Pacemaker and room thermostats

[Wendb13]

Hi My mother has a pacemaker in and recently had a new boiler with a wireless thermostat. ( to replace an out dated one ) she is insistent that this new thermostat os setting off her pacemaker. ( she has a history of 'illnesses ' that 40 years of gp and hospital and ambulance visits can never find the reason for.... so my question is can a room thermostat set off a pacemaker make it vibrate or buzz inside her chest also can it affect sciatic nerve or give her shingles.??

Many thanks in advance I am after definitive info so that I can tell her once and for all

[Buddi12]

I have a pacemaker and wireless thermostat and not had a problem. It’s normally things with magnets in that you have to be careful with but as long as you keep them about 12cm away from pacemaker they aren’t a problem either.

[Wendb13 in reply to Buddi12]

Thabkyou .. she said her book marker sets it off her knee braces brings on swooning fits her mobile phone dosent seem to set off her pacemaker tho . She has faced it away from the room ! Thinks this will stop what ever she thinks its doing I despair

[Buddi12 in reply to Wendb13]

Oh dear I feel for you!!!

[PinkKizzie]

Hi Wendb13, sorry this is happening. I had an unsuccessful attempt at a pacemaker implant and now only take meds. My consultant wants to try again but I've said no. To be honest, I don't think I could cope with one mentally, having something 'foreign ' in my body. Perhaps your mum is feeling the same, what a shame. Take care x

[Lurchergirl in reply to PinkKizzie]

Hi Pink Lizzie

Interested to hear you had an unsuccessful attempt at implanting a pacemaker, I am on the waiting list to have one and am absolutely bricking it so I wondered why they couldn`t do yours, was it fear and nerves on your part? I`m not being nosey but just interested. I have Paroxysmal AF with Reversion Pauses which is why they want to put a Pacemaker in.

[PinkKizzie in reply to Lurchergirl]

Thank you for your reply. Please don't panic when I tell you what happened as there is only a 1% chance of it happening. During the implant procedure the 3rd lead pierced my heart, the implant was halted and emergency OHS was performed to repair the hole. I know I would benefit from a pacemaker but it was traumatic and for the time being I can't get myself into the theatre to try again. It's so rare that it's never happened before at the hospital I was in. Please try not to worry too much x

[Lurchergirl in reply to PinkKizzie]

Thanks for your reply, I know these things can happen, guess you were unlucky but no wonder you don`t want to go through it again. Somebody got sidetracked by the sounds of things but at least they were there to do something about it. Still shouldn`t have happened though. Thank you for your kind thoughts. x

[PinkKizzie in reply to Lurchergirl]

Thank you for reply. Please let us know how your implant goes when you get it, hopefully soon x

[MarmiteB]

Hi! So , I work for company who make pacemakers - I do not work in that division but I have sent an email to a colleague of mine (she's going to think I'm a bit mad as I don't know her) to ask about this for you. I would INCREDIBLY surprised if there was a link because that would make the device laible to interact/be affected by any device that runs off wifi - which is basically everything these days from the fridge to your printer...not to mention phones/tvs/laptops etc.! But, let me check, because, I suppose you never know!! xx

[Wendb13 in reply to MarmiteB]

Oh thankyou so very much . I want proof verbal ir written that it's nothing to do with the thermostat I'm no even sure what she means when she says it's setting I off ?? She's had it checked and it's working completely fine. If u do find any info please pass it on

Thankyou

[Deejay62]

Hi Wenb13. I’ve had pacemakers for years. 2 different types and I’ve never had any of those problems with mine. I do have sciatica but it’s because of bulging discs in my back. People get shingles all the time that’s why they’re offering the jabs if you’re over a certain age or your immune system is low. I believe they say beware of magnets and welding equipment. I stand I front of the microwave. I do hold my phone on the right but admit sometimes I hold it on the left when my shoulder hurts, and nothing has happened and I have a defibrillator attached to mine.

Maybe you can get the device clinic to explain more to her when she next visit to put her mind at ease

[Wendb13 in reply to Deejay62]

Deejay she has had a scan and a check in Jan when she demanded to be seen yet again over another issue that she says is the pacemaker she had a clean bill of health and a letter saying so this wasn't enough and last week she had me take her again recalling how she passed put two hours after she'd had it inserted. Ps she's had it on 3 years

[Deejay62 in reply to Wendb13]

It seems like she’s not coping at all. Are you able to take her to her doctors. Maybe other things are going on. You can even speak to BHF nurses. Maybe they can advise you.

[Wendb13 in reply to Deejay62]

Deejay she lives in the doctors she's a terrible hypochondriac . She told us she'd got bone cancer last month . She hasn't. She's got macula degeneration cos she read it jn the paper. She hasn't. You see why I'm asking about the pacemaker thermostat issue her padded knee brace makes her swoon hundreds of pounds of herbal remedies and she gives them a few days then cos they dint work in the bin they go ..

[Deejay62 in reply to Wendb13]

If she’s on meds she needs to watch the herbal stuff she takes. In case they go against her meds unless the pharmacist says they’re ok to take but I suppose you can’t tell her. It seems like you need some support yourself having to deal with all that. Maybe you need to join a carers support group if you’re not already in one.

[Wendb13]

Thankyou She said when the surgeon put the pacemaker in he did it wrong and caught her sciatic nerve. I've explained it's no where near the flipping sciatic nerve. Everything is because of this blooming thing she says !!!

[readyabout]

Suggest you both visit a Holistic Fair near you, and try some treatments like Flower Essences, Reiki, Crystal Healing etc. they are usually reasonably priced at fairs, I would give the Tarot card readers a miss tho'

[Murderfan58]

How old is your mom Wendb13 if she is over 75 this isn't to frightened you or add to your worries but has you mom had the dementia test. My mom had first dementia test at 75 and was borderline ,at 86 she was diagnosed with dementia. I knew there was something wrong at 75 as mom started to have very strange ideas about things and other things. Her mind died 4 months before her body. She was 90 when she died with cancer and dementia.

[Wendb13 in reply to Murderfan58]

Hi she's 83 and fit as a fiddle she's extremely lucky to be as fit as she is she's not frail or weak she's like a Tanzanian devil whizzing about unfortunately she's always been like this most of my life she's had some undiagnosed illness or treatment or something. Last week she said I think I've gir dementia or alzheimers I can't rememver things. Now a person with these issues wouldn't know they had them let alone think they had ?? I keep saying keep saying that mother and ill get u tested.!! This is her personality unfortunately and she's dragging my dad down who is frail but tries really hard.

[Murderfan58]

Your mom sounds like my mom on the go all the time . My dad died in 2007 aged 80 from a heart attack in his sleep. Mom used to say I am forgetting things and said please don't let me go doalley tap meaning mad. Had to explain about her brain cells dieing mom knew she was losing herself long before her diagnosis. For all dementia killed my mom and her body lived on . And unfortunately the last 4 months she became violent but it's from fear she didn't know who she was where or who I was. She thought I was her mom but she told me every day she loved me . For all dementia took from my mom when it got to the bad stage she had a fear of wetting the bed so insisted on wearing a pad but I only put on a thick pad like Tena lady . But mom always knew when she needed the commode and never wet or soiled herself. Love and that where the only 2 things she held on to.

My dad hated as he got weaker that he needed help but he would never let mom help him wash below his waist only from knees down and from the waist up. They had been married in 1950 he died in 2007 aged 80. He was a proud man and hated his own body. He told me the Wednesday before he died he would be dead a couple of days and asked me to look after mom but I told him he should know I always would he died in the early hours of the Friday morning.

All you can do is help as best you can, your parents will always love you . It's so hard on your dad but that's love for you no matter what the love his has for your mom keeps him going no matter how tough it gets or how ill he feels.

[pauljusa]

Don't worry! I have a PM and live in a 'smart' home full of exotic radio frequency devices as well as wifi & bluetooth - no problem. 😊

[Wendb13 in reply to pauljusa]

Thanks. Her remedy now is to turn the thermostat totally off then turn it on again when they need the heating on as that oddly dosebt set off her pacemaker !! She just doesn't like anything that's not her choice or her way. My dad bought a sound bar for the TV as he's getting a little hard of hearing she said take that back I dint want it in My house ... because she didn't choose it...