Memorial Day Weekend!

Since going to the Mayo Clinic I feel like my symptoms have been more under control, which is great! My new heart medicine is allowing me to sleep and keeping my palpitations more under control. The iron pills have been giving me a little more energy. And working out has been making me feel better in general. One major issue with feeling a little better is ignoring my symptoms. I keep thinking that I can keep pushing myself, but I then feel worse the next day. If I push myself one day, I have significantly less energy, feel weaker, and overall I feel worse the next day.

            This Memorial Day Weekend, I went down to the Jersey Shore with my sister and her family for her birthday (Happy Birthday Mimi! Love you more <3). Yesterday, the beach was in the low 70s and windy so it was the perfect POTS weather. Since I have nerve damage and I have problems with my thermoregulatory system. I have to be extra careful to not over heat so I carry fans and cooling blankets around with me everywhere I go. I was on the beach for a few hours because it was so nice, especially for a POTS patient. We then went to Fantasy Island, a small amusement park, with my nephews and I was standing and walking a lot. Today I am not feeling so great. I feel slightly overheated (even though I am in the AC), I feel very weak like my knees are just going to give out, I’m fatigued, I’m twitchy, and I have no appetite along with nausea. I am wondering if I feel overheated because of the sunburn (if anyone else with POTS knows if a sunburn can affect POTS symptoms please comment!). Today, I am just going to relax in the air conditioning and watch X-Men with my PowerAde, and hope I feel better.

            It is irritating when I am slowly feeling better and once I put out a little extra effort, I feel significantly worse. I have to stay conscious about the fact that I do have a chronic illness and redefine what a normal life is for myself. My normal life is very different than a healthy person’s normal life. I may look healthy, and since I have been feeling better I may even seem healthy, but I still have POTS and I still have limitations. With summer coming I really have to be extra conscious about what I do because of the heat and humidity, which really infuriates my symptoms.

Hope everyone is having a wonderful Memorial Day Weekend!