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Why Does BP Drop When You Stand Up & How Do I Stop Getting Dizzy When I Stand Up?

Why Does BP Drop When You Stand Up?

Why Does BP Drop When You Stand Up?

Orthostatic hypotension is a symptom of reduced or inefficient autonomic inactivity which involves both sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems. In the symptom there is a fall in blood pressure when the person changes its posture from one position to another especially when the person is lying down and stands abruptly, it is seen the most.

The mechanism working behind static hypertension is the venous pooling of the blood. When the autonomic activity of the nerve gets affected, it reduces the innervation to the muscles of the blood vessels. The blood vessels especially veins get affected because they have lesser muscle tissue and the tone maintenance is very important. This leads to a collection of blood in the venous system of the body especially in the lower part of the body and the tone is inefficient to pump it back in the heart especially in standing position.

When the person is lying down the whole blood vessels of the body are at the same level and there is no venous pooling but when the same person stands, there is the effect of gravity working upon the blood in the veins of legs. It leads to a downward force on the blood due to its weight and it gets collected in the lower veins. There is an insufficient amount of blood reaching the right atrium of the heart, which leads to inefficient pumping of blood from the heart and ultimately leading to a falling in the blood pressure.

The systolic blood pressure value falls a little lesser than the fall in the value of diastolic blood pressure. This is because the venous pooling is responsible for lesser input on the right side of the heart as compared to the blood on the left side.

This fall of blood pressure also leads to the reduced blood supply in the upper areas of the body especially the brain. If the brain gets reduced blood supply and in turn gets lesser oxygen than the requirement, the brain starts to compromise its work which may produce a variety of symptoms. Giddiness or feeling dizzy is one of the prominent symptoms of orthostatic hypotension.

If the person is suffering from such a group of symptoms, he/ she should immediately consult a doctor for the medical advice as it could not be a single-time event and maybe some underlying pathology is working for it. Appropriate tests would reveal the cause and it would be easier to diagnose and treat it.

How Do I Stop Getting Dizzy When I Stand Up?

Drinking plenty of fluids, keeping the hydration levels adequate, limiting the physical activity, elevating the lower side of bed slanting upwards, slightly increasing the salt intake if there is no underlying medical condition like hypertension, eating a good fiber diet to avoid straining, etc. are few of the measures that can be taken at home to reduce the incidence of feeling dizzy while standing. Making the movements and change of postures from any posture to standing up should be made gradually and abrupt movements should be avoided. It would help in reducing such symptoms.(1)

Conclusion

The blood pressure falls below its normal level whenever the affected person changes his posture for standing because the blood gets collected in the veins of the lower body. This reduces the input to the right side of the heart and which in turn also decreases the input on the left side. Hence, blood pressure falls on both sides that are systolic as well as diastolic.

The person also feels dizzy because the reduced output from the heart is unable to meet the oxygen demand of the brain. This leads to a reduction in the brain functions and it clouds the consciousness of the person.

References:

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Team PainAssist
Team PainAssist
Written, Edited or Reviewed By: Team PainAssist, Pain Assist Inc. This article does not provide medical advice. See disclaimer
Last Modified On:May 5, 2020

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