WinterSown

On my way to PT this morning was listening to Everybody Hurts by REM. It made so much sense. Hold on!

Coffee and valium, potato chips and candy, weed and whiskey. When you are having a bad attack you will throw anything against the wall to see if it sticks. Cannabinoids may or may not bring you relief, it's individual. I live in NYS and it's barely legal--the drs seem almost paranoid about prescribing it. We're currently dialoguing between our family primary and a pain management doctor for an approval so we can get edibles for my 86yo MIL who does not want more hip surgery and can't smoke or she will hack and loosen the bolts that holds her bones together, she has to sit still.  

Does it help pots? Minimally, it will be an emotional panacea. How it chemically reacts with your body is unique to you. 

http://www.medicalmarijuanainc.com/autonomic-dysfunction-medical-marijuana-research-overview/

Search results from Goole Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/scholar?q=cannabinoids+and+dysautonomia&hl=en&as_sdt=0&as_vis=1&oi=scholart&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi84IPjn97UAhWp24MKHQcABxYQgQMIIjAA

My doctors have never discussed a recovery or remission date with me. I am doing neurotherapy and was told it would help lift the fog and that it would take a long time but it would happen. I am having some improvement but I am still a long ways from whom I used to be. POTS effects everyone differently so what and how you learn to control your symptoms will be unique to you. I just got back from a long walk with the dog and I am sitting here eating potato chips, I cannot decondition and salt helps. 

I wish you luck and a speedy diagnosis.

T

I can be symptomatic anytime of day but usually the 'bad ones' are in the morning. I lay on my bed feeling like I am drowning from a stormy surf smashing me around inside my own body. I'd rather not drink gatorade or broth as soon as I wake up but if I must I must. If you are similarly symptomatic in the morning what do you do to minimize the sensations? 

I exercise everyday.  I walk my dogs which I do well with, especially late at night when it is darker and there are less distractions. Last year, prior to diagnosis, I was getting dizzy. I was diagnosed with Vertigo and did a course of Vestibular PT which did fix the rocks in my head, lol, but also made me stronger and taught me some endurance. This year, after diagnosis I had now also to do a round of Pelvic Floor PT and feel even stronger--this time around the PT doctor was aware that I had POTS so he tailored my exercises to assist me further. Kudos to my PT doctor. At home I have a balance board, stretchy straps, weight balls, resistance rings. large inflated bouncy balls, and leg weights. I certainly don't use them all everyday but I do a few things daily. I also like to put on the music and dance. I am far better off exercising, it's been vital to me getting up off of my bed faster. I can walk father, I have greater endurance and can handle pre-syncope much better than before. And, I look pretty good too. Physically there has been some toning and for me that is an emotional upper. It's a win/win. I'm stronger and I feel prettier. 

I got a chronic fissure from constipation. It was my first sign that something was wrong. I needed surgery to close the tear. 

I do not do well with miralax, it is too strong even when I use a less than full dose. I currently take a stool softener with my evening meal and a dose of metamucil before I go to bed. I have a lot less bloating.  I have had repeated problems with IBS and/or rapid gastric emptying and after some testing I am now doing pelvic floor PT to help with retention issues.  When I am feeling 'stuck' I use a glycerin stick and that generally works within fifteen minutes, you may have to repeat a few times initially to get yourself back on track. 

Try to drink more water if you can, my colorectal surgeon suggested I cook everything that I was eating raw and then slowly reintroduce raw food to my diet. Cooked fruits and veggies are easier to digest and pass through quicker than raw foods. Learn to love wet food like stew, cereal, and soup. Watermelon is one of my faves as it contains fiber I can digest as well as water.

Extra fiber may or may not be your friend, I had to switch back to 'white' carbs as those pass through me faster. The longer food stays in your intestines the more water is drawn out of it, if food passes quickly through you it passes out of you moister. 

I am 59 and was just diagnosed at the beginning of this year. I believe it is quite possible for an older woman to have POTS and that she may have had it for decades but it went undiagnosed and/or she has been treated for anxiety or hysteria in her past. I would certainly be insistent in giving a long and accurate history to a cardiologist or neurologist who understands POTS.

I can't stand long either, I don't have a dishwasher so we may have to remodel the kitchen just for that (and that, so far, is the only good thing about POTS, lol). 

I do a lot of meals for the freezer. It is as easy for me to throw twice as many ribs into the instapot, multi-cooker or whatever you call it. I love this thing. I make ribs or wings with sauce in the pot and then, if you want, a few minutes under the broiler. I even learned how to make flan in it. This site has nice rated recipes or do a keyword search for 'recipes for the freezer' http://allrecipes.com/recipes/17880/everyday-cooking/make-ahead/freezer/

I will broil eight burgers instead of two and put the rest in a plastic bag in the fridge, they don't last long, my husband and son scarf them down in a day or two. I make a lot of reheatables. I know it costs more but I often buy the precut fresh veggies and melon at the market I don't like to depend on tv dinners or take-out though I do need all that extra salt, it's not fair to my family to overdose them on the salt as well as heavy calories that is in take-out foods. 

Instant carbs: Bake brown rice (EASY!) and freeze it flat on a cookie tray lined with parchment, then put it into a plastic bag to pour out what you need when you need it. You can do that with cooked grains and cooked pasta shapes too. 

My husband will eat anything on bread. I make flat bread pizzas, grilled cheese, paninis, etc. He thinks leftover stew on instant polenta is like restaurant food. I try to be creative, saucy leftovers on an easy carb is always a winner here.  He also likes pancakes for dinner--I make them in the blender with greek yogurt or cottage cheese to increase their protein. I cook fruit in the microwave on the 'fresh' veggie button and we have that with the pancakes. 

And for fun, I went to the thrift store on a book day and got a ton of old appliance cookbooks--recipes meant for the food processor or blender or pressure cooker, I go through them and find new things to try, some of these books are so old I think my Mom had them in her kitchen, the added nostalgia is good for my head. And Hubs, so far, is enjoying the new recipes.