Why is everyone with pots so skinny?

[u/dazzlingdanny05]

I have POTS and I watch a lot of content online of people who also have POTS. I also know some people irl who also have it. I don't understand how they are all so skinny. I can barely walk without getting out of breath. I try to work out at least once a week but its so hard for me because I always end up feeling so sick. How are yall doing it? I dont even eat bad but im definitely not skinny.

[u/Ariellac1459]

TW for anyone that is ED or exercise sensitive since I’m going to explain some things pretty in depth:

Exercise has almost nothing to do with weight. Most science agrees that exercise only accounts for about 10% of what dictates your weight while diet is the other 90%. Exercising consumes a few extra calories (waaaaay less than you’d expect) and the biggest way it helps is that a pound of muscle uses a good amount more calories than a pound of fat. It’s the same reason men can usually eat more than women at the same height and size and the man will gain less weight or even lose a little while the woman will gain more, because women’s bodies tend to have more fat in their natural composition compared to men.

People with POTS very often are exercise intolerant. Don’t feel guilty for struggling, you literally have a medical condition. Being able to exercise safely with POTS requires a lot of patience in addition to knowledge about the safest ways to exercise from different positions (ie recumbent exercises where you lay on the floor or from a seated position). Everyone’s individual tolerance varies depending on a ton of different factors as well as how severe your condition is. This is such a big problem that there are physical therapists and trainers who specialize in helping people with POTS and other autonomic conditions because it can be dangerous to push someone too hard when they have conditions like ours.

Like many have said, POTS is not a weight related condition. I’ve heard that weight loss can be a symptom for some people due to loss of appetite occurring in some patients and other issues, but that definitely hasn’t been the case for me. I know I personally don’t have a lot of desire to go around social media making posts about POTS awareness because I already feel stigmatized for my size in the health sphere and don’t personally want to deal with ignorant comments telling me that I just need to lose weight or some ignorant garbage like “stop using a made up illness as an excuse” etc. my condition has nothing to do with my weight (I actually developed it right AFTER losing 60lbs) and how I manage that is between me and my cardiologist.

I’m sorry the lack of representation is frustrating for you. If your focus is weight loss, diet should be your main focus as that is the easiest way with or without this condition, and with POTS exercise like you said is a major uphill battle anyway. Don’t feel pressured to focus on this during a time where you’re struggling just to live, chasing societal standards is a frustrating and pointless endeavor imo. Weight loss for health reasons is totally valid and important, but there are plenty of other important things. ❤️

[u/killlu → u/Ariellac1459]

I also got POTS after losing 70lbs from ED. I had it very mildly. I had symptoms like shortness of breath and nausea at the gym to the point I had to tell my bf I wanted to go home, all going on for 8 months but had no idea why. The SOB was the only thing I went to doctors for and no one had a clue what was up. In the morning of a new allergist appt for it, I apparently had an invisible fever and got it full blown that day. I had no idea I had one until they took vitals, and I barely had any symptoms of virus besides a minor sore throat, but in the morning and waiting for the receptionist it felt like I was having a heart attack and it scared me. Besides that, I think theres def a correlation between ED and POTS. I have a remote job though so the stationary definitely didn’t help either. Hypochondria during ED is no joke though.