Lately, whenever you go from lying or sitting to standing, you get a little dizzy. You have to pause and close your eyes, maybe grab onto something solid, and wait a few seconds before taking off. Why do you get dizzy when you stand up now, and is it normal?
Well, medical experts agree that getting dizzy every time you stand up is categorically not normal, and it’s worth making an appointment with your doctor to investigate why it happens to you. They say the answer is likely something easy to fix, and anything impacting your daily functioning is worth the investigation. Adjusting your blood flow to your current activity level is one of those things our brain does all on its own that we don’t really appreciate fully until it goes wrong.
If that adjustment doesn’t happen efficiently, you can feel lightheaded, see spots, or feel as though you’re about to faint,” says Dr. Motisola Lewis, MD, internal medicine physician and founder of Lewis Medical NY. For women in their 30s, 40s, and 50s, dizziness upon standing can be a symptom of many different things.
In women in their 30s through 50s, I also think about heavy menstrual bleeding, hormonal transitions, and medications that can affect blood pressure or heart rate. Sometimes there is more than one contributing factor,” Lewis explains. It’s also important to distinguish between dizziness and vertigo so you can accurately describe your experience to your doctor.
Orthostatic hypotension is a drop in blood pressure with standing. Dehydration, medication side effects or interactions, blood sugar fluctuations, cardiovascular issues, and other medical conditions can also cause lightheadedness,” says Dr. Kim Bell, a doctor of physical therapy who specializes in dizziness, vertigo, balance problems, and fall prevention.
BPPV can cause momentary dizziness or spinning with position changes such as sitting up in bed or getting out of bed.” If you’ve made an appointment with your doctor to discuss your dizziness, ask yourself a few questions and log the answers for a week or two before you go. Pay attention to what the dizziness feels like, what movement or position triggers it, and how long it lasts, Bell says. But if it happens frequently, no, that’s not normal at all, Lewis and Bell agree.
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