You hop out of bed or stand up too quickly — and suddenly, the room tilts. Your vision blurs, maybe even goes dark for a second. Then, just as quickly, it passes. That lightheaded feeling can be unsettling, but it’s surprisingly common.
“Feeling dizzy when you stand up is pretty common,” says Isabel Nees, PA-C, physician assistant with Hartford HealthCare Medical Group. “Most of the time, it’s not dangerous. But sometimes, it can point to an underlying issue.” Here’s what might be going on.
That feeling’s called orthostatic hypotension
That lightheaded feeling has a medical name: orthostatic hypotension. “It happens when your blood pressure drops suddenly as you change positions,” says Nees. “Gravity pulls blood down toward your legs when you stand up, and if your body doesn’t adjust quickly enough, less blood makes it to your brain — which makes you dizzy.” >> Read more
