Thursday, August 28, 2008
My head
So I finally got in to see the neurologist. He said that all of the problems I am having are related to migraines. He said now that I am having heart related problems, he can try a blood pressure medication to prevent them. So far I've felt much better taking them! I do have some side effects because it lowers the bp and heartrate. The worst side effect I've had is night terrors. I wake up screaming or crying in a sweat every night! They are terrible. I have to get up and watch tv to shake the feeling and sometimes that doesn't help. I follow up with Dr. Miller tomorrow and I'll let him know, hopefully he can just adjust the dosage, because it otherwise helps.
Friday, August 1, 2008
Still beating
Ok so the morning after my last post I woke up and started to get ready for school. I walked into the kitchen to pack the diaper bag and my heart started racing. I took my pulse and it was in the 140s. I felt very faint so I called mom and told her I couldn't go to school and she came over and brought her blood pressure cuff. We called the doctor and my doctor was out of town, but I could get in to see another doc that day. My heart rate would go up and down and by the time we got to dad's to drop the kids off I couldn't get a blood pressure reading at all on her machine. So, I went over to the pharmacy and it couldn't get a reading!
At the doctors office the nurse couldn't get a reading and then finally she could, it was my normal bp. I talked to the doctor and he thought I was having serotonin syndrome and to stop all medications and give it a few days to get out of my system. As we got up to leave I felt very very faint and got very sweaty. My left arm went completely numb and I felt numb in my eyes and lips. The doctor decided I better be seen in the ER, so he called an ambulance. (I ended up with the same lady EMT as Thursday night!)
At the ER they did another EKG (normal), another chest x-ray (normal), and took more blood. They said they didn't think it was serotonin syndrome and that my labs showed that I was extremely dehydrated. They did a lying blood pressure/pulse and then wanted me to do a standing. When I stood up my heart rate doubled, which is what has been happening all week! They said that it was for sure dehydration and that's what was causing it all. So they gave me two bags of fluid and had me drink some apple juice and eat some graham crackers. I would have episodes of feeling worse and then better. During one of the worse ones the nurse said my heart rate was irregular and they would do another EKG. They never did and just sent me home.
So I stopped all meds and felt better the next few days. Then I got another migraine and had to suffer through it with just Aleve. Ever since that migraine the chest pain and irregular heart beat is back. So, I went to see my regular doctor again today.
He thinks it has nothing to do with the meds, but agrees that the meds aren't helping. He thinks that it is all related to migraines and thinks that I may need to see a vascular/neurologist. He's also ordering a stress/echo for Tuesday. I see the regular neurologist on the 15th and then see my reg. doc again on the 29th. He also prescribed me an antacid because he said the chest pressure could be silent reflux from all of the medicines I was on. So, that's where I'm at now. Today I've felt pretty weak and a little faint at times. Hopefully the stress test will give us some answers.
Also, he said my labs showed that I was definitely NOT dehydrated at the ER that day! (I knew it!) I feel like ER doctors are trained for trauma and emergencies such as stitches/broken bones, but when someone comes in with something non-threatening but needs more than a family doctor can give, they really don't know what to do. And I'd also just like to say that every time I've ever gone to St. Francis hospital they tell me that I am dehydrated and fill me with bags of fluid. I'm breastfeeding so I try to drink a lot and I never miss a meal.
In other news, the big storm we had Tuesday night left our brand new carpet upstairs soaking wet! A huge area is soaked and the ceiling tiles in our bedroom have large water spots now. I'm hoping to clean it thoroughly today and pray we won't get mold. It's really starting to smell bad though. I hope it doesn't give me a migraine because I can't take another one this week!
In other other news, I've lost 10 pounds in one month, 4 pounds since July 16th. Don't know if it's related to feeling bad or the medications, but I've actually not been able to go to the gym and I've of course still been eating. Not really complaining about it!
At the doctors office the nurse couldn't get a reading and then finally she could, it was my normal bp. I talked to the doctor and he thought I was having serotonin syndrome and to stop all medications and give it a few days to get out of my system. As we got up to leave I felt very very faint and got very sweaty. My left arm went completely numb and I felt numb in my eyes and lips. The doctor decided I better be seen in the ER, so he called an ambulance. (I ended up with the same lady EMT as Thursday night!)
At the ER they did another EKG (normal), another chest x-ray (normal), and took more blood. They said they didn't think it was serotonin syndrome and that my labs showed that I was extremely dehydrated. They did a lying blood pressure/pulse and then wanted me to do a standing. When I stood up my heart rate doubled, which is what has been happening all week! They said that it was for sure dehydration and that's what was causing it all. So they gave me two bags of fluid and had me drink some apple juice and eat some graham crackers. I would have episodes of feeling worse and then better. During one of the worse ones the nurse said my heart rate was irregular and they would do another EKG. They never did and just sent me home.
So I stopped all meds and felt better the next few days. Then I got another migraine and had to suffer through it with just Aleve. Ever since that migraine the chest pain and irregular heart beat is back. So, I went to see my regular doctor again today.
He thinks it has nothing to do with the meds, but agrees that the meds aren't helping. He thinks that it is all related to migraines and thinks that I may need to see a vascular/neurologist. He's also ordering a stress/echo for Tuesday. I see the regular neurologist on the 15th and then see my reg. doc again on the 29th. He also prescribed me an antacid because he said the chest pressure could be silent reflux from all of the medicines I was on. So, that's where I'm at now. Today I've felt pretty weak and a little faint at times. Hopefully the stress test will give us some answers.
Also, he said my labs showed that I was definitely NOT dehydrated at the ER that day! (I knew it!) I feel like ER doctors are trained for trauma and emergencies such as stitches/broken bones, but when someone comes in with something non-threatening but needs more than a family doctor can give, they really don't know what to do. And I'd also just like to say that every time I've ever gone to St. Francis hospital they tell me that I am dehydrated and fill me with bags of fluid. I'm breastfeeding so I try to drink a lot and I never miss a meal.
In other news, the big storm we had Tuesday night left our brand new carpet upstairs soaking wet! A huge area is soaked and the ceiling tiles in our bedroom have large water spots now. I'm hoping to clean it thoroughly today and pray we won't get mold. It's really starting to smell bad though. I hope it doesn't give me a migraine because I can't take another one this week!
In other other news, I've lost 10 pounds in one month, 4 pounds since July 16th. Don't know if it's related to feeling bad or the medications, but I've actually not been able to go to the gym and I've of course still been eating. Not really complaining about it!
Sunday, July 27, 2008
cuckoo bananas
Ever since Zion was born I've felt terrible! At first it was horrible joint pain. So bad that by the end of the day I could hardly walk up the stairs. Then the migraines started. I've gotten migraines since I was a kid, and typically they would last up to 4 hours with the same symptoms. These were starting with a weird car sickness feeling and then the actual headache showing up a few hours later and lasting for up to 16 hours! I was getting these at least once a week, so I made an appt with the doctor. He tested me for low thyroid and prescribed me Imitrex. I had taken it before, but the neurologist said to stop taking it because I was too high risk for stroke. But, my doctor said that I had only been on 25mg dose and the max is 100, so if I was willing to give it a shot so was he. So, I started taking the 100mgs as needed for migraines and up to 200mg in a day if necessary. I started getting migraines daily! I pretty much had a migraine or symptoms of a migraine for 11 days straight. I finally had 2 days with no headache, but felt like my body was completely worn out, I had also lost 10 pounds during this time. The third day I had another migraine and had already gone through a prescription and a half of Imitrex. So, I made another appt with the doctor.
He said all my test results came back normal and that my blood sugar was a little bit low and that if I ever felt weak I should eat something. For the migraines he told me that he could prescribe me an anti-seizure medication that I would take daily and would prevent migraines and to go ahead and take the Imitrex as needed.
I started taking the Depakote and didn't have any migraines for about 4 days. On the fifth day I got a migraine and took some tylenol. When that didn't work I took an Imitrex. A little later that evening I was on the couch and my legs started to feel like they weighed 100 pounds and I could barely lift them. I had a little pain in my chest but my heart felt like it was barely beating. I took my pulse and it was 37. I told Jerime and he said I did it wrong. He took it and it was 38. After a while it went up into the 50s and I felt a little better but had chest pain.
I called the doctors office the next day to ask them if it was a reaction to the medicines. The nurse told me that the doctor had never heard of a reaction, but it could have been so I should stop taking the Imitrex and if my heart drops that low again I should be seen in the ER.
The next night I got a severe migraine and suffered it out with some Aleve. I had still been having chest pain for a few days. The very next day it got much worse. It felt like someone was sitting on my chest and I had tightness right in the center of my chest too. So, I called the nurse again and she told me that I should go to the ER right away. She asked if I needed an ambulance, but I told her Jerime was on his way home and he could take me. I didn't think I was having a heart attack, because it wasn't like the movies, but something was going on with my heart. I did have a little bit of pain in my arm and some tingling in my jaw that went away though.
Jerime got home and we headed out of Eureka. We started to leave town and I felt much worse. I started feeling light headed and seeing some spots. I told him I couldn't make it to Peoria and to just get an ambulance. So he turned around and we drove up to the fire station. They took me to St. Francis and hooked me up to the heart thing in the ambulance. The whole time the lady acted like I was wasting her time. She said everything looked fine on all the monitors. I felt totally stupid and started to feel like I was crazy.
At the ER they did an EKG which came back normal and they did a chest x-ray, also normal. They were going to test my blood for cardiac enzymes and if they were elevated they were going to look for a blood clot. So after about 4 hours the doctor came in and said they were having problems with the lab. The nurse came in and said that my cardiac enzymes were elevated so they sent my blood to the main lab to have it looked at further. She said the lab couldn't find my blood even though they should have had it and that was what was taking so long. Then the doctor came in and said that my cardiac enzymes were normal. He told me to stop taking all the meds and let my body get back to having no meds in it and then go back to my doctor. He said that the Imitrex is probably what was causing the pain. Since it constricts the blood vessels to stop a migraine it also constricts all of the blood vessels in the body and that could be what is happening.
I felt like I was crazy. The pain was real and yet every test was coming back completely normal! Were my cardiac enzymes normal or were they really elevated like the nurse said? Very frustrating.
So now I'm 4 days off the medications and now my heart is constantly racing! I feel totally exhausted all the time. I still feel like someone is sitting on my chest and the tightness is still there too. This evening I was resting on the couch for about an hour. Got up and walked to the bedroom, felt my heart pounding in my chest, and I took my blood pressure. It was normal, but my pulse was 101!
Jerime said I need to go back to the doctor, but I just feel stupid. I hate that every test comes back normal when I know something is not right with my body! The good news is that I haven't had a migraine since I've been off the meds.
So for now I guess I'll call the doctor in the next few days and see what he says. I also go to see the neurologist again in August to see about better migraine treatment. Blah!
He said all my test results came back normal and that my blood sugar was a little bit low and that if I ever felt weak I should eat something. For the migraines he told me that he could prescribe me an anti-seizure medication that I would take daily and would prevent migraines and to go ahead and take the Imitrex as needed.
I started taking the Depakote and didn't have any migraines for about 4 days. On the fifth day I got a migraine and took some tylenol. When that didn't work I took an Imitrex. A little later that evening I was on the couch and my legs started to feel like they weighed 100 pounds and I could barely lift them. I had a little pain in my chest but my heart felt like it was barely beating. I took my pulse and it was 37. I told Jerime and he said I did it wrong. He took it and it was 38. After a while it went up into the 50s and I felt a little better but had chest pain.
I called the doctors office the next day to ask them if it was a reaction to the medicines. The nurse told me that the doctor had never heard of a reaction, but it could have been so I should stop taking the Imitrex and if my heart drops that low again I should be seen in the ER.
The next night I got a severe migraine and suffered it out with some Aleve. I had still been having chest pain for a few days. The very next day it got much worse. It felt like someone was sitting on my chest and I had tightness right in the center of my chest too. So, I called the nurse again and she told me that I should go to the ER right away. She asked if I needed an ambulance, but I told her Jerime was on his way home and he could take me. I didn't think I was having a heart attack, because it wasn't like the movies, but something was going on with my heart. I did have a little bit of pain in my arm and some tingling in my jaw that went away though.
Jerime got home and we headed out of Eureka. We started to leave town and I felt much worse. I started feeling light headed and seeing some spots. I told him I couldn't make it to Peoria and to just get an ambulance. So he turned around and we drove up to the fire station. They took me to St. Francis and hooked me up to the heart thing in the ambulance. The whole time the lady acted like I was wasting her time. She said everything looked fine on all the monitors. I felt totally stupid and started to feel like I was crazy.
At the ER they did an EKG which came back normal and they did a chest x-ray, also normal. They were going to test my blood for cardiac enzymes and if they were elevated they were going to look for a blood clot. So after about 4 hours the doctor came in and said they were having problems with the lab. The nurse came in and said that my cardiac enzymes were elevated so they sent my blood to the main lab to have it looked at further. She said the lab couldn't find my blood even though they should have had it and that was what was taking so long. Then the doctor came in and said that my cardiac enzymes were normal. He told me to stop taking all the meds and let my body get back to having no meds in it and then go back to my doctor. He said that the Imitrex is probably what was causing the pain. Since it constricts the blood vessels to stop a migraine it also constricts all of the blood vessels in the body and that could be what is happening.
I felt like I was crazy. The pain was real and yet every test was coming back completely normal! Were my cardiac enzymes normal or were they really elevated like the nurse said? Very frustrating.
So now I'm 4 days off the medications and now my heart is constantly racing! I feel totally exhausted all the time. I still feel like someone is sitting on my chest and the tightness is still there too. This evening I was resting on the couch for about an hour. Got up and walked to the bedroom, felt my heart pounding in my chest, and I took my blood pressure. It was normal, but my pulse was 101!
Jerime said I need to go back to the doctor, but I just feel stupid. I hate that every test comes back normal when I know something is not right with my body! The good news is that I haven't had a migraine since I've been off the meds.
So for now I guess I'll call the doctor in the next few days and see what he says. I also go to see the neurologist again in August to see about better migraine treatment. Blah!
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Prego Update
Yesterday I had contractions off and on all day and felt yucky. I ended up getting a little fever too, so Jerime made me call in. They told me to go to OSF and get some fluids and have the baby checked. On the way there I had contractions every 7 minutes. I even had one walking up to L&D. As soon as I got on the monitor I didn't have any. Eventually I had like two but that was hours later. They gave me two bags of fluid, some tylenol, and some meds for nausea. The baby was doing just fine. They checked me too and I'm 1cm, 50% effaced, and baby is at -2 station. I couldn't believe it!! I have my 36 week appt. tomorrow where they will check me again, so I'm anxious to see what he says.
Monday, February 25, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Updates
So I finally figured out how to post on this thing after my first post. My glucose tolerance test went well. I scored a 71 and 140 or higher is bad so I did very well. No betes.
Reagan had emergency surgery in January. The hernia that she had repaired at 2 months old returned and her ovary came through again. Dr. Reid said that the whole area there just didn't develop correctly so she put in extra stitches. I hope this is the last of it. She will have her pelvic kidney (same area) checked in May to see if it is growing and developing correctly. I really hope so because I don't want to face another surgery or kidney problems. She is healing well, still complaining of pain a little, but mostly back to normal. She is finally sleeping through the night after almost 2 years! I just wonder if that hernia was bothering her her whole life. Poor thing. But now she will say she's ready for bed, grab her teddy, and run to the bed. She's usually asleep within 10 minutes. It's awesome. Too bad I can't sleep at night to enjoy it.
I've been up every night either in pain, not being able to breathe, or just plain old insomnia. I have six weeks or less (hopefully) to go. And I'm starting to get really really fat so I'm anxious to be done. Jerime is also gaining a lot of weight. He bought some SlimFast yesterday, but said he's not ready to diet yet.
We bought carpet for the entire upstairs. It's getting installed on the 29th, so we're rushing to get the upstairs painted. I finally finished my winter quarter at Robert Morris so I'll have 6 days off to get a lot done. Jerime is finishing up his quarter right now, but he gets 2 weeks off of school.
That's about it for now.
Reagan had emergency surgery in January. The hernia that she had repaired at 2 months old returned and her ovary came through again. Dr. Reid said that the whole area there just didn't develop correctly so she put in extra stitches. I hope this is the last of it. She will have her pelvic kidney (same area) checked in May to see if it is growing and developing correctly. I really hope so because I don't want to face another surgery or kidney problems. She is healing well, still complaining of pain a little, but mostly back to normal. She is finally sleeping through the night after almost 2 years! I just wonder if that hernia was bothering her her whole life. Poor thing. But now she will say she's ready for bed, grab her teddy, and run to the bed. She's usually asleep within 10 minutes. It's awesome. Too bad I can't sleep at night to enjoy it.
I've been up every night either in pain, not being able to breathe, or just plain old insomnia. I have six weeks or less (hopefully) to go. And I'm starting to get really really fat so I'm anxious to be done. Jerime is also gaining a lot of weight. He bought some SlimFast yesterday, but said he's not ready to diet yet.
We bought carpet for the entire upstairs. It's getting installed on the 29th, so we're rushing to get the upstairs painted. I finally finished my winter quarter at Robert Morris so I'll have 6 days off to get a lot done. Jerime is finishing up his quarter right now, but he gets 2 weeks off of school.
That's about it for now.
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