Here's my story, Any Ideas?

[Leanne109]

Here's my story. Since I was 16 (now 30) I've had one health problem after another. One morning I woke up and couldn't feel my legs, by the time I arrived to the hospital the feeling was finally coming back. Since that day I have had pain in my knees on and off one knee or the other. A bit of time after that I had gotten some major pain in my abdomen and was tested for everything (appendicitis, IBS, colitis, stones, u name it) I was in the hospital for 2 weeks and they never figured out what had caused it.
So, from then on it's just been one thing after another. When I went to college at 19 I'd already been diagnosed with osteoarthritis. I became pregnant with my daughter (age 20) While pregnant with my daughter I was soooooo sick, I ended up at the hospital several times dehydrated. The sickness lasted until I was almost 5 months pregnant, also I had lost about 25lbs during my pregnancy. I never gained any weight, just loss.
After my daughter was born I felt like any other mother, tired and sensitive. Nothing out of the ordinary. I gained a bit of weight that first year, nothing major, barely noticeable.
The Next year I continued to gain weight, a lot of it. I put on about 30lbs. I was exhausted and getting one flu after another and then I started to get anxiety attacks and very bad vertigo. I got the vertigo on and off. That went on for a long time. After gaining the 30lbs and more I finally found a Dr. to listen to me about how awful I was feeling. He diagnosed me with Hypothyroidism. I though Oh My God finally, I can go back to being me.
With my thyroid being treated I then saw a Dr. for my anxiety and that handle. After about 6 months my TSH lvls were stable and my anxiety fine, but I still felt horrible.
I was still getting one flu after another, infections. also had no periods since my daughter was born. I I was diagnosed with Acid Reflux and IBS. I also still had Vertigo on and off. I also got asthma.
At 24 another Doctor diagnosed me with PCOS and Fibro. Diagnosed with no tests just my history, so he put me Metformin and with 3 months had my periods again. I moved to another place and everything was going ok. Just the regualr exhaustion, pain, flues, but no more vertigo...it disappeared.
2 months after all this I became pregnant with my son:) He was a wonderful surprise. The first 5 months of my pregnancy was hell, back and forth to the hospital with migraines and dehydrated. I lost 40 lbs while pregnant and felt great and had a very healthy son.
After he was born I felt good for awhile just had my regular problems and then BOOM I was hit with Gallbladder stones and had to have my gallbladder removed. From there things have gone downhill. After it was removed I ended up with a stomach hernia, my PCOS was back with a vengeance, I became anemic, got allergies I didn't have before(mold, grass, trees, dust).
Next came Sleep Apnea, Lower Back pain, Neck Pain.
Today I saw the Dr. My blood pressure was low as always and my cortisol is low.

Does my story sound familiar with any of you? Could it be possible all of this suffering could be caused by 1 disease.  Maybe Addison's?

[rumpled]

Not just any endo will do - as you can see. The endos that normally treat diabetes have not a clue how to treat a serious pituitary problem and often see it as rare so do not know. Just today I went to the lab and the tech, again, messed up my testing - to lab error is a HUGE factor in the testing. The ACTH lab range for this particular lab is only 4-27 but I see swings as large as 800 points when the tech gets sloppy as ACTH (and renin) degrade quickly. She just was not going to listen and plop and spin the darn tubes in the centrifuge quickly. Then they have to be taken out and promptly frozen. I give my odds very low at this point since I could not get her to cooperate or listen and my last test was 2330 and the one before was 1570.  Before that 1917 - so I know it is all lab error that is a factor. If your doctor does not know, however, it counts against you.
You have to learn more than everyone to get everything done right. Sad but true.

[Leanne109]

Thank you all so much for the information.  I will speak to my Endo and ask him to do more test and to really look at my history not just skim through the pages.  In some ways I hope he finds nothing and then again I kind of wish he would, just to validate that all the pain and crud I've gone through all these years have had a reason to be.  I've had so many diagnoses for so many things that my family treats weird.  They act as though.... "oh look Leanne has another syndrome of some kind"  If it was one disease that caused many maybe they would try to be just a bit more understanding and actually try to give me more support.

[rumpled]

With weight gain, bone issues, fatigue etc. sounds more like too much cortisol, not too little. Sounds more like Cushing's syndrome to me.
Cortisol can come back low - depends on when you test it. If you only test in the morning, being low can show a loss of diurnal rhythm. You need tests at all times of the day (that are diagnostic) as well as UFCs, and a slew of blood tests to give a better indication.
Also lab error, cortisol binding globulin, time of testing, meds - all that can play a role. You need a doctor that knows adrenals and Cushing's.

[enzymelover]

High potassium relative to sodium is a definite sign of adrenal fatigue. Even slightly low cortisol is a contributing factor for pain and allergy symptoms for many people.
My son's first symptoms of adrenal insufficiency were eye pain and nasal allergy.

[Leanne109]

I do have aches everywhere, not a day goes by the I don't have pain.  I don't remember the last time a had a full restful sleep.  I go to bed tired and wake tired.  All I think about is sleep and pain.  I recently had a blood workup done and the results all came back great except for low cortisol.  My thyroid is balanced, cholesterol is high but nothing major.  My potassuim was a bit higher than normal though. Doctor said it was probably just because it had sat on the counter for awhile.  I did have low iron after I had my second child and it seems to be fine now.

[enzymelover]

After all that your body has been through, I would expect some degree of adrenal fatigue. It may have all started with a virus that is still lingering in your body.
Along with an adrenal support diet, you might try natural antiviral supplements, such as Kyolic liquid garlic extract, and Grapefruit Seed Extract. These supposedly can wipe out any bacteria, virus, or fungal problem. I've had good results with Kyolic.

Oh, and digestive enzymes can help reverse an enormous number of problems. You should be taking these.
Have you had any recent tests done for things like low iron and electrolyte imbalances? These can cause a huge number of symptoms also.

[PlateletGal]

It does familiar. Have you talked to your physician about CFIDS (Chronic Fatigue Immune Dysfunction Syndrome) ?

Along with your other symptoms, do you have muscle aches and/or unrefreshing sleep ?