- Category:
- Just for Fun - Outlandish Statements
- Description:
- To Find the True Cause of My Crippling Fatigue Craziness (from the Inspiration of my friend, Rachel Ham)
- Privacy Type:
- Open: All content is public.
Veronica
Get Margaret on The Doctors
Join- Name:
- Get Margaret on The Doctors
- Category:
- Just for Fun - Outlandish Statements
- Description:
- To Find the True Cause of My Crippling Fatigue Craziness (from the Inspiration of my friend, Rachel Ham)
- Privacy Type:
- Open: All content is public.
- News:
- I am looking for resources to help find out what is causing my crazy & worsening symptoms. Though I have been fighting chronic fatigue for 15 years, it has gotten worse recently, & includes feeling like there is a brick on my head (at times I cannot lift my head), muscle weakness, weakened cognitive ability (I got lost driving with my kids on S.Lamar), feeling like I'm going to faint (my bp is often 90-something over 60-something when taken by the doctor, not me or even a nurse), and now, lymph node pain that is intermittent but at times quite painful (like someone is squeezing my brachial artery). My condition worsened after having a TB scratch (I was planning to volunteer at a hospital; oh, the irony!), although I'm not sure there is a correlation.
I have seen the following practitioners: family practice doctors, OB, psychiatrist, chiropractor, acupuncturists (2), herbalists (2), & a naturopath. I cannot get an appointment w/ another specialist, b/c first the doctor has to believe me (my bloodwork comes back looking like that of a healthy person), & even if they do believe me, they have no one to refer me to. I have a family history of thyroid disease & Hashimoto's, but my bloodwork has never reflected a problem. I have, in fact, literally been laughed at by more than one physician. I am currently on a wait list for the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Hopefully they really are nicer up there. My next step is trying to find a genetic counselor.
Here are some things I think it could be: Porphyria, Addison's Disease, Wilson's Disease, good old Adrenal Fatigue
Here is what I have been tested for: sleep disorder, HIV, Hepatitis B, mono, & Lyme Disease, & of course, countless CBCs & metabolic panels
It is heartbreaking to hear my daughter say, "mama, play with me, peeeee?" (she's 2), or my 5 year-old say, "you're always tired, mom." (she's also basically raising her sister). And at this point, my husband is as overwhelmed as I am.
Here is what I am hoping for: a referral or recommendation for anywhere in the country, for a physician who will listen to & believe me (I have one now, but he admits he doesn't know what's wrong, other than I take 2 X as long as the average person to digest food), & has the ability to test me for anything under the sun.
Here are some people I must thank: my parents, MOMS Club South for offering free babysitting & food, the AP yahoo group for their support & recommendations, especially Echo Bond, for leading me to Holisitic Family Medicine, Jenn & Karen, for your phone calls & for bringing me food, my mother-in-law, who believes me, supports me, & encourages me to fight, my friend, Carrah, who works at a cancer hospital & does research for me on her "off time," & Rachel Ham, who has inspired me to share my search, and who is fighting to find her own unsolved diagnosis.
Thank you.
