Yeah so, i needed a vent… and no one else really understands me here. I’ve been sick for close to a month now, and im plain sick of it.
I havent been able to go to my doctors as I’ve found out at the moment im probably not covered by medical insurance. I’ve had really bad sinus problems all summer, but within the last month got worse, along with those dizzy spells & being extremely fatigued. Then a sore throat started up last week. Oh right, and my bloody noses started again (when im not completely clogged up). This is starting to seem more & more like last year.
Sometimes i just want to workout, and i go to do it and i just - blah - cant… I did manage to get in a long mountain to street bikeride the other day (the good thing about bikerides is once i get started my nose starts running like crazy temporarily clearing up the sinus issues).
Sorry to go on & on… I just really need to let it all out. I was hoping i’d get better quickly considering for once im eating right, and getting the right vitamins & nutrients.
i’ve pretty much decided if the joint pain/swelling andor mouth/nose sores start again im going back to the rheumatologist - insurance or not and am going to put my foot down to treat me for my symptoms(he thought quitting smoking and loosing weight would solve the majority of my symtpoms… well here i am smoke free since xmas & nearly 20lbs lighter & counting), im so sick of this crap.
If you want it to end…you have to get yourself checked out. Just do it regardless of cost. And soon. Otherwise…complaining about it does nothing. Because you aren’t doing anything.
unfortunately i have been checked out for what the list of symptoms point to, and while i did have one general bloodtest positive (ana) it is once again very general (and can be positive in a completely healthy person) the list of auto immune diseases go on & on, and it normally takes about 4 (or some other godly amount, and sometimes a multitude of doctors because most tend to think you’re a lunatic if its not showing in your blood)years for a diagnosis of some, and can take years for the blood to show positive from the time the symptoms get bad enough to call for doctors visits. Its possible that it is something else… its possible they would be positive this time around. And its possible even if they are positive that i wont get treatment because some of the treamtments(things like prednisone) for problems other than joint pain are far more dangerous than just dealing with the symptoms, If in fact it is an auto immune problem. I just dont have that kind of cash to go on a witch hunt again just to end up where i did last year, one doc implying i was a headcase and the other saying ‘we’ll leave it on the table as maybe’ after 3 months of multiple visits & bloodtests.
Neya, I used to do volunteer work at a school that taught Traditional Chinese Medicine. The professors were born, raised and trained in China. Based on the things I saw in the student clinic – the problems and people that walked through the door and the favorable results – I’ve decided I’ll use it as my primary healthcare as I grow older, with Medicare being secondary, and the heck with the supp policies they offer!
TCM could be called the poor man’s healthcare here in the States. Please look into it. You won’t understand the diagnosis, but it can be a life altering experience. It’s effective with stomach flus, colds, HIV, cancer, autoimune disease of all descriptions and even some pretty challenging/severe psychiatric problems (not talking 'bout you, though!). The list goes on and on.
Try and find a Chinese trained doctor, someone who’s been practicing for 10+ years, not someone that was trained here in the States. Over there, the students go to school 8 hours a day. Here they go 6 hours a day. Over there 5 days a week. Here, 3 days a week. There 5 years to get a degree. Here, 3 years to get a degree. There a college degree is required. Here, a college degree is not required. There, an AP (Accupuncture Physician) is held in the same regard as an MD.
Lauren, You should go doctor shopping for doctors that will actually listen to what you’re saying. I know a shitload about this kinda stuff.
Sinus congestion
Nose bleeds
Vertigo or Lightheadedness? Specify.
Inflammatory problems? More detail needed. Swelling of lips is NOT good.
This may sound disturbing to you, but you may have some sort of heart condition, the symptoms VAGUELY point in that direction. There aren’t alot of diseases that can cause ALL of these problems simultaneously.
Answer these questions for me:
Do you have high blood pressure?
Do you have skipped heartbeats occasionally?
Do you have a hacking Cough?
Does it ever feel like you can’t get enough air into your lungs when you breathe?
Do you have constant or occasional sharp pain in the left or right, probably right, side of your lower chest area when you take an extremely deep breathe?
not swelling of lips, but small sores on the inside of my mouth and/or nose, but not like herpes or coldsores
these are the symptoms i’ve gotten as a collective, i dont have them all right now.
dizziness (sometimes so bad i almost fall over) this isnt a sit-to-stand type of thing, it happens sitting, standing still, walking, laying… you get the idea… sore joints (sometimes warm but normally not), raynauds phenomenom(which prompted the first tests & then thats why we looked into auto immune’s) i have migraines, but havent had one in long while, the reason i was told to quit smoking asap is i did have chest pain upon breathing in quickly & was unable to take deep breaths, by the time i got in for chest xrays it was getting better & showed nothing. since i’ve quit smoking it hasnt returned.
blood pressure last i had it checked was normal, i’ve had EKGs (2 or 3)done before that are normal also.
another reason we went looking at lupus is im extremely sun sensitive, and throughout the year sun or not I have what looks like a light malar rash (i always have rosey cheeks/nose and people always ask if i got sun - even though im so light i could glow in the dark) the redness gets worse when im not feeling well for awhile, or whenever i’ve had sun (even if i didnt really get it on my face). The last time i went in any sun for a significant amount of time i slathered up spf 45 and went snorkeling i took breaks to reslather up the sunscreen - my calfs turned maroon-purple & i was unable to walk (except on my tip toes since my calves were contracted, and in the most extreme pain of my life) for 3 days, but i do tend to get ‘scorched’ for short periods of time in sun even w/ sunscreen, i shouldve known better. I can also get the low grade fevers going on for a period of time, although i dont always have them (like now im at normal).
the main problem is, most of the symtpons could be a whole list of other things, like i said the only reason they did the ANA test was cause of the raynauds… when that was positive the only reason we looked into lupus was my rosy cheeks & sun problems, which could be nothing although i did have tests for other things like RA, and i think crohns and such when then did the bloodtests.
Sounds ‘similar’ to undifferentiated spondyloarthopathy (can never remember how to spell it right). Basically this arthritis has symptoms of many different arthrities but isn’t definatively any of them. Was unrecognized for many years , some docs still don’t. Treatment? Systemic inflammation reduction (prescrips or natural means) and treat the symptoms as they appear. TCM would definately be helpful.
I would really like to help you, however I have only very simple advice for you, so I don’t know if your gonna take it seriously. I had (key word is had) many symptoms that you have. Do ya wanna know my big secret for getting over them (I had the sores in the mouth and the lethargy, and the aches etc. etc. etc.)? Lifestyle modification. I was pooping my brains out 4 times a day with uncontrollable needs to go to the bathroom. Got a cold once every six weeks. Lost a ton of muscle mass, and the only way I could “cure it” despite going to over 4 different MD’s…was for me…lifestyle modification. Here are some of the things I have done:
More sleep, at least 8 hours a night, if I don’t do this for more than a week, all the symptoms start comming back again.
Drink more water, If I go a couple of days without drinking close to half my bodyweight in ounces of water a day, here comes the fatigue, and it is 100% sure to come.
Work less, in 2002 I performed 1442 one hour personal training sessions, this year I will perform no more than 1100. If I go a week or two above 25 to 30 sessions a week, my muscle mass begins to dissappear, my sleep patterns go crazy, and my workouts are non existent.
Cut down on sugar, processed foods, alcohol, and drugs. I can get away with eating sugar and processed foods for a couple of days and then bam, everything goes to crap again (see the entire list of your symptoms). If I drink alcohol (more than 4 or 5 12oz. beers, I don’t even get a fun buzz anymore, I just get dizzy and kinda sick, it doesn’t feel good).
Try Meditation or any thing you find relaxing. You have gotta include some down time for yourself. You wouldn’t think of running your car 20 hours a day without a break (you would burn out the engine) why even consider doing that to your body.
YOu may think that this post has no value for you, maybe cause it is not scientific enough, then so be it. It is just that I had what seemed like the exact same syptoms as you did, and for about 6 months saw all types of doctors and you know what, none of that crap worked! But all that lifestyle modification stuff did, be honest with yourself and see if you are really living up to all the things I listed on a daily basis. If you are really getting 8 hours of sleep a night, enough water and quality food, than I do not know what to tell you. Best of luck in finding what cures you.
Out of curiosity I would like to know your personal feelings you get when you take d-Amphetamine or d-Methamphetamine. Looking at your weight, your doctor is a complete asshole for not starting you off at a low dose of Desoxyn (meth) at 2mg per day in the morning and compare how you felt before self drug administration, after drug administration (most people would say “She’s gonna feel GRRRRRReat!”) but sometimes people don’t respond to such unnatural and foreign substances as the aforementioned two. I’M NOT TELLING YOU TO DO THIS BECAUSE IT IS A BAD IDEA SINCE IT INCREASES STRESS ON THE HEART…ALOT) but if you ever did do these recreationally or even better for thereapy your cognitive state, and phsyiological state (sweating, heartbeat) could potentially reveal alot. The answer is probably a no unfortunately…
to answer the lifestyle modification post, I sat through and though this out, trying to be completely honest with myself and you.
I sleep at least 8-10hours a night easy… with 8 hours sleep i crash by mid afternoon, and when im not feeling well no matter how much i sleep i always crash around the evening/afternoon. Sometimes need a nap, happens more when im not feeling well, but even when i feel great i go through bouts of this. I can have trouble falling asleep or intense nightmares, but even then i manage to sleep fully(i just sleep later) - even if i dont feel to great in the monring. Once in awhile i smoke a puff of marijuana to help me sleep. I notice no difference in periods of time i dont do this or when i do in health - it can swing either way.
Im drinking bare minimum 9 servings (8oz) pure water daily. I eat 6-8 small meals and/or healthy snacks every day (i almost never go without eating for longer than 3 hours, once in awhile life gets in the way though) I’ve only been eating like this for about the last 3 months + ish. I do have a cheat meal once a week, and thats the only time i consume sugar/processed carbs. Other than that i sick to mostly green veggies, oatmeal, nuts - seeds, & low carb bread & of course land/water critters. I dont drink alcohol ever. I dont do other illicit substances, I only take asprin for aches/pains/headaches. I dont work, im not attending school (im 19), although planning on starting school again once I move which should hopefully be in the next month or two. Im not depressed, I had a bout of anxiety attacks, which have been getting better & clearing up in the last year - and i’ve been watching to see if a problem crops up elsewere & It seems I am now mentaly healthy & happy(others around me agree with me on this too). The last time i visted the rhuematologists & orthopedic surgeons(i had a very bad herniated disc at the time also) I did get extremely stressed, and much sicker. Obviously it couldve been psychological or that the stress made my physically sicker or both.
The reason i am so discouraged now about being sick is because I have begun a new way of eating, a new way of life. I was really hoping & enthusiastic (spellcheck) this would be the answer, that the fact was I didnt have some sickness, that it was due to my old eating habits.
The meditation idea seems great though, I have been trying to practice deep diaphram breathing lately, but not incorporating meditation.
Dawg on the porch : i dont know if your post was for me ? To answer your question, i dont believe i’ve ever taken either drug or anything like it. I tend not to react the same way to most meds & legal/illegal drugs that the majority of people do i found out the hard way so i tend to stay away from most (even perscribed) things.
lol