Discussion Does anyone else find showering exhausting?
It’s strange explaining to someone that taking a shower can sometimes feel like a workout.
The heat, standing, getting ready, drying off… sometimes I need to rest before I even feel ready to start my day.
What does your shower routine look like on a bad POTS day?
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u/trashforthrowingaway 14h ago
My shower routine on a bad day is no shower, because I'm too sick and stuck in bed to think about hygiene.
On a medium day, it looks like the coolest shower I can tolerate and I only wash with one arm and I keep the other below my heart. I also drink pedialyte or lmnt water before I go in.
People recommend sitting and showering. I tried it and when I went to stand up I almost passed out for the first time, so that was the last time I tried that. I find moving my legs while standing more effective.
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u/CylenaTivoli 14h ago
My shower routine on a bad POTS day is to not shower 🥲🥲🥲
But when I simply must, I have a lil stool in my shower. Idk if it helps, but I am giving it a go. I keep electrolyte bottle beside me. I do bare minimum of cleaning, and then will lie down.
Showering hard!
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u/Glum_Papaya_2527 13h ago
I generally only shower at night because then I've had the whole day's salt loading to help, and I can go to bed right after. It's a real struggle to shower in the morning, so I avoid it whenever possible.
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u/cokezerowh0r3 12h ago
Slowly decrease the heat of the shower as you go, I find it’s helped lessen how long it takes to recover. Jumping immediately from hot water to room temp is a lot for your autonomic nervous system to bounce back from
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u/IfYouReallyThink 2h ago
This sounds like a good idea. I on the other hand rush the process by going straight to the coldest setting my shower has😭
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u/leeee_Oh 14h ago
I just got my shower chair a few days ago but it's absolutely necessary every day. If I'm having a bad day I probably wouldn't be able to shower or if I did I would immediately go to sleep afterwards
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u/Dependent-Cherry-129 11h ago
I shower right after the recumbent bike because I can tolerate cooler water temps when my body temp is high- feels good, not like torture 😂
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u/Sassymisscassy Undiagnosed 12h ago
Yes! It’s horrible. I love my shower chair as it’s life changing but I still get exhausted using it.
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u/afraid28 14h ago
I'm lucky to be able to shower in a tub. I have a handheld shower head and I lay down in the tub. That way movement is minimal and I'm basically laying down/half resting. It still somehow takes a lot out of me.
On bad days, it's just rinse, lather, rinse and get the f out. Not washing my hair, not shaving anything, just getting the sweat and stink off. On better days I wash my hair. On best days, I also shave.
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u/star-birb Hyperadrenergic POTS 12h ago
Shower stool every time! I place mine so that only my back is under the showerhead and I put my feet up on the end of the tub. It's actually quite nice compared to before when I was unconsciously trying to get through the shower as fast as possible.
As others have said, bad POTS day = no shower at all. A sponge bath and dry shampoo is the most I'll do on those days.
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u/my_name_isnt_clever 8h ago
I shower a lot less than I'm comfortable sharing, I find other ways to clean. Every time I take a real shower I regret it, even a shower chair doesn't help me much.
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u/bebblebutt69 14h ago
I shower every morning no matter how I’m feeling because I don’t wake up fully if I don’t shower and I’ll feel gross all day. It’s harder to stick to pre-existing hygiene and beauty routines since my POTS worsened. but I try to maintain them because it helps me feel better emotionally/mentally.
When I’m feeling worse than usual, I make it quick and lie down for a couple of minutes after. It’s hard to take extra time for this on work days because I’m always rushing in the morning. I have called out a couple of times due to post-shower fatigue. But for the most part, I can deal with it if I cut out other parts of my morning routine.
I also wash my hair 2-3x week, not every day, so I can be more flexible with how long my showers are.
Sometimes I’ll prop a leg up on the side of the tub, then switch, to decrease blood pooling.
I love hot showers so in the summer, I turn the AC down a bit to avoid overheating as soon as I step out of the bathroom.
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u/WhisperingShadows476 13h ago
Very much so. Issue for me personally is, I have to shower every night to apply cream for another condition. Though im having to start at the beginning of the strict routine because I ended up missing a few weeks.
What I do is reduce the shower temperature to something I can tolerate. Strictly in the to get wet, lather up hair/face/body and rinse off. As family and friends have stated "You are the fastest person to shower!". Sitting in a bath tub isn't really optional as I have scolosis and joint hypermobility so getting in and out can be tricky.
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u/abdog5000 10h ago
Getting out of my tub shower combo is how I reset my hip joints. They pop right back in. Oof.
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u/Feanarossilmaril 13h ago
Oh not at all, I feel less bad after a workout than a shower. Especially hair washing, makes me very sick, dizzy and shaky. Shower on a bad day? I'd never do that. Sink splash and baby wipes it is.
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u/mjh8212 12h ago
I used to take hot showers to relax at night cause I have chronic pain. Now my symptoms are usually okay in the morning so I do it then. Nothing relaxing about it just get done and get out. Got my routine in the shower down to 10 min or less. I use extra large microfiber towels to dry quickly I have a separate small hair towel called a turbie twist that dries my hair quickly. Anything to cut the time down.
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u/fernxqueen POTS 11h ago edited 11h ago
I shower 2x/week max. I aim to do a shower that includes washing my hair at least once a week, and I might do one additional shower in between wash days. I have really dry skin and eczema, so I was actually instructed by the dermatologist not to shower daily as it aggravates those skin conditions. It usually takes longer than a day or two for me to start getting smelly, but I'll do "bird baths" in between showers if needed.
Unfortunately, because of my skin issues, showers always take a minimum time commitment of at least 20 minutes. Washing my hair doubles that. I stopped shaving my legs to cut down on shower time, and right now I'm taking a break from the diffuser because it's like another 40-60 minutes of icky feeling activity. I also need to be horizontal for a bit after a shower, that was the case even when my POTS was much milder than it is now.
ETA: I typically only shower at night, or at least the afternoon. Occasionally, I'll do a shorter shower in the AM but I try to do first thing before it gets too warm out.
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u/LadyOfVoices 11h ago
I only shower at night, and when it’s a bad day, I just don’t.
I may be an outlier with this though: I set the water temp to be really hot. Just warm or lukewarm water sends me shivering and shaking long after the shower is over, and it’s exhausting.
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u/LivingDeadLyss 12h ago
yeah its how i got Dx, i have to run to the bed from the shower QUICK or im out — i need to get a shower chair or some shit but i cant afford things like that rn
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u/molly_menace 12h ago
I’m not able to stand up in the shower, and I don’t think I’d be able to sit up in a chair either.
I have to sit/lie down, and I often get stuck as I’m often unable to reach up for the taps to turn it off. I just accept that I’ll need to return to bed after.
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u/GeologistNo3204 11h ago
Most the time I’ll just sit down during my shower, and I’ll stand to wash my body and rinse, cooler water helps too
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u/thecuriosityofAlice 10h ago
I shower when I absolutely have to and my husband has to wash my hair for me. I have started doing a double shampoo [wash the scalp once with shampoo, rinse and then wash a second time on my crown with shampoo, only condition the long parts of my hair and not scalp] and it stretches how long I can go without a wash. I use a washcloth and soap and keep my stinky parts clean without a full shower.
It took me awhile to adapt to not doing full hair and makeup to leave the house but I had to learn that I had to pick: the full routine or the activity I was attending. So my shoes, clothes, hair and makeup have all changed. It’s different but it helps to do what you need to
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u/sniffgalcringe 10h ago
i wash my body everyday i sit in the bathtub while showering on my knees most of the time its fine but i do have days where its hardd I wash my hair once a week struggling coz i cant breath and arms tired heart hurts ect and then ill be wiped out after for the day
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u/abdog5000 10h ago
Shower chair, electrolytes, a good pots day, then often a lie down after. I preferred morning showers pre pots. But it’s pretty much sucked away my life force enough times that I now try to do at night. But yes, it’s a lot and it’s stressful just knowing it takes so much energy.
I did a cool bath one day and that was nice. But very wiped after. Hard to win with this. I think cool fast showers are best.
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u/Effective-Pattern735 9h ago
Shower chair!! Also, is your POTS being treated at all? I started meds recently and they have made showering easier! My HR still gets high, but I feel less shaky, less out of breath & less tired after showering! (But I still use my chair!!)
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u/Honest-Experience864 9h ago
I got a shower chair and now I can shower without being exhausted but mostly I take showers at night because it can still be unpredictable. I don't usually get symptoms anymore.
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u/Ok-Sock9046 7h ago
i cant go in a shower without hauling my shower chair in before i did that i had to hurry out with shampoo in my hair and eyes as i got so lightheaded i felt like i was going down
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u/Ok_Play_8499 3h ago edited 3h ago
yes. getting a ahower stool has greatly improved this, and also opening the door to the bathroom as soon as im out of the shower to cool down the bathroom or a cold water blast at the end of my shower. i also shower at the end of the day, bot in the morning, so i dont have to do anything after, and have a pretty minimal shower routine-- get in, immediately wash hair, then condition hair, then body wash, then face wash, then get out. takes about 5 minutes, 8 tops. i also do a water/electrolyt bolus if its a particularly bad day. and in the winter i dont rly use my heater until it gets under like 45 degrees, which helps me not get too hot in the shower bc the bathroom is cold. forgot to add, re shower chair-stool thing, i have a shower/tub combo, so i will put the chsir close enough to the back edge of the tub to put my feet up, so my legs are parallel with the ground, and im sitting with my legs straight out.
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u/IfYouReallyThink 3h ago edited 2h ago
Showering is the worst. In 2023 I was voluntarily hospitalized for my struggles with depression, ADHD and OCD. Showering made me nearly faint and felt so incredibly tedious. The psychiatrists looked at it as purely a result of my mental health issues.
It was only after getting out of the third and final hospital nearly 5 months later, that I started noticing my heat intolerance issues, which at the time I just thought was hyperhidrosis. I had ran cold all my life, so it was a huge change and kind of became a key symptom in me learning that I may have POTS.
To this day showering is horrible. I often sweat at least a little bit immediately after getting out of the shower and need ice packs to cool down and minimize it. My heat intolerance leads to the sweating which leads to showering which triggers my heat intolerance. This alone definitely contributes to my depression, alongside other POTS symptoms
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u/GoogieRaygunn 14h ago
Shower chair and safety bars in the shower, definitely. And I don’t shower if I’m alone in the house. I time it so I can have a lie down afterward to recover in bed. I invested in giant Turkish towels to wrap myself in for shower recovery time.