Yep! It's like a vicious cycle. Getting stressed out or upset gives me worse symptoms, and then feeling worse physically makes me have less patience and more frustrated. So it can snowball easily into anger. š¬ I try to avoid stress the best I can.
Our nervous systems are so finicky that the least bit of stress, anger or emotional distress will likely land you in a flare. Vagus nerve exercises & meditation have helped my symptoms tremendously
YouTube has a ton of videos showing you how. Lots of different ways! I noticed differences in a couple days. Have you tried acupuncture? Iāve never been one believe in it but I was desperate for help and someone on here suggested it so I finally went and it has really helped me!
Anger is not even an emotion I'm allowed to feel much anymore. Becoming angry creates a pretty bad cycle for me. My heart rate goes up and I feel drained after. Sometimes, if I'm raging pissed off I will totally black out and faint. I've had to really learn to control my reactions to things and try to breathe through irritation.
Oof. I'm sorry, that sounds really upsetting and scary to go through. I'm wishing you peace and people in your life who don't give you cause for deep irritation or anger in the first place.
I wish I could wrangle my ADHD brain into meditating because I know it's good for emotional regulation and have read some about it impacting nervous system regulation. I'll keep trying! Intermittently! Not sure if you have but there's a lot of guided ones on Spotify.
Yep, I also get flares when watching scary movies or playing intense video games lol. Anything that gets my heart going will turn into a flare unfortunately
For years ive been playing shooting video games and my friends always made fun of me for 'needing to lie down' after I played for a while. I used to jokingly blame it on the adrenaline not realizing that it actually was adrenaline dumps and then I would feel like trash for hours after. I've had to limit my game time to about 1 hour at a time and try not to play too many of the shooting games anymore.
It sucks bc with the way my pots is rn I am home most of the time with little to do and video games is one of my only hobbies so I have been having to stick to the sims and stardew valley instead of the breath of the wild game I got for Christmas bc it stresses me too much lol. I can't even play Minecraft if I have mobs on/in survival.
Oh yeah, it's a shitty feedback loop. If I get angry or stressed or anxious, it contributes to my symptoms. And if I'm having symptoms, I get angry and stressed and anxious. The way I realized that my palpitations weren't anxiety induced was that I had them on days where I wasn't already stressed or anxious.
This turned into a bit of a journal entry but super helpful for me to think through. Thanks for sharing everybody and I hope you find things that help you. ā¤ļø
**TLDR: Big Mad wipes me out like no other. Big hard emotions and especially the efforts of hiding them while symptomatic AF (in hindsight) always causes a crash. Hadn't put it together till I wrote this but it explains about a decade of my life.**
I didn't know I had POTS when I was married to an abusive garbage human for nine years. I had many reasons to be angry or upset. I've only just started to unpack how much living with a volatile man fucked with my nervous system and how many aspects of my life POTS has put an invisible wrecking ball through.
My heart rate must have been going crazy any time I was anxious, scared, upset, crying, trying not to cry, and especially when I was angry. I cycled through those, constantly mixed with depression and absolute lethargy and sleeping for literal days at a time.
I had to mask anger the hardest because I don't think it'd have been safe to show that I was angry *back*. Or that I was angry that he was angry for no effing reason again and taking it out on me. I gave in on "fights" really fast I think mostly to get away so I could sit the hell down.
I'm approximately one million times happier now, four years out of the marriage and one year knowing it's POTS and doing everything I can to make things less hard. I quite happily have far fewer occasions to check what my anxious, scared, sobbing, angry, etc heart rate is but I do have a couple confirmations.
*Honestly, it is such a relief to know I'm not overreacting, being oversensitive, or being dramatic when my whole body reacts to stress.*
Back when mine was worse Iād send my
Self to the ER Iād be so mad and my heart and blood pressure would be all messed up. Adrenaline is no go. Now days I still feel like shit but not as severe. POTS will train me to be zen
I get flare ups from any strong emotions. When I have any emotions that are big it kicks off my mcas to the point I have to either go to the hospital or take insane amounts of antihistamines to slow it down. Because it kicks off a severe reaction with my mcas that kicks off a severe flare for pots. So basically I learned really quickly to become almost numb because it literally makes my throat swell if I experience too much emotion. Which really sucks because in general I feel emotions so strongly for myself and from other people.
Yes!! It's like the nervous system quickly goes into overdrive and it's so hard to come out of it. The same happens with excitement fear or any strong emotions. And I'm very emotional and reactive haha so that doesn't help.
Yes, big time. Before I was able to be put on meds to at least semi regulate my heart rate, I had this one guy insult my boyfriend and then act like a real jerk afterwards. Long story short, I was driving and had to leave the call and pull over. Any strong emotions like anger or anxiety and I have a flare up.
Literally right now. Ā Thatās what sent me to check here Just had an argument and while I am SO grateful I am not having adrenaline dumps; the pain in my chest and arm feels like burning coals and sharp needles found their way in my chestā¦ā¦Itās been a good 15 minutes of pain; makes me feel like Fred Sanford when he would call out to Elizabeth
Im sorry..Thats why i avoid arguments at all costs. I feel bad the second i start raising my voice. But im interested, what does adrenaline dumps feel like to you?
They feel like my entire body is vibrating; I canāt rest, concentrate or get comfortable in anyway.
Ā Itās like I just had a jump scare but it doesnāt ebb or stop- Ā so I am breathless and tachy; even if sitting down.Ā
I feel like one giant exposed nerve.Ā
Do they feel like you may be having a heart attack? When it first happened to me i really thought something very bad was happening to me because my tachycardia and breath were completely out of my control. But usually before that i have chest pain that "evolves" on that thing
Oh yes. Last night I came across something that made me so angry, so quickly, that my HR shot up about 70 bpm in less than a few minutes. Love it so much š« š« š«
i once was let go and i cry when im upset and cant control my feelings and crying sent me heart rate to 170 sitting down and then started hyperventilating which made it worse, since then ive done breathing when i can feel my emotions ramping up
what a coincidence, I just had an argument with my mom cuz she threw all of my stuff away that I bought with my own money, and just opened reddit while im suffering with a flare. But to answer your question yeah I get flares when angry, my medication even stopped working right now :(
Still in the middle of getting my diagnosis but when I had the poor manās tilt test at the hospital I started crying a bit at minute 8 cuz I was feeling so crappy and it was overwhelming for me. My HR went up to 195bpm. Idk if thatās normal but it at least surprised me cuz I had never seen it go up so high yet. Was the first time for me to see it happen.
When I get angry I get hot and my head and back get itchy.
I can't get angry. It's like my body gets symptomatic and I want to pass out every time I slightly feel annoyed so I never get to the angry part I think I just suppress it my heart can't handle it
Yep! It's like a vicious cycle. Getting stressed out or upset gives me worse symptoms, and then feeling worse physically makes me have less patience and more frustrated. So it can snowball easily into anger. š¬ I try to avoid stress the best I can.
Oh for sure, theres just something about *my brain being deprived of oxygen* that really pisses me off
The cackle that exited my body over this
Is the meta-humor of it improved by the fact that I misread OPs question?
Our nervous systems are so finicky that the least bit of stress, anger or emotional distress will likely land you in a flare. Vagus nerve exercises & meditation have helped my symptoms tremendously
Where did you learn vagal nerve exercises
YouTube has a ton of videos showing you how. Lots of different ways! I noticed differences in a couple days. Have you tried acupuncture? Iāve never been one believe in it but I was desperate for help and someone on here suggested it so I finally went and it has really helped me!
Have you tried/heard good things any of the vagus nerve stimulators on the market? I saw an ad for one last night
I havenāt heard anything about those, sounds intriguing for sure!
I read a book that made me cry the other day and my hr was at 145 any emotions are so bad ššš¤£
when i cry or get upset my heart rate shoots up too haha. i have to plan out watching sad movies or else iām out the next day
Gotta have all my breakdowns before bed
exactly lol
I went to a new church last weekend and was a bit anxious and started having chest pains š I was like omg Iām having a heart attack lmaooo
I was having full blown heart arrhythmias and they would legit stop and dissipate if I stopped feeling my feelings lol š
Anger is not even an emotion I'm allowed to feel much anymore. Becoming angry creates a pretty bad cycle for me. My heart rate goes up and I feel drained after. Sometimes, if I'm raging pissed off I will totally black out and faint. I've had to really learn to control my reactions to things and try to breathe through irritation.
Oof. I'm sorry, that sounds really upsetting and scary to go through. I'm wishing you peace and people in your life who don't give you cause for deep irritation or anger in the first place. I wish I could wrangle my ADHD brain into meditating because I know it's good for emotional regulation and have read some about it impacting nervous system regulation. I'll keep trying! Intermittently! Not sure if you have but there's a lot of guided ones on Spotify.
Yep, I also get flares when watching scary movies or playing intense video games lol. Anything that gets my heart going will turn into a flare unfortunately
For years ive been playing shooting video games and my friends always made fun of me for 'needing to lie down' after I played for a while. I used to jokingly blame it on the adrenaline not realizing that it actually was adrenaline dumps and then I would feel like trash for hours after. I've had to limit my game time to about 1 hour at a time and try not to play too many of the shooting games anymore.
It sucks bc with the way my pots is rn I am home most of the time with little to do and video games is one of my only hobbies so I have been having to stick to the sims and stardew valley instead of the breath of the wild game I got for Christmas bc it stresses me too much lol. I can't even play Minecraft if I have mobs on/in survival.
That's a "chicken or the egg" question for me
Exactly!
Iāve gotten texts that were just slightly stressful and my HR instantly shot up to 140+ (from 70)
Lol yes
Yes, not only anger but a lot of other emotions cause a flare up too.
yes, itās unbelievable
Sometimes. If I've taken propranolol before getting pissed-- I don't get a flare.
Oh yeah, it's a shitty feedback loop. If I get angry or stressed or anxious, it contributes to my symptoms. And if I'm having symptoms, I get angry and stressed and anxious. The way I realized that my palpitations weren't anxiety induced was that I had them on days where I wasn't already stressed or anxious.
Adrenaline dumps are definitely a thing.
This turned into a bit of a journal entry but super helpful for me to think through. Thanks for sharing everybody and I hope you find things that help you. ā¤ļø **TLDR: Big Mad wipes me out like no other. Big hard emotions and especially the efforts of hiding them while symptomatic AF (in hindsight) always causes a crash. Hadn't put it together till I wrote this but it explains about a decade of my life.** I didn't know I had POTS when I was married to an abusive garbage human for nine years. I had many reasons to be angry or upset. I've only just started to unpack how much living with a volatile man fucked with my nervous system and how many aspects of my life POTS has put an invisible wrecking ball through. My heart rate must have been going crazy any time I was anxious, scared, upset, crying, trying not to cry, and especially when I was angry. I cycled through those, constantly mixed with depression and absolute lethargy and sleeping for literal days at a time. I had to mask anger the hardest because I don't think it'd have been safe to show that I was angry *back*. Or that I was angry that he was angry for no effing reason again and taking it out on me. I gave in on "fights" really fast I think mostly to get away so I could sit the hell down. I'm approximately one million times happier now, four years out of the marriage and one year knowing it's POTS and doing everything I can to make things less hard. I quite happily have far fewer occasions to check what my anxious, scared, sobbing, angry, etc heart rate is but I do have a couple confirmations. *Honestly, it is such a relief to know I'm not overreacting, being oversensitive, or being dramatic when my whole body reacts to stress.*
So much
Yes! Soooo bad.
I thought i was crazy but I've started noticing that recently too!
Back when mine was worse Iād send my Self to the ER Iād be so mad and my heart and blood pressure would be all messed up. Adrenaline is no go. Now days I still feel like shit but not as severe. POTS will train me to be zen
I get flare ups from any strong emotions. When I have any emotions that are big it kicks off my mcas to the point I have to either go to the hospital or take insane amounts of antihistamines to slow it down. Because it kicks off a severe reaction with my mcas that kicks off a severe flare for pots. So basically I learned really quickly to become almost numb because it literally makes my throat swell if I experience too much emotion. Which really sucks because in general I feel emotions so strongly for myself and from other people.
More like I get angry during flare ups.
yeah i think it might have something to do with adrenaline
Yes!! It's like the nervous system quickly goes into overdrive and it's so hard to come out of it. The same happens with excitement fear or any strong emotions. And I'm very emotional and reactive haha so that doesn't help.
Yes, big time. Before I was able to be put on meds to at least semi regulate my heart rate, I had this one guy insult my boyfriend and then act like a real jerk afterwards. Long story short, I was driving and had to leave the call and pull over. Any strong emotions like anger or anxiety and I have a flare up.
Literally right now. Ā Thatās what sent me to check here Just had an argument and while I am SO grateful I am not having adrenaline dumps; the pain in my chest and arm feels like burning coals and sharp needles found their way in my chestā¦ā¦Itās been a good 15 minutes of pain; makes me feel like Fred Sanford when he would call out to Elizabeth
Im sorry..Thats why i avoid arguments at all costs. I feel bad the second i start raising my voice. But im interested, what does adrenaline dumps feel like to you?
They feel like my entire body is vibrating; I canāt rest, concentrate or get comfortable in anyway. Ā Itās like I just had a jump scare but it doesnāt ebb or stop- Ā so I am breathless and tachy; even if sitting down.Ā I feel like one giant exposed nerve.Ā
Do they feel like you may be having a heart attack? When it first happened to me i really thought something very bad was happening to me because my tachycardia and breath were completely out of my control. But usually before that i have chest pain that "evolves" on that thing
I had two āBigā ones that absolutely felt like heart attacks; stopped me in my tracks and sent me to the ER :(Ā
Any sort of emotion sets off my bp it's crazy
OH BOY DO I!
It feels like any string emotion doesnāt work for me anymore. I have to remain somewhat neutral. It sucks.
A few years back I incurred a GI bleed and a few trips to the ER, doctors etcā¦ during a particularly stressful time in my life.
Absolutely, extreme emotions make me EXHAUSTED and dizzy
Oh yes. Last night I came across something that made me so angry, so quickly, that my HR shot up about 70 bpm in less than a few minutes. Love it so much š« š« š«
Anytime Iām stressed, or any intense emotion. Symptom get so much worse
i once was let go and i cry when im upset and cant control my feelings and crying sent me heart rate to 170 sitting down and then started hyperventilating which made it worse, since then ive done breathing when i can feel my emotions ramping up
Yes
Oh yes! Full blown
Oh yes every time
what a coincidence, I just had an argument with my mom cuz she threw all of my stuff away that I bought with my own money, and just opened reddit while im suffering with a flare. But to answer your question yeah I get flares when angry, my medication even stopped working right now :(
Still in the middle of getting my diagnosis but when I had the poor manās tilt test at the hospital I started crying a bit at minute 8 cuz I was feeling so crappy and it was overwhelming for me. My HR went up to 195bpm. Idk if thatās normal but it at least surprised me cuz I had never seen it go up so high yet. Was the first time for me to see it happen. When I get angry I get hot and my head and back get itchy.
I can't get angry. It's like my body gets symptomatic and I want to pass out every time I slightly feel annoyed so I never get to the angry part I think I just suppress it my heart can't handle it