Managing POTS is a daily negotiation between what your body needs and what it will actually tolerate. A structured daily log takes the guesswork out of that negotiation by giving you clear data on what helps, what hurts, and what patterns keep repeating.
This template is designed to take less than five minutes per entry. It covers the metrics that matter most for POTS, without overwhelming you on the days when even standing up feels like a marathon.
Morning Vitals Check
Start your day with positional readings. This is the single most useful data point for POTS tracking.
- Resting heart rate (after lying down for 5+ minutes)
- Standing heart rate (at 1 minute and 5 minutes after standing)
- Heart rate delta (standing minus resting)
- Blood pressure lying down (systolic/diastolic)
- Blood pressure standing (systolic/diastolic)
These numbers tell your doctor more about your POTS in one week than months of occasional office visits. The delta between lying and standing heart rate is the number most specialists focus on.
Hydration and Salt Log
For most POTS patients, hydration and sodium are not just healthy habits. They are treatment.
- Total fluid intake (ounces or liters)
- Sodium intake (milligrams, including salt tablets and food estimates)
- Electrolyte drinks (type and quantity)
- Caffeinated beverages (type and amount)
Over time, you will likely notice a clear threshold. Below a certain fluid or sodium level, your symptoms predictably worsen. Knowing that number means you can catch a bad day before it fully develops.
Symptom Severity Rating
Rate each symptom on a 0 to 10 scale. Track the ones that show up most for you. Common ones to include:
- Dizziness or lightheadedness
- Brain fog or difficulty concentrating
- Fatigue
- Heart palpitations
- Nausea
- Exercise intolerance
- Vision changes
- Blood pooling in hands or feet
- Shakiness or tremor
- Presyncope or near-fainting episodes
You do not need to track all of these every day. Pick the five or six that are most relevant to your experience and rate them consistently.
Activity and Context Notes
This section captures the “why” behind your numbers:
- Sleep quality (restful, fragmented, unrefreshing) and hours
- Exercise or physical activity (type, duration, how you felt during and after)
- Meals (timing, size, rough composition, any post-meal symptoms)
- Temperature exposure (hot weather, hot shower, heated room)
- Stress level (low, moderate, high)
- Menstrual cycle day (if applicable)
- Medications taken (including any changes or missed doses)
Sample Daily Entry
- Date: March 9
- Resting HR: 68 bpm / Standing HR: 112 bpm / Delta: +44
- BP lying: 108/72 / BP standing: 96/65
- Fluids: 80 oz water, 1 electrolyte drink
- Sodium: ~4,500 mg (2 salt tablets + food)
- Symptoms: Dizziness 6/10, Brain fog 4/10, Fatigue 7/10, Palpitations 3/10
- Sleep: 7.5 hours, woke twice, unrefreshing
- Activity: 20 min recumbent bike, tolerated well
- Notes: Hot day, spent 30 min outside, symptoms noticeably worse after. Cycle day 22.
Weekly Review
At the end of each week, look for patterns:
- What was your average heart rate delta this week?
- Did your fluid intake correlate with symptom severity?
- Were there specific days or triggers that stood out?
- How did exercise days compare to rest days?
- Any medication changes and their effects?
Bring these weekly summaries to your cardiologist or dysautonomia specialist. This level of data allows them to adjust your treatment plan with precision.
Track POTS Daily With the Clarity App
The a dedicated POTS vitals tracker turns this template into a quick daily check-in on your phone. Log your positional vitals, hydration, symptoms, and context in one place. Review trends over weeks and months to see what is working.
For a deeper dive into what to track and why, read our POTS symptom tracking guide. To learn what hidden triggers other patients have discovered, check out POTS triggers most patients discover only by tracking.
Start your daily POTS log today. Start tracking your POTS symptoms or download it from the App Store.