Finding my Balance: Living and Thriving with POTS

My whole life I have suffered from heart palpitations after or during exercise, coming up the steps, standing up, etc. I always thought that it was normal or that it came with my asthma. 

It wasn’t until November of 2024 I noticed my symptoms getting worse upon standing. My vision would get foggy, I would lose my balance, and desperately want to lay down again to relieve my symptoms. 

In late January of 2025, I told my mom about my symptoms. She told me to drink more water with a liquid IV packet, which helped me but not enough. I was getting continuous messages on my watch about my elevated heart rate while sitting in class, which I continued to notify my mom about. One night I took a shower after getting two of those notifications in one day - and my heart rate spiked to 160 after getting out. I didn’t feel myself at all - and that’s when my parents decided to take me to the emergency room. 

Following that trip to the ER, I was scheduled with my primary doctor, and she blamed my new inhaler for increasing my heart rate and sent me off. But I knew something was wrong, and nobody seemed to believe me. I went to the cardiologist and he sent me home with a 72hr holter monitor. When we got the results back, he said my results were “within normal range.” He assumed when my heart rate was elevated that I was anxious or exercising, because unfortunately for me, anxiety was on my chart. He was incorrect. I was in sinus tachycardia just sitting in class. That was the first time I watched my mom fight for me in the doctor’s office, and I realized that I would have to do that for myself some day. 

All the while, my symptoms kept getting worse. I was quickly unable to dance which has been my main sport for my whole life. This caused my mental health to decline. I felt so beyond alone and lost. I thought I had my health under control, and clearly I did not. 

For months, I went back and forth with doctors and hospitals for tests and follow ups. I had a chest x-ray, many orthostatic vitals and blood tests, etc. it wasn’t until April 23rd, 2025 that I was diagnosed with POTS at the CHOP Buerger Center. 

The lifestyle changes are hard. Accepting my new life is hard. The diagnosis is bittersweet, but words cannot explain how thankful I am for modern medicine and CHOP’s team, as well as the answers I was given. If you are currently in the process of a diagnosis, scrolling through these stories like I once was, don’t lose hope or be discouraged. You will be okay and you can live an amazing life despite the unfair challenges you are faced with. I believe in you.