potssyndrome

I’ve lived with POTS for 17 years. I know the tachycardia, dizziness, nausea, and exhaustion. I take my medication every six hours and have learned to navigate life with an unpredictable condition.

But there’s one part of POTS I don’t remember anyone ever warning me about: how emotions can make me physically sick.

Recently, my husband sent me a beautiful song for our anniversary. It touched my heart. Within moments, my heart was racing, I was dizzy, shaking, experiencing hot flashes and nausea. It felt like I was having a heart attack.

I was driving, so I pulled over and called my husband. I stayed on the phone with him while I worked to get my symptoms under control. Eventually, I made it home safely, but the episode left me in bed for hours.

And this isn’t the first time. Anger can leave me feeling unwell the following day. Even a beautiful, emotional moment can trigger a physical reaction that takes hours to recover from.

We talk about the racing heart, dizziness, and fatigue associated with POTS. But why don’t we talk more about the way emotional intensity can trigger or worsen symptoms for some of us?

POTS affects the autonomic nervous system, which helps regulate heart rate and other automatic bodily functions. Emotional experiences can activate the body’s stress response, potentially aggravating symptoms. Yet the physical aftermath can be difficult to explain to someone who hasn’t experienced it.

After 17 years, I still have questions about this part of my illness. I want to understand it, learn to manage it, and stop feeling as though I have to choose between protecting my health and allowing myself to feel deeply.

I don’t want to be afraid of emotions. I want to enjoy a song from my husband without losing an entire day to my symptoms.

POTS is more than a racing heart. We need to talk about the parts of this condition that people can’t see — and sometimes don’t even know to ask about.

#potssyndrome #POTS #InvisibleIllness #ChronicIllness

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