Giving up on dreams?
So I'm an 18yr old highschool senior with a provisional diagnosis for POTS from a "poor man's tilt table test" done at my primary.
BACKGROUND:It took months (and by months I mean years of trying to figure out what's wrong with me) to even get this. I scheduled a consultation with an electrophysiologist that was months away, that whole process was a nightmare in and of itself, and then got a TTT app. For over a month after that. I have it in January, and by the poor man's ttt I assume it'll be positive.
Side note, I followed the gifted kid to burnout pipeline and I've finally gotten to the point where I can't just push myself anymore.
The issue here is I got the provisional diagnosis in August or September, and I immediately started doing all of the lifestyle changes like moving more, pushing fluids and electrolytes, consciously eating salty foods, all that stuff and I just kept getting worse.
I see a chiropractor and a physical therapist at a center that has a pots management program. I'm doing everything and more, including compression socks and abdominal compression, but it's gotten so bad that I stopped going to school all together and just had to unenroll because I can't geaduate in time and I have too many credits to qualify for their ged program. I'm interested in doing online courses to get the credits for a diploma but right now the brain fog is so bad I can't even do that.
My goal for 4+ years has been to graduate and get into a Norwegian school to get out of the US as soon as I can. I had to give up passions and friendships because of pots and whatever else is wrong with me but I refuse to give up on this. I don't know what to do and I don't know why the "treatment" for POTS doesn't help me. I keep thinking maybe it's a flare up and it'll become manageable but it's been months and I keep going downhill. I feel like I'm getting weaker and it's honestly terrifying me.
If anyone has any ideas or has experienced something similar I would love to hear about it and I'm sorry this is so long, thank you if you've read down to here <3