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I just opened this thread so I can talk to somebody that doesn't know me personally because I've run out of ideas and I don't know how to stop a barrage of problems that keeps getting worse...
If you've read my other posts, you'll know that I reside in Louisiana currently, but that I have strong interests in moving to Alaska... about my only well-defined goal...(besides feeling useful... but that's vague)
Louisiana forums are buzz kill on anything that isn't travel related, so I'll talk to people from where I plan to be...
Time for my rant:
I've had lifelong sleep onset insomnia (falling asleep takes about eight hours of laying down and trying even if I'm drowsy feeling) with bouts of having the other kind (staying asleep is usually mediocre for me, but there are some nights... technically mornings, since I never have been able to fall asleep in a reasonable amount of time... I seem wake up after just a short amount of time and have the same problem of getting back to sleep...)
I've some degree of fatigue all my life in the fact that I've always tired easily, but about five years ago, it became remarkably worse and it has continued to get worse since then. Now, I wake up tired, stay tired, and well... still can't sleep... it's the oddest thing!
I've had many headaches in various regions and in varying intensity on my head throughout my life but this one... which I dubbed "the big one" has been going on since August 2009 without end! This makes it different from headaches of the past in that they, despite being frequent, where not continuous and thus did not deserve names. This big one is so bad that when it started, I really did nothing for the first few months I had it. While conventional painkillers helped at first, but didn't make it go away. The big one is winning out here... even the hardcore amytriptylene and headache shots aren't even phasing it anymore. A brain scan that my mother sent me to go get last month partially revealed what may be at fault. As it turns out, the big one is not one, but three types of headache working together! My sinuses being chronically inflamed (more on that later!) causes the pressure and feeling of general confusion (type one: sinus), my brain blood vessels stay dilated similar to what is found in hang-overs and migraines which causes the throbbing and sensitivity to heat, light, and sound (type two: migraine... I don't drink...), and then my neck muscles stay tense from being in pain causing additional agony than is concentrated on the back of my head, but that seems to defer to the rest of my head and upper back.
Next is those allergies... Summer and Spring are very very bad (I actually posted something on them before to make sure I wouldn't get allergies in AK... which the answer was "possibly" ), Fall is generally much better, and if we have that rare winter where it actually goes below freezing for a bit, they seem to go away in that time (but freezing winters are pretty much once or twice in a lifetime in Louisiana... I got to experience one and I got about a 2 week break from my lifelong allergies!) I'm guessing dust doesn't bother me in anyway comparable to my other allergens... as I didn't even realize dust caused allergies and cold for me has seemed to lessen allergies considerably. If dust is a problem, it's not nearly as bad as the 10 month drama of pollen and the 2 months (again, we are sometimes blessed with a cold winter, but it is rare) of spores. Fall Spores are not nearly as bad as the pollen for me, but still give me issues.
Joint pain is an issue. Though normally drowned out by the big one, they still make a mark in the overall feeling of chit. If I move around too much, my arm and leg joints hurt terribly, not to mention my lumbar. I would cure the headache before the joint pains, but they'd be next.
I have other things I'd like to cure, too, but for now I need to focus on the above. If I can get rid of these, I'll tell you some other things I need fixed (bleeding tongue, memory loss, etc.)
Please tell me if you have anything that could help my situation. I would like to work and feel useful, but my problems are a serious disadvantage. If I do my best at my worst, it still won't be as good as my best at my best.
I'd like to add I'm still young... I'm 16 and male.
Louisiana is 50th in the United States for medicine, (Mississippi is 49th now... Louisiana is getting worse due to brain drain).
I guess that with AK being above average with medicine, I could come to this forum, get cured, get on with my life, then move to AK. I might have bookworm's myopia (permanent nearsightedness caused by reading way too much... only person in my whole family that has it, and I had 20/5 vision in both eyes when I had my vision checked in eighth grade... when my eyes pooped out, they pooped out... it started in my right eye and my left eye stayed better than normal until after my ninth grade test when I found out my right eye got up to 20/50... then after I got eyeglasses, the left went... then with the stronger glasses after that, the right got worse... I'm sitting at 20/180 left ((severely visually impaired legally, but allowed to drive with glasses)) and 20/400 right ((legally blind)). My left eye has gotten worse again ((now that I'm a little older, they are slowing down in deterioration again)), so I might lose my permit next time I'm checked...) but there's always lasik... (ideally, I'd like the vision I had as a child... but I'll take what I get from lasik...)
I'm really starting to believe I'm having another round of depression (technically what I had before was dysphoria or something like that since it was depression minus the suicidal thoughts and irritability).
If anyone knows how to find happiness without drugs... that would be nice too. I tend to be anti-drug, with a preference towards more holistic measures that bring true happiness and energy (which finding something holistic that works for me is like finding a unicorn... but I'll still look...)
The older I've gotten the more I've felt like a burden on others and overwhelmed. If I work, I get sick, if I don't, I feel guilty for absorbing other people's time and money... so I kinda come out bad either way. I guess that I look really good on paper supposedly being in the top one percent intelligence quotient in the world, but in real life I feel like a train wreck...
Much of this could be caused by allergies. I have horrid allergies and am drowsy and constant headaches. You can try acupuncture or yoga if you don't want to take medicine. Personally I need my allergy meds or I would be misearble.
You are only 16, you need to step back and enjoy your life!!!!
It sounds as if you have a really bad set of allergies. I used to say that I felt as if I had been poisoned. Everything was wrong and getting worse.
A good allergist will test and determine the proper doseage for treatment. It's not one size fits all, and it can take a couple of years. In the meantime, there are some super-duper antihistimines available that might help. It could be something that is around your house that is making things worse.
Since you live in the section of the country that you do, I suspect that mold and mildew spores are making things worse. Also, cockroach dander.
You probably can't handle this without some sort of heavy duty antihistimine drug. While it's nice to pretend that we don't need drugs, sometimes, life just isn't worth living without their help.
When you move somewhere, you lose whatever tolerance you've built up to your local allergens. Alaska may sound like the answer to your dreams, and it's fine to have as a goal, but don't assume that everything in your life would be different if you could only move there. You might feel just as ill there, but without the support network of friends and family that you have where you live now. Also, cold is hell on joint pain.
My sister's vision is about as bad as yours, and with contact lenses she can see well enough to drive. Her eyes keep getting worse, and they just keep prescribing stronger lenses. I wear gas permeable lenses and they help keep your eyes from getting worse.
I would focus on getting some contact lenses or glasses that you can actually see through, and figuring out the allergy issue...my mom has bad allergies and she has to use a prescription nasal spray. I manage my allergies with 12 hour sudafed and allegra, both OTC. Once you've got the allergies under control, then see what other issues remain.
How hot is your house at night? I used to have terrible trouble falling asleep at night in my parents' house because they kept the AC set at 80. Between that and the cheap scratchy sheets, I was always hot and miserable. Now, with the thermostat set at 72 and good sheets, I sleep pretty well.
If I were you, I'd look to your diet/nutrition for answers. Have you had a blood test that examines your levels of minerals and hormones and thyroid?? Some of what you describe sounds a lot like nutritional deficiencies/chemical imbalance...
If you live on mostly fast food/junk food, eat a lot of sugar, and drink a lot of coffee/soft/drinks/drinks with lots of additives, you could certainly be lacking many essential elements that make for good health...and be made more sensitive to allergens, too.
Are you already receiving medical care of some kind? Perhaps you need to be seen by specialists. And really - prescription medicine is not a bad thing.
Also, are you attending school? I'm trying to understand how you function every day.
Please see a neurologist and an allergist. I would ask for as many blood tests as possible including allergy test, test for mono, thyroid, etc. Try taking a pribiotic to build up your immune system. Also, a HEPA air purifier might help with the allergies as well. They can be expensive but are well worth it in my opinion.
I used to be anti-medicine too but sometimes you really need it. It might make a world of difference for you. Being sick all the time is a miserable way to live.
Please see a neurologist and an allergist. I would ask for as many blood tests as possible including allergy test, test for mono, thyroid, etc. Try taking a probiotic to build up your immune system. Also, a HEPA air purifier might help with the allergies as well. They can be expensive but are well worth it in my opinion.
I used to be anti-medicine too but sometimes you really need it. It might make a world of difference for you. Being sick all the time is a miserable way to live.
I did see a neurologist, hence the MRI scans. All three times I've gone, I've had infected sinuses (according to scans). My left sinuses where about as bad as it could get and the right was almost as bad on the first time. The second and third times the right was just as bad as the left. The brain itself was pretty much ok, except the blood vessels where inflamed like "someone having a hang-over"
I've never drank alcohol. Makes me wonder two things from that: Why do my sinuses stay infected after so many years? Why are my blood vessels big?
The only reason I know it's a triple headache and not just one is because of the scan. My sinuses are inflamed (all of them), my brain has dilated blood vessels, and the pain of the other two makes my muscles tense.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Hedgehog_Mom
When you move somewhere, you lose whatever tolerance you've built up to your local allergens. Alaska may sound like the answer to your dreams, and it's fine to have as a goal, but don't assume that everything in your life would be different if you could only move there. You might feel just as ill there, but without the support network of friends and family that you have where you live now. Also, cold is hell on joint pain.
My sister's vision is about as bad as yours, and with contact lenses she can see well enough to drive. Her eyes keep getting worse, and they just keep prescribing stronger lenses. I wear gas permeable lenses and they help keep your eyes from getting worse.
I would focus on getting some contact lenses or glasses that you can actually see through, and figuring out the allergy issue...my mom has bad allergies and she has to use a prescription nasal spray. I manage my allergies with 12 hour sudafed and allegra, both OTC. Once you've got the allergies under control, then see what other issues remain.
How hot is your house at night? I used to have terrible trouble falling asleep at night in my parents' house because they kept the AC set at 80. Between that and the cheap scratchy sheets, I was always hot and miserable. Now, with the thermostat set at 72 and good sheets, I sleep pretty well.
Well, we have it set down to 75, which is as cold as the AC can handle, but according to my room thermometer, my room is at 90 when I am expected to be in bed, and cools down to 85 when I'm expected to be up. I used to have good sheets (1500 thread count), but the dog got them. I have cheap, $5 sheets from walmart, now. $5 is not good... but even with three fans blowing on me all the time, I'm still to hot to use them, or clothes for that matter. I only don clothing for school and if somebody is coming to visit.
Then again, when the power was out, it was as hot as outside (we are still in the daily heat advisory season)!
Oh, and I can tell your not in Louisiana. You need 20/20 or better corrected in both eyes, and 20/200 or better in at least ONE eye without correction in this state to drive. My right eye is already just dead weight without glasses or contacts (I wear contacts when I feel like it, I'm too tired most of the time.) and my left I've suspected has crossed the threshold.
Quote:
Originally Posted by scoobagirl
Are you already receiving medical care of some kind? Perhaps you need to be seen by specialists. And really - prescription medicine is not a bad thing.
Also, are you attending school? I'm trying to understand how you function every day.
Yes, I go to school. My mother allowed me to get my permit, but not my license. I've had the permit long enough to get the license, but mom won't let me (not that I ever feel like driving...). I'm not looking forward to two days from now, because during the school year, I never even make it to sleep during the school week. Being up MOVING AROUND doesn't help, either. I don't even leave my room in my house usually. I used to lay stark naked on the floor in my room and do nothing and only get up not to soil the floor or to try and eat. Now I do the almost the same thing except I'm pecking away at a keyboard obsessively trying to cure myself. I would probably be failing in school if I didn't test well and wasn't able to absorb information I read (different story with hearing, I forget almost as soon as I hear it).
As for being anti-medicine, after 60 pills a day for problems a-z, I'm sure you would understand my not wanting more.
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