Swelling--face, Hands, Feet

[MomtoGiuliana]

Hi All

Just wondering if anyone else experiences this. I posted (in response to a thread) on this several months ago.

I've experienced mild ankle swelling for awhile which I believe is POTS-related. It resolves if I lie down or if I am moving around a lot. However, it seems to be worsening, and I am not having a general worsening of POTS symptoms otherwise. In addition, I wake up in the AM and my hands are slightly swollen more and more frequently. This also resolves pretty quickly after moving around. This AM I woke up and the left side of my face was mildly swollen, and still is several hours later. Like I said no worsening of POTS and also no other symptoms.

I think I need to see my doctor (ugh, I have a complex about going to doctors with new symptoms--as we all do to some extent).

Katherine

[tinkerbella]

I'm so swollen lately and my doctor thought maybe since I had the flu and my knees are hurting so bad along with my other joints even the bottom of my feet that for sure that I had Lyme. Came back negitive. Hmmmmm, I'm on so much meds wonder if anything comes back right????? Anyway I was talking with a friend this morning and I had another thought with the florinef and all the salt and the swollen belly as well. Is this all from the addition of more salt and florinef, being unable to exercise, and so it's something I had with my pots but gotten sooooooooooo much worse.

Bellamia~

[lifesaver]

I get swelling in my face, hands, and feet---even wear my hair longer to hide the face swelling because it has changed my looks so much.

I asked my doctor about it and he said--yes, swelling is very common. So fits another piece of this strange group of disorders.

My feet have swollen to the point of not being able to wear my shoes--had many metabolic panels etc done and they were all normal. I do find sitting in chairs makes the leg/feet swelling much worse so I use my bed most of the time and my legs don't swell even when my face and hands do.

[MomtoGiuliana]

Thanks for your responses. I guess POTS can explain this, I am just disturbed that it seems to be worsening for me in the past 6 months or so.

I am not sure the facial swelling is related tho. I thought it would go away after a few hours of changed position, but it's only a little better than it was this AM. And odd that it is only the left side.

Yes, sitting in a chair all day is increasingly not good for my ankles and feet. Unfortunately (and fortunately, some days) I have a job that involves sitting 90% of the time. Propping them slightly doesn't seem to help; I have tried support stockings recently tho and it does help a bit.

[Leann]

I have been diagnosed with pots after mild symptoms for years and severe symptoms last year. Took more than a year to get a diagnosis despite being a physician myself.  One doctor tried to convince me repeatedly to take zoloft for anxiety. Now the symptoms are better after I stopped breastfeeding and doing pots exercise program but feel like every month it’s a new symptom. Recent hand swelling in the morning that takes an hour or 2 to resolve. It was worse when I was taking magnesium. My theory is that blood pools in the feet and ankles during the day when upright and returns to circulation during the night when supine hence fluid redistribution during the night and places we notice swelling are the face and hands.

[MomtoGiuliana]

I continue to deal with swelling in my hands and feet.  I am not sure it is worse than it was in 2010.  It still resolves--eg overnight, if I have swelling in my ankles.  I now attribute some of it to perimenopause and aging, as much as being related to POTS directly.  I wear compression socks all the time now and that helps a great deal.

[jklass44]

14 hours ago, MomtoGiuliana said:

I continue to deal with swelling in my hands and feet.  I am not sure it is worse than it was in 2010.  It still resolves--eg overnight, if I have swelling in my ankles.  I now attribute some of it to perimenopause and aging, as much as being related to POTS directly.  I wear compression socks all the time now and that helps a great deal.

I too get swelling in my hands and feet, especially if I'm upright for too long... Do you deal with petechiae break outs on top of that as well? My ankles, feet and face have been particularly prone the last few months. CBC has never shown any issue with platelet numbers so I'm very curious as to what could be causing it.

[Missy M]

I have chronic problems with edema from my Dysautonomia.  My doctor prescribes a diuretic which helps (it does not add to my blood pressure instability, which they always worry about with POTS).  

In addition, water exercise helps my edema. This makes sense. I've read that water exercise is good for the limbic system.

We figure (without knowing) that the edema may just be part of my chronic issue with electrolyte imbalances. We also figure the chronic electrolyte imbalances are most likely caused by the autonomic nervous system not regulating my electrolytes properly.  

Hope that helps. 

 

 

[Pistol]

I have noticed that when I am in a flare of POTS symptoms I have swelling of my ankles but also of my whole body. When I get IV fluids this goes away, I can loose 3 lbs from 1 l LR. Also - when I am symptomatic I urinate frequently but after the infusion I urinate normal. So - my theory is that it has to do with the RAAS ( renin - aldosterone - angiotensin ) system? Somehow we pass a lot of sodium in the urine and that causes fluid to go into the tissue instead of staying within the blood vessels? And that causes - I have hyper-POTS - a dump in Adrenaline and clamps down on the blood vessels therefore causing POTS? I could be completely wrong with this and if I am - someone please correct me? 

[merkat30]

finalllllly !!!!!!! I have been suffering this for last year it awful my hands are always puffy and sensitive my ankles to I thought it was water retentions  or of the electrolyte I drink or pooling of blood it just horrid all the doctors ive asked not now what it of iv fluids do take it down as well I noticed big difference with my face swelling I could see my chin! I do hope somone knows what to do about this as it doesn't hurt as such but is making things very sore to wash hair type hold grip things