The original version of this page can be found at : http://forum.lef.org//default.aspx?f=41&m=53744
| Posted By : Mach22 - 8/27/2008 6:05 PM | Dear All,
I posted the message below on mind and muscle forums but I thought this may be a better place to discuss the symptoms of this lady. Your input is highly valued. Thanks in advance...
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As you may recall, I had detailed the issues faced by my best friend’s wife in this thread:
http://www.mindandmuscle.net/forum/index.p...&hl=adrenal
I have suggested that she write a detailed message to explain her problem in depth and also give an account of her most recent doctor visit. She has not taken a username yet, so I am posting her message which she emailed to me and asked to place here. She will create a username shortly and post here on her own too…
(by the way XXXX would be me; I just deleted references to my name ;)
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Hello Everyone,
Let me start by repeating what XXXX mentioned about me. Here’s a copy, paste job from his earlier message to you
“First, she is a fairly petite Asian female (110 lbs or so) in very early 30s. She suffers from some restlessness and has quite a bit of ADHD. Her immune system is compromised, I think, because she has been getting sick with alarming frequency since I met her. The strange thing is she consumes sodium like there is no tomorrow... Being of Asian origin and having been exposed to soy sauce, while growing up, I thought that she just loved the taste. However, I found out -as I had been suspecting- that she has to consume vast quantities of sodium just to feel normal. When we calculated the total intake of sodium for this small lady, it came to an amazing 6,000 mgs, and I am sure she consumes more on some days.
The crazy part is that she feels dizzy unless she takes in an extreme amount of sodium. It appears that sodium is the critical ingredient here because soy sauce is not indispensable for her. Instead of sodium, she can consume extremely salty Japanese plums or other very salty foods and she'll be OK. Especially in summer, she says that after sweating only a moderate amount (as an aside, I was with her and husband this week on two occasions when it was crazy humid here in NY; she definitely doesn't sweat excessively -even considering her smaller size. if anything, she sweats less than what her size/activity level would lead you to expect), she has to run to the nearest Asian joint and drown her body in sodium, or she feels dizzy.
In one occasion when she was at my place, we took her Bp and it read 55/97. She claims that in numerous occasions, it was even lower when measured @doctor's office. Finally, she holds a lot of water in her body and often gets headaches on the same spots in her head (top of the skull).”
Pretty much all that was said above is spot on. I want to add a few things though. In addition to lots of salt, I also have to eat extremely spicy food. When I feel like I am getting dizzy or when I am depressed or when I am getting sick or when the headaches hit me, I must eat very very spicy food. I usually have to put tons of extra hot sauce on whatever I eat, and this is the only thing that helps usually. I am on 75 mg of Effexor right now due to “mild depressive symptoms” (my docs words) and think it is helping. I have not seen a huge difference but I think it is making a difference. In addition to spicy food and salt, I also have a caffeine addiction and have to make a stop at Starbucks at least 2 times a day. I mentioned headaches above and XXXX had also mentioned them in the original text. These are usually at the top of my head, not exactly the tip, but more to the sides. Basically, consider where your eyebrows end near your temples and go up 4-5 inches from there. This is where it hurts. Extremely spicy food, very salty stuff and coffee help with this headache. During my last doctor visit, the doctor said that this may be caused by “vasodilation” and told me that “you probably need something to constrict the vessels and coffee is an OK choice for that”.
During my visit, I also told the doctor to please check whether I have adrenal insufficiency (XXXX told me that I might, so I kindly relayed the message to the doctor). The doctor said that the symptoms looked like there may be small bit of adrenal insufficiency but the people who had adrenal insufficiency usually come to his office very sick and in much worse shape then me. He followed it up with a blood test. I will be posting the results of the blood test as soon as I can scan them in the office. However, two things I can note here were:
- The doctor checked for cortisol with a blood test (XXXX told me that it would have been better to also test the saliva, but the doctor didn’t do that) and it was pretty near the lower end of the range. It was not below the minimum, but pretty close to minimum. So he decided not to prescribe any cortisol.
- My blood sugar was low, it was actually below the minimum (I had eaten a large lunch 2 hour before the blood test). The doctor called the nurse when he was reading the results of the blood test and asked her to check my blood sugar on the spot. This time, the result was totally normal (I think 110 or so).
I know this is getting pretty complicated, but I have a few other issues I want to make you aware of.
First, I get very strong rashes. Especially at night, my face will itch very bad and I have to scratch the hell out of my nose especially. My legs also itch badly, sometimes for half an hour before I fall asleep. Also, it is extremely difficult for me to get out of bed. Whether I sleep all night, or just take a nap, I need to crawl in bed for a long long time before I can gather enough energy to get up. In the morning, it can be a 30 minute struggle to get out of bed and even then I am all dazed and sleepy. I also fall asleep very late at night. Normally, I will not feel even the slightest bit of sleepiness until 2 or 3 AM. If it wasn’t for my job, I’d go to sleep at 3 or sometimes 4 or 5 AM and get up at noon the next day and feel much better than I do right now. XXXX told me that these symptoms may be because of cortisol deficiency, and cortisol was actually low in the test, just not below the minimum.
(Before I forget, I am also on 10 micrograms T3 right now and I was still taking T3 when they took blood. In the test, T3 came out perfectly normal, so I guess the T3 is doing its job. I remember reading that cortisol and T3 are also somehow related but honestly the explanations were way over my head).
Another strange thing about me is that after eating carbohydrates (and I really crave carbohydrates all the time, I am a huge pasta eater) my stomach bloats like crazy. Vinegar also makes my stomach blow up. It will visibly enlarge and the bulge in my stomach is visible through the clothing. While trying to understand what he issue was, I came across Excess Histamine Syndrome over the internet and thought that it described my issues perfectly. I tried SAM-E and methionine and both have definitely helped, but as you can see I have way too many symptoms and these two over the counter supplements did not solve all of my issues. I am not taking these two right now, and to be honest, the reason is that I ran out. I will be getting some more though, unless you guys recommend otherwise.
Finally (and I promise this is the last thing, sorry…), speech and mental tasks make me very tired. Since I was in grade school, studying made me physically tired very quickly. I also have a lot of difficulty expressing my thoughts eloquently when speaking. XXXX told me that these may be dopamine related and recommended to experiment with two things. The first was selegeline, which I got over the internet. That one didn’t help much, though I did see some difference in terms of mental clarity. The second was a powder which is sold on a nutrition site called nutra planet and is supposed to be very similar to a medicine called L-Dopa. It is supposed to help increase dopamine levels in the brain. This powder worked extremely well and I loved it. XXXX told me that the fact I had such good results with this powder and the fact that I tend to hit my arms and legs into random objects shows I may have a dopamine issue and I will hopefully ask my psychiatrist (upon XXXX’s recommendation) to consider Wellbutrin in addition to Effexor. The most bothering symptom I have, among all things above, is the lack of mental energy and motivation.
That’s it as far as symptoms are concerned. Any suggestions you have to overcome at least some of these issues is highly appreciated, especially the constant mental fatigue. I want to make it clear that I will coordinate all treatment with my physician and will not do anything on my own. After reading that I obtained selegeline over the internet, some people may think I will pick stuff over the net and try them haphazardly, but this is not me. I read and contemplated for 2 months before I decided to try the selegeline and that was the last prescription drug I will self administer.
Best
Linda
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| Posted By : DDye - 8/27/2008 6:11 PM | First, no one can diagnose but a physician, and even a physician cannot diagnose a person online.
My suggestion is to visit an orthomolecular physician if too much histamine is suggested. See http://orthomolecular.org/resources/pract.shtml
There is a condition called histadelic schizophrenia discussed by Carl C. Pfeiffer, MD in his books (not to say that is what this person has). There are nutrients that can help, such as vitamin C.
What is this person's average blood pressure?
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| Posted By : Mach22 - 8/30/2008 7:19 PM | Sure thing. Nobody is asking for an exact diagnosis. This individual has seen a dozen or so doctors over the last few years and none were able to make much progress. All she is asking for is some ideas which she can then take to her doctors for further testing.
As far as BP. She told me that the 97/55 that we read at my place was slightly low but not more than a few points below her average (on both sides)... |
| Posted By : Connie Marie - 12/22/2008 3:34 PM | | Many of your problems, complex and intertwined, sound like some of the problems I have. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia (really considered a central nervous system disease, and is a form of arthritis) For starters, I would recommend subscribing to a publication called Fibromyalgia Network, www.fmnetnews.com . Phone: 800-853-2929. Topics include items such as low energy, memory problems, muscles, sweats, sleep problems, pain everywhere, sensitivity to sounds, light, smells, etc., and multiple other sympptoms. New treatments, mainstream as well as natural treatments are covered, with research/studies. $28/yr. It has been my lifeline for many years. PS: FMS is considered a disability by Social Security. |
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