I've had POTS for 3 years and managed, but this week had the flare from hell. Haven't eaten or slept, severely dizzy, blurry vision, horribly nauseous all the time, and especially in the evening and overnight my heart has been swinging up and down between 55-112, and under 60 is the lowest I've ever seen it go. This is generally very low - 120-160 would be normal! I get chest pain/thumping and feeling odd below 70 so nights have been awful.
I went to hospital on Monday in desperation and had pretty low bp although heart rate was fine. No one had ever heard of POTS but the doctor gave me IV fluids after looking it up on line when I asked. I called a paramedic out overnight when I got too sweaty/shaky/nauseous and my heart rate was in the mid 50s and I couldn't get it up. It took an hour for her to get here and by the time she did I was 60-90 and of course that's 'normal', except for me it's low. On my GP's instructions I went to casualty this afternoon to ask for help with the bad nausea and dizziness and blurred vision. They found my hr/bp low normal (told me how great they were) and shot nausea meds into my cannula. I fainted on the table in front of them, the first time I've ever totally lost consciousness. I couldn't talk for a few minutes afterwards. They checked my bp - it was STILL ok!!! So they gave me a litre of fluid very unwillingly but told my mother even if I pass out not to bring me back. I'm fine, there's nothing on the monitors, nothing they can do.
PLEASE help. This is orthostatic, blood is pooling, my heart is flipping from 55-100 if I just shift position at times, but if it isn't there on the monitor at the second a medic is looking they don't believe it. The fluids help beyond belief but as there was no visible difference to my vitals before the fluids and afterwards, the fact I felt better, could see and walk and wasn't fainting, chest pain gone, makes no odds - they say it makes no provable difference. They don't even admit I fainted.
WHY would I have passed out and the monitors show good figures not moving? And why are they rock solid at times when at others they're all over the place? I was terrified this afternoon and they couldn't hurry me out fast enough. :(