CAUSES
Lyme disease and Babesia caused POTS in me.
"While researchers are still working to identify the root causes and pathology of POTS, there are several underlying diseases and conditions that are known to cause or be associated with POTS or POTS like symptoms in some patients. This is a partial list:
-Amyloidosis
-Autoimmune Diseases such as Autoimmune Autonomic Ganglionopathy, Sjogren's Syndrome, Lupus, Sarcoidosis, Antiphospholipid Syndrome
-Chiari Malformation
-Deconditioning
-Delta Storage Pool Deficiency
-Diabetes and pre-diabetes
-Ehlers Danlos Syndrome - a collagen protein disorder than can lead to joint hypermobility and "stretchy" veins
-Genetic Disorders/Abnormalities
-Infections such as Mononucleosis, Epstein Barr Virus, Lyme Disease, extra-pulmonary Mycoplasma pneumonia and Hepatitis C
-Multiple Sclerosis
-Mitochondrial Diseases
-Mast Cell Activation Disorders
-Paraneoplastic Syndrome - rare small tumors of the lung, ovary, breast and pancreas that produce antibodies
-Toxicity from alcoholism, chemotherapy and heavy metal poisoning
-Traumas, pregnancy or surgery
-Vaccinations
-Vitamin Deficiencies/Anemia"
POTS - SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS
"Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome"
(see our full education post on POTS)
POTS is often overlooked and can be all consuming if not under control. I speak from experience as POTS was one of my most common reasons I had to go to the ER. Once managed, I was better able to determine my health status and not live in such fear. It gives me a feeling of anxiety when my heartrate spikes due to POTS. It will even look like anxiety to those around me. It also puts me in a drunken confused state. Which is scary because I know what to do to fix but in the midst of it, I go blank. My husband knows how to recognize and what to do. I get low BP and a high heart rate as my obvious sign. I hope this list helps you identify if you need to test for this so that you can manage these symptoms better. I realize these symptoms can also point to other things but since most research indicates at least half of Lyme and co-infections patients have POTS, I feel it should be considered to improve your quality of life with symptom management.
*Blood pressure irregularities (low or high)
*Decreased exercise tolerance
*Difficulty concentrating/brain fog
*Dizziness, particularly with positional changes(blurry vision)
*Exercise intolerance
*Fatigue
*Heart palpitations
*high heart rate when you go from lying down to standing
*Intolerance to hot or cold temperature
*Lightheadedness (some faint)
*Nausea and abdominal pain
*Random sweating
*Redish legs when standing
*Shortness of breath (possible chest pain)
*Sleep problems
*Tremors
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
1. POTS symptoms may sneak up on people who have been standing in one place for too long due to how blood circulates throughout the body. This mechanism can malfunction in people with POTS.
2. POTS can be triggered by different things. This can include infections such as Epstein-Barr, Bartonella, Lyme and parasites, such as Babesia. Other triggers include hormonal fluctuations, mast cell activation syndrome, stress, trauma, mold exposures, chemical exposure and underlying autoimmunity.
IDEAS TO HELP MANAGE
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