50 but I was a very fit 50 year old. Then I find myself getting out of breath walking up the 2 flights of stairs at work, and not feeling quite right teaching my classes and becoming more tired by day. This goes on for 2 weeks when finally my partner takes me to a&e with blue lips, shortness of breath and elevated heart rate. I'm detained and eventually taken to the cardiology ward because they find a high level of troponin and irregular ecg. I had an angiogram which was clear, then an echocardiogram which was also clear. After 5 days the cardiologist says it's myopericarditis due to a virus and prescribes colchicine for 3 months and ibuprofen for 2 weeks and I'm discharged but should get a cmri scan at some point.

So now I'm home the questions start....first of all I don't recall having a virus recently, I wasn't unwell but did have covid (mildly) in April. Then I read that you should start to feel better within 2 weeks. It's been 2.5 weeks since I left hospital and I don't feel like I'm recovering at all ..my resting heart rate has crept up to the 100 mark when before all this it was 55 and I feel faint and sick when I stand up to move around, thankfully I'm seeing my GP on Monday.

I would love to hear from other people with myopericarditis, to learn about how long it took you to recover and did you have recurrences, what steps you took to get better.

Thank you 😊

[Hidden]

Not quite the same, I had a virus back in July, had a chest infection followed by Pericarditis, almost 3 months later I was still no better, in fact up to last week I had got worse!I was told zero exercise, except for very gentle walks, tbh I wasn't up to any more anyway.

This last week was feeling a bit better, GP said OK to try 'gentle' exercise, so I have managed the gym 3 times, a gentle(ish) walk & exercise bike and an hour on the weights (baby ones for now), followed by 2 days off to see how I feel, seem to be no worse so will chance it again.

All the advice I have had is rest, rest, rest.

[Spinning2021 in reply to Hidden]

Thank you for your reply and I'm so glad to hear you're now finally feeling better and actually going to the gym.

I was told absolutely no exercise for 3 months and for someone who taught spinning several times a week and is generally fit that was a massive disappointment.

What meds were you on?

Hope you continue to recover and slowly regain you fitness.

[Hidden in reply to Spinning2021]

Yea I feel your pain, I am normally in the gym 6 days a week, doing cardio & weights, was difficult but I’m pretty good at doing as I’m told!

I wasn’t on any extra meds, I take some heart meds already following a cardiac arrest a couple of years ago.

Think I was lucky as my Pericarditis was ‘dry’ so no effusion (fluid build up), otherwise similar symptoms.

Now it’s really a case of pushing enough but not so much as to wipe me out for a few days.

Fingers crossed you make a speedy recovery, just don’t try and do too much too soon.

[Spinning2021]

Thank you for your reply. I strongly suspect this is covid related as I was a very healthy and fit person. I barely knew I had covid at the time and soon got back to my normal activities, then out of nowhere I'm breathless and in hospital.

My heart rate is elevated all the time even when sleeping so don't think it's related to temperature. I've gad no fever that I'm aware of either.

Interesting point about one day of doing normal activities results in the following days being fatigued. I have a good day and decide to do some minor things around the house then feel dreadful the next day.

Hope you're fully recovered or recovering.

[Sunnie2day]

Hiya, Spinning2021, and welcome to the 'carditis club you never wanted to join. I won't go into my long story making me 'qualified' to comment - read my profile if you're curious but I advance warn it's boring

I am terribly sorry to say recovery from your condition is likely to take as long as 6-12 months before you really wake one morning to realise you're well again. Length of recovery may (stress on the word may) depend on the severity of your case but not always - a seemingly mild case can still knock seven bells out of you and cause a lengthier recovery period.

I'm copy and pasting my 20+years experience garnered tips for coping with any of the 'carditis conditions - please feel free to copy and paste to a printable doc you can post on your fridge or notice board for middle-of-the-night offline reference. All the best to you and please keep us posted on your progress.

General tips for coping:

**Sleep with your upper body elevated - either several pillows stacked, bound, and laid lengthwise down the bed, or a wedge pillow, or an adjustable back rest

**Avoid sleeping on your left side as the pain is worse if you put weight on the inflamed pericardium sleeping on your left side

**Avoid heat, humidity, and mould - no hot tubbing, sauna, steam bath, long hot showers even though directing hot shower spray at your left side is nice for temporary pain relief, the humidity WILL cause the pain to increase soon after leaving the shower

**A hot water bottle laid along the left side of your rib cage can go a long way towards easing pain for a longer lasting bit of pain relief

**Avoid strenuous activity - DO NOT think a good day means you can catch-up things you have had to 'let go', overdoing on a good day only leads to several bad ones

**Try to get at least 7 hours sleep per night. Eight is better but 7 is good

**Keep to a nutritious well balanced diet with lots of green leafy veg, fruit, and high quality protein like meat and cheese (but try to keep to a lower salt content if you have effusion - don't go overboard on lowering salt intake but try to keep it under 5g per day)

**Be alert to symptoms your condition is worsening:

• 'swinging fever' where it's high, then lower, then higher again in a matter of hours over a day

• shortness of breath on slightest exertion and/or waking you in the middle of the night

• night cough or cough when lying down

• 'fat fingers' and other signs of fluid retention including ‘shiny skin’ - these are signs of building pericardial effusion that could lead to a condition called 'cardiac tamponade' - when excess fluid build-up in your pericardium reaches a level that is beginning to affect heart function (like, beating). It is a life-threatening condition

[Spinning2021 in reply to Sunnie2day]

Thank you for your post and advice. I can see that you've kindly been taking the time to read people's posts and offering advice.

Sorry to read that you've had to endure this condition for so long and I appreciate your candid words. I'd rather be realistic.

I think part of my disappointment is being told by the hospital cardiologist that I could return to work the following week after being discharged and would be OK in a couple of weeks. So I stupidly returned to work albeit from home and by the end of my 1st week was exhausted. I called work the following Monday and said I needed more time off. I was also only prescribed ibuprofen for two weeks but found I felt quite unwell once I stopped taking it so I've decided to start taking it again. I've had no follow up care or advice from the hospital cardiologist so my only option is to speak to my GP next Monday morning in the hope that he/she has some knowledge of this condition.

My main concern is my resting heart is creeping up day by day (was in the 50s now in the 80s) which means whenever I do get up to move around my heart rate rises and makes me feel unwell. If I inadvertently go up the stairs too quickly (or what I used to consider normal speed) I get out of breath. Just like I felt before I was admitted to a&e.

Is this normal for carditis conditions? Should I insist on being referred to a specialist? Or do I just need to accept that these are all symptoms of myopericarditis and it takes time for them to ease.

I hope you have more good days than bad. Take care.

[Anamoraes]

Hello, my name is Ana, (45, very active too.) from Brazil.I had the same problem as you. myocarditis.

it took me 9 weeks to fully recover, I continue with bisoprolol, ramipril, spironolactone and sertraline. rest assured that it will get better

[Spinning2021 in reply to Anamoraes]

Thank you, that gives me hope

All the best in your own recovery.

[Spinning2021]

Such a wealth of knowledge, thank you.

If rising heart rate and breathlessness is normal then so be it....one less thing to get stressed about 😀

Like you said this is a club I never expected to be joining or knew anything about so I'm just trying to piece it all together.

I have nothing but praise for the doctors and nurses at the hospital I was admitted to so I didn't mean to sound remiss. I think you're right, this is a condition new to the medical profession, so we're all learning.

I do have a bp monitor at home because I always get white coat syndrome when going to get my BP checked and funnily enough did buy an oximeter the other day as one of my initial symptoms was getting blue lips with exertion and in the hospital my SPo2 level dropped to 88 so it's good to know it's worth keeping an eye on these stats.

I don't hold out much hope with the GP although you never know. My GP insisted I had an inhaler when I tested positive for covid in April, he called me and said he'd read about a study that indicated taking an inhaler in the first few days of covid prevented hospitalization. If nothing else I need a sick note for work

Thanks for the Facebook tip.

[jackrussellmad]

Not a club we all want to belong to but does give you comfort to know you are not alone in all this.Best wishes.