Hi All,
I have questions surrounding the issue of getting some relief from symptoms when I don't yet know their cause!
I've had "weird stuff" going on for about 6 months. So far, I have taken no medications (nor have I really been offered much). But even if I did get a prescription, I'd still worry that....
If I get new symptoms, will I just be told that they are side effects? That is, could taking medication complicate identifying and reporting new symptoms and/or progression of old symptoms? Is it a good idea to seek treatment before diagnosis, or are most treatments only available with a diagnosis?
Also, the only treatment I have been offered is anti-depressants (ADs). The neuro told me that an off-label use of AD's is to treat some of the stuff I have been having (tingles, burning, pains, etc..) In addition to my above concern, I also worry that if I take AD's as treatment, then future doctors will just label me as depressed and it will be harder for me to get any more testing. I'll likely move within a year, so I will likely be changing docs not too far in the future and that is why this is a big issue for me.
So I feel stuck. I have not been offerered a lot of options to control symptoms, and I have trepidations about the AD's. At the same time, after 6 months, I feel I really need some relief, for my comfort as well as for the sake of my personal and professional life!
My PCP gave me a prescription for oral prednisone (sp?) awhile back, but I never took it. Neuro #1 would not even look at the bottle and laughed that I was offered anything. I forgot to mention the prescritpion to neuro #2, but he offered AD's, and did not mention other options.
I am seeing my PCP tomorrow about ear and eye stuff. I see neuro #2 again in late July. While #2 was less awful than #1, I still felt pretty much dismissed.
I had a 1-month "episode" starting late Jan, 1 month of feeling ok, then ~2 moths of feeling worse. Now I am feeling "better," but still worse than what "normal" was before all of this began.
Months ago I just wanted to know "what is this??" Now, I just want to feel better. I've tried to do what I can to improve diet and lifestyle, but it's not enough. Are there other options outside of AD's that may be available without a diagnosis? Any home remedies or ideas? Tingling/burning/aching (mostly face hands & feet), as well as a spacy "full head" feeling are the symptoms I'd like to target!
Thanks for "listening" and for ANY advice!