Upgraded Breathing

On November 15, 2010, I had surgery to implant my diaphragmatic pacemaker system. In the 12 years since then, I have used the system to breathe and have generally enjoyed it. However, I had to get used to infrequent checks on the system.

For more than 25 years, I was used to having both my ventilators checked for maintenance every month. With the DPS, few hospitals are even aware of the system, let alone having people to come check on them. After getting the implant in 2010, I went home with two control units, or the actual pacemaker, that makes the system function.

Around 2012, I had my settings adjusted to get a larger breath. That process meant new pacemakers were sent to me with the different stimulation settings and I sent back my existing units. Therefore, I received new controllers at that time, but haven't since.

After some communication about a wire concern in October, it was realized my pacemakers hadn't been updated for quite some time. This past week, a representative from Synapse flew from Ohio to Des Moines to meet with me. He exchanged my old controllers for new versions, discussed changes, and any problems we could work on.

It was nice to get excellent attention when needed and I like the look of the new units. They work exactly the same, but are smaller than what I've been using. Other upgrades allow me to use a regular alkaline battery instead of lithium in case supplies are hard to get. I'm hopeful I won't need to do that, but it's good the option exists. Alarms have also been changed, which will take getting used to, but it now meets some international alarm requirements.

Living the quad life means using specialized equipment that is fun to watch improve. Of course breathing independently is best, but I'm thankful God has given us this technology to help in our fallen world.