POTS

When Your Autonomic Nervous System Loses Stability

The Brain & Body Clinic – St. Petersburg, FL
Dr. Theo Berlingeri, DC

POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome) is not “just dizziness.”
It is not “just anxiety.”
It is not “just dehydration.”

POTS is an autonomic nervous system (ANS) disorder, where the body struggles to regulate blood flow, heart rate, and balance when moving from lying or sitting to standing.

Patients describe it like:

“I stand up and feel like I’m going to float away.”
“My heart races but I’m not anxious.”
“I feel extremely fatigued and wired at the same time.”
“My body doesn’t feel grounded.”
“Lightheaded, shaky, nauseous… it’s unpredictable.”

The truth is: POTS is a brainstem + autonomic regulation issue, and the upper cervical spine plays a major role in how the ANS functions.

Why the Upper Cervical Spine Is Critical in POTS

The atlas (C1) sits over the lower brainstem, where major autonomic centers live:

  • Heart rate regulation

  • Blood pressure stability

  • Sympathetic/parasympathetic balance

  • Vagal tone

  • Baroreceptors (blood pressure reflexes)

  • Vestibular autonomics (orientation → circulation)

If the atlas becomes misaligned, irritated, or unstable:

✔ Blood pressure regulation becomes inconsistent

Leading to dizziness or faintness when standing.

✔ The sympathetic system becomes overactive

Causing heart racing, shaking, overwhelm, or anxiety-like symptoms.

✔ Vagus nerve signals become disrupted

Affecting digestion, nausea, breathing, and grounding.

✔ Proprioceptive input becomes distorted

Making the world feel “off,” floaty, or unstable.

✔ Brainstem communication is stressed

Creating the hallmark POTS feeling of being ungrounded, unbalanced, and exhausted.

This is why so many POTS patients say their symptoms began after:

  • A concussion

  • Whiplash or a car accident

  • A fall

  • A viral illness

  • Chronic stress

  • A traumatic event

  • Long periods of screen or desk work

POTS is neurological — and the upper neck is deeply involved.

Understanding POTS Through the Brain–Body Lens

Most POTS patients experience a mismatch between sensory systems:

  • Heart rate

  • Blood pressure

  • Balance

  • Proprioception

  • Breathing

  • Vision

  • Inner ear

  • Neck input

If one of these systems is “off,” the others must work harder to compensate.
The result is autonomic overload.

Your brain is doing the best it can — it’s just exhausted.

How The Brain & Body Clinic Approaches POTS

Healing POTS requires stabilizing the autonomic nervous system, improving brainstem function, restoring proprioceptive accuracy, and reducing sympathetic overload.

Our method integrates:

  • Upper Cervical Chiropractic (Advanced Orthogonal)

  • Functional Neurology (vestibular + autonomic reflexes)

  • Applied Kinesiology (neuro-muscle testing)

  • TRT (Torque Release Technique)

  • NET (Neuro Emotional Technique)

  • Postural and sensory integration strategies

Let’s break it down.

Upper Cervical Chiropractic (Advanced Orthogonal): Resetting the ANS at Its Source

The atlas correction is gentle and non-invasive — no cracking or twisting.

Why is it so important for POTS?

  • Reduces brainstem irritation

  • Improves blood flow to and from the head

  • Balances sympathetic/parasympathetic output

  • Enhances vagus nerve communication

  • Restores proprioceptive accuracy

  • Calms dizziness and lightheadedness

  • Improves grounding and stability

Many POTS patients describe the correction as if someone “turned the lights back on” in their nervous system.

👉 https://www.drtheochiropractic.com/upper-cervical

Functional Neurology: Stabilizing the Autonomic Loops

We evaluate the systems that directly affect POTS:

  • Vestibular-autonomic reflexes

  • Eye movement + balance integration

  • Proprioception from the neck and body

  • Cranial nerve function

  • Sympathetic triggers

  • Vagal tone

  • Postural reflexes

This shows us why your autonomic system isn’t regulating properly — and how to rebuild stability.

Applied Kinesiology for Stress, Muscles & Circulation

AK helps identify:

  • Muscle inhibition patterns

  • Breathing mechanics issues

  • Jaw/cranial tension affecting the vagus nerve

  • Neck coordination affecting blood pressure regulation

  • Emotional or limbic overload

Correcting these improves grounding + circulation.

👉 https://www.drtheochiropractic.com/applied-kinesiology

TRT (Torque Release Technique): Calming the “Fight-or-Flight” Loop

POTS often includes:

  • Racing heart

  • Wired-but-tired feeling

  • Overreactive stress response

TRT helps regulate the spinal cord tension patterns driving sympathetic overload.

👉 https://www.drtheochiropractic.com/torque-release-technique

NET (Neuro Emotional Technique)

Many POTS patients have a history of:

  • Trauma

  • Chronic stress

  • Emotional overwhelm

  • Anxiety after illness

  • Post-concussive emotional patterns

NET helps release the emotional–neurological stress loops that can exacerbate POTS.

👉 https://www.drtheochiropractic.com/net

Signs Your POTS Is Upper Cervical or Brainstem-Driven

You may be in the right place if you experience:

  • POTS + neck pain

  • POTS + dizziness or vertigo

  • POTS after a car accident

  • POTS after a viral illness

  • POTS after a concussion

  • Difficulty standing for long periods

  • Faintness with heat

  • “Floating” or ungrounded sensations

  • Visual overstimulation

  • Chronic fatigue + wiredness

  • Temperature sensitivity

These patterns strongly indicate atlas involvement.

Why POTS Patients Choose The Brain & Body Clinic

✔ One of the only Advanced Orthogonal doctors in St. Pete
✔ A neurology-based, autonomic-focused approach
✔ Emphasis on restoring stability + grounding
✔ Gentle, precise adjustments
✔ Integration of emotional, structural, and sensory systems
✔ Ideal for complex, chronic conditions

This is where people come when they’re tired of being dismissed, misdiagnosed, or told it’s “just anxiety.”

You Deserve a Nervous System That Feels Safe Again

POTS can feel overwhelming — but your body is not broken.
It’s simply dysregulated.

Let’s help your system find balance, grounding, and stability.

👉 Book Your First Visit
https://www.drtheochiropractic.com/contact

👉 Explore More Brain–Body Services
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