My Symptoms

First, let me document my most annoying symptoms, the ones I've been visiting doctors for, for years...

1. Anemia - This is a new and short-term issue. I had a bad miscarriage in May 2010 and hemorrhaged badly. I called 911, lost consciousness on the way to the Hospital and almost had to get a transfusion. Thankfully that didn't happen but I was left with a very low Hematocrit and Hemoglobin (I think it was 8 and 25?), which left me in the "severe" Anemia range. I was supposed to go on an Iron Supplement (my OB told me any old OTC would do) and I would be fine. I wanted assurance that the Anemia was under control and she told me to go to "any doctor" and ask for a blood test in a few months. (thanks, doc, for thinking of me). 4 months later I still feel like crap, but only my recent blood work will tell if the Anemia is gone and I can stop taking these horrible Iron Supplements.
2. Sinus Infections (chronic) - I've had sinus infections for years and years, they have become a fact of life. Although now I"m reading they don't have to be. I went to an ENT, I started Allergy Shots, they weren't for me. All the allergy meds they put me on made me feel jittery and insane. I hated them all. I got nosebleeds from some. How is this helping??? My allergy shot regimen was 2x/week and it took me almost 2 hours roundtrip to do the shots. I just couldn't keep it up with the demands of my job, when the allergy center was only open 10-4 and closed for lunch. What????  How is that helping people? My Internist willingly wrote me multiple antibiotic 'scrips month after month without ever suggesting I go see a specialist. I had to ask him if he knew of one. Fat lot of good that did me. The ENT actually asked me if I was a regular Cocaine user. Offended, I told him simply, NO! He then (in so many words) told me he didn't believe me because he'd never seen such horrible nasal and sinus cavities other than regular drug users. I explained to him that not only have I NEVER used Cocaine, I've never even SEEN it in real life. I was so pissed, I walked out of his office and I haven't been back.
3. Insomnia - I've never been a good sleeper. I have both kinds of Insomnia. Trouble falling asleep. Trouble staying asleep. Sometimes I fall asleep at 9pm with a book in my lap, but I'm awake at 2am and never fall back to sleep. Other times, I go to bed at my normal time (11pm) and toss and turn until 2am when I finally get up, go to the sofa or guest room and either read or watch TV for the rest of the night. Sometimes I will sleep for 2 or so hours at the end of the morning but most nights like that, I'm just awake the whole night, never sleeping for one...single...minute.
4. Dandruff - My head has been itching for one solid year. Head & Shoulders, Denorex, other random "scalp itch" solutions found in the pharmacy. A talk with my Dermatologist gave me chemical shampoo (I decided not to join that bandwagon). I still itch. I still hope to find out what the hell is going on with my body. I'll never wear black again at this point, I'm paranoid.
5. Joint Pain - As mentioned before, I have to score my child's banana in the morning because I can't peel it by myself. My finger joints are just that stiff and swollen when I wake up. Reminder...I'm only 37 with no history of early onset arthritis. My parents are in their mid-60s with no arthritis to speak of other than normal aches and pains.
6. Vertigo - Ever feel like the world is spinning and you want to get off? That's what Vertigo feels like. Turn your head one way, and the whole room keeps on moving. Lay down in bed and feel like the bed is floating on an angry sea. Get up from a chair too fast and your upper body keeps on moving in that direction and you either fall over or you bump into a wall. I bump into a lot of walls. My family calls me clumsy but I'm actually a pretty coordinated person. Now I absolutely KNOW this is not just silly clumsiness. Something is wrong inside causing this. I always linked it to the sinus infections (fluid in the ears, etc.) but now I think it's much more and linked to some other health issues.

It doesn't seem like a lot, but if you've lived with these things chronically for many years, you would understand the agony. Any chronic illness, whether it's an incurable disease or a relatively minor inconvenience, any chronic illness will wear on a person's soul. It tears you apart emotionally and physically and eventually causes other issues which just exasperate the problem. I'm hoping to help people find true health by following my own journey. I'm not a medical professional by any means. I'm a 9-5 employee for an IT company. I have just been sickly for many years and I have a cabinet full of prescriptions that I'm ready to burn.

Here's to health and happiness!