Angelika_23 Posted June 12, 2007 Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 Hello,I am very tired and frustrated this morning. I was at the hospital ER until 1:15 am.I originally went to the hospital for a pulmonary test. I hadn't been feeling well all morning, my HR was staying at 120 no matter what. I drank two liters of water, upped the midodrine, lots of salt, etc. Nothing helped. Then I went for the test. I got halfway through it and started feeling bad. I didn't get to completely finish it because I felt so bad. The doctor took my pulse, it was 140 sitting down. I was very weak and lightheaded. He said the lightheadedness could have been the pulmonary test, but the heart rate wasn't. So he took me down to the ER.Basically, no one there was familiar with POTS. They did a CT of my lungs, an EKG and a chest x-ray, took a lot of blood and gave me fluids. Then decided it was my POTS acting up and sent me home to call my doctor in the am. We never did get my HR back to normal. The lowest was 116 I think.I don't understand the sudden HR increase, my midodrine usually keeps it normal if I'm not too active. I am totally wiped out today. I am still having trouble walking around.Thanks for letting me vent,Angela Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cardiactec Posted June 12, 2007 Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 Hi there,So sorry for the recent frustrations and how poorly you have been feeling....I'm not sure why the doc said that your lightheadedness with the pulmonary function test was normal but that your pulse was not -- it is normal for HR to increase with the testing you were having.... I had a pulmonary function test and had the same response as you ....my pulse went crazy and wouldnt come down..........It is a normal response with even normal people, after pulmonary testing (all the hard breathing they have you do, blowing in the tubes, etc) causes the HR to increase. By breathing deeper, longer breathes, you increase the amount of blood to the lungs and in turn increase the amount of blood to the heart -- which makes the heart start working harder (beating faster). the work load of the heart increases when blood supply increases....OR decreases........When someone with pots already has a high resting HR or exaggerated sympathetic tone, things like deep, hard breathing or other mechanisms as such exasperate the problem, and it is going to peek your rates even more and make you feel worse.....I hope you start feeling better soon....-Angela. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelika_23 Posted June 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 Thanks AngelaThat makes sense. I was wondering...I still don't understand why my Midodrine seems to have stopped working Waiting on my doctor to call me back. This tachycardia is driving me nuts. And I'm having trouble standing for too long without falling down.I was supposed to have another test in about a week, with the same doctor. It involves riding a stationary bike. He now says IF he even does the test he's going to have an entire team in place. ??? I wonder if the bike will have the same effect on me.Thanks,Angela Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cardiactec Posted June 12, 2007 Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 Hi Angela (lol, with us having the same names, I feel like i'm talking to myself!) How long have you been on the midodrine and at what dose? have you ever tried beta blockers or do they make you feel worse? I know with a lot of POTS patients, betas tend to make them feel worse......how high is your tachy?i would think that the bike test (it must be a stress test but they are having you do it with a sit down bike cuz of your tachy/symptoms??) you would probably have the same reaction that you did to the pulmonary test....what are they looking for specifically with the bike test?Thanks AngelaThat makes sense. I was wondering...I still don't understand why my Midodrine seems to have stopped working Waiting on my doctor to call me back. This tachycardia is driving me nuts. And I'm having trouble standing for too long without falling down.I was supposed to have another test in about a week, with the same doctor. It involves riding a stationary bike. He now says IF he even does the test he's going to have an entire team in place. ??? I wonder if the bike will have the same effect on me.Thanks,Angela Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelika_23 Posted June 12, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 12, 2007 Hi Angela (lol, with us having the same names, I feel like i'm talking to myself!) How long have you been on the midodrine and at what dose? have you ever tried beta blockers or do they make you feel worse? I know with a lot of POTS patients, betas tend to make them feel worse......how high is your tachy?i would think that the bike test (it must be a stress test but they are having you do it with a sit down bike cuz of your tachy/symptoms??) you would probably have the same reaction that you did to the pulmonary test....what are they looking for specifically with the bike test?I have been on the Midodrine since April, on 5mg in the am, 2.5 in the afternoon and 2.5 in the evening. I took an extra 2.5 in the afternoon yesterday.Beta blockers make me worse after a couple of days. 120 is the favorite number. I know that's not too bad really, but that seems to be where my adrenaline kicks in and it's got me a mess with the shaking. Plus it seems to be connected to my inability to stand for long without falling.It is a bike test for cardio-pulmonary reasons. The pulmonologist ordered it. I don't really know the specific reason why. I know the PFT was to rule out asthma. lol, I feel like I am talking to myself, too!Thanks for your response,Angela Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AJVDK Posted June 14, 2007 Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 I just wanted to drop a line and say I am sorry to hear about your vist to the ER. I hate going to the ER. I think is always odd the they no nothing about POTS, but after not being about to get your heart rate done, or b/p up ( I had both happen) that they say it must be your POTS, send you home and say follow up with your doctor. I alway have thought..... would they do the same thing if I never told them I had POTS. I somtime get fustarted that there is not more they can do to make us feel better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelika_23 Posted June 14, 2007 Author Report Share Posted June 14, 2007 You know, I thought the same thing that night... What if I just "forget" to tell them I have POTS? It was a hospital I hadn't ever been to (kinda scary) and they wouldn't have known from previous records. Would the results of my visit been the same? Or would they have admitted me? Interesting to ponder, and glad I am not the only one who thinks like that.Thanks for the post,Angela Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Donna F Posted June 19, 2007 Report Share Posted June 19, 2007 I understand how u feel I have been to the ER many times and scary as it is, they ask me what they think they should do,ha! I was on florinef and due to 40lb weight gain, i was put on midodrine and adderall, and got off the florinef, about 3 days off the florinef and increased my midodrine to 2 3 times a day, it did just the opposite, when i take 5 mg 3 times a day i do ok , but my hr was dropping to almost nothing and so they had to put me back on the florinef, i am upset about that, but my doc said midodrine usually dont work for most long term, but i have noticed that the adderall gives me a little energy, and it helps with alertness and pressure as well, so maybe u can try that, but not sure u have to start slow. I wonder if i will ever feel normal again, very depressing, hope u r betterDonna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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