Jyoti
Senior Member
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- 3,426
I was very interested in some of the information other members were using to manage their lives and illness via monitoring HRV. Because I don't have a ton of money, I thought I would start with the free phone-camera-measuring app Welltory, see what I could learn. Measuring for a couple of months I definitely saw a relationship emerge between when I was feeling reasonably well and when I was not. The numbers were higher when I felt better, lower when I was crashed.
The curious thing, though, was that my numbers were REALLY high most of the time. Different apps use different measures and some have their own composites, of which Welltory is one. So high, in fact, that I mistrusted the readings. Other PR members were discussing ranges from 12-60 ms while I was getting numbers above 100 with great frequency. Yes, when I was feeling better, but we are still talking about a 'better' that includes a maximum of 4 or 5 hours upright and incredible fatigue and other symptoms. Not the 'better' of an elite athlete.
So I finally got an Oura ring and I was very interested to see if my phone had been mis-measuring all along. No. I know I need to use it for more than a week to get useful data, but so far, my HRV numbers (which Oura measures overnight) have ranged mostly from from 160-240. And I have been less well than usual---a low moderate. My heart rate, on the other hand is quite low at night, averaging about 45 bpm.
Welltory is a snapshot, so anything could affect it, though I think trends are accessible through it. Oura, on the other hand, monitors all night long so it is a broader picture.
From what I understand, these readings I have gotten would indicate a very high level of parasympathetic dominance, but I feel wired/tired all the time. I can't sleep without tons of help. I have elevated levels of epinephrine supine and upright.
I also have ME/CFS, POTS, Neurally Mediated Syncope and SFN.
As an experiment, I tried a handful of days with absolutely no activity. No movement beyond the absolutely necessary. In general, I try to walk some everyday but I put that on hold. My HRV came down to 100 and my heart rate up to 48.
The only explanation that makes any sense to me so far is that it is constant over-reach. I found one article that suggested that overtraining if taken way too far can create higher HRV and lower heart rate until recovery is achieved. But there seems to be dearth of information about this.
Any thoughts, clues, stories, similarities or other experiences most welcome.
The curious thing, though, was that my numbers were REALLY high most of the time. Different apps use different measures and some have their own composites, of which Welltory is one. So high, in fact, that I mistrusted the readings. Other PR members were discussing ranges from 12-60 ms while I was getting numbers above 100 with great frequency. Yes, when I was feeling better, but we are still talking about a 'better' that includes a maximum of 4 or 5 hours upright and incredible fatigue and other symptoms. Not the 'better' of an elite athlete.
So I finally got an Oura ring and I was very interested to see if my phone had been mis-measuring all along. No. I know I need to use it for more than a week to get useful data, but so far, my HRV numbers (which Oura measures overnight) have ranged mostly from from 160-240. And I have been less well than usual---a low moderate. My heart rate, on the other hand is quite low at night, averaging about 45 bpm.
Welltory is a snapshot, so anything could affect it, though I think trends are accessible through it. Oura, on the other hand, monitors all night long so it is a broader picture.
From what I understand, these readings I have gotten would indicate a very high level of parasympathetic dominance, but I feel wired/tired all the time. I can't sleep without tons of help. I have elevated levels of epinephrine supine and upright.
I also have ME/CFS, POTS, Neurally Mediated Syncope and SFN.
As an experiment, I tried a handful of days with absolutely no activity. No movement beyond the absolutely necessary. In general, I try to walk some everyday but I put that on hold. My HRV came down to 100 and my heart rate up to 48.
The only explanation that makes any sense to me so far is that it is constant over-reach. I found one article that suggested that overtraining if taken way too far can create higher HRV and lower heart rate until recovery is achieved. But there seems to be dearth of information about this.
Any thoughts, clues, stories, similarities or other experiences most welcome.
If you went to a cardiologist, I would think they would be very excited to see how well you're doing!!