Erin

Hi, my name is Erin and I’m 22 years old. My PoTS symptoms first began in 2019, and from there my health deteriorated very quickly.

I first noticed that my heart felt like it was constantly racing, and I was always dizzy and nauseous. This then led to awful chest pains, and I started collapsing, which resulted in me ending up in hospital every few weeks.

It took over a year for me to finally be diagnosed with PoTS, throughout that year I was repeatedly told by my GP that my symptoms were ‘just anxiety’, ‘nothing to worry about’ and ‘all in my head’. In 2020 I finally got to see a cardiologist who immediately reassured me that he knew exactly what was wrong with me and it certainly wasn’t anxiety! I had my tilt table test shortly after this, which confirmed I had PoTS after only a few minutes.

PoTS has massively affected my life and continues to do so daily, out of all of my conditions is the most disabling. It has caused me to miss out on my education, lose several jobs and affects my social life. Daily, I still deal with a multitude of symptoms including tachycardia, chest pain, pre syncope, temperature deregulation and more.

To anyone who is looking for guidance or currently seeking a diagnosis I would strongly encourage you to be persistent. You know your body better than anyone else and if there is something wrong don’t be afraid to speak up. I hope that individuals experiencing PoTS can get the care and diagnosis they deserve without having to be medically gaslit or dismissed for years. Raising awareness is so crucial so that this does not continue to happen others.