Woke Up At 3 Am With Bad Episode

[Darlene]

my bp has been 113/65 hr 70. i went to bed last night at 2 and woke up a 3 feeling like my heart was beating hard. i took my bp and it was 133/74 hr 82. not sure why my bp and hr was higher when i took a beta blocker before i went to bed. anyway, i went to the bathroom (number 1 and 2 like three or 4 times in 30 minutes). i also felt this all of a sudden systemic burning sensation when i was going to the bathroom. my face was also flushed a little. i took another beta blocker and benadryl and went back to bed. does anyone else have these episodes? i was pretty scared when it happened. i also have visual snow, and that was worse during the episode.

[castronovo112587]

You need to go to the doctor and have carcinoid ruled out. I am a survivor of carcinoid and diarrhea along with flushing and palpitaton episodes are the hallmark symptoms among many others. They can do a 24hr urine collection and test your chromogranin A to make sure you don't have a carcinoid tumor. I am not trying to scare you by any means but feel it is my duty to tell you. What you are describing can be due to a number or things but it is always best to get the serious thimgs ruled out first.

[imre]

I've woken up at night feeling symptomatic, although possibly not the exact symptoms you described. I think beta blockers have this effect sometimes. I can't explain why. I know that for pots a low dose beta blocker is recommended, as it has been shown that high doses can cause symptom exacerbation. Either way, ask your doc see what they say.

[Aeris5000]

Northerndarlene, I had a few similar episodes to yours very early on in my POTS, well over a year ago. To me, it sounds like a panic attack or an adrenaline rush that happened in the middle of the night. I had several of these and they were quite frightening. I had to sleep with a nightlight on for a few days. But my symptoms were similar: had to completely void in the bathroom, and saw spots/visual snow as you described. I also remember shaking and feeling very unsteady standing up. I tend to get hives on occasion that come with increased anxiety, not POTS-related, so I understand the flushed feeling. I wasn't taking any meds at all during this time, so the symptoms were not side-effects.

I also recall waking up in the middle of the night with my heart racing, but that was pretty much the only symptom. It would calm down after a few minutes and I would fall asleep again.

[shan1212]

I've woken up with episodes like you describe before. Not fun. My tachycardia is more like 130bpm, though. I can feel the adrenaline surging through my body (have hyperPOTS). Often it's accompanied by extreme chills. I'll be under 6 blankets with a hoodie on over a warm hat and I'll still be cold.

Were you dehydrated? That's what usually triggers mine, either from not hydrating well enough, drinking alcohol, getting a stomach bug, etc. Then it begins the vicious cycle where I can't hydrate because my body is going bonkers and I feel like if I swallow anything I'll start vomiting. I just try to calm down (take an Ativan) and sip as much Nuun water as I can tolerate. I've been pretty successful with surviving (i.e. getting through them on my own) the episodes recently. My main goal is to avoid a trip to the ER, which always winds up costing $700 (and we're supposed to have good insurance . . . sigh). I can't tolerate watching tv or listening to music or anything, but I'll just try to distract myself with planning a future vacation or remembering a book I just read or something . . . just anything until the Ativan and water start helping me get back to normal.

Hope you are feeling better now!

[castronovo112587]

Sir digby is right when I was on a high dose of propranolol I would always wake up with my heart racing. The diarrhea and flushing however wouldn't be due to beta blocker. Hope tonight goes better for you and you get some nice peaceful sleep.