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POTS and Hunger


Delta

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Hello, all. I hope everyone is feeling good today.  I have a question relating to the possible effects of getting hungry as relates to POTS.  Previously (pre-POTS), if I waited too long to eat and started to get really hungry, I would eat as soon as I could and then feel fine afterwards.  Since being diagnosed with POTS, I've noticed that if I wait too long to eat - to the point where I am really hungry - I get exhausted and after I eat get even more exhausted! It's as if being hungry takes energy out of me or something. I usually eat small frequent meals so it's easy to get out of that "mode" if I'm in a situation where there's no food around. Does this happen to anyone else? I never noticed this "pre-POTS" so I'm guessing it could be related to POTS, and it seems like it's happened too many times now to be coincidental. If it makes any difference, I take 10 mg. of a beta blocker (Propranolol) once a day, in the early morning. Thanks for any thoughts/input!

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I stuggle with food. I rarely want to eat. I used to love to eat. I find that regular eating is better for my overall condition. In general, regular routine is better for my condition. More regular meds of any kind themes to be better (1/2 twice daily vs. 1 once daily). 
 

I keep a small Shoulder bag on me at all times. As a man, I’ve heard plenty of purse jokes. But it’s sporty, so very few people comment on it. I keep snacks and meds in it. I also keep earplugs, sunglasses and other things that help me when my nervous system freaks out. The snacks and TUMs really help. 

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@Random-Symptom Man

On 1/28/2020 at 10:29 AM, Random-Symptom Man said:

I stuggle with food. I rarely want to eat. I used to love to eat.

This was me after my symptoms began in earnest but before I received a diagnosis and was taking any meds.  I had gastroparesis twice in the four months leading up to my diagnosis (each time lasted about two weeks and I lost ten lbs. both times) and was reduced to eating small bites of baby food just to get some nutrition on board. When I could eat, I had all kinds of other issues. I am much closer to normal now - knock wood!! since taking the beta blocker and I absolutely agree that regular eating is much better for me. I also think you are right about the snacks - I had been in the habit of always having something with me, a package of peanut butter crackers or a bottle of Ensure or Carnation, etc., and I kind of got out of that habit. Letting myself get hungry seems to cause me problems I didn't have before POTS. I think sometimes the med fools me into thinking I am back to my old self. Ha. I remember my doc did say when he diagnosed me that pretty much anything I did before POTS was off the table and it would be kind of like starting from scratch.  I thought at the time he was referring more to activity and exercise but I think now he meant a lot of different things along with that, such as eating routines!

@Peter Charlton

On 1/29/2020 at 3:31 PM, Peter Charlton said:

I lost my sense of hunger, I did an experiment a year back, went v42 hours without eating as much as a peanut, still didn't feel hungry.

This was when I had the gastroparesis described above (although I did not go 42 hours with out eating anything; I ate very small amounts of baby food every so often). These days I can eat pretty well (as evidenced by the ten additional pounds I put on after putting back on the ten I lost when I had gastroparesis) but, as mentioned above, letting myself get hungry seems to affect me in a way it didn't before POTS.

Thanks to you both for your comments!!

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