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Hello, all, Have been here in my town in southwest Colorado since April, 2018. I am still and ever thrilled to be here, in the environment, in this amazing town, this great cabin house. I have not regretted for a moment moving from the humid East Coast.
I posted some time ago about continuing fatigue and somehow started a rather meandering thread on health and treatments and stuff. No desire to re-do that! I would just like to update anyone is interested.
I started seeing a Functional Medicine guy (with a master's in Clinical Nutrition) with a request for treatment for increased energy. I am having all the signs of ongoing fatigue- exhaustion, lots of sleeping, no brain fog but no energy for movement, eating perfectly (not vegan or anything but very clean, light and so forth). He ran some basic tests and started me on basic supplements for energy improvement and cellular health with no results. He ran some more tests and rather significantly, my ferritin was very low (needed to transfer energy to mitochondria or something. It's a form of anemia) and unfortunately, a high positive (1:80) for homogeneous ANA antibodies. Virtually all people with systemic lupus have this antibody report, but not all people with the report have lupus. There are further antibody tests to be done. Nothing confirms lupus, but the second battery would go a long way to confirmation or elimination of lupus as a problem.
So I am on the same cellular health supplements with an addition of Iron/C. No notice of improvement. When I have forced myself into mild exercise, I have trouble going up a few steps or walking without resting and get home and rest immediately.
This is not how I wanted to live in this lively and lovely area, but there it is. I am hoping for improvement and maybe for a more determined diagnosis. While I have faith in my Functional Medicine guy's assessment of labs and numbers and all (he is very skilled) I have less optimism about the supplements doing any good. I am seeing my PCP next week, have given her the lab tests and asked if she wants to do anything related to them (tests, etc.). I don't have the visual signs of lupus or the rheumatoid arthritis that so many do get with it, but the fatigue goes way back and the anemia is quite common (low ferritin, good iron).
I thought my years of fatigue and multiple cases of mono (?) and one round of severe thrombocytopenia were from being run down and exhausted from night shifts. I might have been becoming ill all along.
Anyway, as illnesses go, it's so far okay to be exhausted, with a view of the beautiful area, ability to go out and sit and eat and talk with people I've met, and to try to force myself to exercise. No horseback riding yet, which I've found is not exhausting (last summer's trip for a week of riding, exhausted when not on horse) and the riding I hope to do hasn't started yet because of the severe weather that is ongoing here. (No more drought!)
Thank you for listening. If anyone has experience with Functional Medicine, I'd like to hear your experience. I am not sure I believe in "leaky gut" and such.
Any mention of the tie between the mind and the body by your clinical nutritionist or your principal doctor?
And any mention of psychosomatic symptoms, psychosomatic disorders, psychosomatic response, and/or psychosomatic medicine by anyone you've seen about this?
No. I think my PCP was ignoring the exhaustion because she figured there was nothing to be done (or maybe because she thought it was emotional or something. I certainly thought it was from working nights for so many years).
My FM guy is certainly holistic but he really looked at the low ferritin level and high antibody titer of the lupus type. He wants me to continue to take supplements and iron/C and I think run the next battery of tests in a couple of months.
My PCP, I don't know what she'll want to do, but I said I didn't need to meet with her unless she wanted to do something from the lab results.
I don't know about your functional medicine practitioner but as a nurse you can readily get reliable information on the 1:80 titer ANA and the low serum ferritin. A titer of 1:80 is very close to normal and by itself not of much value. There is also nothing magical about low ferritin. Certainly a low value does not indicate a "leaky" gut. It could indicate development of iron deficiency anemia or nothing.
As a nurse you are probably also very knowledgeable about reference values for lab tests. Let me explain for others. Reference ranges are setup so that 95% of normal healthy individuals will fall within the ranges. 5% will not and if you have enough testing done you can expect to see some abnormal values even if you are perfectly healthy.
I very much sympathize with you. I have extreme fatigue and have had it for several years. I get through daily life with sheer grit when that works. I am still trying to find a diagnosis and treatment that is of value. My ANA is over 1280 but I do not have lupus or any readily identifiable auto immune disease.
No. I think my PCP was ignoring the exhaustion because she figured there was nothing to be done (or maybe because she thought it was emotional or something).
Any mention of the tie between the mind and the body by your clinical nutritionist or your principal doctor?
And any mention of psychosomatic symptoms, psychosomatic disorders, psychosomatic response, and/or psychosomatic medicine by anyone you've seen about this?
This is the sort of thing that just maddens those of us with undiagnosed health issues. I am sure the OP knows she feels badly and it is not just some psychosomatic issue. She set out on retirement with great plans that got waylaid.
Well, if you can, just enjoy being in paradise, sitting in the park listening to the live music, and going to the various cafes, Four Corners café and looking at the mountains. I do envy you.
I hope it's not because of the elevation. I've heard some folks never get acclimated.
Well, if you can, just enjoy being in paradise, sitting in the park listening to the live music, and going to the various cafes, Four Corners café and looking at the mountains. I do envy you.
I hope it's not because of the elevation. I've heard some folks never get acclimated.
No, I'm sure that's not it. I've had SOB when I visited and when I first got here. I've had fatigue and episodes like mono and all over the years.
It's like having mono almost every day. A great illness to have if you don't have to work. I fear that I will lack for friends since I'm not skiing/running around/etc etc, although I never did want to do those things!
As for the park, I can pretty much stay on my deck and hear the music in the park...
Well, 32 years as a psych RN and on antidepressants with talk therapy for many years, I think I'm on top of that aspect. I am relieved not to feel depressed.
This is the sort of thing that just maddens those of us with undiagnosed health issues. I am sure the OP knows she feels badly and it is not just some psychosomatic issue. She set out on retirement with great plans that got waylaid.
Thank you. I agree.
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