yogini

I know many of us POTSies need that afternoon nap to recharge...and feel bad/guilty about it. This article made me happy..yay for sleep! SUNDAY, Feb. 21 (HealthDay News) -- Want to ace that next test? Try taking a mid-afternoon siesta. While the findings are preliminary, new research raises the prospect that sleep, specifically a lengthy afternoon nap, prepares the brain to remember things. Think of it as similar to rebooting a computer to get it to work more smoothly. "Sleep is not just for the body. It's very much for the brain," said study author Matthew Walker, an assistant professor at the University of California at Berkeley. Walker and colleagues divided 39 young adults into two groups. At noon, all the participants took part in a memory exercise that required them to remember faces and link them with names. Then the researchers took part in another memory exercise at 6 p.m., after 20 had napped for 100 minutes during the break. Those who remained awake performed about 10 percent worse on the tests than those who napped, Walker said. There's one more twist: People's ability to learn declines about 10 percent between noon and 6 p.m. normally, but the nappers were able to negate that decline. The structure of the study suggests that a phase of non-dreaming sleep that the nappers went through is boosting memory, he said. "This is further evidence that sleep plays a critical role in the processing of memories," he said. "It provides more evidence that it's not just important to sleep after learning, but you need it before learning to prepare the brain for laying down information." But it's important to sleep long enough to give the brain an opportunity to go through various cycles of sleep, he said. Using electroencephalogram tests to track electrical activity in the brain, the researchers determined that memory-refreshing seems to occur between deep sleep and the dream state, called rapid eye movement or REM. "The brain's ability to soak up information is not always stable," Walker said. "It seems as though the brain's capacity may be a little like a sponge. It may get waterlogged with continued learning throughout the day." Jessica Payne, an assistant professor at the University of Notre Dame, said the study findings "really add to something we already know about why sleep is important." One message from the research, she said, is that sleep can be valuable for "students and for people who are struggling with their memory because they're aging." Other recent research has suggested that sleep can help you think more creatively, have better long-term memory and preserve important memories. The study findings were scheduled to be presented Sunday at the annual meeting of the American Association of the Advancement of Science in San Diego.

At first I thought the video was a joke. But when the scientists came on I was really excited! So great they are doing this research!!!

It would be out of your system in a couple of weeks. Usually, you are supposed to taper off florinef instead of just stopping...so maybe your body is just reacting. Even when it is out of your system, it can take a while for your body to adjust. It took me 4-6 weeks to get back to baseline each time I lowered a dose of florinef...painful, I know!

I am SO happy to see POTS mentioned in a major newspaper. I loved the article, though I wish they hadn't focused on migraines and memory loss, because there are so many other symptoms! Let's hope for more publicity in 2010. Potsgirl, different doctors have different opinions as to the difference between POTS/NCS/OH - glad you got a diagnoisis, though! It's so frustrating that docs STILL misread TTTs clearly indicating dysautonomia and tell people they are nomal.

I can't say enough good things about Paxil. I was really scared to try it after reading some of the bad experiences people on the foum had. But it made a big difference for me, with few side effects. It took me 4 years of having POTS before I worked up the courage to try Paxil. It brought me much closer to having a "normal" life. I wish I had tried it earlier. I am actually weaning off of it now b/c I don't need it anymore. Good luck!

This can be a symptom of POTS/dysautonomia. I constantly felt like I was moving when sitting, lying walking - I went through the whole inner ear thing and after 3 months it turned out to be POTS. Don't worry, though, it's not dangerous - and it rarely happens to me now.

My dad has had iritis a bunch of times. It is an autoimmune condition and can be a condition of its own - not necessarily caused by anything else. He is pretty healthy other than sinus issues/allergies. Some people have an autoimmune link to their POTS, though.

I googled this in part b/c I have had this in the past. Here is what i found - it's part of a migraine. http://headaches.about.com/od/asktheclinic...f/122804_1f.htm If you can, seize the day when you don't have a headache and run to the salon...or take some painkillers ahead of time.

Funny, we are all so different. I can't sleep enough!! The more I sleep the better I feel. Unfortunately I have lots of trouble sleeping, so 12 hr nights are few and far between.

I know, LOL. I keep laughing when I think about that quote. I'm going to add it to my Dinet signature!

Well, my dr doesn't think it's anything serious, such as DVT or congestive heart failure. He confirmed there is some slight swelling and that it doesn't look like a foot injury. He told me to keep my foot elevated and to cut down on salt (which I am NOT going to do). He said he thinks it will either (most likely) go away or get worse, in which case we can do further tests. He did order a blood workup, which I won't have time to do til next week. He ended by saying "There is always something slightly wrong with you and we can never pinpoint the cause." Well HELLO...isn't that the story of my life! Oh well, at least I can go on my trip without worrying.

Thanks. The swelling is slight. The only reason I can tell it's swollen is because my right shoes are a bit tight. It is a little numb now that I think about it, but it may be because I am obsessing! It's hard to tell about redness - my feet are always a little red due to POTS. I spoke to a dr friend who thinks it's probably a sprain. I have a drs appt this afternoon and will report back.

Hi. I just realized that my right foot has been swollen for a few weeks. I bought a new pair of shoes that seemed tighter on the right side. Then last night I wore another pair of shoes that felt tight too...and realized it was my foot and not the shoes. My foot doesn't hurt at all. I googled to see what might be causing this, and I saw deep vein thrombosis as a cause. I was hoping it was more like a stress fracture or something. Now I am freaking out. Do any of you have this symptom? Of course I realize this the day before I am leaving on a work trip too. Even a stress fracture would not be good. I'm calling my dr first thing in the am!

This is a good article. I would be worried about the caffeine and the long and short term side effects that seem to be unknown. Some people have had bad reactions and those of us with POTS seem to be extra sensitive. On the other hand, maybe it doesn't hurt to try. At worst you may feel bad for a day or two, but at least you will know! http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/07/14/energ...ents/index.html You can also read some of the reviews on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000T3HX1...SG5G0DNZBNRQCP8

POTS shouldn't affect WBC. It can affect body temp and cause low grade fevers, but it is more likely that whatever is causing the high WBC is causing the fever. Anything else going on in your body could trigger a POTS flare up. Did they give him any kind of antibiotics or anything to treat him? Hope he's feeling better.

I use broth to keep up my BP. It's packed with salt and hardly any calories. If I have a couple glasses of water after, it gives me a burst of energy. I don't mind Gatorade - I just don't like the sugar...and, though it's better than drinking plain water, I don't think it has enough salt to help....though some people may disagree. I can't stomach the yelllow regular gatorade. I don't mind the red, purple or lemonade flavors. I think Powerade has less electrolytes than gatorade and G2 some of the other drinks have sugar substitutes, which I didn't really want either....bah humbug!

If you got paperwork from them, there is usually a main doctor that is in charge of you while you are there. Maybe try calling him? My guess is that they don't want you to taper off meds - if they did, they usually tell you. I never understood because meds affect your test results.

I think sleepaids are definitely worth a try. I went thru a stint of 2 weeks when I didn't sleep a few years ago. And since then I went to the dr and got Ambien. 1/4 pill does the trick for me and I only need it sometimes. No hangover from such a small dose. Bendryl (which is what's in most OTC sleep aids) works for me, but it takes a while to kick in. If I take it at 8 then I will fall asleep at midnight. Getting a full night's sleep makes a huge difference in how you are feeling.

BTW, even though there's room for improvement , I've gotten much better over the years...I had to learn to pick up for roomates and work and b/c I realized I was wasting WAY too much time looking for lost stuff...so there is definitely hope!

I'm not a parent, but my mom spoiled me and never made me do housework. My sister inherited the cleanliness gene and I didn't. She started folding her clothes at age 2 and wouldn't let anyone else do it. I, on the other hand, unfortunately to this day leave my stuff all over the place - though luckily my mess is all papers and clothes. Food/germs/smells I can't deal with...I clean/disinfect obsessively b/c I'm a female! I now joke with my mom that she should've been better about making me clean. Your son is smart for finding a loophole in your rule. You can make it tighter - maybe charge him for anything on the bed, desk or not in place. As for cleaning, can you limit it to certain things, like vaccuming and dusting, that aggravate his POTS or times when he is sickest? I promise you he'll thank you when he gets older!

You could maybe start really slow and build. Try 5 mins and don't do anything that looks like it might aggravate your symptoms. I really like the DVD AM/PM Stretch for Health. It has yoga stretches, many of which are seated/lying. Also, you could try restorative yoga - where you use pillows and blankets to support you in the poses. Feel free to pm me if you have questions about specific exercises.

Icthus - that is a yoga stretch too - though you don't hold it that long. Even though it's "too cold to move", it's important to keep moving to keep the blood circulating. I can't say enough good things about what yoga/stretching have done for me. A lot of it can be done lying down and does not require much energy.

Yes, I am freezing. I'm also tapering off my SSRI which affects body temp and is adding to things. I am using lots of blankets and my microwave aromatherapy pack to warm up...and my new super heating pad, which is coming in handy. Spring can't come soon enough!

I've had this once - the very first week I had POTS. I think I was very run down, dehydrated and my electrolytes were off. Perhaps not enough blood to the brain. Definitely go to the doc, though. What you have may be different.

If it's hypoxia, I wonder why they don't give us oxygen as a treatment? OK, most of us probably don't have to be hooked up to it - maybe occasionally or something? I know in ski areas they have oxygen rooms - and that's what helped my friend with her altitude sickness. Maybe there are side effects or it's too expensive? I always wondered this about saline too. I had it once, after my first TTT and felt instantaneously better...and then when I got super sick again I asked for it and it seemed impossible to get without going to the ER. It seemed like more of a red tape issue than anything else...