Grad School?

Okay, so although I am fortunate enough to have finished my undergrad degrees on-time and debt-free through earning scholarships, I am finding that my bachelor's degrees are fairly worthless in this economy, and even more worthless when my health limits me (no standing or sitting upright for long periods). So after several unsuccessful attempts to obtain a new and stable telecommute position, I have been doing a lot of soul searching. Communications is a very unstable field right now. Especially when you have a background in television and public relations (ultra-competitive, low-pay, first department to get cut in most companies, etc.) Throw my unstable health into the mix and it's pretty much a recipe for disaster. Although I believe I briefly obtained self-actualization as a talk-show host, I simply can't compete in that industry anymore. Not to mention I am now back to trying to meet my lowest level needs on Maslow's Hierarchy. I loved my job, but why did I love it so much? Not just because I let it define me (not a healthy thing to do) but more importantly because I was reaching people, providing information, helping them. And I was able to reach a fairly large audience even on local television. It was like the ultimate validation for a stranger to approach me in the grocery store and tell me they loved my latest show. But now if someone approaches me in a grocery store it is probably because I have dropped my keys on the ground or look as lost and disoriented as I feel.

At the end of the day, I still want to help people, somehow, someway. May sound crazy I realize, since most days I can barely help myself. But lately I have been contemplating going to grad school online to pursue a master's degree in counseling. It would be a two-year online program that would include 2 or 3 in person residencies and at least one 100-hour practicum and a recommended internship working with patients in a clinical or office environment. The catch is I'm not too confident about taking out the large loans it will take to finance this educational endeavor. With dysautonomia, nearly every big decision we make is a gamble. Especially the ones that require this level of long-term planning.

In a perfect world, I would be able to earn my master's degree and continue to work on my health with the hope that it will improve over the next two years so I can start a fulfilling career where I get to help people again (while sitting down of course). Maybe even get to help others suffering from chronic illnesses. I know several therapists who only work about 20 hours per week and still make a full-time salary because they are paid well and it is an in-demand profession right now. However, the risk I run by getting another degree is that it will become yet another useless piece of paper if my health deteriorates any further because then I will not be able to work at all. And not be able to repay the exorbitant student loan rates either. In a nutshell, I'm scared. Too scared to make such a huge and life-altering decision on my own. To tell you the truth I am never sure if I should be applying for disability or graduate school. Seems like I am semi-coherent every other day and those are my "good days." On those days, I tell myself I can do anything if I put my mind to it. But then reality sets in the next day when I can't get out of bed again. And this cycle continues to repeat with randomly striking symptoms. I do my best to avoid my triggers (standing, heat, caffeine, etc) but even then, symptoms seem to strike at random. Of course as we all know all too well this unpredictability is not really conducive to having any sort of "normal" life, so I have been trying to find ways to adapt whether it is changing my profession or changing my outlook.

It seems like this whole blog post reads like a convoluted pros and cons list. I realize that this whole grad school thing is ultimately up to me, but does anyone want to weigh in on the issue? Feels like a major gamble but I guess there is little reward without the risk. To those of you who have pursued or are currently pursuing higher education, is it worth it with chronic illness? Do you regret getting a degree or was it worth every penny? And perhaps most importantly, how have your lenders treated you when it comes to repaying those pesky student loans? I welcome your perspectives. And if you have any ideas of other things I can do with my existing communications degree, please let me know, I am open to any and all suggestions!

New Daily Persistent Headache Syndrome

Yesterday I saw the headache neurologist I have been waiting patiently in pain for over two months to see. He gave me about 15 minutes of his time, asked me a set of very cut and dried questions and cut off most of my answers before I could finish a complete sentence. Luckily my mom was with me and was able to tactfully yet forcefully interrupt him by saying "can I ask you a question?" and got a few questions answered that way. I know a lot of doctors suffer from what I will term "no bedside-manner syndrome" but this guy takes the cake. He was completely deficient in people skills. I was completely unsatisfied with my appointment I had waited so long for. And even more disappointed that my follow-up appointment is another seven weeks away. He wants me to chart my headache pain level on a scale of 1-4 (4 being debilitating pain) until my next appointment and then he will decide what medication to try me on. Gee, sure would have been nice if the office gal would have asked me to chart my symptoms over two months ago when I made my appointment and I would have had plenty of "data" for him and would not have to suffer for another 7 weeks without any medicine to offer relief.

I left his office feeling a little defeated and also feeling like this guy didn't even let me tell him half my symptoms. He told me to go home and google new daily persistent headache syndrome, he said he is almost positive that I have that, but wanted me to read up on it and let him know if my symptoms matched or not or if I disagreed with his diagnosis. Which I absolutely do. Not only are the daily persistent headaches characterized by "mild to moderate bilateral pain" (hello, mild to moderate pain doesn't even phase me, but the intense pain that literally gives me goosebumps and produces muscle knots the size of ping pong balls behind my temples certainly does) they are also not known to have a specific cause. I can pinpoint the day the headaches started and a triggering event. I'm sure it's no coincidence that I've had horrible headaches centered around my jaws since September of '07 after that fateful impacted wisdom teeth extraction when the oral surgeon informed me that I would probably end up with a bad case of TMJ after the surgery (my car accident 3 weeks later didn't help either). Of course, the surgeon neglected to inform me I would end up with dysautonomia, but who could have ever predicted that. It gives me the shudders whenever a friend or relative says they are going to get their wisdom teeth pulled. I wish I would have never, ever had mine out as I blame both my TMJ and POTS on that stupid surgery. I went in young and healthy, and came out a few hours later in the body of an 82-year old woman.

Unfortunately I think yesterday was a waste of an appointment. A bullshit diagnosis that my pre-med friends in college could have more accurately diagnosed. And even more unfortunately for me, that leaves me back with the same old TMJ diagnosis which is not only a very stubborn pain that's hard to knock out, it's also a condition most medical insurance companies will not cover at all. Most dental insurance companies will cover a little bit, typically $500 a year with a $5000 lifetime maximum. Which is hardly enough to cover the cost of one nightguard let alone more effective but costly treatments like botox or even surgery.

I am sure new daily persistent headache syndrome is a very real condition with very real sufferers. I just don't think I am one of them. I would be willing to bet money that that's one condition I don't even have. It almost seems futile to go to most doctors anymore when my POTS friends are so much smarter and offer better advice. I'm talking to you here, Claudia. Thanks to all my friends in the dysautonomia community for being both smart and supportive. Too bad all of us aren't doctors, we'd be a heck of a lot better at it than the ones practicing now.

Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome and Dysautonomia

Once upon a time when I was a wee toddler, I loved to stay up late and watch the Johnny Carson show. For those of you not old enough to remember, he was NBC's late night host prior to Jay Leno. I am told that sometimes I would be wide awake in my crib late at night. I have always been a nightowl. Which isn't necessarily a bad thing, just a part of who I am. My creative energy always seems to flow at night, and it is usually the time of day when I am most alert. Which worked to my advantage when I had to finish up all those homework assignments I procrastinated on or had an extracurricular deadline approaching that I didn't have enough daylight hours to devote to.

Things have been this way my whole life. I would feel alive and energetic at sleepovers when most of the other girls were starting to yawn. I would be a bear in the morning waking up for school and some of my most embarrassing moments happened when houseguests would overhear the absurd profanities I would yell in the morning for no particular reason, simply because it was morning and I always longed for more sleep. I seem to get the most refreshing, restorative sleep in the mornings or even into early afternoon if I happen to fall back asleep. This is the time of day my body likes to sleep. I fondly remember sleeping in through first and second period in high school and arriving late on some mornings. Thankfully this wasn't a problem for most of my teachers because I already held a 4.0 and academics were a breeze for me as I was not quite challenged enough at my small rural high school that only offered two advanced placement classes. In college, I scheduled my classes exclusively for afternoons and this schedule suited me to a tee. Sometimes being a nightowl got me in trouble with my mother or my first period teacher, but more often than not it never interfered with my life.

Since falling ill over three years ago however, I learned the true meaning of the word insomnia. I went for a period of four days without a wink of sleep, and shortly thereafter saw a sleep specialist and was prescribed several different sleep meds. The only one that worked was old fashioned ambien. And by worked I mean it would take me about two hours to fall asleep and I would sleep for about three or four hours a night. Which at the time, I was very thankful for. Just the fact that I was able to sleep at all was a miracle to me. During my waking hours, I experienced chronic resting tachycardia, shortness of breath, and sweaty palms all before receiving the POTS diagnosis.

My symptoms have improved tremendously since the beginning, but the ones I seem to be persistently left with are trouble sleeping and wooziness/lightheadedness. On rare occasion I sleep fairly well, and the following day my woozy spells are typically less frequent, less intense, and I am generally able to better cope with my symptoms when I have actually slept the night before. I am sure a lot of you can identify and empathize with my plight. It seems like a lot of us suffer from similar sleeping problems.

I have a pretty good sleep hygiene routine in place now, as I have a bedtime ritual that relaxes me and that my mind associates with sleep. I will take a warm shower, sometimes an epsom salt soak on my feet, put on my eye mask, arrange my pillows and try to get comfortable for slumber. Problem is, I usually struggle to fall asleep before about 3 am every night. It doesn't matter if I perform my bedtime routine at 10 pm or 2 am. I find that the later I get ready for bed, the faster I fall asleep. In order to be alert and functional the next day, I need to sleep until about 11 am or noon the next day. Not so great in a society where business operates on a 9-5 schedule. I have tried many times to change my natural schedule. Bright light therapy, chronotherapy, going to bed at different times to reset my body's circadian rhythm...nothing has worked. I always seem to revert back to the 3 am bedtime. It is so frustrating to try to fight it simply because that's society's expectation and the perception is that you're either lazy or undisciplined if you're not a morning person.

I have only seen a sleep doctor once and that was over 2 years ago. I opted out of the sleep study. My sleep specialist diagnosed me with both initiation and maintenance insomnia. However now I think I have something more like Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome, where my body's internal clock is simply off, as is the rest of my body due to dysautonomia. When I sleep a 3 am to 11 am schedule, some days I feel okay, dare I say, almost normal. Sure I still have to deal with some pesky POTS symptoms, but at least sufficient sleep helps me cope with them better.

I avoid early morning appointments like the plague and as far as employment I will not be taking any jobs that start at 8 or 9 am. Recently though, my sleep patterns have come under close scrutiny by family members who tell me I just need to wake up early everyday, tough it out and I will eventually start falling asleep at a normal time. Been there, tried that. Didn't work and I felt miserable 24/7 from chronic sleep deprivation. I am sick and tired of having to try to change my imperfect internal clock to suit the sensibilities of others. So what if I'm an extreme nightowl? My body seems to function better when I don't fight it. When dealing with a chronic illness, I say, whatever works, just go with it. The people criticizing your "abnormal" schedule don't have to live in your body. Chances are they are among the annoyingly perky morning people anyway and can't even begin to empathize with your experience.

DINET Needs Our Help!!!

If you haven't done so already, please read the Spring 2011 edition of DINET's quarterly newsletter. I have been a newsletter contributor since last year when they were seeking volunteer writers. Now, however, DINET (Dysautonomia Information Network) is seeking a new president in order to keep the organization afloat. I know so many brave, strong, articulate and amazing individuals who would be perfect for this position. Please do not be intimidated by the title, people of all backgrounds and experience levels are encouraged to apply. If you have any experience with dysautonomia and any interest in being a leader for DINET, I would strongly encourage you to apply. It is an honorary volunteer position and current president Michelle Sawicki has simply reached a point where she has too little time and energy to devote to the organization.

This is a wonderful organization and an important resource for all of us to refer doctors, friends and family to in order to help them gain understanding and awareness of this debilitating and complicated condition. In fact, DINET.org was the trusted website my electrophysiologist referred me to upon my diagnosis. Let's each do our part to keep it up and running.

Perfect Exercise Equipment for POTS

Although the Luxury Hypoxi L250 is touted as a cellulite-burning machine, something tells me it would also be the perfect piece of exercise equipment for a potsy to own. Especially if you're not able to tolerate exercise in an upright position it would serve to help stimulate circulation immensely. Of course, one could simply employ the old-fashioned method of lying on your back and riding an invisible bicycle in the air and probably achieve similar circulation-boosting benefits, but this piece of exercise equipment looks much cooler and actually, downright comfy. Even if I can't afford one, I wish my gym would at least get one of these.

http://www.thehypoxistudio.com/L250.htm

Decisions, Decisions

Although I was already sort of an indecisive person before getting sick, POTS has forced me to really consider every angle of every action, every decision I make very carefully. The most important thing I try to ask myself in making any crucial decision is "what's the worst that could happen?" Well, truth is, when dealing with a chronic illness like POTS, your health or even your life could be on the line if you make an unwise decision like going for a drive or going up on a ladder. It's like my electrophysiologist always says "POTS is not going to kill you unless you pass out while driving a car or climbing a ladder." Basically, POTS necessitates that I lead a careful life. Which I did before anyway, but the whole not driving long distances thing is pretty stifling. Especially when I am in the midst of looking for a new job and already have a few offers on the table. Even though one is a telecommute position, most employers require that you meet them in person in the office before they will hire you. Which poses a significant problem for me when the office is out of the area and I cannot drive very far without having to pull over and put my legs up.

Problem is, explaining a chronic and complicated medical condition to a potential employer will not score you any points. Quite the contrary in fact, it may influence their decision to look for someone else. Nobody wants to hire someone who they perceive as potentially unreliable. Especially if the position is somewhat demanding in terms of hours or performance. What was advertised as a half-time position and a source of supplementary income has now become a position that will consume at least ten hours a day at slave-labor, "sweat equity" independent contractor wages. Not sure if this is something I can rationally take on when it will be harder work than my last job for half the pay, except for the fact that they are offering me an impressive title and I am not working at all right now so something coming in is better than nothing coming in. I am worried about the strain that this job may put on my neck, shoulders and jaw being hunched over the computer for that many hours each day (5 days a week). So not sure I am ready to watch my health decline for a job that will not even pay benefits or into social security or unemployment for me. I guess that is the risk I run. The company is very interested in me. I have already invested ten hours of my own time completing a trial "day's work" for them and have had three phone interviews. Now they want to meet me in person (about an hour and a half drive away) to sign a contract...not sure I am ready to do this.

Meanwhile, a headhunter from a large local corporation contacted me about an 8-month contract position that pays VERY well. Much, much better than the other job and the work is tailor made for my skills and experience in television. The only catch is that travel may be required between the two sites (about 2 hours away from each other). Nowhere in the job description does it say that a valid driver's license is required, but I am assuming they will expect me to drive myself between the two sites which poses a huge problem for me. And with this job I would be going into the office everyday for 8-hour days which is a bit demanding. I would also have to relocate to be close enough to drive myself to work each day.

What to do, what to do. I do not appreciate how POTS has complicated my life. The only things my "normal" twenty-something friends have to take into consideration before accepting a job offer is how much they are getting paid or what benefits will be offered to them. Not whether or not they can physically handle sitting upright in a professional posture (a.k.a. feet off the desk and no lying on the floor with legs in the air) for 8 hours a day and still stay conscious or how to get themselves back and forth to work safely on a daily basis. In all honesty, I am not sure it is fair to any employer for me to even be working at all considering my daily bouts of brainfog and forgetfulness. And it is probably not fair to me to have to sit there trying to look and act professional as all the blood continues to rush away from my brain and I approach passing out. The thing is, I know how hard it is and how long it can take to get on disability and I do not have the luxury of waiting for an income right now. I feel like I have to at least try working again and if something happens to me on the job then so be it. That probably sounds a bit negative, I realize. But I feel like I have to try. I don't have anyone else to rely on but myself right now.

Any suggestions or advice? Which job would you go for? Sign the contract for the low-paying job that is telecommute, but long hours? Or brave going into an office everyday and having to wrangle transportation for the required travel (but for big pay)? Any rational answers are appreciated here. Trying to consider my options carefully once again before making any decisions, but running out of time as I am scheduled to sign the contract for the telecommute position at the end of next week. Help!

Makeup That's Good for You!

Wearing a bit of makeup can not only help boost your self-image and self esteem, it can, believe it or not, also be at least somewhat healthy for your skin. The last few years I have been a low-to-no-makeup kind of girl, but every now and then the dark circles under my eyes remind me that a little concealer would make me feel a lot better and help erase the signs of my illness from my face. When I worked as a television host in front of cameras and bright, unflattering lights, I was never caught without my makeup on. Now, however, it's a much different story. I am hardly ever caught with makeup on. I had forgotten how much I like wearing it, and enjoy playing around with colors.

Since I like to avoid anything with chemicals and heavy synthetics, I was in search of a makeup with more natural ingredients. Tarte cosmetics make the grade. I purchased Tarte's The Jewelry Box from Sephora this winter and have since enjoyed every single shade of eyeshadow, which applies easily and has a smooth finish. I also like their illuminizer and eyeliners. It is all great quality makeup, and best of all, nothing irritated my skin or eyes, so I can wear it without worrying about developing a case of red eyes or breaking out from the chemicals. My only complaint is that the lip gloss in the set is a bit sticky and I don't care for the lip gloss shades against my pale skin. However, overall this product was a great value, great quality, and reminded me how fun makeup (minus the chemicals) can truly be. The fact that Tarte cosmetics also contain a blend of free-radical fighting super fruits, vitamins, minerals and natural plant extracts is an added bonus.

The Effects of Deconditioning on Dysautonomia

Any POTS or Dysautonomia patient knows all too well that sometimes we have those days where we can't get out of bed no matter how hard we try or how well hydrated we are. Whether we're experiencing dangerous lightheadedness, syncope, fatigue, or pain, sometimes the bed is our only option. Even when things are going well with our health for an extended period, we may still experience a really bad day here and there. That's the unpredictable nature of POTS for you.

Personally, my symptoms have responded very well to weight-bearing exercise and recumbent cycling. When POTS first struck my senior year of college, I was in the best shape of my adult life. I was taking a strenuous ballet class twice a week, yoga three times a week, and walked all over the place all the time. So to all those misinformed people out there who think that POTS is simply a result of being out of shape, I say they're absolutely wrong. I know many POTS patients were great athletes before they fell ill. At my absolute sickest when I couldn't do much of anything, a well-meaning but stubborn and ignorant relative told me I was just out of shape, and that my "heart condition" would go away if I simply got in shape and exercised everyday. Of course his proposal sounded preposterous to me. I could hardly lift my head off the pillow most days let alone become a fitness guru. And his oversimplified explanation didn't account for why I got sick in the first place when I was in such great shape as an active college student.

Nonetheless, my electrophysiologist also urged me to join a gym even if it meant exercising for just five minutes at a time. Eventually (about a year after my diagnosis) I took his advice and began a careful exercise regime. Although I was doing fewer reps and lifting lighter weights than the senior citizens at the gym, I was feeling better after these brief workouts. I also purchased a recumbent exercise bike for home use and between riding that 3 or 4 times a week in conjunction with the weights at the gym 2 or 3 times a week. Between these two activities I was feeling a lot better and able to accomplish a lot more in a day than I had previously been able to. I also experienced far fewer woozy spells. In fact they were almost gone. However, if I went off track and missed a few days of exercise, the woozy spells returned and I felt potsy again. This tells me that consistent (but not strenuous) exercise is the key to a more normal life, at least for me.

After a few months of getting into a good exercise groove, I started a full-time job that sucked up all my time and energy. My whole day revolved around my job and there was no time left for exercise. Although I enjoyed and needed this job, it had clearly impacted my health in a negative way. Sitting upright at my computer desk all day with my hand glued to the mouse was not doing anything to improve my strength or circulation, in fact, the excessive and prolonged inactivity was diminishing it. The woozy spells were back with a vengeance upon standing, my feet were always icy cold, and I was experiencing sudden and intense bouts of weakness where I couldn't do anything but lay there. It may be a blessing in disguise that I lost my job when the company downsized by 50%. Even though I was telecommuting (about as ideal as it gets for someone with a chronic illness), my body could not handle 40-50 hours a week. I didn't even have that many good hours to spare in a week. Although the layoff came as a total unwelcome surprise to me initially, I am now realizing that I was putting my body through hell just to be working. Of course I do not have the luxury of simply not working to focus on my health (I wish I did) as I need the income, but ideally it will be something that pays better than my last job and it will only be part time (I hope).

Since losing my job I have been in a bit of a funk, mainly because my job was basically my whole life since November up until last week, so I am feeling a bit empty inside. I have been lounging around more than I should be, staying in bed longer to try to get sleep that doesn't come, and feel too tired and sluggish to exercise. Yet I know I need to exercise again because it will give me strength and energy and should markedly improve my symptoms as it did the last time. Since I have been spending more time laying down lately, my symptoms have gotten worse. I believe that in order to feel better, I have to keep moving, constantly stimulating my circulation particularly in the legs and I will not be able to go extended periods (in my case about 4 months) without exercising ever again.

For a more comprehensive look at what prolonged bedrest can do to the body even in healthy individuals, please check out this link. Whether you agree or disagree with the bedrest philosophy, it is interesting to consider how your own body responds to bedrest, and conversely, how it responds to exercise.

Atlas Orthogonal Chiropractic: Does It Work?

Although I am a perpetual skeptic, and I openly admit that I don't entirely understand the science behind it, chiropractic adjustments have worked wonders for me. Particularly for my excruciatingly painful TMJ headaches. Following my car accident, I completed 4 long months of physical therapy and experienced little to no pain relief but a slightly improved range of motion. I also endured several massages, some of which offered temporary (lasting a few hours) relief and muscle relaxation, others which left me in worse pain than I had started with. I even completed a few months of bi-weekly acupuncture treatments which helped significantly, but the effects only lasted a day or two. About the only thing I didn't try during that period was chiropractic care, and I'm not really sure why. No one had suggested it yet. But I sure wish they would have.

About a year after my accident and I was still suffering from chronic, intense daily headaches (even after being fitted for and wearing my first custom mouthguard or 'therapeutic jaw splint' as they called it, on a daily basis). I simply couldn't stand the pain anymore. I had tried just about every over-the-counter pain relief method known to man, heat, ice, and even several prescription narcotic pain meds, and none of these offered even momentary relief. I was beginning to think that life was simply going to be filled with chronic and debilitating pain, which was a disturbing, discouraging, and painful realization for me. Everyone told me TMJ pain was among the hardest to extinguish in the human body, as the temporomandibular joint is constantly at work and never rests completely (it is at work when talking, eating, and even breathing). Basically, jaw joints never get a break. I consumed an exclusively liquid diet, wore my mouthguard day and night as instructed, and refrained from talking, chewing, singing--basically everything I previously enjoyed. At that point in time I would have been completely satisfied with even a slight improvement in the intensity of the pain.

One day a coworker recommended her chiropractor to me. She said he used a quick (2-3 seconds) and painless method called the atlas adjustment. I had never heard of the atlas before and wondered what it was and what adjusting it could do for my headaches. So I figured why not give it a try, it couldn't have made things any worse. At the same time, I was afraid that if this didn't work, I might be all out of options and therefore be sentenced to a miserable life of pain. Luckily, that was not the case. My car insurance agreed to cover my chiropractic care until my benefits ran out. I had a few x-rays taken of my head and neck and some manual measurements performed by the chiropractor. He then determined the appropriate settings on the machine to adjust my atlas to. The atlas is the uppermost vertebra of the spine, also known as C1. The heavy human head essentially rests upon that tiny vertebra and if you have have ever been in a car accident of any kind or sustained any kind of fall or physical injury, then chances are your atlas may be off kilter. If it is off by even the slightest bit, a number of serious health and pain conditions may result. My chiropractor seemed to think that if he could get my atlas securely back into place (turns out mine was quite far off) that it would alleviate some of the pressure and pain in my neck, and encourage my jaw to also fall back into proper alignment. I laid on my right side as a tiny needle-like instrument rested behind my left ear and vibrated gently for a few seconds, completely painlessly. For the first month or two, I had 2-3 of these adjustments a week. Then weened off to once a week, then once a month, which seems to keep my atlas in place. However, the past 6 months or so I had not been to the chiropractor at all due to a change in insurance, and once again the bad headaches began to recur.

Last week I suffered one that lasted 4 days before I finally decided that I had to go to the chiropractor whether I had to pay out of pocket or not. Thank goodness I did. This time, all it took was one adjustment, and about 20 minutes later my persistent headache pain started to ease off, and within an hour it was gone. I awoke the next morning with a completely pain-free neck and jaw for the first time in several months. And the relief lasted for 4 whole blissful days. Then I went to the grocery store. The checker bagged my groceries so heavy that I had a hard time just getting them from the cart into the car. My chiropractor does not advise any heavy lifting, especially in the first few days following an adjustment. Well, those heavy grocery bags did the trick and the next morning I woke up with my usual jaw headache. So although atlas orthogonal adjustments certainly do work, the effects don't always last, especially if you engage in any strenuous activity afterwards. So looks like I will be going back to my chiropractor as soon as the snow lifts. Even if I end up having to pay, it's well worth it to be pain-free.

Coconut Water Comparison and Review

For those of you who suffer from chronically low potassium like me and are sick and tired of synthetic sources like Gatorade, consider giving coconut water a try. It is nature's Gatorade, free of artificial colors, flavors, and excess sugar. My friend Nikki is into holistic nutrition and recommended it for me. She is one of those inherently smart individuals who is probably much smarter than my actual doctor and I hope to someday make her my nutritionist. So I trusted her opinion and gave it a try.

To my surprise, coconut water tastes good chilled and delivers an instant punch of potassium similar to the effects of V-8 juice. Although V-8 is still great, it is sometimes a bit too strong and tomato-ey for me to stomach when I am already feeling sick. So it is nice to have coconut water on hand as a back up. It agrees with me well and does not make me nauseous like Gatorade often does. It also contains A LOT more potassium, not to mention potassium from a natural source. It also contains other essential elements like phosphorus, magnesium and calcium, and of course, some sodium too which is great for most POTS patients.

There are currently two major brands of coconut water being sold and distributed in the U.S.: Zico and O.N.E. In terms of quality, price, nutrients, and even taste, they are both comparable and it is probably a matter of personal preference for most people. I picked up a few bottles of Zico first at my local Trader Joe's. My first sip was refreshingly reminiscent of a shot of Malibu Coconut Rum, which was nice considering drinking and dysautonomia don't exactly go hand in hand. So now I can drink coconut water to be reminded of a simpler time: that one blissful year between twenty-one and twenty-two before I got sick where I got to drink the occasional social Malibu and Coke without fear of health repercussions.

The one advantage O.N.E. has on Zico is better flavors. That's right: flavored coconut water. An instant trip to the tropics for your tastebuds available in three tantalizing flavors: pink guava, pineapple, and mango. These flavors also remind me of the tropical trio of Malibu Rums: Pineapple, Passion Fruit, and Mango. Of course, don't be confused, this is not a review of Malibu Rum, nor would I advocate drinking any kind of rum if you have dysautonomia. That would be very bad. Coconut water, however, is harmless and the health benefits are undeniable. The only downside I have discovered about coconut water is the price: 14 fluid ounces of Zico will run you about 2 bucks unless you are lucky enough to find it on sale somewhere and stock up.