SVT - Ablation on 8th Jan....can anyone answer me questions I'm wanting to no?

[clarehudson]

Hi There
I'm just wondering if anyone can tell me what to expect with the ablation I'm having at LGI on the 8th Jan. I am really scared and the doctor told me the procedure is pretty much pain free but he has never had one done himself.
If someone could tell me what is going to happen? I'm scared about them going in my leg, how they numb it (does it hurt), what the pain (if any) feels like, how long it takes. Also did you have to have your heart rate purposely increased? I've had Adenosine to stop my heart and re-start it in Sept when I first found out and I really don't want him to do this as it was the worst feeling ever!
Please help????
Thank you
Clare (21)

[Snackycakes]

They are putting me to sleep as well.. LOVE GA!!!!!!

[sb786]

Don't worry! I went in at 8 am and my procedure was at 8.30! They didn't keep me in i was allowed to go home in the afternoon!
The only thing difficult about the whole thing is the wound you are left with in your leg at the end of the procedure. You have to take it easy for a few weeks to allow it to heal. In fact mine was still sore but not painful for over 2 months!
When you arrive there speak to Dr Pepper about your anxiety and he'll give you a mild sedative which will make all the difference.
How frequent and severe are your svt episodes?? Are you on any meds??
By the way i'm from Bradford!!

[Sunshine47]

You are exactly right.. No harm taken!!! I did have a bad experience but that doesn't mean that everyone will. If there is bad luck it will find me. I guess that is why I am the one in so many that had a bad experience. I wish clare the best and I think she should def. have it done. The outcome is a blessing and if I am considering it again the pain is forgotten for a time free of thumps and bumps. Take care and keep us informed. Good luck.

[Thinline]

Me back again clarehudson.  Like Sunshine47 I was also awake and recall he entire procedure, but I have got to tell you that I did not find it nearly as bad as Sunshine did. As I have said before, having an ablation is preferable to having root canal treatment.

Sunshine, you obviously had a terrible experience, but I'm glad that there was a good outcome.  Most people do not have such bad ablation experiences, so you were the statistically bad 1 in however many.  These are not figures I know or am about to research.  But I'm pretty sure Clare is not going to have a bad experience.  I'm not belittling you horrible ablation in any way here, I know exactly what you went through - I did too, so don't get me wrong.  As you said in the end, being rid of the horrible rhythm is worth it.  It certainly was for me.

Clare if you wake up tell someone and they will up the drugs to knock you out.  If you feel a panic attack coming on, say so, they will help you.  If you are just plain terrified, say so and someone will reassure you.

Don't change your mind about having the procedure done, it is not that bad.  You have waited bravely this long and the wait is not much longer, so just hang in there, be strong, and think of the positive outcome.  Don't fixate on what could go wrong, think of how great its going to be when it all goes right and your heart is beating normally again.  Trust me, it is worth anything to have your life back.

[clarehudson]

No I'm from the outskirts of Bradford/Halifax about 20 mins from Leeds.
Thats what I think will happen to me that I will start having a panic attack. I just wish they could put me to sleep as I don't want to feel a thing.
How long did they keep you in for? I have to be there for 8am on the Thursday so I presume I will be in in the afternoon.
I used to work as a Health Care Assist at the BRI on a Gyne ward so I no all the ligo that hospital staff use and what my BP, heart rate etc should be. So if I hear them say something that I don't thinks right I will panic! ARGH!
I'll be a lot happier on the 10th Jan anyway! :)
Clare

[Sunshine47]

Well like everyone has said there are none alike. I had a terrible time and I have no lies to tell. I would never scare you but I felt everything right from the beginning to the end. MIne lasted for 6 years and it was worth it to be free from my problems for that length of time. Mine have returned with a vengence and I am looking at another procedure. I am mortified. I can't lie. I am a woman who has been pregnant 11 times with 3 live births and the rest were failed miscarriages. Some as far a long as 5 months. I would rather have all that over again than to go through ablation if it wasn't for the outcome.I hate things to be sugar coated. Just because I felt it or others felt it doesn't mean that you will. I was in there for close to 5 to 6 hours. I knew everything. Just to warn you because no one warned me.. they make your heart go in to all different kinds of rhythms which they didn't tell me they were going to do. I thought something was happening to me. Then they informed me that they were doing it. Made me feel better then to know my heart wasn't going out of control. Don't base how it will feel by the way others felt. No two are alike. Keep a positive attitude. Just think after it is over with you can have some normalacy to your life. Good luck and my thoughts and prayers are with you. I had a great doctor amd I don't blame him for my pain. He gave me back my life and for that I am grateful. The pain is forgotten when you don't feel the thumps in your chest anymore.

[sb786]

Yes he is really good. Supposed to be one of the best. You're not being pathetic!! You should have seen me 1 week before the procedure i was soooooo scared but honestly its not that bad.
When i went for the procedure they made me sign some paper work and then he briefly discussed the procedure with me. once i was in the lab i started to cry and hyperventilate so much that my hands started to cramp up!! Dr Pepper then gave me a shot of something to help me relax and it was great stuff it calmed me down so much. I was awake for the next 5-10 mins and saw the wires inserted into my heart on the x ray machines but then i must have fallen asleep. I woke up on the ward with my family around me. Apparently they paced my heart for over an hour and injected alsorts to trigger the fast heart rate but they couldn't find an extra route for me??? But either way it wasn't anywhere near as bad as i thought it would be!
What is your ablation for? How often do you have these episodes? By the way are you from Leeds??

[clarehudson]

Hi There

Yeah I've got mine with Dr Pepper, is he any good? He seemed really nice when I had the Pre-Op with him. I am really really scared about having it done and I'm seriously contemplating not having it done. I'm scared something will go really wrong. How was yours? Did you have the same thoughts before you went and had it done or is it just me being pathetic?
Any sort of reply would be a big help!
Thank you

Clare

[sb786]

Hi there! I had an attempted ablation for svt last year at the LGI!! Honestly it was not as bad as i thought it would be!
Which doctor is performing the ablation? I had Dr Pepper and he is a really nice man you will be absolutely fine don't worry! :)

[Thinline]

Thanks for all the fun comments above.  Maria, I'm probably going home tomorrow!  Yay at long last, a light at the end of the tunnel.  I think that it is good you speak of your ablation experience, you shouldn't keep this stuff all locked up inside.  I have not right to whinge and whine just because I've been ill.  Gosh, I would send my support system running for the hills if I got all negative on them!  Sure we have those moments, but whenever you need to say something - just say it!

Pika, I also say very naughty things from the meds.  They all find it rather funny, but they have always said thay can't do ablations under GA becuase the anaesthesia changes your heart rhythm so it would not work.  Maybe they put you out becuase they already knew the exact spot which needed to be ablated.

Thanks for the hugs and I'm definitely feeling better and am probably going home tomorrow barring anything unforeseen.  Will let you know.

[PikaPika88]

OH!!!!  I wrote something very wrong there?  You all know, I'm not a dr.  I am a sufferer of "express train", "garbage truck" and "vibrate" in my chest.  I'm sure, if those things happened in their chests, they want them to go away as well.

I can't tell much about my ablation.  They put me in sleep (GA).  (Thinline, I didn't learn anything in that procedure.  Sorry, I was unable to copy and do what they did on me for you.  LOL.)  When I woke up, the tube still stick in my mouth.  That was horrible.  You all would like to know why the Dr put me in GA?  During the EP study, I was very naughty.

Mine ablation had no pain.  If you have pain, keep asking their "private life", asking for this and that....  I'm sure, they'll put you in sleep!  

I'm here to send my "HUGS" to Thinline and hope you're getting better soon.
I'm here also to send my wish to Clare, hope you have a successful ablation and all the best.  

[mommyto4]

awwww sweetie, big hugs, i feel soooo bad you are having such a hard time, you sooooooooooo need a break!!!
i pray you are resting right now and in no pain, wishing you get well thoughts!!!!!
hugs
maria
ps sorry that i still speak of my experience , thinking about what you are going through i have no right!

[Thinline]

No don’t feel bad, I was somewhat out of it and I just couldn’t’ make sense of the post, no harm done.  I did not have a great ablation experience, in fact I’ve had 3, and they have all been a bit iffy because of my drug tolerance.  The drugs make me very aggressive and I tend to want to jump up and give the cardio a good smack because he’s so arrogant.

Clare Maria is right, some have good experiences and some don’t. Bit like going to the dentist really, does not bother my husband but getting me into that dental chair takes some heavy handed force.  Once its over I always ask myself what was so bad about it and in all reality, the answer is just fear of the unexpected.  If I had to choose having an ablation and getting root canal treatment – I would go with the ablation!

Also there are quite a few people present in the EP lab and with me in the past one of them has just always sat with me, chatting, joking, and trying to keep my bad behaviour in check.  If you feel anything tell them and they will give you more drugs, they are there to fix you not to harm you.

As far as my health issue goes, I’m STILL in the hospital.  Had another flare up of that gout and now my urea levels are through the roof – I’m terrified of going to sleep tonight in case I wake up in pain again.  Hope I get a good sleep tonight and wake up feeling fresh as a daisy tomorrow.  I’m totally hoping to go home on Saturday, so I’ve really got to get better now.  The meds I’m on have given me a serious dose of the upset stomach and its becoming a nightmare.  I’m up every half hour “to go”, I’ve even bought baby bum wipes because I can’t use normal toilet paper anymore.  Two more days  (that is two pills three times a day) before I can stop the “bog meds”.  Trouble with sleeping and having the runs  - well need I say more???  I do believe your prayers are helping me, cause something sure is.  It amazes me how many people are out there rooting for me.  We may not “know” each other, but being given support by someone who has been through similar things really makes it easier.  So thanks again.

If I wake up tonight and start writing total trash again, just know it’s a pain thing, I’m still (last time I checked) of sound mind.

[mommyto4]

thinline i feel soooo bad if you thought i was mad at you...sooo sorry, i soooo was not,i know i have to get over my experience, sorry to rehash it but again it is like mild post traumatic stress??
i was thinking same thing thinline but even my cardilogist said the ep should have been me the demerol earlier not just the stupid versed!!!on other hand i have to believe HIM that there were complications and he had to do what he had to do
please feel better, i am soo sorry you are still in hospital, i pray you are getting better!!!

claire not to scare you at all, but yes we all have different experiences, mine and a few others were painful but mostly all others had good experiences, i guess in the end it truly matters is doc is good and you are cured!! i wish you all the best
let us  know!!!
god bless
hugs to all
maria
ps when it was painful claire i did call out to the nurse to help and she did give me some relief, remember her name, lol!!!

[clarehudson]

Thank you everyone for all your comments I think I will just have to be really brave and not think about it until I'm there having it done. I will let you all no how I get on. I suppose if the ablation hurts when they are burning the bad stuff I'm sure it wont last too long. I think its just going into the unknown and not knowing what the pain feels like. I'm sure I will find out soon enough. I just hope theres going to be a nurse in there with me that will help me through it and he talks me through it all.
ARGH!! Why does this have to happen to me! :(
Thank you
Clare

[Thinline]

Last night I woke up in exreme agony again, some rheumatic and gout flare up.  Whatever it is I was trying to type I have no idea whatsoever except I did get the impression you were angry with me.  I just needed to know that I had not started something like before which almost led to Medhelp banning me for something I did and still don't quite know what it was that caused such offence.

You know what, nobody here has lied about the lack of pain of having an ablation, but I do think it is fair to warn you Clare that it is kinda scary.  It's really not sore and it's over before you know it, you truly will wonder what you were so worried about but when I woke in the middle on the night with my head on the keyboard typing trash, I realised that we've all been honest, but I think that we might add that sometimes parts of the ablation are somewhat unpleasant!

I'd like to add that because I have this incredible tolerance to drugs, it's really hard to keep me sleeping which is why I have such good recollection of the procedure.  I can pretty much remember it all, even the things we spoke about during the procedure, so my situation of not sleeping during the ablation is very different to the norm.  Apparently some people have an extra enzyme in their liver which negates certain drugs and that's why I have this tolerance - the liver enzyme, so don't worry about it, it is not very common.  Maria, it sounds like you have the same thing!  Sorry about last night's post, maybe being in hospital is starting to make me insane!  I'm hoping to go home on Saturday, but the doc is very non-committal and doesn't want to send me home too soon.

Aside from that though, my chest feels much better today, not so wheezy, I'm still on constant oxygen and loads of meds, but all the swelling in my legs and feet have gone down which is a huge relief.  I look almost human again.  I am struggling to walk more than a few meters at a time still, get breathless and tired, but I'm definitely on the mend thankfully.  Just got to get over this arthritis gout thing cause that is the worst pain I have EVER endured.  Luckily the doc has agreed not to withhold the strong meds so at least when it hits I can deal with it!  Thanks for the support and sorry about writing such rubbish, you must think I'm bonkers!

Clare, don't stress about this stuff, it's really not bad.  We each experience something different during and ablation and I'm pretty certain that yours is going to be one of the straight forward ones and you have nothing to worry about,

[pg1949]

I as scared to death before my ablation.  Those few weeks of waiting were shear terror for me.  I was so SCARED.  My procedure took 7.5 hours.  I had AVNRT.  I felt no pain at any point of the procedure: before, during or after.  I was awake, off and on, and could hear the Dr.'s talking.  I could also feel my heart speeding up and slowing down.  It was not that bad at all.  Nothing like I had expected.  The good news, for me...I just had my 3 month return check up and my Dr. said he's 98% sure that I'll have no recurrence of my SVT.  That was music to my ears.  Good luck to you.  

[mommyto4]

silly girl, i am not mad at you!!! i just need to stop thinking about the actual pain and torture,lol of ablation. i feel like even though there are a very few of us that had pain, everyone else had a good experience and i guess i want to make sure he REALLY couldn't give me more drugs??sorry is that doesnt' make any sense
ps your email is all messed up on bottom line
how are you  feeling??
hugs
maria

[Thinline]

Ok, what did I do?  I've made you angry and I don't know wny?  please explain so I cd=an try avoid it in the papaer or like las ime wih  my semi-ban>

[mommyto4]

ok, so don't make you go and think crazy things...i think sunshine also had terrible pain too?
so do you think he LIED to me, that he had to keep me up and not give more meds?
or maybe you shouldn't answer, lol
he said it was because it was complicated and more arrhythmias were there??

[Thinline]

I'm going to refrain from telling how I know so much about how it SHOULD have worked!  Would have been better off with P doing it!  Enough said.

[mommyto4]

hey hon, how are you doing? i was just reading your post about how and ablation SHOULD GO, lol
and i sure wish that is how mine went!!!!oh well, now to see if it truly was successful
hugs
maria
ps sorry but i still keep thinking about it!!!

[Thinline]

Hi Clare.  I do recall the general feeling of the ablation, it burns.  That is it.  It is such a quick thing though that it is over before you even know that its happened.  You will be sleeping like a lamb at that point anyway so don’t even think about it – I just happened not to be sleeping at that moment because they were re-drugging me – I’m a bit drug immune person so I need lots to keep me out.  I think that you should make your doctor aware of your fears now so that he can be well prepared – especially if you are going to freak out from heart monitors bleeping and stuff.  At least he could give you something to settle you the night before and then maybe you can get the pre-med as soon as you get into the hospital.  Why should you get so anxious about all this when they can give you stuff to prevent it.  I’d certainly ask, what harm can be done by that?  You really don’t need to be so scared about this, its not nearly as bad as you are expecting, and it will be over before you know it – at least its happening soon, you don’t have to wait and worry for the next few months about it.  Once again, good luck and keep us posted on your progress.

Pika, you wanna come over here and do my next ablation?  Clare has given me the worst giggles with this question.  I told you I would laugh with you Pika, but never at you, so now I’m really laughing with you cause it seems my new EP has decided that he doesn’t want to be my doctor either and I’m running out of options here, so I think I’m going to have to rely on you to come sort me out.  Clare, no offence, Pika could probably do it since she’s been there, done it, and seen it all – she is a fun friend to have about.

[clarehudson]

I think I had one put in when I had the adenosine if I can remember rightly.
Do you perform ablations Pikapika88?

Clare