My Low Potassium and 2 Other Deadly Medical Mysteries
Following Dr. Green’s advice; I had been to the ER multiple times in the three-month gap between my second and third appointments. She had instructed us to go there every time the top number (systolic) of my blood pressure went over 200, or my bottom number (diastolic) went over 110. The thing was every time I was at the ER they would order blood work and my low potassium would force them to admit me to the hospital at least overnight to get me replenished.
Because my low potassium would be critically low and because it wouldn’t respond to oral potassium, they would usually have to admit me. I would either go to the ICU, critical care step-down unit, or a telemetry unit. That’s because potassium affects the heart and can be deadly if not immediately treated. It can cause fatal heart rhythms. A couple of times endangering my heart. Low potassium can be very serious if not properly addressed. It can cause fatal arrhythmias. A couple of times they caught me going into v-tach . I would feel like there were butterflies in my throat trying to rise up and the heart monitor would start going off like crazy. Then there would be the sounds of running footsteps and people racing into my room pulling a crash cart behind them.
