Question:
Dizzyness & Lite Headed
I am 3 1/2 yrs Post Op, and have experienced spells of Dizzyness & Light Headedness. I keep myself hydrated. This has nothing to do with getting up too quickly, I can be riding in a car or at the store and all of a sudden I become ill, with dizzyness and very lite headed. It's like dumping with out the vomiting. You just want to lay down till you get better. I have asked my doctor about this several time, but he has no idea. My blood test levels are good. I have gone long periods with out getting in any protein . And I think that this is the problem, when your not hungery it's hard to eat something. So can not getting in enough protein have the same effect as low blood sugar ?? — Boopster (posted on January 28, 2007)
January 28, 2007
it sounds to me like it could be related to your blood sugar. even if your
blood sugar is normal when you have a spell, it can happen when your sugar
drops fast even within normal ranges.( i have that problem). it sounds like
it could be your blood pressure too, have it checked regularly. buy you a
bp cuff and check it at home different times of the day and when you have a
spell, keep records and see if you see a pattern. anemia can also cause
those spells, when you say your blood tests are good are you including
H&H , platelets, RBC's, etc. ? heart problems can also cause dizziness
and light headedness. have you ever noticed an irregular heart beat, any
shortness of breath, or swelling in you legs and feet? whatever the
problem is it needs to be investigated, because it could be something
serious, although i certainly hope it's not. keep close track of when it
happens, exactly how you feel when it does happen and see if you notice any
patterns. most importantly be persistent with the doctors and insist that
they look more into things. hope this helps.. holly
— RNlvnCARSON
January 28, 2007
have your blood sugar checked as well as get your ears checked for vertigo
problems. It is possible to have issues with your inner ear that will cause
the symptoms you describe. My husband had problems for years until we went
to an ear specialist who diagnosed Meniere's Disease. He went to gastro's,
endocrinologists, and had all kinds of testing with no solutions until the
ear doctor. I am not a doctor but this is just a suggestion based on our
experience.
— oceanrayne
January 28, 2007
Thank You, holly and Alisa for your response... I will check those things
out.
Thanks Again,
Betty
— Boopster
January 28, 2007
Thank You, Holly and Alisa for your response... I will check those things
out.
Thanks Again,
Betty
— Boopster
January 28, 2007
Betty, don't mess around with protein loss, find ways to get it in, at
least some or most of it in. The thing about not paying attention to
protein, vitamins and minerals, is that once they cause damage, it is much
harder, or impossible to reverse the consequences. Don't take this
lightly. Now, regarding your condition, perhaps you need to see if it is
something not related at all to wls. Doctors tend to look for what they
know might be wrong, not for what is out of their "comfort
zones". A wls doctor is gonna check all the wls things that might go
wrong, a pcm will check primary things. What you need is a doctor that
will think with out and outside the box of what it might be. In the
meantime, fight to get your protein and water in, and take care of the body
that God gave you. When we did wls, it comes with a big responsibility.
Hang in there and have a long talk with your pcm. Best to you. Patricia P
— Patricia P
January 28, 2007
Please have your ferritin (iron stores) tested. I had the exact same
symptoms when my ferritin was low. My hemoglobin looks normal on labs,
that is because it was taking from the iron storage, which was quickly
becoming depleted. I needed in IV Iron infusion. It took so long to get a
diagnosis. This can happen to long term post-ops. Oral irons aren't
enough for some of us.
— Allison4wls
January 29, 2007
When I eat a cereal with too many simple carbohydrates, I have the same
problem. Or something with sugar. I bought some Boost and didn't check the
sugar in it and had the same problem. Pay attention to what you are eating
before it hits you. I think you will find a common thread.
— geneswife
January 29, 2007
This is exactly what my sister was feeling and she has never had wls or has
ever been a bigger size person unless she was pregnant, the drs did lots of
test and have found out she has P.O.T.S it is a heart issue and is genetic,
it has nothing to do with weight or wls at all as far as i know from all of
her drs, she finally got into a Dr in Toledo, Ohio that specializes in this
if you would want more information she went to Google and typed in
"Cardiac P.O.T.S" and it came up with lots of information, i hope
this helps. Please see your family dr my sister was almost in a car wreck
with her toddler when one of these episodes happened, its more of a stress
induced thing to. Please take care and can you post to let us know how your
doing..
God be with you
Paula
— japaad
January 29, 2007
hey girl i have been thinking about your situation and wanted to add 2
other things i thought about this morning on my way to work. have you had
your eyes checked? eye problems can cause dizziness. also inner ear
problems can cause the same symptoms. have all these things checked out and
take care of yourself. hope this helps holly P.S. i'm a nurse and i
guess that's why your question stuck in my head. nurses are always trying
to solve probelms and find the answers.
— RNlvnCARSON
January 30, 2007
I am going through this as well and found that my blood presure was runing
low as in 88 over 54 way to low which causes dizzyness, have yours checked,
they have put me on a pill to bring up my bloodpressure... just a thought
for you to check out..
— Flo
January 30, 2007
I'm wondering about Reactive Hypoglycemia. It is (sadly) prety common
among us after 2 yrs or so. Reactive to WHAT, I have no idea. I know I
just had an episode, and as usual, cannot connect it to anything I ate or
didn't before it. There is a growing collection in the Grad files on this
subject as we learn more about it. Look for it as stated or RHG.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Graduate-OSSG
— vitalady
January 30, 2007
Your story sounds oh so familiar. I had RNY bypass in November 2003. I
lost all of my weight and at times have gone "underweight"
despite my doing exactly what I was told. Since this past October (2006) I
have been having trouble with extreme hypoglycemia and it has not been
related to my diet or medications. I have been diagnosed (incorrectly) as
diabetic; but overall have had a trend of very low blood sugar. I have been
seen by at least four endocrinologists and a fifth major teaching hospital
in my area all of which had different opinions as to what the possible
cause could be; ultimately they all pointed the finger at me that I could
not possibly be doing the right things or this wouldn't happen. As the
repeated instances of hypoglycemia have occurred, the warning signs or
"symptoms" that would clue me to take action have virtually
disappeared. New Years' Eve my husband and I were traveling home from the
holidays when I slumped over in the passenger seat. (I haven't driven
because of this in months). I was awake and talking one minute, gone the
next. My blood sugar was 31. Thinking this to be an error, my husband
recalibrated the meter and took it again and it had gone DOWN to 28. We
checked it with a "back-up" meter I carry, and got the same
results. I was still able to open my eyes and talk to him but my vision was
blurred and I felt "drunk." My Primary Care Physician took
matters into his own hands when he saw how badly things were going and had
me seen by an endocrinologist familliar with post-op bypass patients with
these symptoms. Correct diagnosis: Hyperinsulinemic Hypoglycemia with
Nesidioblastosis after Gastric-Bypass Surgery. Further information on this
can be obtained from an article in the New England Journal of Medicine,
Dated July 21, 2005, Volume 353:249-254. Prior to this Nesidioblastosis
was known to occur in infants and young children (to my understanding). I
am currently being treated with an oral/liquid medication named Diazoxide
which in (way) larger doses is used to treat extremely high blood pressure
therefore it does not adversely affect my (already too low) blood pressure.
This surgery creates perpetual "dumping" which we try to control
by not eating things that have sugar, carbs., etc., but in bypassing part
of the small intestine, the foods we eat, even though they are correct and
healthy ones still enter the system much quicker than normal. In response
the pancreas has this "anticipation" of "more food is
coming" so your body produces more insulin in response to this. For
me, my body is producing so much insulin that I am virtually being
"flooded" every time I eat and I will have a short appropriate
spike in blood sugar, followed by a severe DIVE. There are specific tests a
skilled and knowledgeable (regarding gastric bypass patients)
endocrinologist can order if this is suspected. They are: 1) Morning
cortisone levels; 2) Check TSH; 3) CT scan of pancreas with IV contrast to
exclude a pancreatic mass; 4) if any question arises following tests #3, an
MRI. I most certainly hope you are not in this category and that your
problem can be treated easily...but if you do not have a blood sugar meter
I suggest you buy one and check your sugar levels one hour before and 2
hours after a meal and at bedtime. Pay particular attention to nightime --
be certain to have a healthy snack that combines perhaps a protein, a
healthy fat, and some type of complex carb. I have eaten a small (and I do
mean small) portion of plain oatmeal with a little of the Peter Pan (low
sugar/low carb) Peanut Butter (melted into it). I think that's my complex
carb/healthy fat/protein? It seems to help and my blood sugar does not take
a plunge during what I call "The Bewitching Hour" -- for me it's
between 4 and 5 a.m. Good luck and I hope this helps.
Yours,
Jo Ann
— PedalSteelGirl
January 31, 2007
Hi, at one of my WLS Post-op Group meetings, the Counselor who leads our
group brought up the information that it is common for those who have had
WLS to have slow heart beat rates and need pace makers. There are two
members of our small group who have them (both male), and I (female) am
awaiting to have one put in. So, you might get your heart beat monitored.
Best of luck. Barbara
— StarWish624
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