A sports-mad woman who collapsed while out running and was feared to have suffered a heart attack now carries emergency salt supplies everywhere she goes to help manage a hidden condition.
Katie Phillips was just 21 when her life changed in an instant after she suddenly blacked out during a run at university.
The now 26-year-old, who had spent her life swimming, running and competing in athletics, was later diagnosed with vasovagal syncope and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS).
Both are a lifelong condition affecting heart rate and blood pressure which causes repeated fainting episodes.
Because of poor links between her nervous system and her heart, its rate can suddenly jump from below 60 beats per minute to nearly 200.
The diagnosis left her battling years of frightening symptoms, forcing her to step away from the sports she loved and questioning whether she would ever return.
“I was always super sporty – swimming, athletics, running, horses and horse archery anything I could get involved in,” Katie from Southend, Essex, told Need To Know.
“But when I collapsed, everything escalated so quickly.
“I was only 21 and it was terrifying.”
She was at university at the time and had been sent to A&E after visiting her GP with abnormal symptoms.
Medics weren’t sure if she had a blood clot in her lung or another condition.
She added: “After I had presented normally when they were running tests in A&E, and about to be discharged, the doctor looked at my blood test results and looked like he was panicking.
“He said it looked like I had either had a heart attack or was about to have one in the next 24 hours.
“It was really scary.
“I had always been sporty, always been super fit and well and was now faced with having to give it all up.”
What followed were years of uncertainty, with Katie suffering sudden changes in heart rate and regular fainting spells that disrupted her day-to-day life.
The condition left her unable to run or horse ride – activities that had once been a huge part of her life.
The emotional toll was just as hard as the physical setbacks.
Without sport, Katie said she began questioning what her future would look like.
Her recovery then took another devastating turn when she developed sepsis after having a heart monitor fitted – extending her time away from exercise even further.
But with specialist support, Katie gradually began to regain control of her condition.
Now, through careful management – including pacing herself, staying hydrated and maintaining a high-salt diet – she has been able to return to regular exercise.
She said: “I have a very high salt intake.
“My body can’t regulate temperature very well as a side effect of Vasovagal syncope and POTS and salt helps with that.
“I carry emergency sachets of salt around with me to consume if I start getting the shakes, a tell tale sign that my body is having to work harder to regulate its heart rate.”
“I sometimes get heart flutters which are terrifying as they can happen at any time”
“But I got lucky – I eventually got properly diagnosed.
“I’ve had three monitors over the years and they have helped us to understand the condition and live with it.”
Earlier this year, she completed the London Landmarks Half Marathon – a major milestone in her recovery.
Katie now hopes speaking out about her condition will encourage others to listen to their bodies and seek help if something feels wrong.
She said: “I think it’s really important to trust your instincts.
“It’s easy to dismiss things as stress or anxiety, but sometimes your body is trying to tell you something.
“And no matter how difficult things feel, there is always hope.”
