These are my symptoms. What is wrong?

[MirabelM]

For as long as I can remember, I have very little energy beyond going to work as a teacher, sorting out my two kids, house and husband and general day to day stuff. I'm sick of feeling soooo tired. My exhaustion is now affecting my kids and husband.

Symptoms include: fatigue, exhaustion, never waking up refreshed, irritable, very low mood, tearfulness, slow weight gain, brain feels heavy sometimes and cannot juggle thoughts or tasks.

I've had blood taken recently and awaiting results but I'm worried. I'm worried there'll be something majorly wrong but at the same time worried there'll be absolutely nothing physically wrong so I cannot fix it.

Please help. I just feel like crying.

That's interesting re b12. I didn't know tinnitus was a symptom and I have developed permanent noise but it's more in my head than my ears, with the occasional screaming high pitch and screech thrown in for good measure. 😩

@wtaf37 in the OP's defence, getting advice from other people who have had similar symptoms whilst also waiting for her test results isn't a silly idea. You are lucky if you haven't had an illness that requires you to have to constantly self advocate and do your own research and bring printouts and evidence and research to make the GPS take you seriously, but that is the reality for lots of people and it really helps to get advice on what might be happening from people who have been through similar. Of course OP should still take advice from her GP, but if all of her tests come back negative there is some good advice on here about what avenues she might pursue next. It took me 18 years (yes, years) to be diagnosed with endometriosis, and in the end the only reason I got a diagnosis was because of advice I received online on what to push my GP for. Over the course of that journey I have had GPs give me information that was catagorically untrue about the disease, including last month when a GP told me that the only symptoms caused by endo are painful periods and trying to attribute any other symptoms to it was "a bit deluded". GPs aren't specialists, they are over stretched, they aren't always up to date with the latest research (because they are completely overstretched) and, like in every profession, some are just a bit shit.

Well done OP for being proactive, I hope you get some answers soon.

Get a copy of the blood results and check them yourself.
In my experience GPS will say they’re all fine even if you’re borderline deficient. E.g I was 2 points above the lowest level acceptable for B12 —- I was told my results were fine ( their favourite phrase)
Check that your blood tests included Iron, B12, D, Thyroid ( although it will be a very basic test TSH and may not test T4, T3 and reverse T3)
There should be a lot of other elements tested and to be optimum for vitamins you need to be in the top quadrant. ( the top quarter of the range shown in brackets)

Hi OP just read all your posts I’m 99% sure this is hypothyroidism. The hair thinning, feeling cold, weight gain, extreme fatigue, low mood. These are all symptoms of an under active thyroid. Glad they’ve tested for it and hopefully they’ll get you on medications and you’ll be feeling your old self again asap.

this sounds EXACTLY like me. I got EVERYTHING checked and everything came back normal except my iron was low. And taking iron helped abit but was still feeling like c*ap. I ended up changing my diet and realised I has an allergy for soy, gluten & wheat. At the time I was vegan so it was pretty much all I was eating. I also suffered from histamine sensitivity. What's really helped me is eating an anti-inflammatory diet, lots of fruits, veg, healthy fats, fish, eggs. ONLY whole foods. All my symptoms gone. Now and then I relapse and start eating processed foods and my symptoms come straight back. So try changing up your diet if you can and get tested for food allergies. And see if that helps good luck!

@Marmunia999 Ovestin cream is a mild local acting estrogen, it’s very helpful for preventing UTIs and dryness and atrophic vaginitis, which is where the vagina shrinks due to low estrogen.

Thanks for all your help everyone. No news yet so assuming all is ok. Appointment is tomorrow.if doctor says there's nothing wrong, I'll cry. How awful is that.

I cried when the gp finally found my issues, obviously I'd rather not have them, but it was such a relief to know there was a cause and we could start working towards getting better.

Good luck op.

@MirabelM

Thanks for all your help everyone. No news yet so assuming all is ok. Appointment is tomorrow.if doctor says there's nothing wrong, I'll cry. How awful is that.

It's not awful, I burst into tears when my gynae said 'good news, we didn't find anything' after my hysteroscopy and he was shocked - he couldn't understand that at least if they had found a reason for the incapacitating pain and flooding for two weeks every month, it means that there is some hope of something being done about it!

I hope you have luck with the private GP, IME the NHS have a very wide range of what they consider 'acceptable' and you can still have terrible symptoms while in that range. It was only after my private bloods that I was diagnosed as having severe iron deficiency anaemia, and having low vitamin B12 and Vitamin D levels and a lot of things have clicked into place.

@MirabelM if everything they will have checked so far comes back clear, it doesn't prove there is nothing wrong, they just won't have found what it is yet from the most general tests. If you don't feel well, you don't feel well and keep pursuing till you get to the bottom of it. Good luck

Ask for your results as well. They might be "normal" but actually they could still be low for you.

Agree with pp about asking for the results. I've finally got a GP who goes by my symptoms rather than just whether my bloods are in correct ranges. Eg, some of my thyroid levels have been at far end but still just within normal range yet I was feeling dreadful, managed to convince GP they weren't normal for me (corroborated by historical blood results which were healthily in middle of range and I felt well) and medication has made all the difference.

@MirabelM

Thanks for all your help everyone. No news yet so assuming all is ok. Appointment is tomorrow.if doctor says there's nothing wrong, I'll cry. How awful is that.

It's not awful at all. I've been where you are you just want answers which will then hopefully lead to treatment.

@Zucchiniinabikini

I'll bet serious money it's b12 as soon as you mentioned tinnitus and craving carbs.

B12 helps you break down energy from food.

When it gets established it starts affecting your ears and nervous system.

Hypothyroidism can also cause tinnitus and. craving carbs.

Please come back and post your results. I also know a fabulous (private) endocrinologist if needed..... fingers crossed though it's something easily sortable.

Vitamin D
Hormonal
Auto immune

Under active thyroid

Sounds similar to me. I had apnea, low ferrtin (7 mg/ ug!), low D, low B12.
GP utterly useless. I had to have 3 bloods over 3 months before they would help. Ended up with iv iron, b12 jabs. 6m later I'm feeling rough again.

At 41 it could well be peri menopause. I'd recommend you start reading up on the many MANY symptoms of this delightful stage.

For example:

www.prima.co.uk/diet-and-health/news/a35329/perimenopause-pre-menopause-recognise-symptoms/

@lifesabitchandthenyoudie

It could be M.E./CFS. If you have a look there are good sites like actionforME and the NICE guidelines (are you in the uk?) that can give you information on it. Try not to worry, whatever it is there are things that can be done to help x

My thought too. A blood test unfortunately won't pick this up but bring it up, I think you have what are considered 'core' symptoms

Well,turns out it's a Vitamin D deficiency. Cannot believe it's making me feel this ill

Its really surprising how ill a seriously low Vitamin deficiency can make you feel yes. Did they give you a level ?

OP, I'm off work at the moment and have an insufficiency of Vit D. My level is 35 (healthy range 50 - 120). I too feel terrible.

50, minimum on their range was 70.

I'm glad you finally have an answer and it's something so "fixable" Mirabel - that's great news!