Any clue? Waking up puffy!!

M

MCunningham

Cathlete
Most mornings for the past two weeks (I'd say every morning except for 2 or 3), I've been waking up with swollen hands and a puffy face... It's not painful, but it's uncomfortable and annoying! I figured it might be that I was unknowingly taking in too much sodium. So this past week, I watched my sodium very carefully, and I STILL keep waking up in the morning with puffy hands and a puffy face.

I have NO idea what I am doing wrong here. This morning I woke up puffy again, even though I only ate fruit, oatmeal, and veggie salad (no dressing) all day yesterday on purpose to try and avoid all possible sources of sodium.

Argh! I am getting really frustrated because I'm not sure where this water retention is coming from!!! (I never get puffy around that time of the month or anything, and that ended last week anyway.)

I googled it and many people mentioned too much sodium intake and too little water (definitely not my problem... I regularly drink 60-80oz. of water). Others mentioned possible beginnings of arthritis, but a.) I'm 28 years old, and b.) it's not at all painful, just slightly uncomfortable because of my wedding ring and when I try to make a fist.

Anyone ever have this problem? Do you have any other suggestions that I'm not thinking of? I don't want to just take a diuretic every day. I really want to try to figure out what's causing it!

Help!

MC
 
Wonder if it coud be circulatory? Perhaps you should see your doctor?

From what I have read, swelling can be caused by many other issues besides sodium and water intake. Especially since you have been very careful for an entire week in what you are eating and drinking.
 
See a doctor. It may be something quite innocuous, or something more serious.

Is there any particular food that you've been eating on the days before you wake up puffy? I'm thinking maybe some kind of sensitivity or allergic reaction. (You could try an elimination diet for a few days---easy-to-digest, hypoallergenic foods like rice and greens--and see if that helps. Then add back in one suspicious food at a time and see what might be the culprit.
 
MC:

I have the same issue.. have been to the doc pretty frequently regarding other issues over the past few months and I have not been doing anything differently, try to watch my sodium intake... sometimes I wake up puffy, others (especially on a cold day) I wake up fine... I have heard that sometimes you retain a bit of water/fluids when your body is recovering from weight workers, etc.

I agree with Kathryn though... if this is a condition that is completely new to you and you have not done anything really different in your workout or daily routines, it might be something else and should be taken to your doctor... they can do easy blood tests for things that cause water retention. I would NOT recommend taking any OTC diruetics though... they are NOT healthy at all and make your heart race and gave me the jitters! continue to watch your salt intake and up your water even more for a few days and see what happens... if nothing by the end of the weekend, make an appointment :)

best of luck! and keep us posted!

ETA: sometimes different medications can do this to us as well! any new Rx's or vitamins/suppliments you have started taking recently?
 
You could also try dandelion root supplements - dandelion is a natural diuretic. If you found that that helps, then you would know it is a problem with water retention and not something else.

Someone close to me had a medical situation where her whole body blew up like a balloon a few years back. It was eventually very painful and she ended up in the hospital. They never discovered the cause. They put her on painkillers (that have now been taken off the market and class action lawsuits filed over) and major diuretics.

Now, at the time she was 325lbs and she has PCOS, so the doctors blamed everything on those two things, but really never came up with a reason that either of those two things would cause her to blow up like that. They told her they would not be able to discover the cause until she lost weight. Well, she had always tried to lose weight, of course, and it is harder with PCOS. She felt suicidal over that advice, feeling as if she would always be in pain and there was nothing she could do about it because it was impossible for her to lose weight.

Somehow, over time, she found it in herself to lose weight (although she did it in a very unhealthy way - she joined Weight Watchers, and used all her points on alcohol, having blackouts frequently). She eventually got down to about 150-175lbs. She gained some weight back, but her symptons subsided and she no longer had the swelling.

She also got pregnant, something that doctors had told her for years would be impossible unless she had lots of fertility drugs. She is now doing very well. Her weight is not really in a healthy range, but she gave birth only 6 months ago, she exercises regularly, she eats mostly well and her health is in good shape. I am very very proud of her.

Okay, that was a very long story, with only a small connection to the original post, but once I was on a roll, I couldn't figure out where to stop!
 
Just to cover the obvious:

Have you changed your pillow or sleeping position recently? (If I sleep on my stomach, my face is always puffy when I wake up.) Do your hands dangle off the bed while your sleep or do you sleep on your side where your arm might get constricted?

What color is your urine and have there been any changes in how often you urinate lately? For example, are you finding that you urinate more or less in the morning? Similarly, are you finding that you are as "regular" as you were before?

Are you doing STS or any other intense weight training program that might cause your muscles to retain water?

Inadequate protein and B1 can also cause swelling. Based on what you ate yesterday, it doesn't sound like you had much protein so that's another thought.

Also, asparagus is a natural diuretic.

Good luck!
 
could be your kidneys

You could have a kidney infection. Or it could be a number of other things: thyroid, lupus (any rash?), congestive heart failure (unlikely at your age but should be ruled out) Beware hidden salts such as in celery. Or it might be an allergen in your bedroom such as the soap you use to wash your linens or your shampoo. Do you bathe before bed? You don't have to tell me but pay attention to anything that may be different. I don't think its the amount of salt you are ingesting, I don't believe that its your diet. That just does not sound right at all. You could have a systemic infection causing this problem. Have you tried a probiotic? You can get those at the health food store. They generally help support the immune system which would in turn help you feel better. I urge you to visit a doctor to rule out the obvious scary possibilities. Let us know how it goes, I hope you feel better soon,

Alisha
 
I can't help you except to say that the exact same thing happened to me a month or two ago. My hands would be puffy, fingers swollen, etc. Often, I noticed my feet too. It would go away during the day. The only thing I could think of was increased protein without increased water intake. It went away and I haven't had the problem since. Are you on the pill?
 
You should see a doctor. My hands swelled when my blood pressure was uncontrolled. Or as previously mentioned it could be a kidney problem. Please go have it checked out.

I just remembered .... my son's lips and fingers/hands swelled and we found out that he had a sinus infection and a rare side effect is the swelling. He looked liked donald duck, it was scary ! But he went to an allergist and was treated for 3 months before he was able to get rid of it.
 
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Wow, now I'm really nervous instead of just annoyed.

I've never had blood pressure problems before, but they do run in my family... I've never had thyroid issues before, either, but my doctor once told me, "if you're a woman, you're likely to have thyroid issues at some point in your life."

I think I'll check this out with my doctor, then and rule out the serious causes.

Thank you all for your responses!!

MC
 
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