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Have you considered trying one of the newer antidepressants like Cymbalta or Lexapro? Some of your problems with fatigue could indeed be from depression (which can be caused by anxiety).
I'm a diagnosed hypochondriac so I know what impact the brain has on the rest of the body.
My Dr. Asked me to try Prozac and I took one. It relaxed me and gave me more mental clarity but I had a hard time sleeping that night. Are there any antidepressants that don't have that effect?
According to my sleep specialist, all snoring is abnormal, unless you have a bad cold or allergies. Babies an be born with OSA. Although people tned to think of this as a fat person's disorder, many thin people have it, too. It's all got to do with how your neck is structured. A short, broad neck usually means OSA as the muscles can't work properly - according to my sleep specialist.
I agree that you need to see a psychologist but OSA could be contributing. See an allergist and get rid of the stuffiness. I use Flonase (Rx) every night before bedtime.
Location: Living near our Nation's Capitol since 2010
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In all fairness, I do believe that you truly feel all of your symptoms. In fact, you feel them toooo much. I think you spend way too much time analyzing ever single twinge, every single twitch. I have a very good friend who does the same thing and she lives a life of total chaos. she is almost a captive in her own home because she is convinced that every single ache or pain is "the end".
Since you have clearly spent a lot of time and money being medically diagnosed, ultimately it sounds like time to get a good therapist who can help you figure out why you are so obsessed. there really are good drugs out there that can help you deal with your physical symptoms.
Really, I do wish you all the best...it must be a very difficult life that you lead.
Your nose always being congested when you go to bed can be contributing to your and your wife's lack of sleep. Have you tried those Breath Right strips? My friend with terrible allergies swears by them.
As for the rest of your ailments, I wish I had an answer. Therapy, acupuncture, yoga? The mind is a powerful thing, mental stressors can easily manifest as physical pain, and vise versa. I wish the best for you.
First off, I am not a doctor. With that being said, it is my belief based upon personal experience and research I have read that stress and anxiety can cause very real physical symptoms. Absolutely you can make yourself sicker by worrying all the time. Many of the symptoms you describe seem harmless and the fact that multiple doctors don't seem worried is a positive sign.
Look at what you listed:
• Have had 5 or 6 sinus colds in the last year--common
• Pins and needles type feeling in my feet when I cross my legs--doesn't everyone if they don't shift their legs after a few minutes?
• Chronic nasal stuffiness, always clearing my throat--could easily be allergies
• Very gassy, mainly burping, and heart palpatations… even if I just drink water
• Chronic stomache problems, inflamed, feeling nauseated all the time, tender when I push on it--could be a host of things, stress, mild food allergy, ibs
• Dizzy, wooziness, off balance feeling
• Feeling spaced out all the time, like my eyes are in a daze
• Muscles feel weak and heavy, legs feel jelley like
• No energy at all, feeling fatigued all the time, yawning all day long
• I developed a twitch in my right eyelid which lasted 24/7 for 2 months
• Concentration is terrible, brain fog all the time--all of these could be exacerbated by lack of sleep
• Feeling of pressure in my head
• Eyes feel unfocused
• Eye floaters
• Eye pain (they feel strained and tension like headache across my forehead and into temple area)
• Light sensitivity
• After images (especially when reading off a computer screen… if I look away I will see the text faintly on the wall for example)
• Tinnitus
• Dull ear ache feeling off and on
• Ears sometimes feel like they need to pop--I started experiencing most of these when I first developed migraines.
• Headaches at base of skull which I believed to be Occipital Neuralgia
(was daily but now only get them maybe once a week)
• When walking I sometimes feel resistance as if someone is pushing
downward on my head
• When I use an elevator now and get off I still feel like I am moving for a couple of minutes--quite honestly, these could all be "in your head." If you worry enough about something, you can make yourself sick over it.
Absolutely, you should always see a doctor when you're sick. If you have strange symptoms, you should get them checked out. But the thing is, you've already done that, and then some. You have had every test under the sun, and while they haven't come up with anything conclusive, they also haven't come up with anything truly dangerous. If you had some horrible and potentially fatal condition, it likely would have shown up by this point on one of the tests. In that, you can rest assured. Whatever is going on, it has remained pretty steady for some time and your doctors don't seem worried.
You also need to keep in mind that human bodies are flawed creations. We all have some things "wrong." The question you have to ask is whether you can live with the flaws, or whether they are so debilitating that they have to be corrected. Then you have to determine if they can be corrected, or if you're just going to have to find a way to live with them as they are. A malignant tumor must be corrected. A harmless bump on your thumb? Not so much.
While you did not seem to appreciate Charles' advice, I have to see some wisdom in his words. At some point, too much medicine can make you sicker. Absolutely take a drug when you need it. Absolutely take a drug when it makes you feel better, and absolutely take a drug when the side effects are less cumbersome than the issue they treat. However, you must ask what you are looking for here. As you've learned with your other drugs, sometimes they can make you feel worse. When possible, I think it's prudent (after medical testing rules out anything serious and under the supervision of a doctor) to try to treat your body with the simplest interventions first. See if you can manage (not cure, manage--we all deal with something) your symptoms through healthy diet. See if you can improve your sleeplessness by exercising more and wearing yourself out. Go to therapy. Even if you think it isn't making a difference, sometimes just venting your issues can help reduce anxiety. Look for ways to manage and reduce, rather than being focused on finding some cure that may not exist.
My Dr. Asked me to try Prozac and I took one. It relaxed me and gave me more mental clarity but I had a hard time sleeping that night. Are there any antidepressants that don't have that effect?
Taking just one wont do any good, most of the SSRI's (Prozac, Zoloft, Lexapro, Cymbalta) take at least two weeks to have any effect. It's possible any immediate side effects would go away as your body got used to the med.
I would avoid Paxil and Effexor, as these two sometimes have withdrawal symptoms from what ive heard.
5 or 6 colds in a year - COMMON? I had one in the last 15+ yrs. (and that was from a cousin w/a cold that kept kissing and hugging me (I believe)
Sure... most people I know get about that many. I did a quick google search just to see if my area was freakishly unhealthy. Several sites put the number around 2-4 depending on age, so I wouldn't say getting 5-6 a year is reason to panic. People who work with children or who interact with others a lot probably average a few more, others with strong immune systems a few less.
Actually, people do feel motion after being on a rollercoaster or any motion type of ride. It has something to do with the brain being overly sensitive to motion. I`m not sure about the elavator thing but I do know that people who have chronic migraines have a more sensitive brain and it reacts differently to situations than someone who doesn`t have migraines.
Sure... most people I know get about that many. I did a quick google search just to see if my area was freakishly unhealthy. Several sites put the number around 2-4 depending on age, so I wouldn't say getting 5-6 a year is reason to panic. People who work with children or who interact with others a lot probably average a few more, others with strong immune systems a few less.
5-6 per year doesn't set off alarm bells.
I dont think 5-6 colds in a year would be considered normal. I had a bad one this year, but that was the first one I've had in probably 4 or 5 years.
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