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For me, the hardest part of POTS is dealing with my friends. My family is good--both my sister and brother get migraines--so I guess I'm lucky about that. But my friends are a different story. The hardest part for me is that most of my friends say nothing about my illness. And they will tell me to stop complaining if I try to explain anything to them. I have one great friend who tries to make me feel better and I am learning to talk to her and say the very minimum to the rest of my friends. All I can really say is my illness helps me figure out who is a good friend.

I think that it is a good idea to stay in touch. I think you should ask your supervisor if there are any rules against it. And ask his parents if they think it is ok.

When my POTS feels out of control, my emotions go crazy. And it's really bad, because stress causes my POTS to act up. I have been much more likely to get annoyed since having POTS.

I have the same sort of problem. I've been stressing over some friendships lately and I am still sick today from a fight that I had last night. I get high hr, nausea, headache, jitteryness, dizziness, the works. I get symptoms with too. I'm waiting for my AP scores and every time I check the mail, my heart races.

I take 3 1g tablets daily, along with added salt in my diet.

10-11 hours is usually the right amount for me, but I'm in high school so that doesn't usually happen. During the school year I try to get 8 hrs, but get about 7. I can get by on that if I get enough sleep on the weekends, but I also nap after school and, at the end of this school year, I napped during French and sometimes lunch.

A simple test to start is to check your specific gravity. It is just a urine test and it says if you are dehydrated. It doesn't test potassium, but it will show if you are retaining enough water.

I've had bad chest pain all year. It was what sent me to mayo. I was diagnosed with POTS and the chest pain wasn't really solved. But all my other problems were linked together. The drs didn't believe that my chest pain was linked to POTS, but it is linked to my loose joints which might be related to POTS. I'm going to a pain clinic in 2 weeks and hoping to get help there. If I try anything that might help anyone here, I'll share.

I've had an MRI of the spine. I got it when I was at Mayo being diagnosed with POTS. I don't know exactly what the doctor wanted to rule out, but I know that she ordered it because I have very brisk reflexes.

I have POTS and I don't get tachy every time I stand up. And the weather really effects me. My POTS is worse on hot, humid days and it is also worse when I'm under stress. It totally depends on the severity of your case.

I showed my PT two different TENS units that he thought were fine. They were http://www.bodyclock.net/acatalog/1stchoic...s_tensunit.html and http://www.bodyclock.net/acatalog/libra_tensunit.htm. He said that it would be a good idea to ask around, because he doesn't know anything about POTS other than what I've told him. What functions do I want on the TENS unit? Mary, what functions do you use for your back pain? Thanks!

I have the same thing with ice. I feel that it helps cool me down and gives some water. I don't know about your other questions though.

Hospitals are so annoying. I don't know that much about northwestern, but it is currently still affiliated with Evanston Hospital which I've gone to numerous times (not since being diagnosed with POTS) and had a good experience. I think the doctors at nwmh should be pretty good. I know that this didn't provide that much insight, but I hope that you get some help. Hannah

I don't have any severe allergies, but I do have environment ones. I got allergy shots for 5 years and they greatly improved my health. I was getting sinus infections 4-5 times a year and now I only get them 2-3 times a year. The reason I stopped allergy shots was that I was put on a beta blocker for POTS. If you are on a beta blocker you should discuss that with your doctor before you get allergy testing or shots. Epinephrine puts adrenaline into your body and it doesn't work as well when you are on a beta blocker. I've gotten a lot of help from my allergist. I hope that you can have good results too. Hannah

I'm doing research on TENS Units that aren't too expensive. Does anyone have ideas of what to look for? I'd also appreciate the names of any units that have worked for people. I'd like to bring in a couple of different ideas for my PT tomorrow. Thanks!

POTS is so hard. I'm happy you found a good doctor to deal with. I think once every three months sounds like a good schedule. I get how hard it is. I've had chronic health issues for more an half my life, but I agree that POTS is so hard, because there is not anything a doctor can do to make you "get better". With my other health problems I usually just need to go on antibiotics, change a couple of meds, rest, etc. It wasn't until I started getting POTS symptoms that I really felt helpless. Hope you feel better and Dr. Grubb has some suggestions, Hannah

My problem is getting motivation. I actually have a fair amount of energy. I go for walks with my mom and I'm now able to go pretty far. I do physical therapy 2x a week, but I'm bad about doing my exercises at home. I might be released from pt next week and I'm freaking out about how I will motivate myself to do my exercises. Any ideas? It gets so boring when I have a sewing project calling my name!

I can give you some of the tips that I got about sleeping when I went to mayo. ~Don't do anything but sleep in bed. (This one is hard, but it trains your brain to associate bed with sleep.) ~If unable to sleep, get out of bed and do something tedious (I make bracelets). ~You are probably already doing this, but don't let her have any caffeine after 5 or 6. ~do something relaxing about an hour before bed. When you finally see a doctor, ask about some sort of sleep med. About exercise, start with just walking around the block. Stop if she feels faint or dizzy. I wouldn't start anything drastic until you talk to the doctor. Hope she feels better soon, Hannah

I just remembered something else. I use lidoderm patches on my chest. You can ask your doctor about them. They only work if there isn't that much fat that the med. has to go through, but it is worth asking about.

I get costochondritis and pleurisy all the time. It is really painful! I've been to a rheumatologist and he prescribed physiccal therapy (this was before I was diagnosed with POTS). I still do that and it helps for at least a short time. I'm on Lyrica for the pain. I've also done Aleve, Flexeril, and Celebrex. My stomach can't tolerate too much advil. I would recommend trying to improve your posture. Ask your doctor about exercises to strengthen your back. I hope you feel better soon!

Hi, I'm so sorry that you and your daughter has to go through this. It is horrible that the receptionist at your doctor does not believe you. I had a similar experience when administrators at my school did not believe my family. Hopefully, now that it is summer, you will get appointments because getting out of school would not be a reason to be sick. It is hard enough to feel sick. It's even worse when you know people do not believe you! The fact that her heart rate goes up every time she gets up is a signal that POTS could be causing her problems. If it is POTS, drinking a lot of water with electrolytes will help (and it shouldn't hurt). I hope that you find a doctor soon who is willing to help you! Good luck, Hannah

I will try to remember. Sounds like a great idea.

I'm on metoprolol and don't feel any side effects. I didn't notice how much it was helping until I went out of town for a couple of days and left it on my nightstand. I was a lot worse. I've been on it for about a month and a half. good luck!

Hi, I'm praying for you. Hannah

I take lyrica for my chest pain. It took a little while to start helping, but i felt a difference within a week. I had to increase the dosage and become tolerant to each dose. I felt a difference at 100 mg. but i now take 250mg.