Aa
very worried :( barley 18
i am 18 i have many things wrong with me that lead me to believe that i might die an early age i am a mother to one beautiful son in my medical history: i had lymesdisease at age 12 after a hunting trip with my father, "i was treated" and again at age 18 i was told i had lymes again i get tingling feelings in my skin, my hands swell and hurt everynight, sometimes i feel my face getting freezing cold around my high cheek bone closer to my eye..my eyes twitch sometimes. i get horrible spine pains and every few months for about 2-3 weeks i get this horrible sting on my upper spinal cord that feels as if i have glass stuck in my skin it bothers me alot with certain movements that i make. i get these big pains in little parts of my head ocasionally behind the ear very much pressure worrys me alot i 've been wanting an mri when i drink alcohol i get this horrible horrible pain for about 20 minutes right in the middle inbetween my ribcage i have to immeadietly stop drinking laydown for 20 min and wait .i really wish my life wont end too short i wana live to see my son :( i am not scared of death becausee i know ill see my loved ones again in heaven...hopefully theres aa cure to whatever is wrong with me. someone out there might help
Im no use to you in the LYmes dept. but I can attest to the panic attack attributes you speak of! I also started getting my panic attacks around the same age you are now. Actually even in early childhood Im sure I had some sort of general anxiety disorder but the severe attacks didnt begin til i was in my late teens. Jaybay is right about learning to recognize the signs and preventing hyperventilation as a few ways to control things. If you can learn to recognize them early on and prevent significant attacks you will be so much better off in the long run! I am too old to have had the benefit of the internet back when I was in my late teens, i had no info available to me to help me through. My attacks progressed badly through my 20's-- got debilitating. Long story short Ive been on xanax for them for about 20 yrs now or so! Crazy. Ridiculous. Xanax is not a drug you can stop abruptly and its hard as helll to get off it especially after that long. So I hope you can avoid the need for getting on it, (or its ilk) and be able to control your problem before it gets out of hand. Good luck to you and I hoep you get the LYmes stuff under control too. Im glad you found this forum- it is a wealth of information, support, & friendship!
Good for you! I'm so glad to hear you've got a plan. Writing down questions for the doctor is a great way to cover everything you need to cover and also make the most of your appointment time.
On the panic attacks, that's just the old fight-or-flight response. Adrenaline levels skyrocket, but with nobody to fight and nowhere to run, you're stuck with all that energy. When you first feel a panic attack begin with increased anxiety, try to get your breathing under control. Breathe slowly in through your nose and slowly out through your mouth. The idea is to prevent hyperventillation. Keep a plain brown paper lunch bag handy for those times that you can't control your breathing. Breathe with the bag over your mouth and nose until you start to calm down.
Since you know that being angry and depressed will trigger a panic attack, start paying attention to your breathing as soon as those feelings pop up. In a way you're lucky that you know what your triggers are. There are plenty of people who can't pinpoint them that accurately and can't prepare themselves to deal with the resulting panic attack.
I get panic attacks on bridges. Not good in a city with huge freeway overpasses that would put a roller coaster to shame. For decades I drove the slower side streets to avoid those areas of the city. Eventually there came a time that I was forced onto the freeway. It was either the freeway or drive two hours one way to my job. I know my fellow drivers wanted to throttle me more than once as I crept up a flyover ramp, but for me it was a victory each and every time. I still have to control my breathing over some of the really awful bridges, but at least I can maintain the speed limit now. LOL!
On the panic attacks, that's just the old fight-or-flight response. Adrenaline levels skyrocket, but with nobody to fight and nowhere to run, you're stuck with all that energy. When you first feel a panic attack begin with increased anxiety, try to get your breathing under control. Breathe slowly in through your nose and slowly out through your mouth. The idea is to prevent hyperventillation. Keep a plain brown paper lunch bag handy for those times that you can't control your breathing. Breathe with the bag over your mouth and nose until you start to calm down.
Since you know that being angry and depressed will trigger a panic attack, start paying attention to your breathing as soon as those feelings pop up. In a way you're lucky that you know what your triggers are. There are plenty of people who can't pinpoint them that accurately and can't prepare themselves to deal with the resulting panic attack.
I get panic attacks on bridges. Not good in a city with huge freeway overpasses that would put a roller coaster to shame. For decades I drove the slower side streets to avoid those areas of the city. Eventually there came a time that I was forced onto the freeway. It was either the freeway or drive two hours one way to my job. I know my fellow drivers wanted to throttle me more than once as I crept up a flyover ramp, but for me it was a victory each and every time. I still have to control my breathing over some of the really awful bridges, but at least I can maintain the speed limit now. LOL!
thank all of you guys for support, i think that using that med traker will probably let me explain things to the doctor much better...for some reason everytime i go to the DR. my mind goes blank and i dont say everything i want.and its funny how i didnt even mention that i have anxiety but people suspect it..well you guys are 100 % right i actually recently started getting panic/anxiety attacks its been over 6 months now, when im angry or depressed i cant breathe, my neck streches out while im trying to gasp for air i make embarrasing,wierd noises without control of my voice, many tears fall from my eyes and i cant speak for about 3-5 minutes after an attack .somedays i feel so depressed but now that i know there is a such thing as a pain psychologist im looking forward to make an appointment with one,...ad yeah layin off the booze cuz its not worth the pain or (if any ) damage it causes..i was told this year that something in my liver wasnt quite right and i am aware that lymes affects your organs if left untreated i seriously think ive been having lymes since i was 12 even though my doctor at the time confirmed i was clear..,,,wat are the odds of me getting bit by a lymes infected tick again huh..unless it like stays in yourt system..ive been feeling better since ive been using this website ;)
I also wanted to mention the alcohol. I am sure your aware of the legal drinking age and I know you feel like your an adult as you have had a baby but it may be exaggerating your symptoms. It is not good for you especially when it is causing you pain.
I do not want to sound like I am getting on to you like your parents would but it is best to leave the alcohol alone until your older and at least until you find out what is causing your symptoms:)
I do not want to sound like I am getting on to you like your parents would but it is best to leave the alcohol alone until your older and at least until you find out what is causing your symptoms:)
Absolutely think about seeing a pain psychologist! We chronic pain patients aren't crazy (although I'm sure we all feel that we are sometimes!), but most of us do need an objective person who can help us learn new skills to cope with the constant pain. Even with pain meds, most chronic pain patients are never completely pain free. If that is a patient's goal going into pain management, it's likely that nothing the doctor tries will help. Realistic goals are essential to a good outcome.
One big part of psychotherapy for CP patients involves teaching us how to use distraction as a pain relief technique. I agree with Tuck that you seem way too focused on every little pain you're feeling. Staying so focused on your pain and your body actually makes pain worse as your anxiety level increases. You may have heard about the "mind-body connection." It really is true. The mind has an incredible impact on the physical body. For example, anxiety, no matter what the underlying cause, promotes a physical response of hyperventillation, increased pulse and high blood pressure - sometimes to the point of passing out.
When my pain gets way worse than usual and intrudes on my day, my first response is to think, "Oh, it's you again. Go away." Then I try distraction. That can be anything from reading a book, surfing the internet, watching a moving, calling a friend - anything to get my mind off the pain. If that fails, I move on to meditation and relaxation techniques. If I'm lucky, I can meditate myself to sleep for an hour or two. Sleep is a legitimate way to deal with pain.
You mention that you experience epigastric pain when you drink alcohol. Well, the most logical solution is to NOT drink alcohol! :-) That pain may have absolutely nothing to do with lyme disease. Alcohol is incredibly irritating to the stomach lining, and not everyone can tolerate it. You may be one of those people, or you may have some other kind of GI problem. Please make a point of discussing this problem with your doctor, and meanwhile abstain from alcohol. I just hate to hear of a young woman with her whole, wonderful life ahead of her and a child to love and raise being plagued with medical problems. Don't give up on finding answers!
One big part of psychotherapy for CP patients involves teaching us how to use distraction as a pain relief technique. I agree with Tuck that you seem way too focused on every little pain you're feeling. Staying so focused on your pain and your body actually makes pain worse as your anxiety level increases. You may have heard about the "mind-body connection." It really is true. The mind has an incredible impact on the physical body. For example, anxiety, no matter what the underlying cause, promotes a physical response of hyperventillation, increased pulse and high blood pressure - sometimes to the point of passing out.
When my pain gets way worse than usual and intrudes on my day, my first response is to think, "Oh, it's you again. Go away." Then I try distraction. That can be anything from reading a book, surfing the internet, watching a moving, calling a friend - anything to get my mind off the pain. If that fails, I move on to meditation and relaxation techniques. If I'm lucky, I can meditate myself to sleep for an hour or two. Sleep is a legitimate way to deal with pain.
You mention that you experience epigastric pain when you drink alcohol. Well, the most logical solution is to NOT drink alcohol! :-) That pain may have absolutely nothing to do with lyme disease. Alcohol is incredibly irritating to the stomach lining, and not everyone can tolerate it. You may be one of those people, or you may have some other kind of GI problem. Please make a point of discussing this problem with your doctor, and meanwhile abstain from alcohol. I just hate to hear of a young woman with her whole, wonderful life ahead of her and a child to love and raise being plagued with medical problems. Don't give up on finding answers!
We do care. you should keep a journal of whats going on daily, we ave a pain tracker here at Med Help that you can keep and even print and take along with you to show the Doctor when you go.It will help the Doctor better understand whats going on.
I am sorry your having so much pain and anxiety at your age. you should be enjoying your new baby and looking forward to life instead of thinking of death.
I would recommend that you see a pain psychologist too.I was reluctant at first but it really does help alot.
Try and think positive and do things that cheer you up , spend time with your baby because trust me they grow up way too fast:)
And congratulations on the new baby!
I am sorry your having so much pain and anxiety at your age. you should be enjoying your new baby and looking forward to life instead of thinking of death.
I would recommend that you see a pain psychologist too.I was reluctant at first but it really does help alot.
Try and think positive and do things that cheer you up , spend time with your baby because trust me they grow up way too fast:)
And congratulations on the new baby!
my symptoms have barley been about a year i noticed first my fingers swelling to wherei had to break my ring of with some pliers one morning. i went to the doctor january 2010 thats when they found lymes again they gave me some antibiotics that i had to take twice daily for a month called doxycycline when i was tested by the reffered rheumatologist she says all the tests came back negitive along with the arthritis tests.for about two months i felt good but recently ive been feeling like this i have an appointment with a doctor but sometimes, i dont think they see it like i do. thank u very much it makes me feel better that somebody cares
Hi Clariissa,
Welcome to the Pain Management Forum. I am glad that you found us and took the time to post...however I am very sorry to hear about painful symptoms. I can understand your fear. I would be concerned also.
Has the initial Lyme's Disease resurfaced or is this a new infection?It makes a difference in what you can expect in speed of recovery. Have you done much reading about Lyme's Disease? In my opinion you need to understand what you are facing so you can ease your fears. I've copied this from the CDC, Content source: Division of Vector Borne Infectious Diseases
BEGIN "Most cases of Lyme disease can be cured with antibiotics, especially if treatment is begun early in the course of illness. However, a small percentage of patients with Lyme disease have symptoms that last months to years after treatment with antibiotics. These symptoms can include muscle and joint pains, arthritis, cognitive defects, sleep disturbance, or fatigue. The cause of these symptoms is not known. There is some evidence that they result from an autoimmune response, in which a person's immune system continues to respond even after the infection has been cleared.: END
If you aren't seeing a good rheumatologist please do so. One that is connected with a large teaching hospital will be on the cutting edge of treatments and therapy. Your symptoms should be able to be controlled with the right medications.
I don't have a crystal ball but by best guess is you will live to see grandchildren and probably your great grandchildren. Be sure ti discuss your concerns with your physician who can address them specifically and with more detail.
Please let us know how you are doing. We will look forward to your updates.
Best of Luck to You,
~Tuck
Welcome to the Pain Management Forum. I am glad that you found us and took the time to post...however I am very sorry to hear about painful symptoms. I can understand your fear. I would be concerned also.
Has the initial Lyme's Disease resurfaced or is this a new infection?It makes a difference in what you can expect in speed of recovery. Have you done much reading about Lyme's Disease? In my opinion you need to understand what you are facing so you can ease your fears. I've copied this from the CDC, Content source: Division of Vector Borne Infectious Diseases
BEGIN "Most cases of Lyme disease can be cured with antibiotics, especially if treatment is begun early in the course of illness. However, a small percentage of patients with Lyme disease have symptoms that last months to years after treatment with antibiotics. These symptoms can include muscle and joint pains, arthritis, cognitive defects, sleep disturbance, or fatigue. The cause of these symptoms is not known. There is some evidence that they result from an autoimmune response, in which a person's immune system continues to respond even after the infection has been cleared.: END
If you aren't seeing a good rheumatologist please do so. One that is connected with a large teaching hospital will be on the cutting edge of treatments and therapy. Your symptoms should be able to be controlled with the right medications.
I don't have a crystal ball but by best guess is you will live to see grandchildren and probably your great grandchildren. Be sure ti discuss your concerns with your physician who can address them specifically and with more detail.
Please let us know how you are doing. We will look forward to your updates.
Best of Luck to You,
~Tuck
Have you seen a doctor for any of your symptoms? How long have you been having them? I'm sure you realize this forum has no doctors on it. We're just pain patients with a variety of pain issues and a wider variety of treatments.
It sounds to me like you are very aware of every little twitch going on in your body. I was like that myself and can still at times get caught up in it. I also get a sense from your post that you're very anxious, which is not uncommon among pain patients. But you really need to see a doctor to start ruling things in or out.
I hope you'll make an appointment with your PCP and let us know what's going on.
It sounds to me like you are very aware of every little twitch going on in your body. I was like that myself and can still at times get caught up in it. I also get a sense from your post that you're very anxious, which is not uncommon among pain patients. But you really need to see a doctor to start ruling things in or out.
I hope you'll make an appointment with your PCP and let us know what's going on.
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