Altitude - less sleepy and motivated

Low altitude sickness

wandering_daisy  member Registered: 01/11/06 Posts: 2742 Loc: California

Does anyone else get ill when returning to sea level from high altitude? I am lucky in that I aclimate quickly to altitudes of 10,00-14,000 feet but after every long trip, I am sick a day when I return to home at sea level. Plugged sinuses, headache. I am usually well rested and feeling great when I leave the trailhead and by the time I get home, ugh! I have tired not drinking beer or wine the day I return, staying on backpack food for a day - nothing seems to work. I fear it is the horrible air pollution down here in the lowlands. I am allergic to my home!

Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: wandering_daisy]

tahomus  member Registered: 04/01/06 Posts: 23 Loc: Tahoma, CA

wd- i live at 6200'- and when i visit the low lands, i feel very sleepy and headachey and unmotivated. my brother suggested that my body is used to thinner air- and when i go down in altitude, i super-saturate with o2; causing the malaise. eventually the excess red blood cells will die off- taxing your liver as well. fortunately i'm not usually at low altitude for more than a couple days. when i get home, i feel better.  your body will make more red blood cells to compensate for the lower o2 concentration at higher altitudes. i read a suggestion for dealing with this problem- donate blood right after a high altitude trip.  i have not tried this approach for my sea-level visits, since i am only down there a couple days, and only once a year or so. it would take some "homework" to find a blood donation center & schedule an appointment & etc. - not a convenient job for a 48 hour trip, already scheduled full. if you try the blood donation, let me know how it goes.

#101313 - 08/17/08 09:45 PM Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: wandering_daisy] Paul  member Registered: 09/30/02 Posts: 778 Loc: California Have you tried drinking a LOT of water on your way home and after you get there? This seems to help me. I don't get the sinus issues usually, but I do get the headache and malaise, and superhydrating seems to help.

Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: wandering_daisy]

dkramalc  member Registered: 09/19/03 Posts: 1070 Loc: California

Another idea to try, wd - I always feel like I retain more fluid for a few days after returning to lower elevations. I know that the tendency when getting to higher elevations is to be dehydrated, so maybe I'm just extrapolating, but how about trying things that tend to have a diuretic effect (sudafed, tea/coffee, grapefruit, melons - these are what I've read, anyway - etc. as well as generally low sodium intake for a few days)? I usually feel energized the first day I'm back from a high-altitude trip myself, though not on my most recent trip...maybe because I had too many undone things waiting for me, hmmm? <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif" alt="" /> I think the air is definitely cleaner up there, so allergies could also be the reason. I am always struck by the fact that my skin gets much clearer up there (no wayward zits like I usually have) even though I am not as clean in general.

My note: However, based on your observation, people in Hyderabad did not seem to have better skin than people in the plains. Perhaps, because of arid conditions at altitude. 

Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: wandering_daisy]

trailblazer  member Registered: 01/11/02 Posts: 788 Loc: Menlo Park, CA/Sierra Nevada

I almost always seem to get that lazy feeling when returning to low altitude. Like dk, I also seem to retain water for a day or two Unfortunately I don't have a solution, but drinking lots of water has seemed to help the few times I've drank a lot of water on returning (diuretics only seemed to make things worse). Although I can't help but return from a trip and reach for the beer before the water <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: wandering_daisy]

Rick_D  member Registered: 01/06/02 Posts: 2801 Loc: NorCal

I'm always sore, but that's to be expected <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" /> I too get fried airways and sinuses, and I've concluded it's because they get severely dried out in high altitude/low humidity and don't begin to heal until I get home to sea level. I'll use saline nasal spray in the mountains and back home to reduce the symptoms, but it only lessens the symptoms. The other thing is I have a hard time sleeping through the night when I get home, which seems counterintuitive considering the comfy bed and no bears skulking about the yard.

Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: midnightsun03]

tahomus  member Registered: 04/01/06 Posts: 23 Loc: Tahoma, CA

ms, i haven't tried it directly. one time, when i was towards the end of my initial bleed out for hemochromotosis, i did make a trip down to the flats. did i have the malaise? no. i came back up to what was my last bleed- then ended up very anemic for a year...since then, a genetic test shows no hemochromotosis. i actually feel better (more energy) when a little anemic, even at altitude.(my note: blood donation) good suggestion to try to donate right before the low-altitude trip. i'll see if i can schedule it before my next trip.

Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: wandering_daisy]

lori  member Registered: 01/22/08 Posts: 2801

I thought I was the only one with this problem - everyone else gets headaches at 10000+ feet, I get them when I get home. My sinuses also get impacted and painful. I think our bodies are trying to tell us we need to stay "home." (My note: This commentator gets sinus at low altitude) _________________________ "In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities. In the expert's mind there are few." Shunryu Suzuki

#101324 - 09/04/08 09:41 AM Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: wandering_daisy]
Trailrunner  member Registered: 01/05/02 Posts: 1835 Loc: Los Angeles	When I come back from a Sierra trip, even just a weekend, I feel like a million bucks during my first post trip workout. If anything, returning home after a trip is a mental let down. My line of work can be depressing, especially after waking up next to a pristine meadow the day before.

#101325 - 09/04/08 07:24 PM Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: wandering_daisy]
phat  Moderator Registered: 06/24/07 Posts: 4107 Loc: Alberta, Canada	I don't find I get it from altitude - but I do from allergies.. The nice thing about the mountains is I can go there during the worst allergy times for me anywhere and not suffer. coming home is a different story - and I find I tend to notice it when I get back. You take anything for allergies?

Re: Low altitude sickness [Re: lori]
OregonMouse  member Registered: 02/03/06 Posts: 6372 Loc: Gateway to Columbia Gorge	No, I think our bodies are trying to tell us that we should have stayed out in the mountains!

My Note: Perhaps, evolutionarily, we were more acclimatized to low oxygen!

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