Spectators filled the seats of the 12th Floor Auditorium at the University of Arkansas for the Medical Sciences Saturday as a lone performer took the stage, entered a deep squat position and held it for two hours straight.
Gabby Rushing, 22, of Cabot set the world record for the longest time to hold a deep squat position during an event she named "Squats for POTS." Rushing, who was diagnosed with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome in May 2021, has found the deep squat position beneficial for relieving her symptoms.
"Chronic illness wasn't necessarily a part of the original plan, but we make revisions and edits and are always working toward succeeding and taking every obstacle that comes our way and making it an opportunity," Rushing said. "That's why I'm here today. My obstacles are always opportunities."
During "Squats for POTS," Rushing answered audience questions while she held the deep squat. She explained Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome involves a collection of symptoms that generally present together.
While there's no proven cause, Rushing said researchers currently believe Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome could be caused by a form of dysfunction in the autonomic nervous system, which is responsible for the regulation of vitals and other involuntary actions, Rushing said. People with the syndrome are unable to regulate their vitals, blood pressure and heart rate when standing, often leading them to faint after standing up, she said.
Those with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome can experience an increase in heart rate of 30 beats per minute or more within the first ten minutes of assuming an upright position. Before treatment, Rushing said her heart rate would increase from around 60 to 80 beats per minute to 200 to 240 immediately upon standing.
Some with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome may relieve their symptoms by bowing their heads or sitting down, but Rushing said she's become "pretty good" at squatting since she first began having symptoms of migraines, chronic fatigue and lightheadedness at the age of 14.
She said she prepared for the world record attempt by adjusting her squat over time to comply with Guinness World Records guidelines. For the world record, her feet could not be more than shoulder-width apart, her hips had to stay lower than her knees and she could not move her feet. Earlier in the week, Rushing said, she completed a full two-hour squat in the proper form to practice for Saturday.
Rushing, who has dreamed of becoming a pediatric neurosurgeon since her early childhood, graduated from high school with honors at the age of 16. She attended the University of Central Arkansas, graduating magna cum laude in May 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in biology and a minor in neuroscience as a 19-year-old.
While in college, Rushing's symptoms worsened, and was still undiagnosed, she said she experienced adverse immune reactions, frequent joint dislocations and almost daily episodes of nausea. Two months before graduation, as the state went into a covid-19 lockdown, Rushing said her health worsened to the point where she was unable to stand and perform other routine activities.
In May 2021, Rushing said she "finally found answers," as she received many diagnoses including hypothyroidism, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome.
There is currently not a cure for Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome, but Rushing said she's worked over the past year to manage her conditions under the care of her medical team. Her comprehensive care approach includes medication, physical therapy, a specialized exercise program, powerlifting and hydration, she said.
Since graduation, Rushing has taken a few graduate level courses and continued researching with University of Central Arkansas professors, but said she's had to go slower than she once intended. Today, she's finishing medical school applications with the dream of attending the University of Arkansas for the Medical Sciences as a student.
While Rushing said she wouldn't have chosen to live with a chronic illness, she's grateful for the opportunity to get to know medicine as a patient.
"As someone who has always dreamed of being a neurosurgeon, and always wanting to have clinical experience from the physician side, it's been really, really humbling to have that experience from the lens of the patient," Rushing said. "Chronic illness has offered me a unique opportunity to do that."
The funds Rushing raised through the event will go toward the research of Dr. John Arthur, professor and director of the Division of Nephrology in the College of Medicine's Internal Medicine Department. His lab researches the reasons that millions of Americans have been left with long-haul covid-19 and why some of these people have further developed autonomic dysfunction in the form of Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome.
While Rushing said she knew she wanted to do something that would really draw attention and make a difference, her brother suggested she break a world record. She said she also envisioned the event raising money for research, and after looking "everywhere," realized no projects in the state are looking into Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome. However, she did read about many long-haul covid-19 patients developing the symptoms associated with the syndrome, and then learned about Arthur's research.
Researching long-haul covid-19, Arthur said he's received many phone calls from covid patients, but one day, he received voicemail from "a wonderfully effervescent person," who turned out to be Gabby Rushing.
Rushing said Arthur returned her call in just fifteen minutes, and from there, the event "fell into place."
Before Saturday, the world record for the deep squat rounded out at an hour and a half. Rushing's two-hour time both broke the record by over thirty minutes and raised awareness and funds for Arthur's team to help discover the reasons for long-haul covid and the appearance of autonomic dysfunction. To comply with Guinness World Records standards, a team of four volunteer timekeepers and witnesses attended on Saturday, as well.
Arthur said the event comes at an opportune time to gain support for his lab, as they will soon send out a survey to over 150,000 people who've been tested for covid-19 at the medical center, which will hopefully help them discover the cause of long covid.
He told the Democrat-Gazette that like long covid, Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome is often under-recognized as a chronic illness. Knowing Rushing has put a face and personality to the disease, according to Arthur.
"Being associated with Gabby has been so inspiring for me. A lot of work goes into research, and a lot of it is not satisfying. There's a lot of blind paths that you go down and run into," Arthur said. "But it's people like Gabby that really make it worthwhile."