danceintherain

Thanks for the firsthand accounts in the two areas.

I'll have to discuss it with him. He definitely has more trouble in the mornings, and has mentioned a heat intolerance vaguely. We've both been sick fairly often this winter, so it is hard to tell what is from the POTS and what is just the nasty bugs going around. Right now, his job is both inside and out. That could change drastically at the next place. I imagine since it's a medical transfer, they will put him inside more, which he will hate. That's just me making up stuff though. The military doesn't always do things that are logical. I'll see if I can make some contact with someone who suffers from the same symptoms in Hawaii.

I tried quoting people, but it flipped out on me.... Calling the POTS specialists in various places is a good idea. His Internal doctor says that the cardiology department at Tripler (the military hospital in Hawaii) is exceptional, but obviously POTS has other factors to consider. My husband keeps saying that he would love to live on the beach. The only experience he had with that was on our trip to the Philippines, so I think that the general environment was nice, because being unable to escape the heat was not. We would be on Oahu. The POTS specialist I've seen listed is at the University of Hawaii. We'll probably look at places as far away from the base as possible. Being around military people (and people we cannot communicate with - though sometimes those two are mutually inclusive) all the time is a bit trying right now. It definitely wouldn't be sustainable for us long term, but I think we would all enjoy it for a while. As far as the heat goes, from my research it seems to not get as hot there as it does in most other places in the US. Nashville for example has average highs in the summer a few degrees higher, in addition to having higher humidity levels. Apparently, it has only ever gotten as high as 95 degrees in Honolulu. Even Fort Drum, which is the furthest north we could get, has had temperatures higher, even though the averages are lower. Obviously, I can't control the weather, but the weather in Hawaii seems to be as controlled as possible. It is frustrating to be making this decision from here. Under normal circumstances, we make trips to all corners of the US during the year (I have family in Arizona, Pennsylvania, Georgia etc in addition to being frequent Disney goers), but the only places we've been since the onset of his symptoms have been South Korea and the Philippines. He definitely struggled on the plane to the Philippines. Maybe we should return to the main land in order to assess his symptoms under normal circumstances, but it is difficult to bypass the possibility of living in Hawaii, especially since we will likely never get the opportunity again. I know I sound contrary (I wanna move to Hawaii!), but I am paying attention to what you are all saying. We have hardly any experience with this disease, so we have a small frame of reference. Mine is obviously smaller than my husband's since he's the one suffering, but unfortunately he's very cryptic about his symptoms. He didn't even tell me that he's had to start taking colder showers until I made the suggestion that heat intolerance is a common problem for POTS sufferers!

Fort Bragg is on my list for proximity to POTS specialist, but it doesn't fair well with any of our other criteria, though I can't find a chart for average change in barometric pressure, so I'm using humidity. Thanks for the information about Vanderbilt. He already has a diagnosis, so I'm not sure how helpful it would be for him to be seen there. We're fairly certain that POTS is the correct diagnosis, and the only reason to get rediagnosed somewhere is if we thought it would take POTS off the table and give him something that was "curable."

I was really considering Maryland, but my husband doesn't want to move there. Granted, he has a lot of the same concerns about Hawaii as he does Maryland - population, gun laws, hunting, and fishing - but I think he'd be able to set them aside for Hawaii, and not for Maryland. Our families are...interesting. I think my Mom would be the most help to us, but we'll likely see her about the same amount anywhere we are - she's a teacher, so she would only be able to come on school breaks anyways. She told me flat out that she doesn't want us to go to Fort Riley (the closest to both our families) because it isn't close enough for her to see us every day and it is boring. We spent 5 years there while we were in college, so neither one of us is anxious to go back (especially since most of the people we know aren't there anymore), in addition to the fact that there are no POTS specialist nearby. One list I saw does have one in Omaha (about 3 hours) and another in Kansas City (about 2 hours) and while neither distance is terrible the climate in that area is fickle (tornado alley) so its hardly ideal on that account. My husband has expressed some interest in being near his family, but I have a hard time believing that they would be any real help to us. Much of his desire comes from a need to help them, and the fact that he has been away from home for almost 18 months. The closest, as I said before, is Fort Riley, which we've already basically vetoed since it's not interesting, then there are (listed by proximity to my husband's family): Fort Sill, OK - No POTS specialists, terrible weather, and it's a smoking state (my husband used to smoke, and I have very little tolerance for being around it, so I really want to live in an area that doesn't allow smoking indoors as much as possible) Fort Leonard Wood, MO - No POTS specialists, weather similar to KS and OK, smoking state, and that's where he did his training, so we don't really care to go back Fort Carson, CO - the weather seems ideal, but if he never adjusted well to the elevation, it might be a problem. Also, no POTS specialists Fort Hood, TX - From what I've read, TX is the last place someone wants be with POTS. There are specialists in Dallas, which wouldn't be a terrible drive, but it seems counterproductive to live somewhere with a terrible climate simply because there's a POTS specialist nearby. Also a smoking state. Fort Campbell, KY/TX - this is the other place that we're considering. It seems to be the lesser of the evils in the continental US. It's far enough north that the weather does cool down in the winter, and the humidity isn't at 100% all year round. However, it is also in the mountains. While the elevation may not be as high as Colorado Springs, the constant changes may pose a problem. Obviously, the proximity of Nashville and Vanderbilt is a huge perk, especially since its the only place I've been able to find confirmation that they take our insurance online. We would still have to get a referral from a military doctor, but it's at least more of a possibility than anywhere else I've found. At that point, everywhere else is more than a 12 hour drive from his family, so we reasonably could get from Hawaii just as quickly, though with more expense. Also, my Dad travels a lot for business, so in an emergency situation, it would be possible for us to fly using his frequent flyer miles. We also have the option of flying Space A through the military, which though not the most convenient way to travel, it is free in most cases. I guess my next question is Hawaii or Tennessee? Assuming they both have specialists and similar expense, which would you choose?

There is one listed on the website here - Dr. Irwin Shatz. I'm not sure if he takes our insurance, but I'm sure it would be worth it to front the money ourselves if it meant proper treatment. That's another one of the issues I've been running into - the military bases which are close to a myriad of POTS specialists are all located in less than ideal climates. ie Fort Hood, TX, Fort Benning, GA, Fort Campbell, KY/TN, Fort Meade, MD. They're almost all hot and humid for most of the year. Good point. Thanks! I've been looking at possible housing, and didn't think to check for A/C! We would probably be able to get window units if needed, but who knows what the working conditions will be like on Fort Shafter? We spent a week in the Philippines in November without air conditioning, and we were all struggling towards the end of it when the wind died down. I said, "never again." I'm pretty sure I'd be kicking myself if I consciously moved somewhere and didn't have A/C every day! This is exactly what I wanted, some dialogue! I think my husband is still a bit in denial about the whole thing. I imagine it would be hard to go from being as active as he has always been to barely being able to get out of bed in the mornings.

Hello, I'm new here. My husband was diagnosed with POTS a little over a year ago, since then his doctors have done their best to treat him, but the doctor he is seeing now has reached the limit of his expertise (Internal Medicine). My husband is stationed in South Korea with the US Army, and his doctor, himself, and chain of command all agree that he needs to seek further treatment as soon as possible. He's managing fine under the circumstances, but there is not a cardiologist stationed on the peninsula, let alone a POTS specialist. They've started the paperwork for a medical transfer back to the States to seek treatment. This will likely occur in June or July. (hopefully we're out of here before the brunt of monsoon season reaches us) Anyways, he's been told that he gets to choose his next assignment. This is practically unheard of in the military, so while I'm skeptical, I'm proceeding forward and looking for the most ideal situation for someone with his condition. From my research (some of which was done by reading these boards), I have determined that the best places have consistent barometric pressure, low humidity, and tend to be cooler than other places. South Korea is definitely not ideal under these parameters, and I'm hopeful that somewhere more consistent might help keep many of his symptoms at bay, at least for the time being. As I'm sure most of you realize, his POTS has been devastating to him. He has always been an active person. Cross country in high school. Maxed every PT (physical fitness in the military) test since he began training. Even if he can spend a few years less symptomatic than usual, I imagine it would help him a lot moving forward. So, Hawaii. From my research, it sounds ideal. The only con for us is the fact that it is far away from our families (we're both from Kansas) but even so it is closer than we are now. My question is, If you were given the opportunity to move to Hawaii as very little cost to yourself, would you do it? I realize that everybody is different, especially with POTS, and there's no guarantee that moving to Hawaii would change his symptoms the least bit, but it does seem ideal. If any one has any negative experiences there, I'd like to hear those too. I have a few other places under consideration, but we are limited to places where there are Army bases - so no San Diego. The vast majority are on the east coast and/or in the south, which is far from ideal. I also realize that it will be, to some degree, a means to an end. The military will not keep us anywhere forever, even if my husband's condition does not disqualify him from further service, which is likely considering the nature of POTS. If not Hawaii, where? I'm open to any suggestions. Thank you for any input!