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Fatigue but no diagnosis

Posted , 7 users are following.

vicky23280
vicky23280

I've been experiencing sheer exhaustion and fatigue for about a year now. I feel terrible every day regardless of how much sleep I have. I am at work today but can barely keep my eyes open let alone use my brain. I have had periods like this before but those were brought on by antidepressants I was taking and I felt normal once I stopped taking the tablets. I have had so many tests and other than a sight vitamin D deficiency, which I fixed with supplements, nothing has shown up. I can't live like this. People keep saying that it can't be that bad if I make it into work everyday still. I pull sickies more often than I should and am not productive at work and I cry very easily. I don't make a good impression at work when I cry once a week. I need help and advice.

1 like, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • mitty999
    mitty999 vicky23280

    Posted

    Oh Vicky, so sorry to hear how bad you feel. This could be ME. It would almost definitely come on very quickly in it`s initial stage. There are many symptoms and there are other conditions that could cause fatigue...it fits with Addisons disease. So I really think you need blood tests. Some doctor or specialist who understands ME needs to go over your symptoms with you. Please ask for help from a friend or relative who does NOT treat you like a moaning basket case. They can support you and speak for you if you cannot find the words. You sound very depressed and that alone can cause fatigue.. I have had this myself (horrible).

    Don`t take no for an answer, keep on beating down the doctor`s door. Insist in help. Also please read The Hummingbird  Report and the Stonebird as well if you can. You will feel better if you recognise yourself. Both are online and free to read.

    Also, trying lying down when you rest, it can help a lot.

    Get in touch again if you need anymore help

    Best wishes.....Mitty

    • vicky23280
      vicky23280 mitty999

      Posted

      Hi Mitty,

      I have had 3 rounds of blood tests in the last year and the only thing they found was vitamin D deficiency. I have in the past had inflammation show up in blood tests which related to arthritis in my hands. I have suffered with depression in the past and don't feel depressed now at all. I am quite content but absolutely shattered all the time. Although it is starting to affect my job, my fun and my relationship so I worry it will make me depressed.

      I have another doctors appointment tonight but I feel so hopeless when the blood tests don't show anything. All my friends and family are fed up listening to me complain about it and my boyfriend finds it so frustrating he tells me it will end our relationship if it continues, so I have to try and sensor myself with him and keep my feelings to myself.

      Feeling so hopeless. Sorry

    • sueliz57
      sueliz57 vicky23280

      Posted

      If you could read the symptoms of ME on a reputable website and see how far you see yourself in them before you go to your G P appointment it could be a starting point for finding a diagnosis. I have found through years of illness with this horrible disease that G Ps don't always know a lot about it and you may find you have to push to get the right diagnosis. You have to have had more than half a dozen symptoms for longer than six months for them to begin thinking about ME having discounted many other illnesses. Good luck!
    • mitty999
      mitty999

      Posted

      I hear what you say Vicky. Possibility of Rheumatoid Arthritis maybe as it often takes years to put a stamp on this illness and causes fatigue. I don`t think you can rely on just blood tests. There is no test at all for ME, nothing whatsoever.However there are many many symptoms that point to this horrid disease and don`t listen to any doctor who tells you it is all in your head ( anxiety etc ).

      So little research has been done due to lack off funds and certain large companies and goverments have vested interests to refuse financial help. You may feel you are on your own on this, I certainly was. Read sites online. These are funded by charity, but are working very hard to help people understand and diagnose ME themselves.

      I really urge you to read say just The Hummingbird Report. My doctor

      poo-pooed this organisation, but they are some of the most dedicated

      specialists in the world if not the best. If you find yourself there then you are on your way. Take heart that you are by no means the only one out here. I am bedridden with ME and often in terrible pain.

      One last thing though : I am convinced that this type of fatigue can lead to depression and it makes things far worse. I take Duloxetine

      120mg per day (quite high .dose but effective ) It is a very effective drug used in Britain for this type of fatigue .  Hope your doctor`s appointment goes well, but it quite likely that the tests show little or nothing. Oh, and look at supplements, theycan help.

      Best wishes....Mitty

  • michellebee
    michellebee vicky23280

    Posted

    I was just wondering, what can doctors do for you once you have s diagnosis? I started a similar thread as my partner has a lot of ME symptoms but is reluctant to go back to the doctors as he hasn't had any luck with them in the past. Do they just give supplements or is there an actual course of treatment they can prescribe?

    Vicky I hope you find the answers you need. No doubt situations with your family and boyfriend could be making things worse for you.

    Best wishes

    Many thanks

    • mitty999
      mitty999 michellebee

      Posted

      Hi !  I do not know of any recognised treatment for |ME. There are antidepressants and supplements along with diet. There are some private organisations offering "treatments". However , if they had the answer, then they would be highly renown and be working with goverments all over the world. It is one way to spend money of course and there is the placebo effect but since when did this cure Polio or other similar nasty illnesses.

      Pain clinics do help. Also ME is a disease which appears to starve the body of neccessary minerals and a variety of essential bio chemicals.

      These interfere with the normal working of the body and your organs.

      Did you know that tests have shown that the amount of strictnine is higher in people with ME , much too high. It is so complicated and involves many organs and the bones as well. It causes demyelation of the muscles too, similar to Multiple Schlerosis. Not enough is known yet but help is available if not a cure quite yet. We need goverments to start supporting ME research like eventually occured with AIDS. We need funds not platitudes and patches.

      Best wishes....Mitty

  • alison44235
    alison44235 vicky23280

    Posted

    Sounds like M.E.

    I really hope you get it sorted soon.

    Rest plenty and pace yoiurself if you can.

    Good luck. You are not alone.

     

  • jackie00198
    jackie00198 vicky23280

    Posted

    You should definitely investigate ME/CFS, as your fatigue is classic for this illness. See an ME/CFS specialist, preferable an infectious disease doctor or a rheumatologist. In any case, you need to rest and not try to push through the fatigue. Especially if it's me/CFS, overexerting yourself can make this condition much worse and reduce your chances of a recovery.
    • vicky23280
      vicky23280 jackie00198

      Posted

      I think I don't really have a choice but to over exert myself as I have a stressful demanding job and a mortgage/bills to pay. I started to feel more human over the Christmas holiday but I feel terrible again after only a few days back at work. I'm only in my 20s, I don't want to miss out on what is meant to be the most fun of my life because of this, and not doing things because I'm tired isn't really an option. Sometimes I think if I quit caffeine then I would eventually feel a bit better, but I couldn't be caffeine free while I'm working because I wouldn't be able to do my job and I can't stop working.
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