Any ideas what this exhausting range of symptoms could be?

[Sleepybunny21]

So I've mentioned some of this to the Gp before, however I seem to have had a recent increase in symptoms and feel dreadful

These symptoms have been going on for several years now

-Constant fatigue

-Restless sleep and waking up feeling unrested

-Low blood sugar

-Severe lower back pain after busy days, usually if I've been on my feet a lot at work. The pain is in my lower back and buttocks, and is so bad sometimes I can hardly walk. It gets better after a rest.

• Diahrea sometimes. Not watery, but very loose and urgency where I have to sprint to the toilet. Sometimes it smells really odd.

• Skin painful to touch in some places, usually arms

And over the past few months some of the symptoms have increased and changed -

• Diahrea has increased in frequency, sometimes up to 4 times a day. I also see. To have stomach pain à lot of the time.

• My skin hurts all over. The other day I was trying to do some crochet, but had to stop as the feeling of the yarn brushing against my hand was painful.

• fatigue has increased. Some days I've struggled to stay awake driving home from work. I feel weak, and can't seem to lift things like I used to. When I go shopping for a few bits I have to get a small trolley rather than a basket because I literally can't carry the basket once it has a few items in.

I will go to the Gp, but think they will dismiss everything as I'm only 30, and have a history of depression so everything gets blamed on that. Ive had bloods for thyroid before, but was told they were normal.

I think I need to be more assertive with the Gp, as its really effecting my life a lot now. If anyone has any ideas of what they should be looking into I would be greatful

I’d be asking for a test for Coeliac disease as a starting point.

I hope you feel better soon

www.nhs.uk/conditions/fibromyalgia/

I'd also be thinking coeliac

Also came on here to suggest getting tested for coeliac disease first and foremost

Coeliac.... my little one who is 5 has it! After 3 months of intense abdominal pain, lost almost a stone in Weight, fatigue, irritable and muscle aches... it got to the point where I had a full on breakdown because I knew something wasn't right but the Dr kept dismissing my concerns, exhausting watching my baby go through that!

Ask for the actual numbers and reference ranges for your thyroid tests and make sure they did a full thyroid function panel not just TSH.

Also have your B12 and iron etc checked.

Thyroid function can change over time or even swing from high to low so just because you’ve had it checked before it doesn’t mean that it isn’t that now.

Hope you get it sorted ASAP.

My first thought was coeliac. You need to test before cutting out any gluten from your diet though.

Could be coeliac or something like Chrons or ulcerative colitis maybe. Definitely needs checking out, GPs not always that knowledgeable so would push for a referral to gastro consultant.

Possibly B12 deficiency. It can cause all sorts of symptoms when it gets really low. And not everyone's "low" is the same.

I will definately ask them to check for celiac and thyroid in bloods. They won't do a full thyroid panel though, they only do TSH. I did ask them to do a full one before as my brother has hashiomotos, however they say they won't measure t3 t4 etc in someone who isn't diagnosed as hypothyroid.

I hadn't suspected coeliac, as I haven't been losing weight!

You need full blood tests to rule everything out. The stomach pains and diarrhoea could be indicating something (like celiac suggested above) and as it has increased recently you should contact your gp.

Fibromyalgia (your symptoms relate more to this than m.e./cfs) used to be diagnosed by a tenderpoint test by a rheumatologist but this is less used now. Not every GP is aware of all the medications that can help ease symptoms. For example some will give you better restorative sleep which will in turn reduce your pain.

The sensation to touch you describe is one symptom it is really hard to explain to people. I feel guilty leaping a mile or being grumpy if my children brush against me but it feels like I've been hit. I have to swap into soft clothes/pjs early on in the day because of the sensation on my skin.

Take the list of your symptoms for your doctor to read so that you don't miss something out so they can look at the whole picture.

I don't want to overwhelm you with info but be aware there are some antidepressants used to treat fibro but if the gp just offer antidepressants without explaining their specific use find another gp.

You may need to be signed of work to rest initially because it is unfortunately not something you can always power through and fight. You may have already discovered this. Stress can also exacerbate symptoms.

If you do get a fibromyalgia diagnosis there are many supportive groups online...

I was diagnosed at 27 after 7 years of symptoms. That was 2007 but many still get fobbed off about being too young now.

I had similar, although not that full list. No issues with touch but the rest of it was there.
Turned out I had massive uterine fibroids and low folate. Once they were sorted everything went back to normal

Ask for blood test for antibodies for hashimotos as well as coeliac test. Autoimmune diseases go together and run in families.

I would also vote for fibromyalgia, but B12 deficiency is also worth a check

Pernicious anaemia might be a possibility.

If you are feeling poorly, have you considered changing diet? Doing a cleanse? Look up medical medium. Trying eating plant based whole foods diet a few days and see if that helps. I’ve been doing that most days (some days I have meat) and I have an improvement in energy.

Hope you have had some success at getting to the bottom of things at the doctors @Sleepybunny21

I think a full blood screen as a starting point

Oh ffs your brother has it and they won’t check you?! That’s appalling. Ask to be referred to an endocrine specialist due to your family history and get them to put in your notes that you’ve requested it and they’ve declined. That’s disgusting that they leave you feeling rubbish without doing a simple blood test that could show an issue. TSH is bollocks.

I've booked a doctors appointment to ask about getting bloods done, so between waiting for that and waiting for a nurse appointment I should start to get some answers in about a month

All the replies are helpful, I feel like GPS often need to be prompted otherwise they just won't yest for certain things!

It does irritate me that some of these symptoms, like crushing fatigue, I've brought up multiple times to various GPS and I've never had B12 tested. Although my mother has had issues with GPs for decades now, she desperately needs to be referred to rheumatology for her "osteoarthritis" that comes in flare ups and is accompanied by lots of other symptoms along with oral lichen planus.

B12 deficiency?

Spoke to the doctor and am going to get tested for coeliac and B12. Doctor was pretty dismissive though, I didn't even get to mention most of the symptoms I'm having because he seemed desperate to get off the phone, even though the phone call literally lasted 3 minutes. I booked an appointment first thing specifically in the hope the doctor wouldn't be in a massive rush