naughty autonomic nervous system

i am very convinced that my autonomic nervous system has the personality and temperament of a two year old which is why i'm seriously considering giving it a name.  

just today i've already said the following. i have no idea what it wants from me?! it's decided that it's going to be pissed off no matter what i do. i think it's still sulking. it's just acting up. it of course being my naughty autonomic nervous system.   

anyways so-and-so had a nasty little temper tantrum Monday night (conveniently) while i was at work. on the cardiac floor. oh the irony. i was even wearing my new glasses. so rude. anyways not too long into my shift i started feeling really warm which progressed to getting really dizzy and then feeling like i was going to pass out. my heart rate was going 140-160. a little too fast. before i knew it i was in a wheelchair and headed to ER. 


ER was a ball of fun. the dizziness and tachycardia continued only to be joined by a temperature of 100.4, lots of nausea, numbness and tingling in my extremities, and some delightful chest pain. all that earned me some Zofran, a liter of fluids, and an admission for observation. so back up to the cardiac floor i went only now i was a patient. talk about déjà vu. Aaron joked that we were finally getting our impromptu date night in.

i have to say that I work with some amazing people. they seriously rock. if you absolutely have to be hospitalized i totally recommend having friends as your nurse (of course only if they are real nurses!) it makes for some great laughs.  

anywho my stay on the cardiac floor was short and sweet. i was kicked out the following afternoon after an echocardiogram showed that my heart was functioning perfectly. good news is i have a great heart bad news is i have a naughty autonomic nervous system. that was the culprit of the tachycardia, nausea, dizziness, and chest pain.  (last August is when i was diagnosed with neurocardiogenic syncope which is a type of dysautonomia) 

i restarted Lexapro to help my autonomic system calm the you-know-what down. hopefully it will make the temper tantrums less frequent and/or severe. one of the more hilarious moments was when my cardiologist was trying to figure out why i was not taking Lexapro anymore and i had to remind her it was one of the medications i stopped taking on my own last fall. oops. for the record i did tell her i stopped them. after the fact. i also got permission to take Metoprolol if my heart rate is greater than 110. just more tricks to make it behave.  

something clicked when my cardiologist said that these outbursts are just going to happen. this is going to become part of my normal. so i might as well embrace this crazy autonomic nervous system that so reminds me of a crazy, bratty two year old. the good news is i am the oldest of four and know a thing or two about (bratty) kids.  

you better have a game plan. i am all about appeasing my autonomic system. just drink more water. or drink less caffeine. eat crazy amounts of salt. take nasty salt pills. make sure to get enough sleep. definitely don't get stressed. go to the chiropractor. wear ted hoses. don't stand for too long. don't get too hot. avoid any triggers. work out. it's quite simple. 

they have a mind of their own. sometimes it really doesn't matter what I do or don't do. it's going to misbehave. just expect it and roll with it.   

they can go from one extreme to another instantly. one minute your fine and the next minute you feel like you're going to pass out. thankfully this isn't all the time. just sometimes. randomly. without warning. 

they create a new type of normal. I'm continuing to accept that some days my biggest accomplishment will be getting out of bed or showering. other days I am going to have to take a nap. or spend most of the day on the couch. it might mean not filling up my calendar or working a little less. it's okay. other days I will feel great and be able to do whatever i want. 

this naughty autonomic system of mine is going to make life... well interesting to say the least. that's what i keep telling myself as i'm stuck on the couch trying to find things to do.  

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i am now accepting suggestions for names for my autonomic system. i'm leaning towards Tommy but I'm sure I could be persuaded otherwise. the funnier the better. let's see what you've got!