060 - Dr Marie-Claire Seeley - Out of Balance - Women, POTS & the Autonomic Nervous System

Welcome back to the Women’s Health Podcast. 

 

In this episode we are thrilled to be interviewing Dr Marie-Claire Seeley.

Dr Marie-Claire Seeley is the Founder and CEO of the Australian POTS Foundation. With a background as a clinical nurse and now working as a Research Fellow at the University of Adelaide, she brings both lived experience and academic expertise to her role. Marie-Claire is dedicated to improving recognition, care, and research for Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome in Australia, and is passionate about creating a more inclusive and informed healthcare system for those affected.

 

In this chat we cover:

• What is Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome? Marie-Claire discusses the function of the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and the range of symptoms that a patient might present with who has dysfunction of the ANS.
• The diagnostic criteria for POTS and the common tests/ screening questionnaires that are available.
• The prevalence of POTS including the gender distribution (I’ll give you a hint here: it isn’t 50:50)
• The complex (and often traumatic) journey that patients often face in getting a POTS diagnosis, including the high comorbidity with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and other connective tissue disorder
• Some of the key management strategies for POTS, including optimising hydration and blood volume, using compression garments and carefully progressing exercise in supported positions. She also discussed the role of medications and the importance of a multidisciplinary team approach.

 

Upcoming events

 

• The POTS Foundation of Australia has an upcoming conference in 2026 which will cover POTS as well as related conditions like fibromyalgia and long COVID. Stay tuned for more details.
• August 21st 2025 - Webinar  - Diagnosis and Management of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) in Primary Care (RACGP - CPD) https://console.humanitix.com/console/events/686df06e69cfe5511d8e97a3/information

 

Want to learn more?

Head to potsfoundation.org.au

Not only will you find incredible useful information on the condition, but you can find clinicians with a special interest in this field. You can also access many free videos in their Webinars section on related topics.

 

Want to follow the POTS Foundation on the socials?

https://www.instagram.com/australianpotsfoundation/ 

https://www.facebook.com/AustralianPOTSFoundation/ 

 

Has this talk piqued your interest? Feeling nerdy? Here are some recent relevant articles.

 

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40138180/  

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.5694/mja2.52710