syndromeBeing able to stand for no more than three minutes, lie in bed 23 hours a day and pass out dozens of times a day: to most people it sounds like a real nightmare, but for 28-year-old Lyndsi Johnson it is reality. The American woman suffers from a severe form of a syndrome that she herself describes as ‘an allergy to gravity’.
The number of times Lyndsi Johnson stands up per day can be counted on one hand: the American woman only gets out of bed to shower and to eat. Lyndsi, who shares the course of her illness on social media, suffers from a severe form of ‘postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome’ (POTS). This is a condition in which the heart beats abnormally fast when transitioning from a lying to a standing position.
In the United States, approximately 500,000 people are said to suffer from the syndrome. The average age at which POTS develops is 20 years. The disease is more common in women. Treatment is successful in about 90 percent of patients. For example, the patient has to take in more salt and fluids, wear compression stockings, follow exercise therapy and take medication. In extreme cases, such as with Lyndsi, the patient is no longer able to perform daily activities.
Lyndsi experienced the first complaints in 2015. At the time, she had a lot of pain in her lower abdomen and back. The symptoms kept getting worse. For example, after a while Lyndsi vomited several times a day and fainted up to ten times. The woman consulted several doctors over the years, but they convinced her time and again that her fear of failure was causing the symptoms. Lyndsi was diagnosed with POTS in February 2022. “I was so grateful that I finally knew what was wrong with me so that I could be treated.”
Allergic to gravity
“I’m allergic to gravity,” Lyndsi describes her illness. Although she is now on medication, she still faints daily and can barely leave her home. Lyndsi is therefore largely dependent on her husband James (30). “I lie in bed all day, up to 23 hours a day, while he does everything for me.”
The twenty-something worked as a Marine in the past, but was forced to give up that job. She can no longer drive. “I really had to adapt to this new lifestyle,” says Lyndsi. “I used to be so active and now I have to lie down all day, but I’ve learned to accept it,” it sounds.
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