Keeping Everyone in the Loop
So I've officially withdrawn from Edinboro for the semester...I didn't really want to, but my parents made me because they want me to be home with them where they can take care of me and take me to the proper medical facilities where I can get the help I need. I suppose it's for the best though. I can't very well be at Edinboro while I'm so ill. I must admit that I like being around my family when I'm sick, but at the same time, I really don't have any friends down here and it gets really, really lonely.
Anyway, I thought I should explain here what's been going on and what we've found out (or haven't found out) thus far, just so everyone is kept informed about what's going on with me. Some of you may already know some of this, but for those of you who don't and want to be kept in the loop, here it is:
Over the last two semesters up in Edinboro, I lost 40 lbs. I know my eating habits changed (for the worst) from living in a dorm and being so far away from home, but at the same time, it seems like too much weight lost for my bad eating habits alone to be responsible. Mystery number one.
Around mid-semester of the first semester, I fainted due to extreme stomach pain. My parents and I attributed it to an ovarian cyst because in 2005 I experienced similar pain that caused me to pass out and had to have one removed. The doctor said I was prone to them. However, during a visit to the you-know-what doctor over winter break, I was informed that I currently had no issues with cysts. Mystery number two.
Around mid-semester the second semester, I passed out and had to be taken to the hospital. The diagnosis was that I was dehydrated and hadn't eaten enough. Not so much of a mystery, but with other things taken into account, there had to be more to it.
Beginning last March/April and continuing into the summer, I've been experiencing stomach pain on the upper right side of my abdomine, nausea, vomiting and diarhea after eating, extreme fatigue, dizziness, black-out spells, and fainting spells. I saw the doctor and she said that I was underweight and that my liver was secreting elevated levels of billiroubin. She said that didn't necessarily mean anything though. After seeing her again a little later in the the summer, she said what I was experiencing could be symptoms of liver problems but that it was still too early to tell if there was anything wrong with my liver aside from the billiroubin level. Mystery number three.
Last Monday I was taking a walk with Vicky and my stomach started hurting and I felt nauseous, but seeing as that was by that point a regular occurence, I pretty much ignored it. Later however, I began feeling weak and dizzy so I sat down on a bench to rest. That's when I went unconscious. Vicky and Jason took me to the hospital in Millcreek where I was given medicine to reduce the pain and blood work was taken. The blood work came back negative, indicating that nothing was wrong and after listening to me tell him about my symptoms, the doctor told me that I should get my gallbladder checked out. (They, apparently, didn't have the facilities to do that there) I was released, under the impression that the answer to all my problems was to get my gallbladder treated and possibly removed.
Tuesday afternoon, my mother called to inform me that I was far too sick to be staying up in Edinboro. She said she was coming to get me, that I would have to withdraw from Edinboro for the semester and go home where my family could look after me and take me to the proper medical facilities.
As soon as we arrived back in Virginia yesterday, I was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital. I told them everything. They agreed that there was definitely something wrong with me and that the weight loss was a big factor. They also said that the reason my illness intensified over the summer was due to the extreme depression that I experienced after Phil broke up with me. So apparently my emotional stability (or rather, lack-there-of) lowered my immune system and the illness got worse.
Anyway, after talking, more blood work was taken (still negative) and I was given a sonogram to test my gallbladder. It ended up that they found nothing wrong with my gallbladder and they recommended me to a Gastro-intestinal specialist who can conduct an endoscopy to test my other organs. So the good news is, since it's not my gallbladder, I don't have to shy away from any particular kinds of food...the bad news is, it could be something more serious. Mystery number four.
So next week I'm supposed to meet with a gastro-intestinal specialists and a psychiatrist who can prescribe me something for the depression because, at this point, the physcial and emotional problems are just feeding off of eachother and making eachother worse. The only thing that bothers me is that I'm not really sure I trust the doctors to find out what's wrong. For two years I had an ovarian cyst that was causing me extreme pain and all the doctors kept telling me that it was all in my head or it was irritable bowel. It wasn't until two years later, after the cyst burst, that they discovered it and had to remove it. And during all of that, my blood tests kept coming back normal. So I'm just concerned about how long it'll take for them to find anything.
So that's pretty much where everything stands at this point. I'll make sure to keep everyone informed of my progress. I promise my family and I are doing everything in our power to get this sorted out so that I can be happy and healthy again...because god knows I want to go back to Edinboro next semester.
Anyway, I thought I should explain here what's been going on and what we've found out (or haven't found out) thus far, just so everyone is kept informed about what's going on with me. Some of you may already know some of this, but for those of you who don't and want to be kept in the loop, here it is:
Over the last two semesters up in Edinboro, I lost 40 lbs. I know my eating habits changed (for the worst) from living in a dorm and being so far away from home, but at the same time, it seems like too much weight lost for my bad eating habits alone to be responsible. Mystery number one.
Around mid-semester of the first semester, I fainted due to extreme stomach pain. My parents and I attributed it to an ovarian cyst because in 2005 I experienced similar pain that caused me to pass out and had to have one removed. The doctor said I was prone to them. However, during a visit to the you-know-what doctor over winter break, I was informed that I currently had no issues with cysts. Mystery number two.
Around mid-semester the second semester, I passed out and had to be taken to the hospital. The diagnosis was that I was dehydrated and hadn't eaten enough. Not so much of a mystery, but with other things taken into account, there had to be more to it.
Beginning last March/April and continuing into the summer, I've been experiencing stomach pain on the upper right side of my abdomine, nausea, vomiting and diarhea after eating, extreme fatigue, dizziness, black-out spells, and fainting spells. I saw the doctor and she said that I was underweight and that my liver was secreting elevated levels of billiroubin. She said that didn't necessarily mean anything though. After seeing her again a little later in the the summer, she said what I was experiencing could be symptoms of liver problems but that it was still too early to tell if there was anything wrong with my liver aside from the billiroubin level. Mystery number three.
Last Monday I was taking a walk with Vicky and my stomach started hurting and I felt nauseous, but seeing as that was by that point a regular occurence, I pretty much ignored it. Later however, I began feeling weak and dizzy so I sat down on a bench to rest. That's when I went unconscious. Vicky and Jason took me to the hospital in Millcreek where I was given medicine to reduce the pain and blood work was taken. The blood work came back negative, indicating that nothing was wrong and after listening to me tell him about my symptoms, the doctor told me that I should get my gallbladder checked out. (They, apparently, didn't have the facilities to do that there) I was released, under the impression that the answer to all my problems was to get my gallbladder treated and possibly removed.
Tuesday afternoon, my mother called to inform me that I was far too sick to be staying up in Edinboro. She said she was coming to get me, that I would have to withdraw from Edinboro for the semester and go home where my family could look after me and take me to the proper medical facilities.
As soon as we arrived back in Virginia yesterday, I was taken to Lynchburg General Hospital. I told them everything. They agreed that there was definitely something wrong with me and that the weight loss was a big factor. They also said that the reason my illness intensified over the summer was due to the extreme depression that I experienced after Phil broke up with me. So apparently my emotional stability (or rather, lack-there-of) lowered my immune system and the illness got worse.
Anyway, after talking, more blood work was taken (still negative) and I was given a sonogram to test my gallbladder. It ended up that they found nothing wrong with my gallbladder and they recommended me to a Gastro-intestinal specialist who can conduct an endoscopy to test my other organs. So the good news is, since it's not my gallbladder, I don't have to shy away from any particular kinds of food...the bad news is, it could be something more serious. Mystery number four.
So next week I'm supposed to meet with a gastro-intestinal specialists and a psychiatrist who can prescribe me something for the depression because, at this point, the physcial and emotional problems are just feeding off of eachother and making eachother worse. The only thing that bothers me is that I'm not really sure I trust the doctors to find out what's wrong. For two years I had an ovarian cyst that was causing me extreme pain and all the doctors kept telling me that it was all in my head or it was irritable bowel. It wasn't until two years later, after the cyst burst, that they discovered it and had to remove it. And during all of that, my blood tests kept coming back normal. So I'm just concerned about how long it'll take for them to find anything.
So that's pretty much where everything stands at this point. I'll make sure to keep everyone informed of my progress. I promise my family and I are doing everything in our power to get this sorted out so that I can be happy and healthy again...because god knows I want to go back to Edinboro next semester.