"Virus" Update, In Which I Make A Long Post That Can Be Summed Up By The Cut Tags
Update on my Mysterious Illness. Such as it is.
All my blood work is perfect, which means, basically, that it's unlikely to be any kind of imbalance or deficiency because those things tend to send up little red flags. I did get my thyroid checked in June (perfect, of course), and the thyroid, according to my doctor, doesn't go this wonky in that short a space of time. I also inquired about getting my hormones checked. He asked a few questions about potential symptoms, then said that I had no symptoms that pointed to a hormone imblance and that none of my bloodwork showed any signs of hormone problems. He did still offer to refer me to a hormone therapist/specialist if I wanted, but I didn't see that there was any point.
My doctor and I did discuss my meds, and the only thing we concluded was that my migraine medication is what's making my hair fall out. I can't say I'm surprised, because every other horrible side effect on the planet is caused by it, so why not hair loss, too?
So, yeah, it's now been officially Long Enough to start seriously looking in to Chronic Fatigue, apparently. It's not, obviously, what I'd like to hear, but there are things that could be much worse. I also understand that CFS often does get better after the first year or so. All things considered, I think I'm hoping that's what it is rather than something worse.
Until then, though, I'm still kind of stuck in the house. I drive Boo to school every day, which at least gets me out of the house, then plan my daily excursion downstairs for lunch. We've set up a kettle in the bathroom so I can make tea and coffee, and we've bought a small refridgerator so I can have more food choices. I have, alas, gained back about 20 lbs, mostly because I've stopped being able to walk around and exercise at all. I also can't always make it downstairs to fix healthy lunches (or take the time and energy to fix healthy lunches when I get down there), and have more than once eaten crackers or peanut butter or whatever was left over upstairs. Hopefully if I can keep more veggies and fruit and yogurt on hand, that will help.
But here's the great news. I invested in a light box back in October, and it's been the best thing ever. During a winter when I've been completely stuck inside (stuck in the same *room*) and unable to get out except for driving Boo to school, I have been feeling great, emotionally. I miss all my friends and I miss my coffee buds and I get pissed off that I can't even go to Boo's school stuff or walk the vast distance between the car and the grocery store, but I'm mostly happy. And there's also still the chance that I'll mysteriously get better. It's happened before.
You can also read this entry at my Dreamwidth journal. There are
comments there.
All my blood work is perfect, which means, basically, that it's unlikely to be any kind of imbalance or deficiency because those things tend to send up little red flags. I did get my thyroid checked in June (perfect, of course), and the thyroid, according to my doctor, doesn't go this wonky in that short a space of time. I also inquired about getting my hormones checked. He asked a few questions about potential symptoms, then said that I had no symptoms that pointed to a hormone imblance and that none of my bloodwork showed any signs of hormone problems. He did still offer to refer me to a hormone therapist/specialist if I wanted, but I didn't see that there was any point.
My doctor and I did discuss my meds, and the only thing we concluded was that my migraine medication is what's making my hair fall out. I can't say I'm surprised, because every other horrible side effect on the planet is caused by it, so why not hair loss, too?
So, yeah, it's now been officially Long Enough to start seriously looking in to Chronic Fatigue, apparently. It's not, obviously, what I'd like to hear, but there are things that could be much worse. I also understand that CFS often does get better after the first year or so. All things considered, I think I'm hoping that's what it is rather than something worse.
Until then, though, I'm still kind of stuck in the house. I drive Boo to school every day, which at least gets me out of the house, then plan my daily excursion downstairs for lunch. We've set up a kettle in the bathroom so I can make tea and coffee, and we've bought a small refridgerator so I can have more food choices. I have, alas, gained back about 20 lbs, mostly because I've stopped being able to walk around and exercise at all. I also can't always make it downstairs to fix healthy lunches (or take the time and energy to fix healthy lunches when I get down there), and have more than once eaten crackers or peanut butter or whatever was left over upstairs. Hopefully if I can keep more veggies and fruit and yogurt on hand, that will help.
But here's the great news. I invested in a light box back in October, and it's been the best thing ever. During a winter when I've been completely stuck inside (stuck in the same *room*) and unable to get out except for driving Boo to school, I have been feeling great, emotionally. I miss all my friends and I miss my coffee buds and I get pissed off that I can't even go to Boo's school stuff or walk the vast distance between the car and the grocery store, but I'm mostly happy. And there's also still the chance that I'll mysteriously get better. It's happened before.
You can also read this entry at my Dreamwidth journal. There are
comments there.