Sunday, June 28, 2015

The Beginning of Being Sick

dysautonomia patient and her son
Welcome to my blog! I'm not sure if anyone will read this but I'd like to say "hi" to anyone who comes across this. I started this blog because I needed an outlet. I used to do A LOT of writing. A lot. And I stopped once I moved back to the USA. Why? I didn't have a lot to say. But now I do.

Last year, after a rough bout of the Norovirus, I started feeling sick. My symptoms were (and still are):

  • nausea
  • dizziness
  • fainting spells
  • lack of appetite
  • joint pain
  • ...and a lot more



It was scary. I was told I had everything from a bad gallbladder to labrynthitis. Some doctors told me it was in my head. Others told me they had no idea what was wrong. I was also told it was anxiety.

Then, one day, my mom died. She had lung cancer and her time just ran out. It was rather sudden but as she was living her last days, my symptoms got worse. My dad came in for moral support and happened to see a site called crowdmed.com - it's a site that crowd sources medical issues. This site saved my life. The best recommendation was something I never heard of: dysautonomia.

After approaching my primary care physician and my neurologist - neither of them thought this could be something worth exploring but they sent me to a cardiologist. After wearing a heart monitor for two weeks, going for an EKG, and a tilt table test, I was told I DON'T have postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome but I do have dysautonomia...and orthostatic hypotension... and sinus tachycardia. Essentially two things are happening to my body:


  1. My nervous system is fried. I totally fried my nervous system and my brain is sending mixed signals throughout my body and it's causing soooo many issues. 
  2. My blood pressure takes a dump whenever I stand after laying down and blood pools in my legs if I stand for too long.
This sucks. Throughout this blog, I'll be documenting how I feel. Today, I'm recovering from a cold. Normally, for most people, a cold is nothing big. For me, it basically knocks me on my ass - leaving me nauseous, dizzy, exhausted (not just tired), and all around crabby. 

So, that's the beginning of how this whole thing started. Welcome to my life. 

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The Beginning

The Beginning of Being Sick

Welcome to my blog! I'm not sure if anyone will read this but I'd like to say "hi" to anyone who comes across this. I ...