I had the tilt table test today. It wasn't as horrific as I'd heard it could be. All in all it was pretty innocuous, and I didn't have to have as much stuff strapped onto me as could have been strapped on. Just a mechanical blood pressure cuff on one arm and a manual on the other.
At first I just sat in the chair and she took my blood pressure (the person taking the test was one of the people who I saw at OHSU before, so I had at least met her before) for an initial reading. It was a bit low, but not abnormally so. She set the machine, and since it's a teaching hospital, she was talking through what was doing to the student in the room. Not sure if the student was at an intern level or what. Anyway, they set the machine at the beginning to take my blood pressure every minute. I just sat there, she asked me to try not to move, for a couple of minutes. She was asking me some questions about what symptoms I had - did I ever feel faint, get light-headed, sweaty, cold and clammy (yes, yes, yes and yes) have pins & needles anywhere, numbness anywhere (yes and yes) and a bunch of other questions (all yes). She told me to tell her if at any time I felt any of the symptoms, and while we were talking I had a couple, so I told her. Easy enough
Then she had me lay down on the table, no straps or anything, flat on my back. The blood pressure machine was going about every minute still. I had a couple of little symptoms but nothing big - I think my hands got tingly, stuff like that. She put the straps on - they were thick velcro straps, maybe 4" across, 4 of them. One went across just above my ankles, one across my thighs, one across my waist and one just under my arms and under where my bra lies. Laying on my back with the straps on, it wasn't bad at first. Then I got almost like an anxiety head rush, weird....so I told 'em. It was different from the stuff I normally get and since I was strapped down I thought maybe it was claustrophobia like the MRI? I don't know....anyway. I told her about it. She had me close my eyes after about maybe 10 minutes, and when I noticed anything I told her about it. Not much just laying there, but a couple little things. At some point the blood pressure machine had changed and was readings about every 3 minutes instead of every minute.
After maybe 15 minute more she had me open my eyes and she tilted the table almost all the way upright. When the table settled upright I had an overwhelming feeling of being off balance, like my equilibrium was off-kilter. It lasted for a couple of minutes. We waited for that to settle down, then got ready for phase two.
I was still leaning back, probably a 70' angle. She had me tuck my hands into the strap that was at my waist so even though they weren't strapped down, I couldn't move them. She had me close my eyes again and asked me to relax, and listen to the sounds and imagine myself on a beach (they had ocean wave stuff playing). She was doing the relaxation technique stuff, and I knew that she wanted me to relax so they could get a good reading, but just relax? **snort** yeah right....I can't just relax on demand. I tried, so of course I could feel that all my muscles were tense. She put the blood pressure machine back to reading at once a minute. Yay....I love having my blood pressure taken. (yes....full sarcasm there. I really hate it.)
I managed to get somewhat relaxed, and got pins and needles in my feet. Great....so I told her, and of course talking and the pins and needles meant that any relaxing was gone. So I had to re-relax, which took time. **focus on relaxing.....** I got all relaxed again, and got a big wave of nausea and a head rush. Again, said what happened, refocused... *sigh* Same thing again......lips went numb. Each time I could feel all the relaxing un-relaxing though. The person doing the test had the patience of a saint though, I do have to say. I felt like I was failing a test that I hadn't studied for enough....ok, my fingers are tingly, is that what they want? My toes are numb....is that good? Not a clue in her voice. She wanted me to keep my eyes closed, and just said "ok, that's great", and I could hear papers rustling and writing, then she'd say "Now relax and feel the warm sun...." so I'd know she wanted me to just relax and all I could feel was every muscle tightened up.
I finally got myself relaxed, I think I started thinking about something completely unrelated to anything going on, like work or something (so maybe not relaxed but I got my BRAIN away which let my body relax a bit) and I got another HUGE wave of nausea and light-headedness, and the odd squeezing feeling I get around my eyes. The lady doing the test said, "Ok that's good! We're done! You can open you're eyes."
She said that I've "become quite good at adapting" so that I don't faint. I said something about how it's very hard for me to relax (it is...I can't just relax on command, physically. I'm quite good at spending time playing but my body doesn't relax easily), and she said, "No, you CAN'T relax. If you relax, you'll faint so you've developed ways to get around that by not relaxing." I did ask her, I had to ask her, that it really isn't all in my mind, because so many doctors have told me it is, and she told me that no, it ISN'T. It's real. She actually said, "The tests are in, it's confirmed. It's NOT in your head. You're NOT making it up." She was very emphatic. Which made me feel good, but also made me tear up. And like a big dork, I've been crying on and off all day.
She's sending the tests to my doctor so he can look at them, and the next time I'm there we can look at the meds I'm taking and see if there's anything I can take for it. I'm not going to worry about the cost for ANY prescriptions until next year when I have to start paying for them. I'm also going to try and figure out how to stock up on as many as I can under this year's insurance because next year will be a lot more expensive.
I've felt off all day, really tired and wobbly, for lack of a better word. I want to stay home tomorrow. I'm not sure, quite honestly, if I want to stay home because I feel like being a hermit or because I don't feel good. I have plenty of time available, but I don't like calling in. I feel guilty calling in, I've gone in with pneumonia. I'll decide in the morning, I suppose.
So the good thing....I know for sure what's going on, and why I'm spacey! NO ONE can tell me I'm a hypochondriac again. Well they can, but not about this. ;)
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