POTS: It Changed My Life and Forced Me to Adapt

In August 2009, when I was 17 years old, my whole life changed. After 3 months of going in and out of the hospital, on numerous doctors’ visits, only to be told they had no clue what was going on with me, I ran into a local doctor by the name of Dr. Raymond Hubbard in the Reading, PA area. He performed the tilt-table test on me and then diagnosed me with POTS.  This came as a shock to me. I was a three sport athlete, PIAA state champion volleyball player; I was even given the nickname ‘the energizer bunny” for my great cardiovascular endurance. I never seemed to get tired on the sports field. Now, just the act of standing up made my heart race, and the thought of getting out of bed became a very difficult task.

Finishing school was difficult. Playing sports was no longer an option, I had to see the school nurse every day, and I was given an elevator key for days I was too ill to walk up the steps. Over time, I was able to adapt to the POTS enough that I felt I could live a so called “Normal Life”. I tried a variety of medications and treatments but unfortunately the only thing that seemed to help me was just getting proper rest, maintain a healthy diet (limit caffeine intake) and mild exercise. I kept my illness a secret for the fear of no one understanding me. Keeping a job was difficult - I had to resign twice. My body was never able to keep up and meet the demand of the job. The second resignation hit me hard. After two years of feeling great and working my way up in the company, I fainted in a body shop and woke up being transported to the hospital via ambulance in October 2016. My POTS had regressed and I had no choice but to resign.

After this happened, I was not sure what to do next. My POTS seemed to hold me back. I started out writing about my experience as a way to vent my frustration. After a week or so of writing, I came up with the idea to write a book as a way to bring awareness to what I was going through. I reached out to other people that had POTS and on March 29, 2017, I was able to publish my book “So Close to Death, Yet So Far Away: A Story based on Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome.” I also studied and passed exams and went into business for myself as a Financial Advisor. The ability to create my own schedule and put my body first to manage my POTS has done wonders for me.

My goal now is to advocate and keep bring awareness for POTS. I host charity events and raise funds to hopefully one day find underlying causes POTS and better treatments. I also hope to be a positive influence for those diagnosed with POTS, to help them believe that even though we may be limited in what we can do, to keep fighting, adapting and that we can still accomplish our goals and dreams.