Pregnancy Cured Me...for A While, Now What?

[sarct]

Hi, I use to come here back in 08, and then I became pregnant. I was in the process of trying to figure everything out. I was diagnosed with POTS, rather half hazardly, about 6 months before I became pregnant. Pregnancy was so sublime; not having those feelings. My son just turned two. I am within ten punds of my pre-pregnancy goal weight. I noticed that if I went under a certain weight I would begin having problems. Now I am 5lbs under that weight, and it's coming back pretty substantially, and my heart is just crushed. I am wondering what I should do. Is there even a point to seeing a doctor at all? I mean, they weren't much help before. I was put on Zoloft which created a panic attack that made me feel like I was dying. I had never had one in all my life. I tried florinef (sp), but I had really bad symptoms from that. I had to stop taking it immediately. I began puffing up like a balloon. I don't even know what I really have. I passed a tilt table test just before becoming pregnant, but failed the lie down sit up, stand up bp and hr test the doctor gave me. That was how I got diagnosed with POTS, but I didn't even get that until a friend told me to check out Greg Paige from the Wiggles. He had a video of why he was quitting, and after learning his diagnoses I asked my doctor if I had it too. He said I have POTS, after a quick google search. Sigh!! So, now I am just wondering what I should do. I see the disheartened look on my husbands face, though he is making every effort to conceal it. I know he has enjoyed the past three years of not having to deal wih this. The guilt is setting in. I am thinking of quitting my part time job as a daycare provider at the gym I go to, because I don't want the undo pressure. I have to go to work, but I dreading it, because I am so exhausted.

I am so sorry to ramble on. I know I should see a doctor, but going through all that again...I just don't want to. I feel like a dog chasing it's tail.

[Beckles]

Hi sarct,

I just found our post and the same thing has happened to me. I had POTS and when I fell pregnant it disappeared. My symptoms started to come back when my son was around 1.5. At first I tried to deny it but after collapsing a few times at work I'm now heading back to the doctors. It's really hard to do. But I'm sure we can find doctors who can help us and I really hope that this information of it disappearing with pregnancy and how it returned will help them to actually be able to do something. Good luck with it all!

[MomtoGiuliana]

It can take time to find the right treatment. So I would not give up. Hopefully you have a specialist nearby who can help you. Have you watched DINET's video about POTS? It summarizes various available treatments, which might be helpful for you to review and discuss with a specialist.

[sandymbme]

I was told by Dr. Grubb that some POTS patients actually do significantly better during pregnancy, with the increase of blood pressure and the surge of hormones. I personally have never been well enough to attempt pregnancy, and ended up having to have a hysterectomy in January, (I'm 36, so it was fairly young.) so that option is no longer open to me. But my mom told me that she felt the best she ever has while pregnant. She had zero migraines, and felt healthy and strong. She said that played a big role in her having 4 children!

I know having symptoms return after a period of relative health can be crushing though. I have only ever had one "remission", and it only lasted about 4 months. It was just devastating when my symptoms started to pop back up. But during my brief window, I was well enough to go back to work for a few months, and met my fiance. So I try to remember that everything happens for a reason. Had I not had the window of health, I would have never had the amazing, compassionate man who carries me (literally!) through so much. And ironically, the fact that I had my first hospitalization for a relapse of symptoms 6 days after we started dating has proven to be a real blessing. He has never really known me "well", so he has no unrealistic expectations of what I can and can not do. I try, very hard, to appreciate and focus on the gift the remission was, and less on the pain I feel at it ending. It doesn't change anything, but changing my focus makes me feel blessed, rather than burdened. Good luck!

Sandy

[Beckles]

Thanks MomtoGiuliana and Sandy. Apparently there is a specialist in the hospital across the road from my work so I'm hoping my other doctors can work out their issues and get me a referral there soon. Yes the remission was wonderful and I feel really grateful for it. I really don't know how I would have dealt with my son in the first year or so without it. It is really hard to have it come back after so long but I still have hope. Good luck to you two!

[gertie]

Do you think the pregnancy hormone Estriol was the reason you felt better? They give Estriol for post

menopausal symptoms, but I doubt they would prescribe it for women in their child bearing years. My dr

tried me on Estriol bio-identical but it triggered my seizures so I couldn't take it. Estriol is not supposed to

have the side effects the other female estrogen has.

[MomtoGiuliana]

It's so interesting to me that some women feel so well during pregnancy. I had severe POTS during late pregnancy and post partum. Once I recovered from pregnancy and very difficult delivery I was seemingly on the road to recovery. Overall I have improved since that time, greatly. Anyway it definitely demonstrates that there are a variety of factors that can cause POTS.

[icesktr189]

I did horrible my 3rd trimester, but felt great after birth and for about 6 months PP. Then I quickly went downhill fast. By 6 month PP I was below my pre pregnancy weight, so that might have been the cause.

[GingerA]

I had this experience as well with all of my pregnancies. But it seemed like when the symptoms came back they were worse than the time before.

[Beckles]

Interesting GingerA, how long did it take for your symptoms to return postpartum? I feel that I'm worse now than I was prepregnancy but it could also just be a bad few weeks...

[GingerA]

I really noticed as the boys reached around 2 years old. But a lot of the fatigue that I had I would dismiss as being "new mom syndrome" so I can't really say for sure. But after my third pregnancy the symptoms became so severe that I had to quit working

[Beckles]

Yes it is interesting that pregnancy affects POTS in such different ways. Really does show that there are different mechanisms behind it.

I was fine all through the pregnancy (just had pregnancy symptoms of tiredness, nausea etc but no pots) had a very difficult delivery and everyone expected the pots to come right back, especially given how much blood I lost. It didn't come back until I started weaning though and it's only in the last month (when my son is 22 months) that it's really hit hard. I'm also finding that it's worse than it was prepregnancy, more like it was when I was a teenager. Oh well, looks like I might get in to see a specialist soon...