Brwneyedchica

Congratulations!!! I'm so happy for you! Your little one is adorable

Hi Zoe, I haven't been online much lately, but i'm glad I happened upon your post tonight. It really struck a chord with me. I think I know how you feel. I found out that I was pregnant (while also taking oral contraceptives)just this August and I had a miscarriage when I was 7 weeks along....just when I had accepted it and began to be excited about it. Two days after the miscarriage my boyfriend left. To make matters worse I have three younger cousins all pregnant right now, and that's hard for me. I can only imagine how hard it must be to be surrounded by little ones at work. You did what was best with what you were given in that situation, you can't blame yourself. In my mind you lost your baby, just as I did. It's hard... I feel your pain. Everytime I look at a baby, I feel your pain. Perhaps when the time is right, they can wean you off your meds and get your health under control and you can try again? Or maybe you can adopt...My hope for you is that you meet "the right one," someone who will be very supportive of you, and who will stick around even when things are bad, and when the time is right, you will have a little one of your own.... i'm sure you deserve it. I'm so sorry for your loss. You're not alone. ~ Hugs~ Alicia

Nausea has been my predominant symptom for the most part. When I first got sick I had no idea why I was vomiting and dry heaving everyday for several years and then I was diagnosed with POTS. I've found that it's worst in the morning and eases up around lunch time, unless I actually have been vomiting and then sometimes it lasts several days. I tried Phenergan for awhile but it just made me sleep. Then I was taking compazine and it helped for awhile. But just in the last several weeks my nausea was so bad that they put me on Zofran. WOW! I feel sooo much better. Not altogether nausea free, but I'm now on a level that I can function. My biggest complaint until last june was nausea. Then came the shortness of breath, chest pain, racing heart, and the sweaty shaky feeling. Abstaining from gluten and dairy doesn't help my nausea. What does help is limiting my sugar intake. At any rate, I know it stinks and it's really hard to deal with. Hope you find some kind of relief!

I went Monday and had an endoscopy and a colonoscopy. I've been having alot of abdominal cramping and pain, bloody stools, and diarrhea in addition to my usual nausea and vomiting. They found that I have gastritis (some sort of irritation of the lining of the tissues of the stomach). I've missed the past several weeks of work due to the nausea and just feeling ill. I tried several times to go back to work and was unsuccessful. I tried again today and am so nauseated that i've just laid on my bed for hours and not moved waiting for it to pass. My usual anti-nausea med (Compazine) doesn't seem to be working. I also had the whole sweaty palms, shaky I'm gonna pass out feeling this morning. The past few times i've had that feeling i've had to miss weeks upon weeks of work while they tinker with my meds.I've noticed that no matter what problem i'm having ( a cold, the flu, the passing out feeling) I always "regress" back to the severe morning sickness that characterizes my case of POTS. I'll be fine in the mornings for awhile, but then I get sick and am REALLY sick in the mornings. The worst part is that I feel awful for continuing to miss work, they keep calling me at home trying to figure out how to do things. I was supposed to go back to work today and discuss working later hours with my boss, that's the only thing I can think of that might help me now. It seems like if it's not one thing it's another. I guess I just needed a little support.....

I've been feeling anxious and worried alot of the time recently. I've always been a big "worrywart." A family member suggested that I should talk to the doctor about getting something for anxiety. I noticed that anxiety is listed as one of the POTS symptoms. I did see a psychologist for awhile last year, but 1) it was too expensive and 2) to be quite honest I never felt any better talking to her than I do when talking to my family. All I can remember from the time prior to my diagnosis of POTS is several doctors saying that it was "all in my head." I guess i'm just a little wary of taking any more medication, and of getting some kind of unfounded psych diagnosis. I've missed last week and this week of work due to vomiting, abdominal pain and bloody stool. I go Monday morning for a colonoscopy and endoscopy. I'm thinking that I have an ulcer. So, i'm wondering what everyone's else experiences are. Would it be worthwhile to persue some sort of anxiety med? If so, is that something that my PCP can prescribe? I REALLY don't have the money or the patience to go to a new doc right now...

I've been working fulltime for awhile now, but I don't know how much longer I can do it. I feel awful everyday, so exhausted, nauseated and dizzy, it's all that I can do to get through the day. It's much worse lately, i've had awful abdominal pain, they think I have an ulcer. I'm at the point where I barely function now, I go to work and that is it. It takes all of my energy to just wash clothes and pack my lunch for work. I will be 22 years old next month and I just don't know what to do. I'm very seriously considering quitting my job, selling my car and begging for financial help from family. I just don't feel able to work anymore. I feel awful, like i'm a quitter, but I don't think I can keep up with the physical strain this is putting on me. I thought about taking medical transcription classes and trying to work from home, but i'm just so exhausted that I don't even think I could manage that right now.

Congratulations Jessica! I'm so happy for you! You have two adorable little ones to keep you going on your bad days

I'm currently working at a hospital, 32 hours a week, and that's considered fulltime. I was in school for nursing, but kept having to withdrawl from classes due to illness. Now i'm lucky if I make it to work 4 days a week. I love my job though, and I love being in the hospital environment (as long as i'm on the giving end of the care ). I am currently on a beta blocker as well as florinef, and do all of the things mentioned above including compression stockings, fluids and salts. If you need to cut back than do so. Only you know how much your body can take. Good luck! ~ Brwneyedchica ~

Congrats!!!! That's awesome!

I saw my grandparents whom I see infrequently, yesterday. My grandfather was asking exactly what POTS is "in english." So I explained it to him as best as I could and he seemed to understand. He said "so basically the veins in your legs don't squeeze the blood back to your heart. I agreed and he said well we just need to make you a pump then. And he went on and on about how I just needed "a pump" in both legs. He said that this "pump" would be located in the heels of my feet and I could tap my feet and pump the blood to my heart. Can you imagine, tapping your feet ALL DAY LONG?!? It was funny, we were all laughing... and hey, who am I to say that it wouldn't work for somebody..... someday... I just thought that I would share that, and maybe make somebody else out there smile...

Sonshine, I too am in my twenties and have recently gone through the same struggle as you are now. It's so very hard to accept your limitations, and change your career goals and your dreams. I'm still working on that myself. I had wanted to be a nurse, (an RN) and have been struggling through classes and work for several years. I came to the conclusion that I won't ever make it through the 5 rigorous semesters of clinicals that are involved. My hope now is to make it through 3 semesters of clinicals and be an LPN and work with children in a doctors office. I too thought about medical transcription. It does sound like a really great option. The appeal of working at home is great, when you feel icky most of the time. I currently work in a hospital as a unit secretary, thought i've missed so much work i'm grateful to still have a job. I've taken online classes and they are great! It's wonderful to work at home in your pj's when you aren't feeling so well.Don't give up, keep looking, you WILL find something that you enjoy!

I just started taking 0.1mg of florinef once a day. I've been taking it for almost a month now, and the difference in the way I feel is incredible. They tried to wean me down to half of a tab but my symptoms returned... (I was feeling sweaty, shaky, nauseated).

As far as I am aware, I just have POTS (but that's enough for me)

I drove 45 minutes to work today only to stay 10 minutes and turn around and come back home. I was short of breath, dizzy, shaky, my palms were clammy and I had chest pains. I called my electrophysiologist who wanted me to go to the ER. So I sat at the ER for 7 hours and they did an EKG, labwork and a chest xray. They took my blood pressure sitting which was 126/72 and then standing which was 149/85. My blood pressure usually runs about 100/70. They didn't give me any IV fluids, didn't do anything actually, besides prescribe for me "Antivert" for dizziness. So basically I threw away 7 hours of my time, not to mention the HUGE bill i'll be getting all for them to give me some medicine that pretty much has nothing to do with anything... I was at least hoping that they would increase the inderal from 60mg to a higher dosage. I'm just very frustrated. I did call the other day, and make an appt with Dr. Foaud at the Cleveland Clinic for March 25. I really hope she can help me.

It frustrates me that I met this guy when I was very sick last June. I was very upfront and open about being sick. I vocalize when i'm not feeling well. I try to stay positive about it, and I try not to complain. I convince him to go out with his friends, when i'm not feeling up to going out. I've done what I can do. I think he's just very confused about what he wants with his life in general, and dealing with me being ill when I don't "look" like it is hard for anyone. He's never really been in a serious relationship, so i can imagine that this must be overwhelming to him. I'm sticking to my guns though, I won't be with someone who doesn't accept ALL of me. Thanks for all of your input! I feel so much better knowing that i'm not alone in this.

Wow, what a good article! It really reminds you that doctors really don't know it all.

Prior to my being diagnosed with POTS I went through a large amount of testing. If I remember correctly, after having an upper endoscopy completed, I was told that I had delayed gastric emptying. I was also told that POTS was caused by a virus in my body. I've suffered from nausea for years, and to this day that is my biggest complaint. I'm currently seeing a Gastroenterologist, who has yet to help find a treatment for this nausea. I plan to make an appt to see a POTS specialist in my area to possibly follow up on this issue. After eating, my stomach feels so heavy, like I'm carrying around rocks, and I always go straight to the couch and lay down for awhile until I feel better. I try and eat small meals, and I eat more frequently. Does this sound like what you are going through?

The guy i've been dating for quite a while told me lastnight that he can't deal with my "life style" and with my being ill. I've been sicker this year than I usually am, though if he can't deal, I don't want him around, as it makes it worse for me. He likes to always be on the go, and even when i'm not feeling ill, i'm usually very tired, so I stay in alot. The times that he's wanted to go out and i've been ill, I encouraged him to go without me, and even that didn't seem to make a difference. This is the second long-term relationship i've been in that's pretty much ended due to my limitations. How do those of you in a similar situation deal? I'm very frustrated that this is such an issue. I can deal with my being sick, but i've yet to meet a guy who can.

Congratulations!!! So glad things went smoothly. I love the name!

~Nina~ I just thought it worth mentioning, i've been somewhat successfully fighting off a cold for a few weeks now. I've been using that new Zicam nasal spray, drinking lots of oj and sucking on those new vitamin c drops all day, in addition to the multivitamin I take daily. So far so good... Take care!

Thanks guys!! It's so much easier to talk to people who know exactly how I feel, and how hard it is to do "normal" things sometimes. I'm going to call tomorrow and make an appt with the doc at the clinic.

I bought a new house and haven't posted in quite some time. I've been so exhausted and ill most of the time unfortunately. I've been missing alot of work, and had to withdrawl from the class I was going to take. I've had to withdrawl from classes the last few times i've tried to take them. I'm going to put school on hold for awhile, until I'm feeling better( i'm going for nursing). I have been seeing a gastroenterologist, my biggest problem has always been nausea and vomiting and more recently unceasing diarrhea and abdominal cramping. I've had a flexible sigmoidoscopy and an ultrasound of the bowel and gallbladder completed in the past few weeks. I also have a cardiologist, whom I haven't had to see since August. (I spent June and July in bed, I experienced severe nausea, SOB, sweatiness, walking made my heart race and my blood pressure increase from my normal 100/70 to around 166/90.) From what i've read, this specialist at the Cleveland Clinic seems very helpful. I work in Cleveland, and am thinking that perhaps I should see an actual POTS specialist, in addition to the other docs, especially since I work so close. I was diagnosed by a specialist in 2000, but had a hard time getting ahold of him when I needed him and thus haven't seen him in years. I can't imagine struggling like this just to get through the day and having a different solution being so close....

Congratulations!!! I haven't been online for awhile and just saw that you are pregnant! I'm really excited for you, and I hope that as your body adjusts to you not taking meds, that you feel better. I hope your second pregnancy goes as well as the first

Wow, i'm so sorry this has been so rough. How frustrating I can only reiterate what everyone else has said above, don't give up, get a lawyer and appeal. From what i've read most people get denied the first time or even few times. I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers.

I'm sorry that you feel so crummy right now. I just wanted to reiterate what everyone else has said, the "ups" follow the "downs." After being diagnosed with POTS I was fine for 3 years until this June. Then I was sick all of June, and all of July. I've been kind of doing more everyday and building myself back up, and will go back to work fulltime next week! Just keep the faith, I know it's the hardest when you are sick and things look bleakest, but you've gotta keep that chin up!