orthostatic hypotension - High & Low Blood Pressure Message Board

05silver · 06-14-2007, 09:55 PM

hey all... the last couple of weeks i have been very sick... i have done nothing but lay in bed... i have been to the hospital twice in 3 weeks and the doctors about 5 times.... the blood tests came back negitive they had no idea what was wrong with me.... they thought that i was just sick so i was not eatting or drinking so they were just like well she is dyhidrated... so it turns out that i had a viral infection and my doctor told me that i also had acid refux and it all hit me at once... so i started taking the pills he gave me and i felt a little better but everytime i stood up i got very dizzy.... and no one knew y... (i have been out of work for about 2 weeks now and they cant write anything on the disability papers cause they dont know what to say)... so one day i am bord out of my mind and my mom has high blood pressure and so she has a digital cuff so i decided to take mine and it came out very low everytime i stood up and my heart rate was over 90... so the other day i go to the doctors (again) and i went with a whole list of questions for him..... the first thing out of his mouth was amy all the tests r coming back negitive u have to go back to work.... ( i work in a factory it is summer time so the temp in my work is about 100 degrees if not higher and with me being dizzy i did not trust myself over there).... i was just like well u gotta do what u gotta do... so i told him AGAIN how dizzy i get when i stand.... so he took my blood pressure when i was laying down it was 110 over something pretty normal heart rate 70.... then he took it when i was sitting same blood pressure but heart rate was 74.... then he took it while i was standing and he had a hard time trying to get a blood pressure it took 4 times and by the time he did my pressure was 80 over i think 40 something and my heart rate was 110.... so my doctor told me i have orthostatic hypotension.... he told me that it is prob from me being so dyhidrated and he wants me to eat 3000 mg of salt a day... with me still being sick i am not eatting all that much and there is no way i can eat all that salt so i am taking sodium cloride tablets.... but all i really want to know ( i dont c my doctor for about a week and some questions r goin popping up in my head)... is this something i am goin to have for the rest of my life... i am only 20 years old i will be 21 soon... is this something i am always goin to have to watch.... if anyone knows anything about this please feel free to let me know what u know ANYTHING!!! i know very little about this just what some of the symtoms r the very basic things....

wholegrain · 06-15-2007, 12:33 AM

Orthostatic hypotension is actually totally normal and happens to everyone, but it sounds like for some reason yours is just out of control. It's supposed to make you dizzy when you stand up, but you're not supposed to STAY dizzy, and it shouldn't be that low. I guess it's getting that low and staying there since you're dehydrated, since that's what your doctor said.

I had hypotension (all the time, not just standing) a few months ago that scared the you-know-what out of me. I was afraid my body would just quit working, or that I'd have to live like and elderly person for the rest of my life, never riding a bike or dancing or going outside in the heat. My doctor said the same thing, to eat a buttload of salt and drink a ton of water.

It worked. That was a while back and now my bp is almost totally normal almost all the time. The only time I have problems anymore like yours is when I am neglecting my salt and water. I eat more processed foods now (but balance with healthy stuff), drink V8, and I mix every other bottle of water with Emergen-C. Took a couple of months to get better but I feel great now as long as I stay watered and salted.

Lenin · 06-15-2007, 06:40 AM

Usually orthostatic hypotension is a side effect for people taking hypertension medication. Any dehydration lowers BP overall and will show up most when standing up.

If you don't want salt pills (usually a rotten idea), eating two cans of some processed soup per day or a TV dinner should give you near the 3,000 mg.

Make sure you drink adequate water in a hot environment...don't wait til you become too thirsty.

Of course, if you feel dizzy, then sit down quickly to avoid keeling over.

Measure your BP often so you know how you react in certain situations.

Quote:

so i started taking the pills he gave me and i felt a little better but everytime i stood up i got very dizzy

WHat were the pills he gave you?

judy3 · 06-15-2007, 07:01 AM

have your doctor test your cortisol levels, I had the same problem and it was due to an infection,when they tested me they realized I had high cortisol levels cost by stress to my body due to the infection, I also developed diabetes

05silver · 06-15-2007, 11:15 AM

omg thank u all.... the pills that he gave me were for my acid reflux and r called famotidine 40 mg (generic for pepcid)... and he took me off of those and put me on protonix 40mg cause the pepcid was not working as good as they should so these r stronger....
when i stand up yeah i get very dizzy but i dont stay dizzy... it lasts for maybe a min (when i get dizzy sometimes my vision is very blurry and i am very lightheaded) , but if i continue to stand for a couple of min i start to get dizzy again.... also yesterday i went out to eat with my parents just to get out of the house ( had chicken alfredo) and just with me sitting at the table for maybe an hour i started getting dizzy maybe at the first 20 min
also i did have an infection in my mouth... i was with my friends baby one day she gave me a kiss on the lips when i was leaving and i did realize that she had a starting of herpes virus in her mouth... so a couple of days later my mouth started to break out in cold sores (dang it hurts and i just picture what she went though and she is 2) but mine went all the way down my throat....
also yeah that is all i have ben eatting.... my mother has been buying me those healthy choice, smart ones stuff like that.... mostly just noodles and chicken... c the thing is.... i dont know what i can hold down... my body is still very weak from when i was not eatting... and now with me having acid reflux there r things that i cant eat anymore... when i was sick about 2 weeks i thought i was starting to get alitte better so i decided to have some chicken parm ( should not have with acid refux NO italian) and it took no longer than 10 min for all that to come up..... so i am kinda scared of what i can eat so i have been eatting almost the same thing everyday...... but also i was looking up information on low blood pressure on what foods to eat when u have low blood pressure and they say no rice no pasta stuff like that and that is all i have been eatting... but looking at it positive they r loaded with sodiumthe one i am eatting 2day has 700mg for the dinner... i really dont mind taking the salt tablets they r not all that tasty but if it is goin to help i'll live

Thanks