POTS and My Morning Routine

At 6:30am every morning by alarm blares my chosen alarm ringtone – the song from The Lord of the Rings movie. I feel it adds a level of sophistication to my otherwise dull morning. If it’s supposed to make babies smarter if you play instrumental music, who knows what it could do for my brain fog??

I’m not usually asleep when the alarm goes off at 6:30. What time I wake up each morning depends on whether I had a particularly insomniac night. Some mornings I have been awake for hours by the time the dreaded song pierces my ears. Others, maybe just half an hour. More than anything, the alarm signifies it is time for my first medication of the day.

Mornings can be particularly difficult for people with POTS. After many hours without anything to drink, we wake up dehydrated. I always keep a bottle of water next to bed and take a drink every time I wake up throughout the night, which usually occurs multiple times. After I hit the snooze on my alarm at 6:30, I chug whatever is left in the water bottle.

Even after the water, I can’t get up right away. Trying to stand before I’m ready makes me dizzy, lightheaded and on the brink of fainting. So, I usually spend a few minutes just sitting up in bed. I’ve found it’s a great time to sneak in a few Candy Crush games on my tablet.

After a few minutes I “practice” getting up. This involves standing up next to the bed for a few minutes, then sitting back down. I repeat this a few times to give my body a chance to adjust to the postural changes. Once I’m finally up, I go to the kitchen and take medication.

Next comes the biggest challenge of my morning: the shower. Prior to POTS, I loved a good hot shower. I would stand and face the hot spray while its near-scalding temperatures would leave a large, red circle of burning flesh on my stomach. Now, my showers are at the opposite end of the spectrum. Heat causes blood vessels to dilate and makes it more difficult for my heart to pump blood back up to my chest, arms and head. For people who already regularly experience lightheadedness and dizziness, a hot shower can be a dangerous place. While a cold shower isn’t the most pleasant sensation, it’s great encouragement to keep my showers short.

On particularly symptomatic mornings (or mornings where I realize my legs are overdue for shaving), I have to sit on the floor of the shower. Shower chairs are available for people who have difficulty standing in the shower; however, they just aren’t practical for our tiny condo and bathroom. Nothing makes you realize it’s time to scrub your shower more than having to sit your naked butt down on it.

After the shower, I dry off and sit down on the bathroom rug for a few moments until the white spots in my vision disappear, or at least until I can see the kitchen through the spots. Next…breakfast time!!

I’m often nauseous in the morning and am not interested in food, but because my next round of medication doesn’t go over well on an empty stomach, I usually force myself to have something. These days, it’s a couple spoonfuls of plain applesauce. I also have a hot mug of chicken broth, since the sodium helps me to retain fluids. Not the same as a big plate of bacon and eggs, but it doesn’t make me vomit…..so there’s that. Applesauce and chicken broth – breakfast of champions!

After lying down on the bed for a few minutes to catch my breath, I head back to the bathroom to dry my hair. I have naturally wavy hair, but it’s that in-between curly and straight hair, reminiscent of Diana Ross, which becomes a giant frizzy mess if I don’t do something to tame it. But hair dryers are hot and usually involve a lot of standing. I’ve discovered that sitting on the bathroom rug while I hold the hair dryer does have its perks (cough, Candy Crush, cough).

Once my hair is dry and (somewhat) presentable, I stand in front of the bathroom mirror and put on makeup. Makeup is one of those “standing-only” activities for me, as the mirrors in our condo are standing height. I’m not a heavy makeup kind of girl – I prefer the natural look (and, if I’m being honest, I don’t know how to do fancy makeup). So, makeup application probably only takes about 5 minutes. However, standing that long in the morning makes me dizzy, and applying makeup while dizzy leads to me getting job offers as a clown. Not recommended. So, I take a quick seat for a minute or two break half way through applying makeup.

Finally, I get dressed for the day. I try to think about what I’m going to wear while drying my hair so I don’t have to spend too much time standing in front of the closet rummaging through my wardrobe. The ease with which I get dressed depends if it’s summer or winter. I don’t usually wear compression socks during the summer as I usually wear skirts to work, and I haven’t found an acceptable way to wear compression socks with a skirt without looking like my grandmother. However, during the winter, the compression socks fit nicely under pants, and no one is the wiser.

Compression socks are one of those double-edged swords where I haven’t yet decided whether they’re worth the effort. If you’re not familiar, compression socks are special hosiery that compress the legs in order to increase blood circulation. They are often worn by runners and the elderly – Gramma and I have matching pairs – or anyone who may experience blood pooling. Because they are tight, they are not the easiest things to put on. Ladies, it’s like trying to put on a pair of skinny jeans that are two sizes too small. I have to lie down to try to get them on, and work them up inch by inch. Because they require so much energy, I take a quick snooze if I have a few minutes, and then swallow the rest of my medication. Finally, on particularly symptomatic mornings, I’ll check my pulse and blood pressure to make sure it’s safe to make the walk to my car and leave for work.

To make a long story short, I apologize ahead of time for anyone who may run into me in the morning.

Check out more of Lindsay's writing about her experience with POTS.