Tachycardia - on nortriptyline

[lougle]

I take 75mg of nortriptyline each night for migraine. Recently I've noticed my heart rate is high. It's always tended top the high side and I used to have really quite low BP, although it normalised a bit after having children.

I've recently got a phone that has an SpO2 monitor function. My resting HR is around 120bpm and today while sat in a tutorial, relaxed, it was 131bpm.

Could this be why I'm always so exhausted (other than the 13.5hr shifts and 3 children plus governor duties!) and quite often feel non-specifically 'unwell'? I often feel slightly faint/dizzy and going up two flights of stairs leaves me quite out of breath. My BMI is 21 or thereabouts, so not overweight.

Just a thought. Could you be anaemic?

Worth seeing your GP. I am not a medic so do not know of other causes (or the effect of medication you mention) but -could you have POTs - postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome? (tachycardia when sat up or standing-) What's your HR like laying down? If you HR is significantly lower when laying at rest to sitting or standing still it might be POTs - some of us are made that way. (Dodgy control mechanisms rather than any heart problem). I have POTS and at its mildest it is tiring as you mention, as well as causing difficulty standing (still) in queues, or thinking on your feet. More severe POTS can cause fainting on standing (or shortly after) or even difficulty getting out of bed at all. Since you have the equipment to check HR it might be worth checking/ruling it out. Lay down and relax for ages. Check HR. Then stand up staying completely still ( no jiggling) and monitor HR every few minutes (or get someone else to - for 15 minutes - if you can without feeling too faint ( I can't- I have to move or faint!) If the difference between laying at rest and standing at rest is greater than 30 I think it is (it might be 40) you may have some orthostatic difficulties. (It is normal to go up a bit on standing - mine will go up much more than that.) It is not a well known condition. A tilt table test is the diagnostic test, but fun to rule out anyway.