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POTS and Showers  

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Posted

I had a shower this morning, three hours ago, and I feel completely wiped out for the day. It was lukewarm and I was in and out in under 10 minutes. I'm having trouble getting my BP up and my heart rate down, even with extra fluid. Flares are so frustrating!

Posted

Welcome RGNY! Tip I use a big gel ice pack, I keep in my freezer, when I get bad like that. I lay flat with feet up a bit. Though my face can be red for hours after a hot shower/tub or being int he heat.

When I saw Dr. Grubb, because my bp/hr was having wide swings (hyper/hypo), he prescribed me labetalol short acting. It is an alpha beta blocker and I can adjust the dosing as needed. It really depends though on what your primary dysautonomia symptoms are, what helps best as far as meds go.

Posted

Showers are the WORST. I have a shower stool so that helps but still. I took them every other day when I was doing better and would feel back to normal after about 30 min. But I've bad a downturn the last couple of months and it's tough. Embarrassing confession: I haven't showered in 5 days. I wash my hair in the sink every other day and sponge bath every day but they just knock me out!

Posted

Showers are the WORST. I have a shower stool so that helps but still. I took them every other day when I was doing better and would feel back to normal after about 30 min. But I've bad a downturn the last couple of months and it's tough. Embarrassing confession: I haven't showered in 5 days. I wash my hair in the sink every other day and sponge bath every day but they just knock me out!

I've been in a serious flare since May and my usual measures aren't helping much. I end up sitting on the floor of the shower (hurray for detachable shower heads) and getting in and out quickly. I try to shower every other day and use dry shampoo in between. Might have to consider a shower chair.

Posted

Welcome RGNY! Tip I use a big gel ice pack, I keep in my freezer, when I get bad like that. I lay flat with feet up a bit. Though my face can be red for hours after a hot shower/tub or being int he heat.

When I saw Dr. Grubb, because my bp/hr was having wide swings (hyper/hypo), he prescribed me labetalol short acting. It is an alpha beta blocker and I can adjust the dosing as needed. It really depends though on what your primary dysautonomia symptoms are, what helps best as far as meds go.

Thanks! I think I need to try the ice pack trick. I was flat out yesterday after a ten-minute shower and only feeling a bit better today. My cardiologist has tried me on so many beta blockers and I had a terrible reaction to labetalol. For now, I'm unmedicated but I see my cardio on Friday so hopefully he will have some suggestions.

Posted

Have you tried showering at different times of day? My body has a rough time getting going from sleeping. I usually wait at least an hour after waking up before even considering a shower. Even then, it's hit or miss. I try to keep moving the entire time and try to avoid reaching up.

Posted

I have a luke warm shower/bath and then rinse off in cooler water. After I have dried off I lie down for an hour or more depending if I fall asleep or not. I feel fresher if I do this as if I try and move around afterwards I sweat too much and feel very unwell for hours.

Posted

TCP: Good tip on the cool-down rinse.

Also, something for people to try is putting a fan in the doorway of the bathroom. I find the steam/humid air makes matters worse for me.

  • 2 months later...
Posted

Since we are sharing, LOL, I take mine sitting in the tub with the door and shower curtain open. Less steam in the room definitely helps. I also take my showers at night before I go to bed, this way I'm going to be laying down for a while after. They do say standing in the cold water at the end of of shower helps, but I just can't do it! Someone else had mentioned just running your arms under cold water after you are done.

  • 2 weeks later...
Posted

Usually sit in the shower and the temp of the water is always on the cool (not cold) side. A cool shower followed by sitting in front if a fan is great for helping with my erythromelalgia flares. I can't even put my hands into the same bath water that my little grandsons bathe in - the heat sends my hands bright red instantly and I pull

My hands - automatic reflex- the 'heat' is unbearable.

Blue

Posted

I feel better after a shower. Standing for long periods is difficult for me, as I feel lightheaded and other symptoms, but I can stand longer in the shower than elsewhere and always feel better right after a shower. I always thought that was because of a hyperadrenergic type POTS constricting the blood vessals and the heat of the shower opens the vessals. I am now starting to wonder if there is just a different cause of my POTS than other peoples.

  • 2 months later...
Posted

Hi Pot Luck,

I think we have something in common, because I feel better after a shower too. I also can stand for a long time in the shower, it makes me feel good, if the hot water run over my painful neck. I think, my neck is badly irrigated, if I'm standing. I always feel a tingling sensation on my head and in my neck.

I had a medical examination last week, they looked at my capillaries with an microscope. They had seen, that the little blood vessels are constricted. So, thats the greatest problem I got at this time, because it makes me feel very bad... I also feel dizzy and have many other symptoms.

I dont know, wich medicals can help to opens the blood vessels?

Wish you all the best!

Andrea

  • 2 months later...
Posted

i am actually unable to take showers due to my balance issues and i get dizzy..plus with the shower curtain pulled i feel like i am suffocating..i have to take a bath and use grab bars to get in and out..then i have to sit on the bench outside the tub to get dressed so i dont fall on my head.. and then it is to the couch..i do feel better after a bath but i have to admit it is a chore for me and i probably dont take as many as i should in the winter..now summer i do take cool bath almost daily ..probably good thing i am basically home bound..LOL..best wishes to all..hope you all are having a descent day :)

  • 6 months later...
Posted

I've been using a shower stool for about a year and so long as I don't have a shower that is too warm, I'm not flushing up as much. I still need to take it slowly after a shower. I went to my sister's recently and I had no stool and all of the worst overheating issues came back even with a cooler shower. Eurgh!

Posted

How,apropos...I found this thread as I lay down to recover from my shower! I am now directly in front of an air conditioner cooling down (tepid shower).

I can manage this every day, and I wash my thinning hair too. I find my scalp is uncomfortable if I dont. Chalking this up to restricted blood flow.

Although I am in the midst of my first flare, I put on a yoga outfit (hard to imagine I was a skilled fiend) to lie around in each day.

There is comfort in our numbers.

Best to all,

Sylvie

Posted

Showers!!! ugg.... :( I shower with my fan on and bathroom door open, while sitting on a built in seat in lukewarm to cool water with the shower curtain open on each end to let the cool air in on me. I wash my hair first, then sit for a minute or two then wash my body quickly. Sit for a minute before raising my hands to dry off and immediately grab my big ice packs placing one on my back and one on my ribs just above my stomach. I stay that way until I feel everything is clamming back down, then I keep my ice packs in place while I continue to do hair and make up. If my ice packs do not work then it's time to cozy up on the floor for as long as it takes....Funny how showering used to be so wonderful.

Posted

Yes, gone are the days of a nice refreshing shower! To me having a shower is a real chore now. I can't believe that I used to have a bath every morning and now I am reduced to 3-4 showers a week and they are by no means pleasant. I am hoping so much that with more leg exercising over time this will improve.

Posted

Does anyone else just take cool/cold showers? That's the only reason I can every day, if I want to. And I also NEVER shower in the morning...I stick to showering at night. Baths for me are actually worse though...unless the water is cold. And no one wants to take a cold bath!

Posted

Yes, cctalk. It is actually recommended by many POTS docs that people with POTS take cool showers because hot water vasodilates the vessels near the surface of the skin and makes it that much harder for the body to keep blood in the brain. I can't even stand the feeling of a hot shower anymore.

  • 4 months later...
Posted

I shower at night because cooling down helps me sleep. Also, starting out warm means I will not want to fall asleep covered with a warm cover and therefore I will not wake up sweating in the middle of the night. My feet turn reddish-purplish, and the foot veins distend and protrude. I have never noticed fatigue or lightheadedness after showering, though. I do tend to skip a day, but that is not for POTS reasons.

  • 4 weeks later...
Posted

I can shower but my feet turn to red/purple. When I work I nearly always shower at night or skip a shower in part because I am already a slow-poke in the morning and in part because it will make my POTS worse throughout the day. On the weekends I sometimes shower in the morning but I usually rest a bit afterwards. I guess that means I should change my answer. I could go on with my day most days but that feels like a good time to rest to me! :P I just bought two cans of dry shampoo. I also keep disposable washcloths handy. My students have asked me what I do to my hair. I didn't tell them that my secret is not washing it more than 2-3 times a week! ;)

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