Bradycardia With Pots?? Really?

[Maisie87]

I have had POTS for a couple years now and tachycardia has always been my main problem (as opposed to drop in BP).

But for the last 3 days, my heart rate has gotten really low. Down to 43 bpm! I still have the tachycardia when I stand.

I know low HR is normal for very active people, but I am the opposite of active. I'm in a wheel chair..

Have any of you heard of or experienced this? I'm afraid to take my sleep aid med. and kind of afraid to go to sleep for fear my HR will drop even more..

Thanks!

Maisie

[potsgirl]

Hi Maisie,

I also have bradycardia with POTS/OI. My heart rate would go into the 30s, so I had a pacemaker implanted about three years ago. First I was diagnosed with that and cardiomyopathy, then about a year later with POTS/OI. It's not that common, especially to have it full-time. I've also had carpal tunnel syndrome, and the three together have my doctors testing me every 6 months for amyloidosis. I've had bradycardia for some time, though, and it's a constant with me. My BP drops from about 95/70 to 70/60 when I stand, with a HR of 60 to 125 or so.

Since your low BP is new to you, I'm make sure to talk to the doctor about it. I have heard several stories on the forum where people have BPs that go up and down a lot, too.

Best of luck!

Jana

[Maisie87]

additional note.. some people have said it's only cause for concern if you feel different or worse when your HR is that low. I do, I just feel weak and lethargic, much more so than normal.

Any thoughts??

Thanks so much

Maisie

[daisy]

Yes, I experience this frequently. My heartrate is either really high (on standing) or really low. It stays in the low 40s when sitting or lying usually (unless one of my arrythmias kicks in) and even at times will drop when standing. It's made my POTS hard to treat......I have atrial arrythmias and my Dr. believes that is what is causing it not the POTS - the electrical system of my ticker is just all messed up. I have to be very careful what med I take for the high heartrate because it will drop it too low when I'm sitting. Very inconvenient....makes me feel as bad when it drops as I do when it is too high

[Maisie87]

thanks daisy, yes it is frusterating. Sorry you are dealing with it too, but thanks for sharing. It helps.

[yogini]

Bradycardia is a symptom of dysautonomia. I've had it even with POTS. Are you on any medication? I'm not sure it's something for concern, but you should mention to your doc since it's a new symptom.

[erik]

I'm supine-brady and upright "relative" tachy (rarely over 120 just from standing but sometimes) also usually pre-hyptertensive yet nearly faint from low bp upon standing.

See if you can guess when I stood up and when I laid down! In this case I went badly O.H. (orthostatic hypotensive)... sometimes I do not especially with fludro and in the afternoons rather than mornings:

[lissy]

Hi Maisie,

I also have bradycardia with POTS/OI. My heart rate would go into the 30s, so I had a pacemaker implanted about three years ago. First I was diagnosed with that and cardiomyopathy, then about a year later with POTS/OI. It's not that common, especially to have it full-time. I've also had carpal tunnel syndrome, and the three together have my doctors testing me every 6 months for amyloidosis. I've had bradycardia for some time, though, and it's a constant with me. My BP drops from about 95/70 to 70/60 when I stand, with a HR of 60 to 125 or so.

Since your low BP is new to you, I'm make sure to talk to the doctor about it. I have heard several stories on the forum where people have BPs that go up and down a lot, too.

Best of luck!

Jana

Hi, I was also DX with so called Postpartum cardiomyopathy right before POTS kicked in severely. I was curious did they find the cause??? I was not checked for possible viruses at the time and they said it resolved pretty quickly during that time. I know my heart rate was lower and felt weaker maybe 65 bpm I wasn't really aware of what was going on at that time. A year later I was positive for Epstein Barr but not active. It still worries me now because I don't really know what was really going on it could have been just bradycardia after having a baby...then it turned tachy. I did have an echo and stress test during that time so maybe if I have the right doc look at it I'll have a clearer view. I have noticed during my Cycle when sitting heart seems to be slower and kinda strained and more tachy when standing.

Lissy

[potsgirl]

Hi Lissy~

They think my cardiomyopathy (dilated) was caused by a viral infection. I had recently moved to Arizona, and they have something called 'Valley Fever' here in the SW that some people catch when they move here...it's something in the soil. I still have it...It sounds like yours has gone away? Hope so!

Cheers,

Jana

[potsgirl]

How cool is this? Where did you get this equipment? If I remember right, you do this at home...Tell!

[kayjay]

I do! My heart rate has gone as low as 28 then it bumps up. I wear a monitor and have seen it go from 45 to 158 in just a few moments.

My heart rate monitor can give you highs and lows. This can be helpful to your dr over time. Don't be too alarmed.... it stinks but you have a lot of company!

[erik]

How cool is this? Where did you get this equipment? If I remember right, you do this at home...Tell!

If you're talking about my equipment, for the graph,, it is manually pasted together results from a pulse oximeter and a separate BP meter (both of which dump to computer). If you weren't asking me, then I'm just having a self-absorbed SOB-moment with foot-in-mouth... but it happens

CMS-50E pulse-ox that dangles on your finger, from FaceLake.com

(But I want to find a wrist or chest pulse meter that logs and downloads instead)

Microlife wrist BP meter w/software that was on sale one day (I bought it impulsively after docs didn't have much to say about my odd vitals (and I subsequently discovered the world of POTS/OI/OH/NMH/NCS/...)

(I plan on getting an upper arm one instead some day)

After the initial phase of being told "you're just dehydrated" I became a little compulsive about documenting what I can on an ongoing basis! I only throw the composite graphs together manually for special occasion (that was data from a couple days ago)... but I will be making my own little automated graph software tool any day now

I'd recommend keeping some ongoing log of things, at least general stuff. I don't barrage my docs with it but it is nice to hand them stuff here and there to show persistent and specific observations. There are so few physical signs or clear chemical measures in this disorder. I keep my key one prominent so the docs have more to latch on to than my symptom testimony (a.k.a. the whiny chronic illness patient/hypochondriac). That, and some patience, seems to bring slow progress.

[potsgirl]

Thanks, E!