Page 56 - MASALA VOL 8 ISSUE 3 DECEMBER 2016 – JANUARY 2017

My happy moments during University graduation High school graduation Engagement dinner with my family
university abroad and in-laws
Sick sinus syndrome – treated and resolved POTS – Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome – ongoing illness

De nition: a group of heart arrhythmias in which the sinus De nition: a form of orthostatic intolerance that is
node does not work properly. Normally, the sinus node associated with the presence of excessive tachycardia
produces a steady pace of regular electrical impulses. In sick and many other symptoms upon standing.
sinus syndrome, these signals are abnormally paced.
Symptoms that I su er from: light-headedness and
Symptoms that I had: loss of consciousness, severe dizziness when I change postures from standing to
symptomatic bradycardia and hypotension. sitting, or vice versa, inability to stand for long periods
of time, blood pooling in the lower extremities and
How I was treated: dual chamber pacemaker tachycardia when changing posture.

How I am being treated for this: medication and
Atrial tachycardia – ongoing illness compression socks that go from my toes up to my
stomach to push the blood upwards.
De nition: a heart rate of more than 100 beats per minute
that comes from the upper chambers (atrium) of the heart, Self-management: change posture slowly and train the
also known as supraventricular tachycardia (SVT). body to be able to stand for longer periods of time. Start
by standing up 20 minutes non-stop for a week and
Symptoms that I su er from: palpitations, extreme gradually increase it to an hour.
tiredness and fainting spells.
Interesting fact: POTS a ects more women than men with
How I am being treated for this: initially medication, a female-to-male ratio of 5:1.
including beta-blockers and calcium-channel blockers,
followed by an epicardial ablation of a part of my upper
chambers and nally back to medication. Dysautonomia – ongoing illness
De nition: dysautonomia is an umbrella term used to
Self-management: Carotid sinus massage – use your describe several di erent medical conditions that cause
ngers to apply pressure on the side of your neck where the a malfunction of the autonomic nervous system. The
carotid artery splits into two branches. Only apply pressure autonomic nervous system controls the “automatic”
one side at a time. If you apply pressure on both sides at functions of the body that we do not consciously think
the same time, you will put yourself at risk for a stroke.
about, such as heart rate, blood pressure, digestion,
Interesting fact: SVT is the most common form of dilation and constriction of the pupils of the eye,
arrhythmia and is more frequent in females than males. kidney function and temperature control. People with
dysautonomia are unable to regulate these systems that
result in problems.
Ventricular tachycardia – ongoing illness
Symptoms that I su er from: POTS, all forms of
De nition: an arrhythmia caused by abnormal electrical tachycardia listed above, vomiting, acid re ux, rashes,
signals in the lower chambers of the heart (ventricles). light-headedness, severe drop in blood pressure and
During ventricular tachycardia, abnormal electrical extreme fatigue.
signals in the ventricles cause the heart to beat faster
than normal and out of sync with the upper chambers. There is no cure for dysautonomia. I am being treated
When this happens, the heart usually is not able to pump based on my symptoms.
enough blood to your body and the heart does not have Interesting fact: this syndrome a ects multiple organs,
time to ll properly.
and for me it all comes at the same time. Typically, it
Symptoms that I su er from: fainting, light-headedness, starts with tachycardia, followed by a severe drop in blood
palpitations, a feeling of being choked and chest pains. pressure, then vomiting and acid re ux and lastly extreme
fatigue. Most patients take years to get diagnosed due to
How I am being treated for this: medication. lack of awareness regarding this syndrome.

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