There is something wrong with me and I’m scared

[Spottyphonecase]

A brief history - I am obese 18 stone. Before covid I was 22 stone. I have been very fortunate that I have never had any health problems due to my weight. I am 37. I have a job that I love and I enjoy going to. It’s not stressful at all. I only have a 30 minute commute each way. I eat healthy and drink 2 litres of water a day. I don’t drink alcohol or smoke. I hit my 3 rings on my Apple Watch each day and I stick to my calories. I do on average about 12k steps a day. My weight is coming off slowly. My children are late teens so I don’t have the stress of working and trying to manage home/childcare. Everyone at home helps out. I have no stress at all. I spend at least an hour on self care - yoga/meditation/journaling. I do have anxiety and have been on medication for 4 years.

Since January I have felt like crap. Getting up for work takes everything I have. At work is fine. I’m active, happy and have no complaints with how I’m feeling. When I finish work I feel like I have nothing left to give. I struggle to cook dinner or do anything. I go to bed about 10ish and my head hits the pillow. About 5am I wake everyday with a hacking cough. I have no cough throughout the day at all.

Weekends are awful. I wake up naturally about 7 and feel like I have been in a boxing ring. Every bone hurts and my head feels heavy and fuzzy. I get up and hurt so much I make it to the sofa. I then go back to sleep. Today I slept on the sofa until 6.30pm! Everyone is living their lives and I just sleep. I struggle to even lift my kindle to read. It’s 9.30 and I’m back in bed already as I can hardly lift my head to keep my eyes open.

My Dh is very concerned and I took two weeks leave at Easter as he was concerned it was work. I struggled to even get in the shower most days in that fortnight. Everything just ached.

I don’t understand why I’m okay at work. Is it because I have to do it? I can 100% say my job isn’t too much or stressful. When I leave work I don’t think about it until I go in the next day.

I have called the doctors and I can’t get seen. It’s not classed as an emergency and there are no appointments or telephone consultations to be had. Today I cried about it. Everything is open up, the weather is glorious and I just sleep. I just wanted to plant some flowers in the garden.

I have had my first dose of vaccine- Pfizer 7 weeks ago. I have been feeling like this a lot longer so it’s not linked. I haven’t had covid and due to my job I take a lateral flow test twice a week which is always negative.

I know this isn’t a medical forum but does anyone have any ideas of what could be wrong?

How do you know you haven’t had Covid? I had it and had no symptoms. From what I’ve read long Covid can start randomly. Hope you find out what it is, it doesn’t sound fun.

I would absolutely insist on a telephone consultation with the GP if they’re not doing face to face. Don’t be fobbed off, you are still a patient and entitled to treatment.
Hope you get to the bottom of it and we’ll done on the weight loss.

I also think sleep aopnea is likely. But because of the cough I'd also look into reflux/GERD. You don't have to have heartburn pain to have reflux, it can affect sleep, and it can cause a cough.

The GP needs to do your bloods, check thyroid and early meno etc.

Phone up and exaggerate like mad if you need to get reception to book you a phone appt w the doc - but they cannot refuse. (Tell then you are starting to struggle to breath if you have to).

I was also going to say that I have no clue as to the bigger picture but the cough could be stomach-related, perhaps reflux or something. My DH had a persistent cough for ages which we eventually persuaded him to the GP with and it turned out he had some sort of stomach infection which required various antibiotics to shift.

Could be low vit D, perimenopause, sleep apnoea- you definitely need a full suite of bloods taking to find out.

Also, check out the list of perimenopause symptoms in case you recognise any others.

OP, you sound like me when I had a vitamin D deficiency.

Whatever is causing you to feel so terrible I think you need a check up with bloods taken. As a PP said, exaggerate if need be, to get a face to face appointment. You shouldn’t have to exaggerate, but if you look at another thread on here about access to GPs you’ll see it is almost impossible many people to get a face to face appointment.

A long term vitamin D deficiency can have really nasty effects on you as well so push for that appointment.

As others have said you must get bloods checked.

I felt exactly like you last year and it turned out that my folic acid levels were very low, a couple of weeks of taking a supplement and I was fine.

I also worked, looked after kids, walked the dogs and was fine but as soon as I was "off duty" it was like a switch flicked and the tiredness knocked me off my feet.

I remember seeing loads of posters up on bus shelters, in the window of the chemists etc saying that if you had had a cough for more than 3 weeks, you should get it checked by your GP. Could you point that out firmly to the receptionist to try to get an appointment?

As you only get the cough when you have been lying down in bed for a while, I wondered about reflux, as PP said. Could that be linked to digestive issues which might make you unable to absorb nutrients properly, making you deficient and feel run down? Just speculating; I'm not a doctor!

I don't know what is causing your symptoms but I really hope you can get it investigated and start to feel better soon.

Could be the first stages of fibromyalgia x

@Spottyphonecase It is classed as worth an urgent appointment if you feel really ill. Call the doctors again and say you're really struggling and you should be able to get one.

To me it sounds like ME. I’ve attached a screenshot of the symptoms

GPs may not see routine patients in person but they’re certainly still requesting bloods

If you wake up very morning with a hacking cough, and that’s been for several weeks, that in itself is enough to press for an appointment - blood tests at least. Say you can’t function properly, and if you can’t get an appointment, ask them for their complaints procedure and go to A & E.

If your surgery still refuse to see you write to your health board, copying into the practice manager. I am sorry you sound really poorly.

Vitamin D deficiency is worth a look into

OP, keep pushing your GP for an appointment and blood tests. Tell them you’re desperate. Your symptoms are real and could be serious.

The struggle to get treatment must be exhausting too, so let DH help with pressing for an appointment. If GP keeps refusing to see you, make a complaint. You must get a diagnosis. Good luck.

Friend has felt similar deep one/muscle aches and is Vit D deficient.

Losing weight is fantastic but you could potentially be low on some nutrients even with eating so well

The cough could simply be allergies. I’ve had a god awful cough for the last few weeks. Tired too, properly worn out some days. I have allergies - pollen, dust mites - and the weather has been warmer and pollen count high and even missing an antihistamine I’m feeling like crap and wheezing. Makes my head fuzzy too. Taking those antihistamines properly my symptoms are gone.

Realistically though you won’t know for certain what is wrong until you see a GP but just highlighting it could be something really simple as hay fever and a vitamin D deficiency.

I have long covid that seems to be improving thankfully 🙏but on bad days I wake feeling the same etc, it’s been 13 months

Waking up with a cough sounds like sleep apnea -- you are breathing in your sleep with your mouth open and drying out your membranes.
Waking up aching and sore could be stress or could be night chills. Do you sleep under a fan? If so, try turning it off.
I sleep under a weighted blanket and it helps totally. Some nights I combine the blanket and air conditioning so that I don't have the muscle tension.

This sounds to me like you may have sleep apnea?
Has your DH mentioned that you stop breathing in your sleep sometimes? If you do not snore or make any noise when struggling for air (no everyone does), and he sleeps well he may not even notice.
The GP needs to see you, at least give you an appointment! I cannot believe how some practices treat patients......

This could well be your thyroid. You need to insist on being seen.

Op google fibromyalgia and tender points — with FM you have very tender (actually painful) points on your body when poked. It’s a very frustrating part of FM because with various complaints the Dr will poke you and ask if it hurts and I invariably say it does but then have to explain that it always hurts because of the FM. Brain fog is another symptom as well as aching muscles and chronic fatigue.
Hopefully it’s not FM as it’s one of those conditions for which there is no clear treatment — all very hit and miss.
Good luck

I would guess your thyroid has packed up, or you are severely iron deficient. Hope you can get some answers soon.

I feel the same op. I finish work at 4.30pm and am asleep on the sofa by 5pm sometimes until 7pm. Everything is an effort. I wonder if I have had covid and have long covid. Everything aches, I have headaches, brain fog etc. I have had bloods done and all normal.