# presyncope?



## Calypso234 (May 11, 2014)

Hi I got up after sitting down and I had a warm fuzzy feeling under my eyes and I almost felt like blacking out. My hearing became distorted as if I had wax in my ears. I had a situation like this before where I blacked out and fell down the stairs, bruising myself. The doctor didn't like me talking to her for a telephone consult so is it something I need to raise with a doctor anyway? Thankyou


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

Yes, I would say you should discuss it with your doctor.


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## Calypso234 (May 11, 2014)

Octavia said:


> Yes, I would say you should discuss it with your doctor.


ok thankyou, I went to my previous doctor months ago regarding this and she asked me if I had always been clumsy, re the blackout, I said yes. No tests were done which surprised me. I had a phone appointment today re my medication and the doctor I spoke to was not happy to speak to me because my appointment was down as being urgent, which I thought it was if it concerned medication, and she deemed it non urgent. So would the best plan of action to be to wait until monday to call for an appointment or wait until 2 weeks time when I have my follow up booked?


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## creepingdeath (Apr 6, 2014)

If you are experiencing the feeling of passing out every time you stand up and you are very concerned,

I would go to an urgent care facility or hospital and not wait for an appointment.

If you plan on waiting it out I would in the meantime remember to standing up very slowly till you can seek medical assistance.


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## Octavia (Aug 1, 2011)

"Clumsy" is entirely different from blacking out, in my opinion. If it happens again, then it needs to be addressed sooner than two weeks out. Urgent care might not be a bad idea if that happens. They can at least do some labwork there (I would hope) to see what your levels are as close to the moment as possible.


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## Calypso234 (May 11, 2014)

creepingdeath said:


> If you are experiencing the feeling of passing out every time you stand up and you are very concerned,
> I would go to an urgent care facility or hospital and not wait for an appointment.
> If you plan on waiting it out I would in the meantime remember to standing up very slowly till you can seek medical assistance.


Thankyou, I have had more occurrences of passing out over the past few days but tonight made me very concerned because I had a warm feeling under my eyes and along the bridge of my nose. My boyfriend doesn't like me going to urgent care facilities or hospitals because whenever I go there everything comes back clear and he tells me I am crying wolf.


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## Calypso234 (May 11, 2014)

Octavia said:


> "Clumsy" is entirely different from blacking out, in my opinion. If it happens again, then it needs to be addressed sooner than two weeks out. Urgent care might not be a bad idea if that happens. They can at least do some labwork there (I would hope) to see what your levels are as close to the moment as possible.


thankyou, what levels sorry? Thyroid ones are on the low side but my doctor thinks I am hyperthyroid and liver function tests looked good, only issue was the red blood cell count which was elevated but nothing has been mentioned about that.


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## creepingdeath (Apr 6, 2014)

Azureblue said:


> Thankyou, I have had more occurrences of passing out over the past few days but tonight made me very concerned because I had a warm feeling under my eyes and along the bridge of my nose. My boyfriend doesn't like me going to urgent care facilities or hospitals because whenever I go there everything comes back clear and he tells me I am crying wolf.


I would not mess around .

The passing out feeling could be anything from the signs of a stroke to just anxiety .

Do you want to take that chance?

"You know what eventually happened to the boy who cried wolf"..................


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## bigfoot (May 13, 2011)

As mentioned above, having a syncopal episode or feeling lightheaded could be from many, many things. Some more serious than others, but it should be evaluated nonetheless, as it's very important to find out why. Dehydration, exertion, anxiety, inner-ear problems, low blood sugar, blood pressure issues, adrenal insufficiency, medication side effects, watching a blood draw, and the list goes on and on.

There are distinctions that can be important, too. Are we talking a dizziness where you feel the room is spinning, a light-headedness when getting up from a sitting or reclining position, anxiety leading to feeling faint, or totally blacking out and hitting the floor?

If you are concerned (and rightfully so), then your doctor should be concerned. And if they aren't comfortable dealing with it, or it's over their heads, you should be referred to a neurologist for an evaluation. They will get into far more details and may do things like a head-tilt test to check for BPPV, tilt-table tests (somewhat antiquated), order an MRI, etc.

Don't be worried about how others might think if you go to urgent care or the E.R. Honestly, the folks there would prefer you err on the side of caution, get it looked at, and have it turn out to be nothing; rather than ignore it and have something more serious happen.

More info and light reading: http://www.clevelandclinicmeded.com/medicalpubs/diseasemanagement/neurology/dizziness/


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## Calypso234 (May 11, 2014)

bigfoot said:


> As mentioned above, having a syncopal episode or feeling lightheaded could be from many, many things. Some more serious than others, but it should be evaluated nonetheless, as it's very important to find out why. Dehydration, exertion, anxiety, inner-ear problems, low blood sugar, blood pressure issues, adrenal insufficiency, medication side effects, watching a blood draw, and the list goes on and on.
> 
> There are distinctions that can be important, too. Are we talking a dizziness where you feel the room is spinning, a light-headedness when getting up from a sitting or reclining position, anxiety leading to feeling faint, or totally blacking out and hitting the floor?
> 
> ...


Thank you for reply, what I tried (and failed) to describe  is a lightheadedness when standing up from a reclining position. I have checked my blood pressure lately, one reading is as follows:

Sitting 113/69, heart rate 63
Lying down 111/68 heart rate 60
Standing 120/75 heart rate 87

I looked up the last reading as being pre hypertension and after googling the fast heart rate a lot of articles saying postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome came up. I see the doctor on Friday, so maybe for the next 3 days or so I could always track my blood pressure in the same way? Whenever they test my blood pressure it is normal but maybe that's because I'm sitting down and they don't see it when it could be much higher.


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## bigfoot (May 13, 2011)

Yes, definitely mention that to your doctor. Lightheadedness when standing is important for them to know about.

 Usual Disclaimer -- I am not a doctor, do not take any of this as medical advice. Merely my personal thoughts, comments, and opinions:

That being said, blood pressure is typically something measured while sitting, at least for the purposes of routine monitoring. Your BP while seated was 113/69. That is excellent! Nowhere near any sort of hypertension. Granted, this is only one value, which is not enough data to spot any trends (or non-trends). I think you're jumping ahead of yourself a bit -- it's not like your systolic reading is in the 140s or 150s. Now that would be cause for concern if it continued to give you those sorts of readings. And even if that was the case, it would still need to be compared to other cardiac risk factors, too.

Blood pressure also needs to be measured in a certain way. If you just climbed a set of stairs to get to where your cuff is, heck, that alone can spike your blood pressure. Similarly, if you were just exercising, doing chores, running errands, rushing around, stressed, etc. You want to take a reading while you are sitting down and relaxed. There is also a proper way to take your BP -- lots of good info and videos on the 'net if you want to look, so I won't bother regurgitating that stuff.

Don't quote me on this, but I believe POTS is typically characterized by a drop (hypo) in blood pressure when standing from a reclining position. Your BP went up, not down. And it can be accompanied by a quick elevation in heart rate. And while your heart rate did go up, it's not exactly sky-high. Again, one reading is not nearly enough data here.


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## Calypso234 (May 11, 2014)

bigfoot said:


> Yes, definitely mention that to your doctor. Lightheadedness when standing is important for them to know about.
> 
> Usual Disclaimer -- I am not a doctor, do not take any of this as medical advice. Merely my personal thoughts, comments, and opinions:
> 
> ...


Thanks for replying, yes, I will take note of the disclaimer. 

My blood pressure has never ever been anywhere near 140 or 150. On occasion, yes, but not consistently. I have included other readings when I last did them as I have done them on and off but haven't followed it through (as with most other things!)

I hadn't climbed the stairs, exercising (once that happened but I do it when relaxed and not doing anything), doing chores, rushing around or stressed, no. Thanks for recommending sites to take the blood pressure readings, will have a look.

These are going back months however so I have transferred these readings from my diary (which I stopped using and cannot get back into the habit of using again). BBT is included, too:

March 5:

Reading 1

BBT: 36.5c
BP: 109/65 heart rate 74

Reading 2

BBT: 36.4c
BP: 128/76, heart rate 59

Reading 3

BBT: 36.5c
BP: 109/73, heart rate 70

March 6

Reading 1

BBT: 36.3c
BP: 101-61, heart rate 55

Reading 2

BBT: 36.3c
BP: 109/66, heart rate 65

Reading 3

BBT: 36.4c

BP: 121/72, heart rate 61

March 7

Reading 1

BBT: 36.4c
BP: 129/78, heart rate 79

Reading 2

BBT: ?
BP: 139/88, heart rate 96

March 8

Reading 1

BBT: 36.2c
BP: 103/65, heart rate 70

Reading 2

BBT: 36.3c
BP: 116./72, heart rate 72

Reading 3

BBT: 36.6c
BP: 103/63, heart rate 65

Probably nothing worrying in these results. But I do put the blood pressure cuff around the bottom of my upper arm, sit straight and upright with legs uncrossed.


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## bigfoot (May 13, 2011)

Looking over your results for blood pressure and pulse, gee whiz, you look like you're a marathon runner on paper! 

Oh and FYI -- the BP cuff should be about an inch or so up from the bottom of your upper arm.


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## Calypso234 (May 11, 2014)

bigfoot said:


> Looking over your results for blood pressure and pulse, gee whiz, you look like you're a marathon runner on paper!
> 
> Oh and FYI -- the BP cuff should be about an inch or so up from the bottom of your upper arm.


Thanks for letting me know...marathon runner on paper, that made me smile. I may have positioned the BP cuff too low, but I tend to put it just above where my elbow joint is. I knew it was from the bottom of my upper arm but I've been putting it where it's most comfortable and so the reading is more accurate in that position. Is my pulse very fast then? I always thought it was slow at 50-60 beats.


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## bigfoot (May 13, 2011)

Azureblue said:


> Is my pulse very fast then? I always thought it was slow at 50-60 beats.


Judging from the data above, your pulse looks pretty darn good.


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## Calypso234 (May 11, 2014)

bigfoot said:


> Judging from the data above, your pulse looks pretty darn good.


Must be me.


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