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so depressed

I have just been diagnosed with a serious heart condition--VF and am obviously so depressed and scared.Someone please be there for me now.I feel so lost right now.I have battled cancer and depression now this.
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Avatar universal
Here I was running my big mouth off in the past saying how excellent Australian hospitals were & then this,maybe I should keep my yap shut from now on.
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Avatar universal
Liverpool hospital in sydney,but woden hospital in canberra isn't much better.
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480448 tn?1426948538
Ubelievable.  You're lucky you didn't end up in an OR having a limb amputated or something.  Scary stuff.  Is this a big hospital, or just one of those small community facilities?
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Avatar universal
It was on the local news,also an elderly lady I knew whos son was 54 went in complaining of chest pains,he colapsed while waiting in the ER after he was sent back out after having his obs done.
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480448 tn?1426948538
"the same hospital sent people home after reviewing them in the ER and then these people had heart attacks minutes after leaving the hospital."

Oh my goodness!!!!  Really?  How did you find that out?  I wouldn't set foot in that hospital!
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Avatar universal
I will be writing a letter of complaint thats for sure,it very difficult to start a lawsuit against government hospitals here,they always seem to come out on top in the end,the same hospital sent people home after reviewing them in the ER and then these people had heart attacks minutes after leaving the hospital.It's a nightmare whats going on.
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Avatar universal
NG pretty much stated what I was thinking.  

What Beta-Blocker were you prescribed?  Hmmmm, waiting til Friday to start the Holter monitor?.....never heard of that either.  Not sure why you haven't filled your medication yet.

Well....don't be overly depressed about this as treatment for this is better nowadays then in the past.  

Not exactly sure how the ER would have mixed up VF with SVT.  I smell a lawsuit.    

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Avatar universal
I agree with everything you have said,This is why medhelp is a great place for info,I think you & londres would have done a better job diagnosing me but I don't want to condem the public health system but it's really not good enough,I felt like a number not a patient.
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480448 tn?1426948538
You should definitely be celebrating.  This is literally like someone telling you you had end stage pancreatic cancer....then changing it to a gallbladder attack.

I'm amazed at the incompetency.  VF and SVT on a monitor are night and day.  Even the newest of med students/nurses would (should) be able to distunguish between the two a mile away.  With VF, the heart is literally spasming, seizing.....very obvious.

You need to be VERY proactive about this.  First thing you need to do is obtain a copy of your entire medical record.  Find out what exactly they did to you, what tests were run, etc....and what the results were...and you need to be SURE that nowhere on your record does it indicate you had VF.  If it's not corrected, you may find yourself coming out of the hospital with an unnecessary implantable defib.  Not to mention, like Loundres said, the course of treatment varies a lot, especially in urgency and aggressiveness.  You need to make sure your record is correct as you move forward with this new doctor.

You've basically just been given a new lease on life.  The people who were on duty that day need to be talked to, educated, evaluated.

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Avatar universal
I know NG,It all happened so fast,like I woke Up I couldn't breathe,was rushed to the ER and told to chew an asprin,the moments later was taken to another room,put to sleep for 10 minutes they informed me later and cardioverted twice,the first cardioversion did not put the heart back to normal sinus rythm and the used 100js.When I woke up my heart was still beating like a rabbits but it wasn't out of rythm.The diagnosis was wrong big time but because I was so scared at the time I didn't know what to think,I also asked why they were sending me home they said the cardio ward was full.When I saw the heart specialist she said you have SVT not VF because I my family would be arranging my funeral right now.I am having a HM put on this friday for 24 hours and they either took an xray of my heart because they said it was rather large for someone of my weight and my height.I believe you people have some of the best cardiologists in the world in the USA but the same can't be said over here.I don't know if you have hear of Dr Victor Chang but he was a brilliant heart surgeon becak in the 80's,sadly he was murdered.He performed the first heart transplant in Australia I believe.I am relieved that it's SVT & not VF because VF is deadly if not treated right away.I need to learn more about SVT and learn how to live with it.The fact that I now have a heart condition still scares me but all the stress and insomnia probably hasn't helped.Thankyou for your information from a medical prospective.
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480448 tn?1426948538
Wow....misdiagnosed with VF instead of SVT??  That's like night and day.  That would be like a doc misdiagnosing chicken pox as leprosy.  I was trying to be vague the other day, but VF usually only occurs during cardiac arrest, or right before (as in it being the cause).  Very lethal and NOT something a doctor would diagnose you with and then discharge you, without putting in an implantable defibrillator, or SOME kind of intervention.  If I were you, I would be getting on the phone about the ER doc AND the whole medical team involved in treating you for "VF".

You said in your OP that you were "just" diagnosed with VF.  When was that that you were in the ER and diagnosed, and what happened to make you end up in the ER, did you pass out?  Some kind of other emergent situation?  Did they cardiovert you that same day?  Do any lab work?  Do you recall them testing for cardiac enzymes?  I'm honestly just blown away by this...you should have never been discharged, let alone the fact they didn't even put you on a monitored unit.  I could see a misdiagnosis, it happens, but the whole TEAM failed you.

When someone is getting moved to a hospital floor, there are several people involved in that process, chooosing the correct unit (ie ICU versus telemetry until vs regular floor), plus who your attending MD would be, etc etc.  I can't believe that not ONE person caught that VF was NOT the proper diagnosis, and intervened.  Let's put it this way, if your initial dx was right, you'd likely be dead.  UNREAL.  I'd be mad as a hornet.

The doc who gave you the new diagnosis, how did he come to that new  diagnosis?  Is he a cardiologist?  What did he say about the "damage" you were told about?  How did they come to that determination?  Through what diagnostic process?  The enlarged heart, did they say anything about that?

I'm sitting here shaking my head.  I don't think you realize how big of a deal this is.  It's HUGE.  When you posted (from HOME) that you had been dx'ed with VF, I nearly fell off my chair.  I tried not to panic you, but you needed to head back to the hospital.  Thank GOD the diagnosis was wrong, because you may not have made it to your follow up appt.
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Avatar universal
The process is slow here.I get the HM put on this friday & I have the script for the beta--blockers & I have been advised to take it easy.I will put the computer away because I have been googling SVT & it's making more stressed.I think I might be getting treated slowly because of my age--41,most of the people in the waiting room were over 70.
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Avatar universal
Thanks hobby.
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Avatar universal
Well...you should probably set the computer down for a bit and relax.
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Avatar universal
WOW....No meds on board yet?  That doesn't sound right.  And the Holter monitor is not started?  

What exactly did this Cardio do then as SVT should be treated PRONTO.
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Avatar universal
So sorry to hear u are having such stress and unhappiness in your life.  U have helped so many people on here and we need to b here for u.  Thinking of u.  I care and always will.  Enjoy today.  Find something to laugh about.  Take deep breaths.  B grateful for everything.  Knw u have a support system.  Lov hobby
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Avatar universal
Thanks for the support Londres,I will be going on beta--blockers and I am having a 24 hour HM put on aswell.I was cardioverted,they needed to do it twice they said.I had 2 abnormal ECGs and was given the wrong diagnosis at the ED.I have since seen a specialist & she said I have SVT.I am learning about this condition and doing my best to understand it.Sorry,I forgot you are a nurse,I should have asked you about SVT.Thankyou.
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Avatar universal
So sorry to heard you are having health issues.  

And this ER treated you for VF and you indeed have SVT.....that's not good as these conditions require different treatment plans; totally different treatment plans.  Then, they sent you home and you weren't converted in NSR?  WOW, never heard of that.  We NEVER sent a patient home UNTIL they were converted.  Sounds like you have a lawsuit on your hands as SM has stated.  

Well....anyhow, you should probably be relaxing.  You don't have the Holter monitor on yet?  What beta-blockers or meds did the Cardio prescribe? Surprised this Cardio did nothing to cardiovert you or is he?  

I am very concerned and worried about you.  
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Avatar universal
You must be happy with your life and I am happy for you that you are doing well,the problem with me is I haven't been happy in so long that I have forgotten what it's like to laugh or smile.
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3149845 tn?1506627771
Rain, with all the problems that life throws our way, what i did was to balance them out by being creative. Im not saying this to boost myself up, as i am a regular guy with no special talents, but want to mention it, as is a reality. I created and Patented a very simple product, similar to those you see on TV for" $19.95 and get one free". I knew it would be successful as is a product that is needed by people. I new this because it was part of the industry i am in. You see many things for sale and say " why didnt i think of that". There is something very simple in your work field that you could create and be a big hit. Its so easy its hard!!
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Avatar universal
You're right again dave & you lost your father at a young age,so sorry about that,my father was everything to me,I miss him so bad.My relationship was very sad because I loved my woman so much & let her down,I'm full of guilt & maybe this explains all my health issues now.
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3149845 tn?1506627771
Sorry about your dad, i lost mine in a horrific truck accident when i was 20 years old. Missed a lot of guidance in my early years. and about the best woman and your guilt, that experience will make you a better person when the next best woman comes along.
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Avatar universal
Thanks once again dave,you have been a great support,I'm a lab assistant & I am also a qualified support worker.I experienced depression when dad passed away in 2005 & I cheated on the best woman I ever had in my life in 2010 & still have not forgiven myself for that.
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Avatar universal
Thankyou for your kind words marlene,anything that involves the heart is a scare but I will be working with my doctor & cardiologist & taking their instructions.At present I am having trouble sleeping.Good bless you to.
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