In the summer of 2009, my life started to take a turn, and things didn’t seem like they were going right. My heart started to feel funny; it would speed up super fast and I would get dizzy. I didn’t think much of it until I went to go get a physical to play sports my freshmen year of high school. When the doctor heard about the many episodes of syncope, I wasn’t cleared to play. This upset me because every teenager wants to play sports and be running around constantly with their friends. A couple weeks later I was at the first high school football game of the year and I passed out. I was taken my ambulance, and this is where it all started.
I was diagnosed with a billion things before we actually figured out what was wrong with me. We finally found a cardiologist that could help us some. He did tilt table and treadmill testing. I failed them miserably and got super sick with both of them. Time went on, and I kept getting worse and having many more problems. I started passing out a lot, being really weak and nauseous, and having all these other symptoms. My cardiologist at the time thought it may possibly be Dysautonomia but wasn’t sure. As I got sicker, he didn’t know what he was missing or how he could help me, so he sent me to Ohio to Dr. Grubb’s office. That’s when I was finally diagnosed with POTS/Dysautonomia. It felt so good to finally have a diagnosis and have doctors that understood me and knew what was going on.
When I saw Dr. Grubb’s Nurse Practioner, she handed me a brochure for DYNA. Of course, my face lit up. Seeing this brochure showed me that there were other people out there who knew what I was going through and that they would be able to understand me. I found out that there was an online forum where I was able to talk to other kids my age going through the same things as me- AMAZING! A couple months later I got on the forum. DYNA has taught me that I am not alone; there are many out there that understand you and know what you are going through. DYNA is a second family. This family doesn’t judge you. They help you, brighten your day, make you laugh, give you advice, and reassure you that you’re not alone. DYNA is also a great source for finding information on what Dysautonomia is, since not a lot of people have heard about it.
Of course being sick is not your dream, but being sick has taught me so much. It has taught me to be thankful for each day, to count my blessings, to not take things for granted and has also helped me to mature. I have learned that trusting in God is the best thing because He has a plan for my life. Before I may have complained about the littlest things in life, but now I know things could be worse. I thank God for what I have. Never give up on anything. Keep fighting and always have hope!
