Update on my passing out

Here's the original post: http://www.obesityhelp.com/group/VSGM/discussion/4501470/I-p assed-out-twice-today-and-went-to-the-ER/

I  had a visit with my primary as well as spoke with the doctor who assisted during my sleeve procedure.

Both came to the same conclusion Vasovagal Response http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasovagal_response

My primary thought it was a combination of things that caused it. e.g. Not having a day off in three weeks (away for a work project), The stress of seeing my friend about to be taken to the hospital. Dehydration (compounded with alcohol).

His suggestion was that I should have a Stress test and a Echo to rule out any issues with my heart.

I had the Echo and the stress test this morning. Cardiologist said that the stress test was normal nothing to be concerned about. He did say something interesting about the echo.

He noted that it does show some changes from my previous echo consistent with someone who was morbidly obese and lost a significant amount of weight. He said the Heart muscle is still a little bit thicken and enlarged in the chambers. He said it does take quite some time for that to reduce and eventually it will. He did go on to say that my heart is good and strong and doing well.

None of the doctors thought it was a Hypoglycemic reaction.

Hopefully it's past me now.

So glad you got this checked out Mikey and that you are ok. Interesting about the echo test. It stands to reason that our hearts had to buff up as they had to work harder.

Take care of yourself!    Diane

Glad you figured it out!  I have a very strong vasovagal response.  I had a tilt table test and was up for less than 20 seconds before the response triggered and I passed out.  It sucked.  They said I was the fastest patient they ever had the response trigger in.  Yikes.

I have to stay well hydrated, especially in the colder months or I get lightheaded and dizzy.  But it's good to know it was nothing serious in me.  Hopefully all your further tests come out ok.  

What's involved with a tilt table test?

I had to have two IV's placed - one in my hand/arm and the other in my groin. The groin IV monitors blood pressure, blood flow, etc. The hand/arm IV is to administer adrenaline to try and trigger the response in the event a vasovagal response cannot be triggered by tilting the table alone.

Anyhow, they placed both IVs... and I hated having the groin one placed. I laid flat on my back. My vein was really deep and hard for them to find, so it took 15 minutes or so of them poking around in there. ANd when they hit the vein, I could tell immediately because my heart jumped and I couldn't breathe. It felt like an elephant was sitting on my chest. I started to cry and gasp for air. Ugh. ANyway, once I calmed down, everything felt better. They let me lie flat for another 20 minutes for my vitals to stabalize for at least 15 before they started it. They said that was all pretty normal.

Then, they tilt the table so you are standing almost upright. It triggers your blood pressure to drop from the change in gravity. Our bodies are designed for our heart rate to pick up when our blood pressure drops. This maintains consciousness. Unfortunately, my body's heart rate drops when my blood pressure drops... thus the vasovagal response. I passed out within 20 seconds. It was almost instant lights-out. I woke up lying flat (they immediately put the table back down when you pass out) and felt like dog poop. They removed the IVs and I had to lie perfectly still and perfectly flat on my back for 6 hours after the procedure so my femoral artery could clot the IV spot shut. This wasn't fun either.

Anyhow, my symptoms that led me to getting the tilt table test were all of the symtoms in the wiki article except passing out. I felt dizzy, my vision narrowed, ringing in ears, nervous, couldn't speak (that was the scariest part), etc. It happened maybe 6 times and I was scared I was having strokes. BUT, luckily it was just the vasovagal response. My symptoms have largely disappeared as long as I stay hydrated, especially early in the day. Most of my "episodes" were early in my work day when I hadn't had a drop to drink and I was very stressed. Lesson learned.

Glad to hear your echo and stress tests were fine!

 Mikey, I'm glad you had the tests and that you don't have anything wrong with you.  Now you know how to take care of yourself.

I hope you're getting some time off to play!

Mikey, So glad that it wasn't too serious and nothing that a little R&R would fix. Interesting about the Echo and glad that the stress test was normal. Our bodies are amazing machines.

Gail

SO glad to hear that you figured it out and that it's not serious!

Lizanne

I am sorry I missed the first thread.  continued thoughts and prayers.

Good to hear that you are ok. You must learn to take it easy
enough to stay rested, nourished, and hydrated. (so must we all)
Sorry your job required you to work so long without a day off.
Hope that is not always the case.