Jump to content

Vagus Nerve To Blame?


Nauthiz

Recommended Posts

It seems to me that lately alot of my symptoms stem from action along the vagus nerve possibly. For example eating causes symptoms, digestive problems(burping, bloating etc), sometimes standing even causes digestive problems, Bowel movements can cause symptoms even heart palpitations(feels like a flopping my chest kind of unusual). Could this all be from stimulation of the vagus nerve? I also have problems swallowing sometimes, and drinking liquids.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have vasovagal syncope. If I have colon cramps before or during a bowel movement I pass out. My heart flops, sweating, nauseous, blood pressure falls & it takes me a few hours to recover. I live in fear of a stomach cramp especially if I'm away from home. I'm not a dr but it seems reasonable to me that the vagus nerve could cause your symptoms. Are you taking any med's for your symptoms?

When I feel the sick cramps start I take a low dose Levsin S/L but only if I have too because of their side effects.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have vasovagal syncope. If I have colon cramps before or during a bowel movement I pass out. My heart flops, sweating, nauseous, blood pressure falls & it takes me a few hours to recover. I live in fear of a stomach cramp especially if I'm away from home. I'm not a dr but it seems reasonable to me that the vagus nerve could cause your symptoms. Are you taking any med's for your symptoms?

When I feel the sick cramps start I take a low dose Levsin S/L but only if I have too because of their side effects.

nope i don t take any meds at all. I don't get any syncope but i think my BP is low sometimes.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've been spared major digestive symptoms but I can throw out some tid-bits from my reading that may help... or at least further confuse the matter!:

It happens that a bowel movement is similar to a Valsalva Maneuver... and POTS sometimes exhibits altered response in that clinical measure. It is also a trick for free-diving... valsalva that is, to slow your heart & oxygen use... unless you see a shark, in which case rapid heart rate and a bowel movement is standard!

Also, carotid stimulation can provoke unusual response in some, and might tie in. Maybe a neurologist could make something of some of your symptoms or at least screen for some things... since they do those tests. Or now that I think of it, a cardiologist will sometimes put you in different positions or use a valsalva in order to catch transient signs, so they might pick something up and know what to make of it or what to screen for... especially since your palpitations are a concern.

When I was hunting my own symptoms a while back, I came up with "right vagus" over-stimulation as a decent match. There is a reason they don't use it normally. They mention that "cardiac symptoms were induced by stimulation of the right vagus nerve" mentioned in this rare human case:

Right-sided vagus nerve stimulation in humans

But remember, the nerve may not be the source of the problem, just the messenger or a victim to bad "parameters" set by other things (regulatory hormones, other nervous signals, electrolytes, whatever)... and overall acetylcholine levels (like Alicia mentions with Levsin). I've forgotten the symptoms of a cut vagus nerve (many bodily functions proceed surprisingly well)... but it might be worth looking in to for comparison.

Post-parandial (after eating) effect is usually attributed to normal blood circulation changes (to facilitate digestion) aggravating a low overall blood volume (and further exacerbated by lack of constriction in the rest of body). I sometimes get post-parandial effect big time (and assumed it was a hypoglycemic rebound)... Coincidentally, I have now read that "relative hypoglycemia" is more common for those with POTS, so that might still be in the picture as yet another compounding factor. (I happened to confirm this as suspect with my glucose meter readings).

Finally, this is a fun article to put to rest the notion that the digestive system is just a place where symptoms are expressed:

The Gut Is Said to Have A Mind of Its Own

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...