Symptoms of my Lyme Disease

Here is the ‘short’ list of symptoms I’ve been dealing with the past decade odd. I pulled this from the book Why Can’t I Get Better? by Richard Horowitz M.D. – and as such, each one has the different options that can happen. Like the second symptom down, I’ve only had weight gain, not loss. But either one can be a symptom so I put them down.

unexplained fevers, sweats, chills or flushing

unexplained weight gain or loss

fatigue, tiredness

unexplained menstrual irregularity

upset stomach

change in bowel function

chest pain or soreness

shortness of breath, cough

heart palpitations, pulse skips, heart block

joint pain or swelling

stiffness of the joints, neck or back

muscle cramps or pain

twitching of the face or other muscles

headaches

neck cracks, neck stiffness

tingling or numbness, burning or stabbing sensations

eyes/vision: double, blurry, floaters

ears/hearing: buzzing, ringing, ear pain

increased motion sickness, vertigo

light-headedness, wooziness, poor balance, difficulty walking

confusion, difficulty thinking

difficulty with concentration or reading

forgetfulness, poor short-term memory

disorientation: getting lost, going wrong places

difficulty with speech or writing

mood swings, irritability, depression

disturbed sleep: too much or too little or early awakening

Many of these come and go. Nausea, legs or feet cramping, mood swings, heart palpitations for example. But the majority are on a daily basis, disturbed sleep, difficulty concentrating, maintaining normal temperature and disorientation. It’s a fun thing, being in this body of mine. heh. So often, I feel like I’m looking at the world through a hazy, gauzy veil – so close to being a part of it, but not able to quite reach through and get there. At the grocery store, the coffee shop or out to dinner – there’s a shroud that makes it hard to fully connect unless I focus. And, sometimes I mean really focus. Whether it’s migraine, leg cramps, overstimulation or mentally testing how my body feels to decide if I need to take another pain pill, there’s always something there to make it that much harder to connect.

Anyway, if you realize you have several of these symptoms I URGE you to go get tested for Lyme Disease. Pay attention to what your body is doing, don’t just assume that some things are just ‘how you are’ or that everybody deals with it. If I had mentioned some of these symptoms to my Dr. years ago we might have been able to diagnose me a lot sooner.

~Laura  

Tags: health, lyme disease, symptoms of lyme disease