The Symptoms Seemed to Fit

Dizzy when standing. A racing heart. Constant fatigue.
The diagnosis? POTS—Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome.

My patient followed all the usual advice: increase salt, drink more fluids, wear compression gear. But the symptoms didn’t go away. They lingered. Some even got worse. Something didn’t add up.

When the Diagnosis Isn’t the Final Answer

On paper, POTS made sense. He had the hallmark signs: lightheadedness, fatigue, intolerance to standing, a rapid heartbeat.

But my patient had no clear cause. No viral illness, no autoimmune condition, no known trigger. And while POTS can sometimes exist on its own, in his case, we started to wonder: What if something else was driving it?

The Overlap with Lyme Disease

That’s when we looked deeper—and asked about tick exposure, outdoor activity, and other symptoms he hadn’t initially mentioned.

He reported brain fog, poor sleep, mood changes, and flu-like symptoms that had been building for months before the POTS started.

We tested for Lyme disease.

And there it was—an answer that explained more than just his heart rate and dizziness.

Treating the Root, Not Just the Symptoms

We started treatment for Lyme disease. And then things began to shift. His energy improved. The lightheadedness faded. The brain fog lifted.

Over time, his POTS symptoms resolved—because we treated the infection that was driving them.

Don’t Stop at the First Diagnosis

Lyme disease can look like many things—POTS included.
In my practice, I’ve seen patients live with symptoms for months or even years before anyone asks the deeper questions.

If you or someone you know is struggling with unexplained POTS, chronic fatigue, brain fog, or other persistent symptoms: don’t stop at the first diagnosis. Keep asking. Keep digging.

Because sometimes the diagnosis isn’t wrong—it’s just not the whole story.

Related Articles:

What exactly is POTS?
POTS: An autonomic disorder in Lyme disease patients
POTS patients with brain fog have neurocognitive deficits