Mystery illness

[KevinTheKoala]

I feel like I am going insane, for months I have felt awful - run down, achey, constantly exhausted, random chest tightness and shortness of breath, stomach pains and loose stools. I've asked my GP about it, I've had blood tests nothing was revealed except for low folic acid but nothing is improving and it's ruining my life! I can barely manage housework, I struggle through work, I can't take my children out to play, I have no energy to play with them indoors, I'm tearful and miserable and irritable. I'm pretty sure everyone thinks im making it up and Im beginning to believe them. Has anyone else had experience of this? Or am I just broken - or chronically lazy.

I've felt like this since having COVID , have you had it by any chance?

Have you been tested for coeliac disease?

Low folate can make you feel like that. If you are deficient you need 5mg a day for 4 months.

www.nhs.uk/conditions/vitamin-b12-or-folate-deficiency-anaemia/

Have you had your thyroid checked OP? I had similar issues and my thyroid is under active.

I know you’ve had bloods done but I had lots of different bloods done for over a year. They then did a separate test for thyroid.

Hope you’re feeling better soon, it’s horrid when it’s general, all encompassing illness like this that you can’t pinpoint.

I haven't had covid (unless possibly asymptomatically), and I haven't been tested for coeliac disease, I thought that would have been signalled in a blood test though.

Have you lost or gained weight? I agree thyroid could be causing this and can also cause weight changes.

Also apparently folate deficiency can take up to 6 months to be corrected.

Check both thyroid and vit d. I had similar ish symptoms and they found chronically low vit d (I had to pay to get it done - gp didn’t do it🙄). Whilst I still have some gastric issues the massive exhaustion, shakes & aches have gone as my vit d levels came back up (over a couple of months). Sorry, I know how awful it is to feel shit and no one be able to say why!!

Coeliac disease needs a specific blood test, so wouldn't show on a general test.

I haven't gained or lost a noticeable amount of weight, but my hair has started to fall out significantly which I don't know could also be caused by thyroid so I might ask the doctor about that.

Yes hair loss can absolutely be related to thyroid. I experienced it with hypothyroidism.

All of your symptoms sound like how I’ve been feeling. My GP did a whole host of blood tests, and the coeliac one came back positive. It’s been absolutely horrible living like this!

Do you know what your ferritin level was? Normal ranges can be rather low and that can definitely cause hair to thin - I know because I’m experiencing this! My level was 13. (Hopefully more now!).
Agree could also be thyroid. Hope you get some answers!

It could be anxiety even if you don't think you feel anxious.

Anxiety can cause most or all of the symptoms you mention.

@dizzydizzydizzy

It could be anxiety even if you don't think you feel anxious.

Anxiety can cause most or all of the symptoms you mention.

I second this, everything you are experiencing points towards anxiety. I would do thyroid tests to exclude first though.

Im not sure if it is anxiety because I am on fairly strong antidepressants and have been for a while now so I would have thought they would cancel out any anxiety symptoms.

I do suffer with anxiety but I also feel like any medical condition is often passed of as anxiety (in fact I've been left to become severely unwell thanks to being considered 'anxious'). I know how my body reacts in an anxiety attack and I really don't think this is it.

Ok, I hear you. But I have suffered from anxiety and in particular, health anxiety. In all cases many of my 'illnesses' were absolutely anxiety mediated. Dont underestimate the power of your overthinking and low level, ongoing anxiety. I would up my multivitimans, get hormones, thyroid and bloods done and exercise and sleep well and see how it is. In my case Im always checking in with myself to see what my anxiety is like even when I do not feel anxious.

I had all of those symptoms and it was low folate which I see you've already found to be an issue, how long have you been taking folic acid for? it can take a while to kick in and get you feeling back to normal.

Sounds like thyroid issues, I was born without a thyroid and so have been dealing with it my whole life, even with tablets I still get this.. and array of other symptoms. Fingers crossed you get it sorted..

I had similar symptoms and it was my thyroid - you need to get TSH. T4 and T3 tested if possible as the standard TSH test can miss some thyroid problems unfortunately.

You mentioned low folic acid but haven't said if you are on supplements to correct it? As other have said low folate can cause some of your symptoms

Coeliac disease causes anaemia due to malabsorption. That results in hair loss. Blood tests for B12 are pointless as it’s stored in the liver so circulating levels don’t mean anything.

@KellyABC

Yes hair loss can absolutely be related to thyroid. I experienced it with hypothyroidism.

Me too

Any updates Kevin? Had bloods taken for all these reasons. In tears over how exhausted I constantly feel.