songcanary

I am so happy for you both! Now you can finally breathe I wish some doctors were as good at 'ruling in' as they are at 'ruling out' LOL.

I am giggling at your scenario. I had my own little thing last night at a barbecue. It was really hot and it started getting to me, and I got nauseated and dizzy. So I made myself a little ice bag and kept moving it to my neck, wrists and arms. I get getting asked if I had an injury or something. Ah, if only it were that easy!!! It did spark some funny conversations about how our elderly relatives used to keep cool by putting their feet in buckets of water, hiding in the basement and other funny stuff. In the meantime, I actually cooled off nicely Hope your palps are at a comfy minimum today.

Today I had my very first medical massage for fibromyalgia. Well, it was heavenly. But during my conversation with the therapist, I mentioned my dys symptoms and this was his comment: 'Whenever a client complains of nausea or dizziness, the first thing I think of is the carotids.' Apparently if the nearby muscles are tense then they can impede blood flow to the brain. Well, believe me, I have the most tense neck muscles in town, and always have. Needless to say, he worked on those for quite a while and I am so glad I told him about that. So has anybody else heard this theory or has massage helped your dizziness? I think this makes a lot of sense (at least in my case) and now I can't wait for my next appt!

Lieze, Your reply is exactly what I haven't been able to put into words. I really crash with any kind of stress and this theory makes so much sense. I wish I knew what my catecholamines were doing under those circumstances. But I could take an educated guess, that's for sure

Hi Bren and welcome! I also fired my GP and stumbled upon some good specialists, and I do mean stumble. Seems to be a common issue on this forum. And the lightheadedness and shaking chills, oh boy yeah. I don't have POTS so can't share good treatments for that, but you will get lots of others who can. Just wanted to welcome you and I hope you feel better soon armed with more info and good doctors. This site is awesome.

Ah, the luxury of hindsight. I am convinced that both my parents had this. They did not raise me but were in the background. I had nausea for all my teen years and it was so bad that I couldn't ride in anyone else's car without vomiting--and it did happen, yuk! But if I drove, I was fine I was told my dad had the same thing. My mom apparently had a 'nervous stomach' and I have that problem to this day; I don't know what the current term is but if I have stress of any kind, I get weak and nauseous, shaky and panic. It is maddening. I wish I knew more of my parents' medical history, it would help me understand and accept this better I think. Not giving in to it, though!

It seems to help me a lot. About four years ago when I first started researching my symptoms, I came across an article that mentioned it. I was SO ill at the time I took a teaspoon in a glass of water and I could literally feel it working. Of course, I wasn't diagnosed at the time so I discontinued extra salt because all the talk was 'low sodium this, low sodium that'. I thought it was bad for me. A year ago at diagnosis my rheumy told me to push fluids and salt and it has made a huge difference. I have had some short term relapses which I can't explain, but the few times I did stop salt, I felt lighheaded again. So I put 1 teaspoon in 2L water and chug away all day. BTW, my BP doesn't really go up much, but I am not getting the lightheadedness, at least for now. Can't explain that one, but I'll take it!

I agree, Sandy. I am so very grateful for this forum with its civility and wealth of knowledge. I know I would not be doing as well as I am now without it.

Lieze, So sorry. I know just how you feel. I recently had to decide to stop pet sitting because of two bad spells. Need to be reliable for my wonderful clients. It is good that you are in good standing though. It gives some hope that maybe in the future you can do that job you loved so much, even though it was stressful at the time. We never know what is around the corner. It is a shock to go through changes like this. I hope you can look at it like a passage, and that maybe something better lies ahead. That's what I try to do, and it helps a little. Hugs to you.

Dani, I am allergic to strawberries as well, but get this---it took me months to figure out that I have a strong allergy to tapioca. And it is in a lot of yogurts nowadays. Stonyfield has several that are tapioca free. I have to read every label but I am fine if I do. Just a thought.

You're far from dumb Naomi. Thank goodness you grabbed the phone. Geesh, we are already helping our own doctors, now phlebotomists, too??? I would be just like you and doing the same thing. I love it!

I was glad to see this post because I have been dealing with the same situation. I love all my friends and just when everything was fine and dandy, along comes this stupid illness. But so far email has been a godsend, and I do see some of my friends once in a while, but nothing like the frequent visits we had before. And I seem to do better at home, it's the going out and about that is the problem. It's an anxiety and fear about having a 'spell' when I'm away from home, because it's happened before. Kind of like the fear of the known LOL. I have no close relatives nearby and only my husband at the house. So I don't want to lose my friends! I find that most are very understanding if they know you are sick, so I would advise anyone with this to speak up about it and not try to cover it up, without sounding obsessive of course. Otherwise wrong assumptions can be made. I wouldn't want anyone to think I'm antisocial, it's not that way at all. I wish this crazy problem would run its course and we could all get back to being ourselves again

I understand. I've had two relapses recently and I was just doing the usual, minding my own business and then BAM, major nausea, weakness, shaky, tachy. And I had been feeling pretty well for a year. Now I live in fear of having this happen again in a public place with no one to help me. The one bright spot that I hang on to is that I have been through all this before and survived it. But is surviving really living? The answer is: Well, yes, for the moment, it is. I admire you for being able to run two miles and take care of your home and family. This in itself is an achievement. BTW, when my BP is 90/70 I can feel pretty crappy. Do you have compression hose? I put mine on and my BP went up 20 pts both ways. They really did help even though they are hideous looking!

Bananas, I totally agree with your advice. My husband ended up with an acute hospital visit when I was just beginning to feel better. The stress set me back big time. Weakness, nausea etc. My wonderful neighbor (who is 80 yrs old BTW) came over and assured me that he would understand if I only visited once a day. Which is what I did. And he more than understood. It made a lot of difference to have my neighbor listen to me and give me such good advice. So I hope you have someone you can confide in. I did not realize how helpful she would be, and now I thank her every day for that visit. Hugs to you.

I usually have a better appetite in the afternoon, too. So I've pretty much stopped freaking out if I'm not too hungry in the morning. I can usually make up for it later. When I was at my sickest, my rheumy started me on doxepin and it really helped increase my appetite. It's a known side effect. Lately I have had two relapses, each lasting about two days, and my appetite went right out the window during both of them. I think I have the world's highest sympathetic overdrive

Nicely played. I am smiling for you

Now that's what I call being proactive! Good for you, getting that appt, I hope it goes real well. My sympathies on the passing of your MIL. If your inlaws are anything like mine were, you will probably need to fade into the background while you are there, anyway. Because believe it or not, anything you say could make you appear to be interfering. Funerals can bring out the strangest behavior Best of luck.

I use 1 tsp (5g) iodized sea salt in 2 liters of water and drink at least that amount daily. I also salt my food. I do not eat any processed foods, however. My serum sodium has always been on the high side and that is weird because before I got diagnosed, I never added salt because my husband is hypertensive and I didn't know I needed it!

I have had the same vision problem all day today. I get this when my BP is low, today it wouldn't top 89/70 so I put on the compression hose and it really helped. Bad thing is, I need them most when it is really hot outside, and the last thing I need is to wear nylon! Back to the subject, yes, one of my very first symptoms was blurry vision, kind of like I am looking through water, and kind of dim as well.

Really? Neuros can't? In the States any MD or DO can. Anyhoo, sounds like you're getting the hang of navigating doctors' waters. Best of luck with the upcoming visit. Getting the right meds is critical no matter how it is done LOL!

The very first thing to do is to make sure the cat doesn't have a medical problem. I know that might not sound like the first priority in your life right now, but it could explain why he/she is urinating outside the box. Plus, is the box kept clean daily? Cats can be really fussy about using a dirty box. Also, sometimes they don't like the type of litter. Clay vs. paper pellets vs. corn (my personal favorite) etc. Cat urine is awful, and the longer it stays there, the harder it is to clean up. I hope the kitty is well and you can solve this problem. It probably does smell worse when you go back after awhile, but unfortunately it was there all along. I have a lot of field experience in this area, sad to say!

Lieze, I remember when I finally started to gain last year; I almost couldn't believe my eyes. I was giddy like a little kid running through a sprinkler. I am so happy for you and hope you continue to improve! Don't be surprised if things go up and down for a short while, that happened to me but in the end I gained.

You have just described my life in a nutshell. I have had weakness for four years now. And I just had a horrible spell of it last night when I tried to attend a seminar where my husband was speaking. Drove 35 miles with a friend and had to leave for home before it began. It was humiliating. The only good thing is that my husband is so very understanding. Otherwise, I would like to punch a wall The only thing that 'helps' me is to carefully pace myself, and do far less than I think I can. I feel like a branch that's about to break all the time. I understand how you feel.

I have been taking oral drops for food allergies for 1 1/2 years now. Eleven foods. They work well and are the only reason I can eat a balanced diet. I do have a threshhold and if I eat too much of any one allergen, I do get a reaction. But that's only if I overdo it. I love the drops.

Oh yes, very common symptom for me. And my temp can be perfectly normal, but I still feel cold. When I was at my worst, I had a body temp of 94.3 and had shaking chills so bad I shook the gurney. To top it all off, my PCP thought I didn't know how to read a thermometer. I mean, spare me.