well, this is new…

I’ve had an interesting week. It’s been a week of firsts.

If you’ve been following this blog you know I’m in the process of weening off the beta blocker (atenolol) I’m on as part of my long term plan to see if having kids is in my future. I’ll update how that’s going soon, but as you can probably tell from this post, it’s not going well.

I came down with a migraine on Tuesday, and I’m not sure why. Migraines can be a symptom of postural orthostatic tachychardia syndrome (POTS).  I got my first migraine about three months after I developed my first symptoms of autonomic dysfunction.

Fortunately migraines are not my most common symptom, but are by far my most painful. And of course with the pain comes the vomiting. Typically my migraines can be traced to something: dehydration, hormone fluctuation, etc., but I still have no idea where this one came from. We’re in the middle of heat wave, which may have something to do with it.

I had a doctor’s appointment on Thursday for blood tests (unrelated to POTS). For the tests, I had to fast and wasn’t allowed to eat breakfast (or take the small amount of medication I’m on) that morning. As you probably know from the post on my morning routine, I usually only have a few spoonfuls of applesauce for breakfast, so fasting shouldn’t have been a big deal.

My appointment was first thing in the morning. I felt awful that morning and was anxious to get the appointment over with so I could go to work, then get home and nap. The nurse took my vitals as part of the pre-appointment routine and noticed my blood pressure (BP) was high: 140/105.

I forget sometimes that the average person probably has no reason to know everything about BP.  Blood pressure measures the pressure your circulating blood exerts on arteries.  BP consists of two numbers: the top (systolic) is the pressure during the beat, the bottom number (diastolic) is the pressure when your heart rests between beats. Normal BP is 120/80. According to WebMD, a systolic of 140 or higher and a diastolic of 90 or higher is considered hypertension.

So, 140/105 is too high. I typically have normal blood pressure. If anything, it’s often slightly low. I had problems with high BP in the past, but that was 15 years ago, before POTS.  So, something else to keep an eye on.

While I was sitting in the exam room waiting for the doctor, I experienced an intense adrenalie rush, became very dizzy and felt the blood drain from my head. I fainted while sitting in the chair, and woke up (what I assume was) seconds later.

Although I come close to fainting often, I very rarely actually faint. Fainting (also called syncope) usually occurs in POTS when there is not enough blood flow to the brain. Too little oxygen to the brain for too long can cause damage, so the body will do what is necessary to get blood back to the brain. By fainting, the body becomes horizontal and blood returns to the brain. The human body is pretty resilient and will do whatever it can to protect itself. It’s quite brilliant, actually.

When I start to feel lightheaded and fear I might faint, I do what I can to prevent it, like sit down. If I’m somewhere where sitting isn’t an option, I kneel, I fidget, I pace – I do whatever I can to keep blood flowing. The hardest thing for me is to just stand still. For me, fainting while standing is rare, fainting while sitting is unheard of.

Because sitting is what I do to avoid fainting, I’m not sure what to think about fainting while sitting. It scares me a little. Low blood pressure can cause fainting, but I haven’t heard that high blood pressure can, too. I was still suffering from the “migraine hangover”, so that could have had something to do with it. Or, perhaps dysautonomia/POTS is just a jerk and likes to keep me on my toes.

Or maybe it’s because the seriously cute intern following my doctor kept touching me and I swooned. Maybe I’m a swooner.

You’ve got to hand it to POTS – it certainly is unpredictable.  It waits until you’re comfortable, until you think you know how to manage it and what to expect. Then it turns you upside down and drops you on your head. Sometimes literally.

I’d respect that if it wasn’t such a sneaky little fucker.

“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.” –Charles Darwin

Smell ya later.
– Linds