Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome in New Braunfels
Take Control of POTS Symptoms with Specialized Physical Therapy in New Braunfels, TX
Living with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) can make everyday activities feel unexpectedly difficult. Standing up, walking across a room, exercising, or simply getting through the day may trigger dizziness, rapid heart rate, fatigue, weakness, brain fog, or a feeling that your entire system is overwhelmed. While compression garments, increased fluids and salt, medications, and lifestyle modifications can provide important symptom support, many people continue to struggle with symptoms despite doing everything they have been told to do.
At FeelFit Physical Therapy in New Braunfels, TX, we take a different approach. We look beyond symptom management to identify physical and movement-related factors that may be contributing to your experience. For many of the people we treat, this means addressing a missing piece of the puzzle that is often overlooked in conventional POTS management.
Understanding POTS and Its Impact on Your Body
Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) causes an abnormal increase in heart rate when moving to an upright position, often affecting energy, mobility, exercise tolerance, and daily life.
Common POTS symptoms may include:
- Dizziness or lightheadedness when standing
- Rapid or pounding heartbeat
- Exercise intolerance
- Persistent or severe fatigue
- Brain fog and difficulty concentrating
- Weakness or shakiness
- Headaches
- Shortness of breath
- Temperature regulation difficulties
- Feeling worse after prolonged standing
POTS can affect people differently, and symptoms may fluctuate from day to day. Some individuals have relatively manageable symptoms, while others find that ordinary activities such as showering, standing in line, walking, or exercising can become exhausting.
Because POTS involves the autonomic nervous system, treatment often requires more than addressing one isolated symptom. Understanding how the nervous system, circulation, breathing, posture, movement, and musculoskeletal system interact can provide additional opportunities for improving function.
Why Physical Therapy Can Be an Important Part of POTS Care
Physical therapy can play an important role in helping individuals with POTS gradually improve movement, physical capacity, and tolerance to activity. Treatment is not about pushing through symptoms or simply exercising harder. Instead, the approach should be carefully matched to your current tolerance and progressed as your body adapts.
At FeelFit Physical Therapy, we evaluate how your body responds to movement and changes in position while looking for physical contributors that may be keeping your system in a guarded or inefficient state.
Your treatment may focus on:
- Gradual Activity Progression – Carefully structured exercise can help improve strength, conditioning, and tolerance to physical activity without overwhelming your system.
- Breathing Mechanics – Dysfunctional breathing patterns can influence pressure regulation, muscle tension, and autonomic responses. Improving breathing mechanics may help your body respond more efficiently to movement.
- Postural and Movement Assessment – We evaluate how your spine, neck, rib cage, pelvis, and extremities move together and whether restrictions or compensations may be affecting your overall function.
- Manual Therapy – When appropriate, hands-on techniques can address mobility restrictions and areas of excessive muscular guarding that may be contributing to inefficient movement.
- Neuromuscular Retraining – Specific movement strategies can help your body coordinate muscles and movement more effectively while reducing unnecessary guarding.
- Personalized Home Strategies – Your program is designed around your individual symptoms, tolerance, goals, and response to treatment rather than following a one-size-fits-all protocol.
The Missing Piece in POTS Treatment
Many people with POTS have already done the things they were told should help. They may use compression garments, carefully monitor fluids and salt intake, take prescribed medications, and modify their daily activities. These strategies can be valuable and may significantly reduce symptoms for some individuals.
But what happens when symptoms continue despite doing all of these things? This is where we believe there may be another piece worth evaluating.
For some people we treat, persistent symptoms may coexist with musculoskeletal restrictions, altered movement patterns, cervical or upper-body dysfunction, and protective muscular guarding. These factors can interact with the nervous system and may contribute to the way the body responds to movement and changes in position.
Rather than assuming that every symptom is simply something to manage, we look at the body as a connected system.
Our goal is to identify whether there are physical factors that have not yet been addressed and determine whether treating those factors can complement the other strategies already being used to manage POTS.
Addressing More Than the Symptoms
POTS is complex, and there is no single physical therapy approach that works for everyone. Some people may primarily need help rebuilding exercise tolerance. Others may have significant movement restrictions, breathing dysfunction, postural adaptations, or muscular guarding that deserve additional attention.
Our evaluation helps determine where your individual treatment should begin. When appropriate, we may examine the relationship between the cervical spine, thoracic spine, rib cage, breathing mechanics, posture, and movement patterns. We also consider how your symptoms respond to different positions and activities.
For the people we treat who have these contributing factors, addressing this overlooked component can make a meaningful difference in their ability to move, exercise, and participate in everyday life.
Dr. Jordan is extremely knowledgeable and relatable. He takes an individualized approach and is thorough in find the root causes of issues. He has been able to help me relieve issues that have existed for decades and also helped other members of my family and business. I trust Dr. Jordan.
Originally I visited Dr. Jordan for migraines and pain from Achilles tendinitis. He discovered that my body was in severe “fight or flight” mode. He has been so kind and patient working me through this. Chronic pain is lifting.and it has been so freeing to enter a new a more healthy relationship with my body. I’m 59 and I feel better than I have in 5 years.
What to Expect During Your POTS Physical Therapy Evaluation
Your first visit is designed to help us understand your individual presentation rather than simply treating the diagnosis written on a medical record.
Your evaluation may include:
- Postural Assessment – Examine how your body is positioned and how posture changes with movement.
- Movement Assessment – Identify restrictions, compensations, and inefficient movement patterns.
- Cervical and Thoracic Evaluation – Assess mobility and muscular function around the neck and upper back when clinically appropriate.
- Breathing Assessment – Evaluate breathing mechanics and coordination with movement.
- Strength and Conditioning Assessment – Determine your current physical capacity and exercise tolerance.
- Symptom Response – Identify how your symptoms change with different positions, movements, and levels of activity.
These findings help us develop a treatment plan based on what your body needs rather than applying the same protocol to every person with POTS.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can physical therapy help if I have already tried medication, compression, salt, and increased fluids?
Physical therapy may provide an additional component of care for people whose symptoms continue despite medical and lifestyle management. These strategies can remain an important part of your overall care. Our role is to evaluate whether physical, movement, breathing, or musculoskeletal factors may also be contributing to your symptoms and determine whether they can be addressed through therapy.
Why do you evaluate the neck and upper body when POTS involves the autonomic nervous system?
The autonomic nervous system interacts with multiple systems throughout the body. For some individuals, cervical, thoracic, breathing, postural, or muscular factors may contribute to altered movement and protective guarding. When clinically appropriate, evaluating these areas allows us to determine whether there are physical contributors that may be worth addressing as part of a broader treatment plan.
Does everyone with POTS have cervical instability?
No. POTS is a complex condition with different presentations, and cervical instability should not be assumed in every person with POTS. Our evaluation is intended to determine whether specific musculoskeletal or movement-related factors are present in your individual case and whether they are appropriate targets for physical therapy.
How long will it take to see improvement?
Every person responds differently. Your progress depends on your symptoms, activity tolerance, contributing factors, consistency with your treatment plan, and overall health. We focus on measurable, sustainable progress rather than promising a specific timeline.
Reclaim Your Ability to Move and Live With Greater Confidence
POTS can make you feel as though your body is working against you. When conventional strategies have helped but have not fully resolved the limitations you experience, it may be worth looking at what else could be contributing.
At FeelFit Physical Therapy, we look beyond the diagnosis to understand how your body moves, responds, and compensates. For the patients we treat, identifying and addressing this missing piece of the puzzle can open another path toward improved movement, activity tolerance, and quality of life.
You do not have to choose between medical management and physical therapy. Our goal is to provide an additional layer of individualized care that complements the strategies you are already using.
About The Author
Dr. Jordan Russell is a licensed physical therapist dedicated to helping patients with complex physical challenges regain movement and improve their quality of life. At FeelFit Physical Therapy in New Braunfels, Dr. Russell combines personalized assessment, hands-on clinical care, and progressive rehabilitation strategies to help patients better understand their bodies and work toward meaningful functional improvements.
Take the Next Step Toward Better POTS Management in New Braunfels, TX
If you are managing POTS but still feel like something is missing, a personalized physical therapy evaluation may help identify physical factors that have not yet been addressed.
Contact FeelFit Physical Therapy in New Braunfels, TX, to schedule a consultation and learn whether our approach may be appropriate for your individual needs.