I take Zoloft and a vitamin every day. I also take 1 to 2 doses of Advil most days just to be able to function with the joint and muscle aches.
It’s interesting that you mention that connection. I hadn’t heard that before. I have definitely had a lot of antibiotics over the past year. For each MRSA infection, the doctors start off with one antibiotic for a few days to a week until the test results come back. Then I get switched to another antibiotic, usually Bactrim. I had at least one other round of antibiotics that I can recall for a very stubborn sinus infection that just wouldn’t quit back in January. I just looked up my med history on my health insurance’s website. I’ve had a total of 8 antibiotics since June 2014.
It isn’t Bell’s Palsy. I’ve had it and it is localized to one side of your face.
Some years later I had various problems that seemed to be neurological - random numb patches on my scalp and elsewhere, fatigue, frequent headaches, general aches and pains and a few bouts of dizziness and falling asleep in the middle of conversations. I had all the tests including MRIs and they found nothing.
The neurologist suggested that probably I was suffering from a reaction to a previous viral infection - some sort of autoimmune disorder I guess. Since in the weeks of investigation my condition had stabilized he suggested waiting to see if it spontaneously fixed itself. I gathered there was no real other choice except for symptomatic relief. I asked how long this could take and he suggested “weeks to months” but admitted it may persist forever.
I’m not sure how long it took to clear up but it was one of those things where I had stopped worrying about it and then one day suddenly realized it had stopped some time ago.
Thank you. I’m thinking that a similar outcome is highly likely. The more I search for answers the more hopeless this seems to be. I’m driving myself nuts with it. I’ll take this as far as a neurologist, but if that comes up empty, I may just try to ride it out.
The increasingly severe aches, headaches, weakness, and utter exhaustion is making that hard to do though.
Testing for Lyme disease is not all that accurate and the fact that you have been on antibiotics can mask a positive, so do not rule it out even if your initial test is not positive.
Zoloft can have side effects similar to some of your symptoms also, including loss of coordination, weakness, fatigue, and headaches. How to figure out if that has anything to do with it may be difficult though.
Good luck in finding some answers and feeling better soon. Don’t be shy about pushing doctors a bit to suggest possibilities and further testing and ask lots of questions.
I can only speak from my own experience here, but FWIW when my tumor was originally discovered I got the news the same day. It took more scans to determine its exact size and location, but that there was in fact a tumor was immediately obvious. So on that front I’d take it as a good sign that you’re having to wait for results.
I’ll just chime in again to say definitely follow up on the neurologist (which it sounds like you are doing) and if you’re not getting answers keep looking.
2 years after starting DAILY migraines I am finally down to under 15 days a month. Which probably sounds like shit to most people, but it’s miraculous to me.
The point is I had to keep pushing and pushing and went through several doctors, and will probably go through even more.
There is some one out there who can help you. Don’t give up.
DoperChic, did your doctor run a test for vitamin D levels? I had a series of very odd symptoms (some that pointed to rheumatoid arthritis and other autoimmune problems) and it turned out that I had low D3 levels.
When I saw the mention of MRSA, I thought about some situations in which a low-grade bacterial infection causes neurological symptoms.
Did some googling, and it’s usually strep that can do that (see PANDAS syndrome). I haven’t been able to find any mention of MRSA (which is staphylococcus, not streptococcus) causing these kinds of symptoms. Still - might be worth asking the doctor about it.
Is there any chance the antibiotics might be contributing to the symptoms? Fluoroquinolones are known to cause neurological issues (though I don’t know if the symptoms you’re having fit the pattern).
My doctor called me again today. Let me just say that I love that he is calling me personally with the results and not just sending me a letter in the mail as others have done in the past.
My MRI came back negative for any tumors or masses of any sort. So yay for that!
The rest of my blood work came back too. Everything looks good except for my ANA levels; they came back positive. This often, but not always, indicates an autoimmune disorder of some sort. Considering how much damn pain I’m in all the time that makes perfect sense.
I got recommendations for a rheumatologist for the ana thing, a neurologist for the recurring headaches, and an infectious disease doc for the MRSA.
I’m actually pretty freaking thrilled that the tests revealed something since I may be able to actually treat whatever it is that I have. The near constant pain and fatigue are enough to drive me mad.
Thank you, but I didn’t mean to seek pity (although I have my days). :rolleyes: I just meant really to encourage you. I ran into so many doctors who gave me ridiculous advice (put a cold compress on, put a hot compress on, take benadryl, stay home, etc) I just kept looking until I found someone who actually specialized in migraines and I’m finally making progress.
It sounds like you’re getting more information, and some good referrals, which is great. Keep pushing and good news on the “not a tumor”!
The doctor didn’t specifically test for Lupus, but being ANA positive means that I have antinuclear antibodies present in my blood. These antibodies typically kind of go rogue and attacking the nuclei of healthy cells. This means that I likely have an autoimmune disorder of some sort.
The level of ANA that I have is 1:160 meaning that when 1 part of my blood was combined with 160 parts of a testing agent, ANA was still present. To give you an idea of the severity so to speak, the range for results is 0 (no ANA present, typical results), 1:40, 1:80, 1:160, 1:320, and 1:640. Based on the research I have done online, I have a 95% chance of having some sort of autoimmune disorder as up to 5% of otherwise healthy individuals can still have a titer of 1:160. Which disorder I may have in particular will have to wait until I can get in with a rheumatologist.
I have an appointment set with a doctor my GP recommended, but it’s not until September 28. I called a second place to see if I can get in sooner, but we have been playing phone tag. Ugh. I so desperately want to get an answer and get started on treatment other than daily doses of Advil. I’m amazed that my stomach has yet to join in on the rebellion.
Sadly, even a positive ANA can be a completely maddeningly useless criteria. I got skin lesions for about 4 years, during which time I had a 1:80-1:160 ANA and the biopsies looked like lupus, then I stopped getting lesions and my ANA went back down to 0. So, not lupus? I’m glad I’m not getting lesions any longer, but I’d like to know what the hell was wrong with me and if it’s likely to come back.
Have you let your GP know that your appointment is not until September? Maybe there are other options that they can suggest. Your GP can order further blood work and other tests if they choose to. Letting this progress without a diagnosis does not sound like a great idea.
I don’t know anything about it but I love medicine, so when I google ANA results I get the same thing, a 1:160 implies only a 3-5% chance of not having an autoimmune issue. However I read illness can skew the results and like you said you’ve had infections for a year.
Sucks that you have a 3 month waiting period to see a rheumatologist. As others have said, getting vitamin D checked is probably something your GP can do. Have they tested iron levels also?
Good point - illness can really wreak havoc with all sorts of bloodwork - including iron levels: any inflammatory condition will cause serum ferritin levels to read artificially high, for example.
It’s worth asking whether addressing some things in the short term might cause blood tests etc. to come back with false negatives in September.
In the mean time, the general suggestions of trying to pull off a few pounds / exercise more would seem a nice short-term goal as long as you don’t overdo things - the psychological boost of “I’m doing this to get healthy” has got to help a tiny bit.
And do whatever other things you can just to feel good - a massage, a day at the beach (if geographically feasible) or pool, or whatever, should be a good mood booster and take your mind off of feeling wretched for a bit.
When someone suffers from constant pain and fatigue, managing to get through necessary daily activities already feels like overdoing it and when you are exhausted in spite of not having done anything that logically ought to exhaust a healthy person, it can be very demoralizing, which does not help at all. Her problems are not caused by inactivity or her bmi and going to the beach or pool feeling wretched just means you are feeling wretched at the beach or pool, not that you have much hope of being distracted and “forgetting” that you are in pain. She doesn’t feel bad because she has been lazy or failed to take care of herself properly. I know you surely are not meaning to imply that that is the case, but you kind of are.
