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DO I HAVE CHRONIC FATIGUE???
I am wondering if i have chronic fatigue syndrome and need some advice. I have lower abdominal right sided pain which comes and goes and varies in severity, it started 4 years ago and after a period of being pain free for a year it came back and my doctor thinks i may either have adhesions from a hysterectomy 13 years ago or irritable bowel syndrome. I also get bloating and disruption in my bowel habits from going once a day to going up to 6 times a day and feeling as though i always need to go. I also get mild stomach pains and wind. I get this every few weeks. I also suffer bouts of lightheadedness where i also feel like i my head is in a thick fog and i feel absolutely dreadful and have to go to bed. I cannot concentrate on tasks for long periods of time and when i do any exertion i have to stop after a while as i start to feel really sick and shaky. When i get what i call my episodes which can last up to 2 weeks at a time i get exhausted and out of breath at the slightest exertion and my heart feels as though it is racing. I get episodes of feeling hot and cold and left sided chest pain which lasts up to 20 minutes at a time and means i cannot breathe deeply until it goes, i have to take shallow breaths. An ECG and chest x-rays have ruled out heart problems, blood tests are normal and i have been told it is all psychological and i need counselling. Please help, i am 38 but feel 70.
Thank you so much for your all your help and advice. I will certainly see a new doctor. Appendix was ruled out by the hospital and i have not been on hrt for years since my doctor stopped prescribing it. Vintagechicken, thank you so much for your response i will certainly keep in touch with what happens.
Hi, Joyce,
I was thinking exactly the same thing as Ivfrogs. I had exactly the same re. appendicitis . So, yes, have an exam for that. Also, my daughter has had 3 caesarians and now suffers all the symptoms you describe due to adhesions. She is awaiting surgery for some relief.
May I ask you, are you on hrt? because this could be the cause of your lightheadedness
and your other strange feelings.
If that was me, I'd go back to your gynae, get an mri and tell him /her all your problems.
Also, you may be having panic attacks which are so frightening, and maybe you are a bit depressed.
Do the physicals first and take advice from a trusted doc.
You may have noticed I have not mentioned chronic fatigue because I don't want you to have it.
Explore all other avenues first, don't panic, and I bet you find it's nothing to do with cfs. If, however, you do find that this is your dx after exhausting all other avenues, find the best doc you can afford/been recommended to. No disbelievers allowed! Good Luck and just take it one step at a time.
I was thinking exactly the same thing as Ivfrogs. I had exactly the same re. appendicitis . So, yes, have an exam for that. Also, my daughter has had 3 caesarians and now suffers all the symptoms you describe due to adhesions. She is awaiting surgery for some relief.
May I ask you, are you on hrt? because this could be the cause of your lightheadedness
and your other strange feelings.
If that was me, I'd go back to your gynae, get an mri and tell him /her all your problems.
Also, you may be having panic attacks which are so frightening, and maybe you are a bit depressed.
Do the physicals first and take advice from a trusted doc.
You may have noticed I have not mentioned chronic fatigue because I don't want you to have it.
Explore all other avenues first, don't panic, and I bet you find it's nothing to do with cfs. If, however, you do find that this is your dx after exhausting all other avenues, find the best doc you can afford/been recommended to. No disbelievers allowed! Good Luck and just take it one step at a time.
Joyce,
Vintagechicken gave you great advice, my only other advice to you is to make sure that it isn't your appendix acting up. I had chronic appendicitis which of course I didn't find out until I went to the ER, so get that ruled out. Also, from previous surgeries, I had loads of adhesions and they do cause pain, so it could be that too. See a new doctor. The rheumatologist that I had to see didn't believe in fibro/CFS so he was a waste, but my primary doctor does and she is treating me, so find a doctor who does believe in it wholeheartedly. It can be a rough road. Good luck!
Vintagechicken gave you great advice, my only other advice to you is to make sure that it isn't your appendix acting up. I had chronic appendicitis which of course I didn't find out until I went to the ER, so get that ruled out. Also, from previous surgeries, I had loads of adhesions and they do cause pain, so it could be that too. See a new doctor. The rheumatologist that I had to see didn't believe in fibro/CFS so he was a waste, but my primary doctor does and she is treating me, so find a doctor who does believe in it wholeheartedly. It can be a rough road. Good luck!
Most of your symptoms do sound like Fibro and/or Chronic Fatigue, but the pain in your abdomen doesn't follow any pattern of Fibro or CFS....so that would be hard to lump under a diagnosis?
Let me rephrase that, I have not personally had any sort of pains associated with it like that or that sever, but that's not to say that it couldn't happen. You may have a large amount of scar tissue or something else going on that could cause your pain to 'settle' in that area. I have Degenerative Disc Disease and my pain seems to 'settle' in my lower back and hips... so really I doubt anyone could difinitively give you an answer on whether that pain is associate or not?
My first significant symptoms started with the fatigue and chest pains, then over the course of another few months more symptoms evolved and eventually I was a walking basket case in tears in my Dr's office. What you describe sounds very much like how I felt. Ironically, I was also 38 when I started experiencing my issues... at first my Dr wanted to blame hormones, depression, stress/anxiety, or just about anything else, until all of the blood work and cardiologist tests came back inconclusive. I finally had to take a list of my symptoms into the Dr and specifically tell her that I thought I had Fibro/CFS. She suddenly started taking my complaints seriously and now I have a prescription for Savella that has done wonders to help my pain and other issues.
Since you have so many other typical Fibro/CFS symptoms, you might want to consult with a Rheumatologist (sp?). I was at the point that taking Arthritis Strenght Tylenol several times a day did nothing for my pain... I was also a walking zombie from the constant fatigue and brain fog. I was barely functioning - if you can even consider it functioning?
Not only have I started on Savella, but I also discontinued any and all processed sugars and white flours from my diet, including artificial sweetners. Even the smallest slip up in my diet and I feel like crap, all over again. Luckily it only takes a day or two of eating right and I'm back on track and feeling better. The Savella hasn't completely taken the pain away, but it has helped tremendously and I can actually think and function again. Before the meds, a trip to the grocery was totally overwhelming and exhausting. After getting home I would spend the rest of the day in bed or on the couch - it was a pathetic existance and I can relate to how much you want a diagnosis of something.... anything... just so you can finally get some relief or have an explanation as to why your body is doing this to you!
Best of luck and feel free to message me!
Let me rephrase that, I have not personally had any sort of pains associated with it like that or that sever, but that's not to say that it couldn't happen. You may have a large amount of scar tissue or something else going on that could cause your pain to 'settle' in that area. I have Degenerative Disc Disease and my pain seems to 'settle' in my lower back and hips... so really I doubt anyone could difinitively give you an answer on whether that pain is associate or not?
My first significant symptoms started with the fatigue and chest pains, then over the course of another few months more symptoms evolved and eventually I was a walking basket case in tears in my Dr's office. What you describe sounds very much like how I felt. Ironically, I was also 38 when I started experiencing my issues... at first my Dr wanted to blame hormones, depression, stress/anxiety, or just about anything else, until all of the blood work and cardiologist tests came back inconclusive. I finally had to take a list of my symptoms into the Dr and specifically tell her that I thought I had Fibro/CFS. She suddenly started taking my complaints seriously and now I have a prescription for Savella that has done wonders to help my pain and other issues.
Since you have so many other typical Fibro/CFS symptoms, you might want to consult with a Rheumatologist (sp?). I was at the point that taking Arthritis Strenght Tylenol several times a day did nothing for my pain... I was also a walking zombie from the constant fatigue and brain fog. I was barely functioning - if you can even consider it functioning?
Not only have I started on Savella, but I also discontinued any and all processed sugars and white flours from my diet, including artificial sweetners. Even the smallest slip up in my diet and I feel like crap, all over again. Luckily it only takes a day or two of eating right and I'm back on track and feeling better. The Savella hasn't completely taken the pain away, but it has helped tremendously and I can actually think and function again. Before the meds, a trip to the grocery was totally overwhelming and exhausting. After getting home I would spend the rest of the day in bed or on the couch - it was a pathetic existance and I can relate to how much you want a diagnosis of something.... anything... just so you can finally get some relief or have an explanation as to why your body is doing this to you!
Best of luck and feel free to message me!
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