Saturday, January 3, 2009

Mystery Ailment

I've been feeling kind of off the past week or so. It started a couple of days after Christmas, I guess, with this sort of achy pressure-pain in my back and lower abdomen. By the end of the day most days, I'm pretty much incapacitated, curled up on the couch in a fetal position. If I move around, it seems to make the pain worse, so I try to stay still (which is, of course, impossible with two kids to care for.)

I'm fine for the most part in the morning though, so I'm just trying to get enough housework and such done early in the day that I can just sit and be in pain all afternoon and evening.

It's been bad enough that I went to an urgent care clinic on Tuesday. The doctor was essentially worthless, told me it was back pain, prescribed me Percoset, and told me to take one three times a day for a month. A little excessive, I think, but whatever. It does make the pain go away... and everything else, for that matter. I can't take it when I need to take care of the girls, it renders me completely useless.

So the pain didn't get better, I saw the chiropractor a couple of times, and he said it's gall bladder related. Gave me some digestive enzymes and told me to avoid fat for awhile, let my body get back to normal after all the holiday junk I've been eating. Made sense to me, so I did for a few days, but the pain didn't stop. By Thursday night I had actually taken two Percosets just to stop the pain, and then of course spent the entire night sleeping it off. I went to the ER yesterday (I don't have a regular physician, so I don't have many options.) They did a pelvic exam (for which I waited a total of about four hours, not exaggerating.) Their findings? Nothing. I appear pretty much normal. They did some tests, they were all normal. They suggested I go see a gynocologist and see if there's something more going on than what they could find. Thought maybe it was an ovarian cyst, or maybe cervical cancer. They gave me a list of gynocologists to call on Monday to try and get an appointment.

So I guess we'll see. I read up on ovarian cysts, and the symptoms they describe seem on par with what I've got. Not so much for cervical cancer, which makes me feel a little better. Andrew wants me to see a gyn, so I guess I will. In the meantime, I have something like 85 pain pills left, and a very messy house. :o\


4 comments:

Kim said...

I used to get ovarian cysts all the time. When they act up, they are totally incapacitating. I got them as young as 14, and was hospitalized (they thought it was my appendix at first). The cure? Birth control pills LOL I was on them from like age 15 to age 25, right before we got pregnant with Andrew.

Good luck and I hope you feel better soon!!!

Lover of lives... said...

Hey honey...I have had ovarian cysts since i was 19 and the first time I had on I was rushed to the hospital with the worst abdominal pain I ever had. Only to be told..take 2 aleve and call me in the am. So..They come and go and you get used to them. But I empathize with your plight. Try a heating pad..that helped me alot. Feel better....

Frugal Finds said...

Julie, I had something similar a year and a half ago and ended up having my gal bladder removed!
I know you are not a big fan of Dr's but you really should find one you like and just go there when you need to. At least all your records will be in one place then. Unfortunately, as we get older, things start to fail on us.
Take care of yourself!
Carol

Dani said...

{{{{}}}} That has to really suck! I hope they figure it out and you get back to normal soon!