Dizziness in the morning, severe

[TheBearguy8 58]

Sleeved 5/11/17. Having one of the best recovery experiences I've read anywhere. Obviously very lucky. I am a fitness instructor at a major health club chain, so 265-275 was even psychology more at work than every day life.

Highest weight 275

Pre-op week 255

Surgery day 248

Today 218.6

A few days ago 216 after many days of Zumba and spinning.

Woke up yesterday at 5am and barely made it to the bathroom to pee from dizziness, stumbled many times.

Woke up at 8am to teach 2 classes (normal breakfast) and barely made it through, was about to pass out any minute, taught the class mostly verbal, not moving much. Dipping or turning my head triggers it to get worse.

Returned, took a 2 hour nap, woke up completely normal. The rest of the day I functioned back to normal working. Protein Drink again, which I had stopped due to extreme expense.

Woke up this morning at 5am, pattern started over again, so I'm here for help.

The basics:

- my urine is unchanged in color, but generally darker all the time, still normal color.

- getting 90g of Protein a day, chicken, eggs, salmon, refried Beans

- taking Vitamins recommended in these forums

- not able to eat fruits much, or vegetables

- maybe a little low on liquids, tap Water has too much chlorine and tastes so bad I lean on G2, which saved me post surgery, and is the easiest to drink.

- after a workout Orange juice goes down easy and really helps.

A little worried over here. I can't lie in bed mornings waiting for it to pass.

I can't find a pattern, just looking for someone else's similar experience. I don't want to go to the emergency room when I feel better after a few hours. Big Co-pay.

Thanks guys

[Dimples58 167]

I'm scheduled for surgery next Wednesday, I will be having the Sleeve. Since the start of WLS program I've attended several support group classes at my healthcare facility. This is a common question that many patients asked. It's my understanding that many may experience dizziness and light headed the first year or so. If I were you I'll still check with your doctor for precaution and to rule out anything else that may be going on. Congrats on your success and good luck.

[Sweet as peaches 759]

You might be anemic. Plus it is hot as you already know. If necessary go to the er i know copay sucks but if it gets worse go.

[Sherrie Scharbrough 311]

You could be dehydrated!! This is a problem with WLS, if you don't get all of your fluids in you can become dizzy etc. Have you checked to see if your blood sugar is ok? When you mentioned that orange juice helped it could very well be a low blood sugar. I had major dizzyness early on plus heart palpatations big time. When I exercised it felt horrible. When I went into my PCP he was worried that it was my heart. He ordered a Stress test, first one was physical and the second test was ultra sound with medicine to stress my heart out. It was because of dehydration. I am 4 years out and I still struggle some with getting in my Water. Mostly because I am a big coffee drinker!! But...I put GENEPRO in my Espresso and it has 30grams of Protein in it. A WIN WIN for me!! It has 30grams of protein. Good Luck

[Berry78 4,261]

Water and electrolyes.. check out how much sodium, potassium, and magnesium you are receiving through your diet. It may take a bit of research, looking at the nutritional content of each of your foods.. (google helps, since potassium and magnesium usually aren't on the labels).

Check out your prescriptions.. maybe your needs have changed.

At the very least, you should put a call in to your primary care doctor so they can draw some labs and check things over...

[YeaMe 246]

I have had this problem frequently in the past - thankfully not so often now. Salt - that is what helped me. I would literally pour salt in my hand and eat it when it got really bad. Thankfully my blood pressure is low. I also started heavily salting my food and drinking lots of broth (not the low sodium kind). Fruits have high potassium and that is why orange juice works, as it is one of the highest in potassium. It worked better for me than Gatorade and the sugar in the juice helps too. I remember how scared I would get because I literally couldn't walk across the room. I do still heavily salt my food and get in about 120 oz of Water a day. Best of luck - I hope you find something that works for you.

[TheBearguy8 58]

Thanks everyone! Today I am dizzy all day in different degrees. My attempt to experiment with a variety of food and drink leading to 2,500 calorie day. Ugh. Previously 1650 was my max and I set my "Lose It" app to 1,500 a day as a goal. 90g Protein

[kimberb 323]

Call your surgeon.

[NikkiWorldJourney 70]

Might be Vertigo. Sounds like when I get it. Not diet related. Worse in the morning. You can go to your pcp to get it checked. They have a test they do to verify that's what it is. And the best cure is the epily maneuver. Watch a YouTube video on how to do it.

[Travelher 915]

Sounds like orthostatic hypotension. I've had it for months. Have your blood pressure checked. I know mine this morning was 88/58. So pretty low. I drink 100oz a day, so not Water. My doc said to increase salt and pump my legs before standing up. Mine has been pretty chronic. I get it all day long, when my blood pressure is really low I can get dizzy even sitting down.

it is worse in the mornings because you are going from lying down to standing. Do it in stages...sit first, pump your legs and then stand up.

im told it is very common in the first year post op and usual resolves by the end of year 2. Only your doctor can tell you for sure.

upping your calories will not make a lick of difference if it is orthostatic hypotension caused by blood pressure fluctuations. Go to your doctor before making any major changes.

Edited July 21, 2017 by Travelher

[James Marusek 5,244]

There are probably several potential causes for your condition - as others have said. These include:

A lack of B12 Vitamin.

Orthostatic or postural hypotension. https://www.merckmanuals.com/home/heart-and-blood-vessel-disorders/symptoms-of-heart-and-blood-vessel-disorders/dizziness-or-light-headedness-when-standing-up

Reactive hypoglycemia. https://www.ridgeviewmedical.org/services/bariatric-weight-loss/enewsletter-articles/reactive-hypoglycemia-postgastric-bypass

Vertigo.

Dehydration.

[JohnnyCakes 593]

so let me get this straight....

you just had bariatric weight loss surgery. you're losing massive amounts of weight. you're on severely restricted calories. you are engaging in extreme amounts of intense exercise. it's the middle of a hot summer in Florida. you admit not drinking enough Water or eating enough Protein. and you find yourself light-headed.

hmmmm...... whatever could it be?????

it's not hypoglycemia, it's not a B12 deficiency, it's not anemia, it's not hypotension, or vertigo, or anything else.

Occam's razor FTW here - you are (drum roll)........ OVER-DOING IT.

you aren't (and can't) take in enough calories to cover your basal metabolic rate plus the active calories you are using. your brain needs calories as much as your zumba-muscles do, and there just isn't enough there. that's why you are lightheaded. and that's why orange juice makes you feel better. that's liquid sugar and the glucose goes right to your brain.

don't over think this. you know you are doing too much. during these first few intense weight-loss months, you need to take it easy. there will be plenty of time to play gym-hero in the future when you have stopped losing and started taking in more calories.

Edited July 21, 2017 by JohnnyCakes

[Berry78 4,261]

JohnnyCakes does have a point. You're, what.. 10 weeks postop? Some gym time is probably ok, but you probably have bitten off more than you can chew at this point.

There is SOMETHING physically causing your issues.. but the cure may well rest partially in more REST. Talk to your doc, make a plan.

[JohnnyCakes 593]

eat more salt and see if you can eat some *casein* Protein right before bed (as opposed to whey). either a shake, or cottage cheese has a lot of casein.

casein, unlike whey, is absorbed slowly. it's best taken at night while sleeping, your muscles will absorb it better. the "slow-release" protein will stabilize your blood sugars over the course of the night and you should wake up feeling better.

but that's a minor detail. the bigger issue is what i said above, you are eating far too few calories and expending far too much. that's the equation you need to rectify.

[TheBearguy8 58]

5 hours ago, JohnnyCakes said:

Occam's razor FTW here - you are (drum roll)........ OVER-DOING IT.

you aren't (and can't) take in enough calories to cover your basal metabolic rate plus the active calories you are using. your brain needs calories as much as your zumba-muscles do, and there just isn't enough there. that's why you are lightheaded. and that's why orange juice makes you feel better. that's liquid sugar and the glucose goes right to your brain.

don't over think this. you know you are doing too much. during these first few intense weight-loss months, you need to take it easy. there will be plenty of time to play gym-hero in the future when you have stopped losing and started taking in more calories.

I'm gradually consuming more calories every day since working out - even too many - but no one agrees on what number I should be hitting. I was mostly 1200 calories, more than anyone I've read about in early stages, but now I'm at 1800, and I think that's too many - and some night eating of low sugar fudgsicles and no sugar italian ice is pushing the number. They obviously melt on the way down, and don't cause a restricted/full feeling. I have cut the number I consume in half compared to before surgery. I know it's not nutrition. It's keeping me sane. Honestly those calories on Orange juice was why I gave up juices orange/grape/cranberry for over 10 years before surgery.

I'm not convinced I'm over doing it. I'm the teacher - not the student in the class - I'm actually not on the bike nearly 1/3 the class in spinning, boot camp training involves nothing for the coach but blowing a whistle (yea a short demo), and zumba I gotta dance, I get it. We need to do some cardio. I hate gym cardio, love dancing and spinning.

BUT I must thank you for taking this time to answer, it's "food for thought" [see what I did there], and I will take the advice seriously. Obviously I have to consider something as obvious as what you said - that I was not considering before.