It’s a Wednesday night during Winter break. A few of my girlfriends
and I decide to go
out to the
club since we haven’t really been able to since school started. I’m having a grand old
time on the
dance floor when suddenly I feel as if I’ve been kicked in the chest by a horse.
My
whole body jerks. I don’t even know what just
happened. I’m scared. I’ve never felt anything
like this
before. Less than a minute later it happens again, and then two more times. I
realize I
have been
shocked by my defibrillator so I head straight for the hospital where I stay
for the
next two
days just to be told I’ve been shocked when I shouldn’t have been. I wonder if
I should
have even
agreed to getting this device. Is it even worth it?
After a long day at school I walk into the house to see my
mother’s eyes filled with tears.
She realizes
I’m home and looks at me with tears rolling down her cheeks and says “Your
cardiologist
called with the results, you tested positive for Arrhythmogenic Right
Ventricular
Dysplasia, a
heart condition that cannot be cured”. After going through tons of EKG’S, MRI’s,
cardiac
ultrasounds, and wearing multiple heart monitors, I finally got an answer from
a blood
sample. This
disease, along with the ICD I will need, will change my life in many ways.
Arrythmogenic Right Ventricular
Dysplasia is a genetic, progressive
heart condition that
causes abnormal
heart rhythms called arrhythmias which can increase the risk of sudden
cardiac
arrest and sudden death. Patients with this disease have a right ventrical that
is
replaced
with fat and/or fiborous. This ventrical is dilated and contracts poorly which
weakens
the hearts
ability to pump blood the way it should. Some symptoms include palpitations,
dizziness,
lightheadedness, fainting, and heart failure. Heart failure includes shortness
of breath
and the
inability to do normal activities without feeling fatigue. Patients with ARVD
are usually
treated with
medications that help prevent arrhythmias and sudden death. If these
medications
don’t seem
to work, there’s a procedure known as an ablation in which the abnormal spots
that
are causing
the arrhythmias are burned off. This is not always successful, and is usually
only a
temporary
cure as the spots can come back. Patients that are thought to be at risk for
sudden
death
usually get treated with an Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillator. This is a
small battery
operated
device implanted in the chest that will send electrical pulses or shocks to
help control
life
threatening arrhythmias.
Although I’m told by my cardiologist
that they’ve done everything they could, and that
it’s time to
think about an ICD, I’m not sure if I want to go through with it. Sure, it’s to
protect
me and save
my life if ever necessary but what if it never comes to that? Do I really want
to go
through
another surgery? Do I really want a scar on my chest for the rest of my life?
What
about all
the complications that come along with an ICD? Is it worth it?
I guess it is worth
it, I’ll just have to deal with the inconveniences, restrictions, and
hospital
visits it brings because if some day I go into cardiac arrest, I’ll still have
my life. I’m
going to
tell my mother and my cardiologist that
I’ve decided to go through with it and get the
device. We
have set up an appointment at Dartmouth Hitchcock Lebanon to undergo the
procedure on
November 16, 2011.
Time goes by and November 16th
rolls around. I get packed up for a two night stay and
get in the
car with my family to drive two hours away to the hospital. I’m about to feel
the
worst pain I’ve ever had to feel in my life
and I’m nervous. Not only is it going to be painful,
but there
are so many restrictions after surgery. For six weeks I won’t be able to lift
my right
arm above my
head, or carry anything heavier than a gallon of milk for risk that the wire
running from
the device to my heart might come unattached. I won’t be able to drive, I won’t
be able to
work, and I won’t even be able to carry my own backpack to class. This will be
a very
challenging
six weeks for me, but at least everything will be back to normal after that.
The surgery is done and I’m in more pain than I have ever
been in, and the scar is bigger
than I was told it would be. It’s not
attractive whatsoever and it’s going to be an annoyance to
explain what
the scar is every time someone asks. There’s a bulge where the device is but I’m
hoping it’s
mostly swelling and will go away with
time. The doctor’s gave me some papers
about ICD’s
to read and there’s a lot more in here than what I was told about. “When you
have
an ICD, it
is important to avoid electrical devices that can stop your ICD from working
right.
Check with
your doctor about what you need to stay away from, what you need to use with
care and
what is okay to use. You will need to stay away from things with strong
electrical fields
such as MRI
machines, welding equipment, and power generators. You can use a cell phone,
but keep it
at least 6 inches away from your device. You can use most household appliances
safely.” Really? I have to keep my phone away 6
inches from my chest at all times? Can I even
go tanning
anymore? What about microwaves and metal detectors?
My cardiologist has
some answers for me. He’s not sure If I’ll be able to tan anymore
but he doesn’t
suggest it anyways because the scar won’t tan the same color. He wants me
to leave the
room if someone is using a microwave and if I want to use one myself he advises
to
have someone else do it for me. He also tells me the worst news I’ve heard all day: The battery
have someone else do it for me. He also tells me the worst news I’ve heard all day: The battery
life of an
ICD is about 7 years. This means I’ll be going through all of this again! I’ll probably go
through this
surgery 6-8 more times in my life.
It hasn’t even been a whole three
months since the surgery and I’ve been in the
emergency room several times because of the
device. I’ve been getting unbearable sharp pains
where the
device was implanted and I’ve even been shocked when I shouldn’t have been,
five
times in a
row. So far, the ICD has done more wrong than it has done right but I’m hoping
all of
the
complications and restrictions will be worth it if it ever comes time for the
defibrillator to
do its job
and save my precious life.
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