could this be lupus??any help appreciated, please.

NO rash, cold fingers, knee joint pain, hand tingling, and extreme tiredness... really extreme, like NO energy.

Hey :) I am about to be 21 yrs old and I recently became REALLY concerned with my health. I'm really sorry if this is long, but I really would just like some/any insight, because this really freaks me out.The whole reason I even have a concern of LUPUS is becasue when I was discussing (casually) with a family friend about some knee pains I had been having and how my hands are always cold and they go numb and tingle, especailly if hit them on the top - well she told me she had LUPUS and it sounds like some of the sypmtoms she goes through and to check it out with my doc. I have gone to the doctor and breifly mentioned this, but it was quickly dismissed when an ANA (<-- i hope thats right) test came back normal.

Since high school, around 9th or 10th grade, I became really tired all the time. I couldn't explain it, and the doctors said maybe I was depressed. LOL yea right! but anyway I have stayed that way (tired) even until now. It's a little worse now. I am ALWAYS tired, meaning I can sleep for ever it seems. I don't usually feel satistfied unitl I sleep at least 12-14 hours, and if undistrubed I could sleep, or layed down, for like 15 or 16 hours! It *****. My parents, and my friends, get very frustrated with me because of this.

My knee pains started more recently (Jun 2008) and one day, all of the sudden it seems, my knee started hurting and then swole up! I had just got home from work and did NOTHING out of the norm. I dont really like to run to the doc all the time so I didnt go, and the swellin started to go down within like 4 days and was completely gone in 2 weeks. Then about 2 months later the same exact thing happened! So I went to the doctor and she told me it's probably from over-use and I had chondromalia patella (when the cartilage of the knee softens) aka "runner's knee". I was just thinking, "over-use??" I am 20, not heavy, like 5'8 125lbs, I don't nor have ever played any sports and I dont really work out that much... and I have overused my knee already?? lol what knid of hope should I have for the future? jk but anyway now I have constant knee pain and occassional knee swelling (maybe 4 times in last 6 months)

Now with my hands, I'm not quit sure when the "symptoms" started, maybe like 2 or 3 years ago or so, but I have some nerve damage or something and I have NO idea how I would have got it?! First of all my hands stay cold the majority of the time, maybe because I'm cold the majorty of the time, but when my braclets slide down my arm and hit my hand, or if somebody accidently hits my hand on the top or I hit my hand MY HANDS GO NUMB. They get tingly and I have to repeatedly shake them to, for a minute or so, to get the feeling back into them. and I know I have poor circulation, becasue my arms and legs often fall asleep on me and I don't know why. Sometimes when I wake up a limb will be asleep and I have to shake it to get the blood flowing again.

Most recently I have had some sharp coming and going pains in my chest and the doc said its chest wall pain probably due to heavy lifting. I work in retail, and again, I dont really work out, so I don't see how "heavy lifting" could be the cause of such sharp and reaccuring pains. they really hurt too, like they make me stop whatever i'm doing and take really shallow breaths, to avoid the pain...

And i don't know if this is a sypmtom or not, but my friends and family have pointed out to my that my memory *****! and that is so weird because i use to pride my self on my outstanding memory, like being able to remember old classmates and names of people I've seen once really quickly... and I still CAN do that, but just not all the time, and I find simple things hard to remember. I guess the best example I can give is tht last week at my job (retail, womens shoe dept) I was fixing the shoes and I came to a puma tennis shoe and as I was about to tie it I forgot how to. I stood there for about 3 minutes trying to tie that shoe, and I couldn't do it! I even tried the easy 2-bunny ears tie and it still didnt work! i thought I was in the twlight zone or something, so I called my friend associate over and joked around and said could you teach me to tie this shoe I never learned how, and she just thought i was being silly till she saw me really paying attention to how she tied it. lol it was kinda funny actually, but really wierd, once she showed me I remembered. yeeea, I don't know if thats a symptom or if I'm just an idiot who forgot how to tie a shoe for 10 minutes! lol maybe i need to eat more salmon

but yea, to wrap this loooooong story up, my parents are extremely frustrated with me, the doctors have ran me around in circles for almost a year now, and I would just like to know how to proceed to ease some of these daily pains I have. any help is appreciated :)

[merri1122]

hello, I am not a doctor but hope I can comment here.
do you have the red butterfly rash on your face? that is a classic symptom of lupus. All your other symptoms could be a host of other autoimmune diseases, epstien barr, fibromyglia, etc. My mom had lupus and I always though I did too, the test said I didn´t years ago ( I am now 48) I may have it now, after two children. it can onset at any time, but I didn´t retake the exam. I also live with the tingling numb fingers and hands, cold hands, minor joint pain ( I had rhematoid arthritis extreem symetrical pain, two ankles, two hands, two shoulders, etc but --was miraculously healed into a permanet remisiion by prayer, I am convinced) and  I have Rosacea, not exactly the butterfly rash and well I could sleep for 14 hours as well, never move. My joints ache some , then again I am 20 poinds overwieght and should lose wieght. I would ask for blood tests to find out all the possible  diseases you could have. Again, if thereis no butterfly rash, cheeks, across the nose, at flareup times, you probably don´t have lupus, but there may be types of lupus and cases of symptoms without the rash. Another thing is the sun, if the sun gives you nausea. My mo had it in the 1930´s as a child , where no one knew what the heck it was, and when it was diagnosed in the 70´s she remembered all the signs she had growing up! especially the sun! I  am now in the process of seeing if my SIX YEAR OLD DAUGHTER has lupus, becuase of all her achy pains and headache! hope not, she is going to do blood test. that is how I cam across this. Hope all goes well, keep in touch. mery

[luppygirl]

You could have rhuemetoid arthritis.  I have lupus, rhuemetoid arthritis and colitis.  So you can have more then one autoimmune disease.  I have 3.  I know that the butterfly rash is a common symptom but that is one that i never got.  My first reaction was a weird one.  I broke out in hives and went into anaphalatic (sp?) shock and almost died.  Pretty scary stuff.  Maybe you should try to get a referral to a rhuemetologist because they specialize in all different autoimmune diseases.  It sure wouldn't hurt you to get checked out by one it can only help. Unfortunately for some people it can take years to diagnose because lupus mimics a lot of other things.  I guess for almost dying was lucky because i got diagnosed in 2 months. Very rare.  You must be persistent when it comes to your health.  Keep pushing for what you want. You know your body the best.  If you feel that something is wrong then chances are there is.  Listen to your gut.  All the best and Take care and keep posting.