heart ablation

[Curtisg1968]

Why do I fill fatigue and shortness of breath two weeks after a heart ablation. I had a heart valve replace over 20 years ago. I went back to the hospital and after 5 days they could not find anything wrong with my heart or cause for my problems.

[merileegal]

You'll have to read my journal that tells about my 20 years of SVT. I wish I could say I feel completely free...have to get my mind reprogrammed into thinking it's not going to happen again.

I still do have some arrythmia's. My doctor told me to expect that. I have PAC's which are the arrythmia's I had before the SVT attack. They do feel like a few beats followed by a small pause then a thump. A few times I felt like my heart just plain stopped during one of those pauses and that was pretty scary! I talked to my dr. about it and he said those are the ones that would've ended up as SVT and not to worry about them. I've had a few short runs of SVT, maybe 5 beats and much milder than the ones I used to get but those are becoming much more infrequent.

Fifteen min. is a good walk. Way to go! I decided to try and not fight the urge to get up and go but to take advantage of this and rest. It's been good not just for the body but for the mind and soul:)  We'll have to hit it hard next month, so rest while you can.

[bonzia]

Wow, 20 yrs to deal with that!  I bet you feel like a free woman now.
So no SVT's?  So far I'm clear which is nice.

Do you find your that heart beats hard a couple of times or a short erratic heart beat.
I walked around our neighbor hood this morning for about 15 min.  I've slowed down
some, but hate this laying around.

[tom_h]

It rightfully deserves to be called "wounded heart syndrome".  During the procedure, access to the left sideof your heart is made by puncturing the septum, the wall between the left and right atria with the catheters.  That along with the burns made to the muscle tissue results in an injury that takes time to heal.  So relax, and get better.  Your strength will return.

[merileegal]

Your post made me laugh! Anyway to answer your question, I tried to get on the treadmill a week out...no good. My ablation was on the 7th of June and I walked a mile on the treadmill last Thursday at 2.5 mph. and felt just fine, just a little scared. We went camping last weekend and I walked around the campgrounds a few times and was okay except for the mosquitoes that were attacking. But, before we left I was running around like a maniac to get everything ready and that wore me completely out.  (I'm 59...the young side of starting to get old.) Like you said, I think everyone's ablations are different. I think the most important thing is to remember that the heart was damaged by the burn or burns and it just has to have time to heal. I decided I'm not going to push myself, just listen to my body. I'm just so glad everytime I have a PAC to know that my heart isn't going to run away on me. I had this for over 20 years and I can hardly believe it's gone:)

[bonzia]

I had my ablation on June 10th for SVT's I was having the past 6 years.  Was on meteprolol which helped but kept having to up it to control the racing.  So my cardiologist said I was too young (is 51 really that young) to be having this go on.  He referred me to a dr. from Austin that works at St. David's Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Institute and is known for doing ablations.
I had three burns in the right atrium and so far no problems.  But I have been fighting fatigue and shortness of breath.  1st wk I was a rock, second wk tried walking for 15 min. I just cannot do it.  I did go in and see him July 1st and the heart and lungs were good.  I was told that in rare cases the phrenic nerve that runs along the esophagus into the diaphram can be irritated from the ablation.  I have to be able to move here in 6 wks when school starts again.  I work in the kitchen, so I've got to be able to breath.  Praying that things will turn around between now and then.  Maybe I did too much last weekend with company, cooking and having a family over for the 4th of July.  That always requires cleaning the house, cooking and I decorated a cake.   Duh, no wonder I feel like road kill this week!!!!!  After reading so much here at Med help, everyone's ablations are different.
So how far out are you from your ablation when you started the treadmill?  I use to walk 30 to 60mins 4 days a week before this procedure.  I can't get out of the neighbor hood!
keep me posted,
Bonzia

[merileegal]

I had mine done 4 weeks ago also. Mine is doing okay, very little pain. I  only had one burn. How many burns did you have and what was the procedure for. I think there are a lot of factors that go into each individual's ablation. One thing I have noticed is if I don't stay hydrated, it hurts more so I try  to drink a lot of water each day.

Have you seen the doctor since your ablation? Another thing, my doctor didn't tell was how long to take it easy so I tried to do too much at first and was experienceing some bad things. A doctor in a live chat here said that he tells his patients to take it easy for a month. So I really took it easy and I can say I'm feeling great now. I cautiously got on the treadmill the other day and slowly walked a mile with just a little pain.

From what I understand, it really does take while for the heart to heal. One post I saw said 6 months for it to heal completely.

Take it easy and keep us posted.

[bonzia]

I hope this " wounded heart syndrome" goes away soon.  Dealing with it after 4 wks post ablation it is starting to feel permanent.  I never know what  or how much energy I will have from day to day............................. a bit concerned..
ypd/bonzia

[AMichael]

It is called "wounded heart" syndrome.  It will go away in a few weeks / months.  I had the same thing.  3 thankful years for me with a normal heart beat!  Thank GOD and Dr. Compton!!!

[twinbee]

For a couple of weeks after my ablation, I felt shortness of breath  on occasion. I was told by my EP this was normal. It did go away.

[Jerry_NJ]

Are you on any medications, or herbal, or over-the-counter drugs or preparations?

Do you have any heart abnormalities, e.g., fast or irregular HR?

I believe it takes a few weeks for all the healing for an ablation to be complete.  Was that mentioned by your doctor?