On the scent of the trail

A month or two ago, I had decided that I would give up on the quest for the source of my health woes and just focus on eating a diet that's better for me (specifically, as in low-carb, lots of protein and veggies) and dividing my workouts between general cardio and ballet. The only new doctor I would see was the fertility specialist in Big City--the other one, not CID. (By the way, saw his nurse, set up a few things, really liked her and am feeling much more happy with that clinic... more on that later.)

Then I fainted. And my primary-care physician, with whom I dutifully scheduled an appointment since this scared the crap out of Trillian, started mapping out a list of new tests I should have. For once, not blood tests, but various monitors and consultations.

But this visit also gave me some new vocabulary, so I started poking around on the internet--big surprise. And this time I really do think I have a big lead, although I'm not going into it right now since I've been wrong at least a couple times before.

(To my credit, both my PCP and endocrinologist always say at some point during my appointment, "Wait, what were your thyroid levels?" They then flip through my labs, find the most recent values, and furrow their brows when they realize that the numbers are normal, have actually improved.)

What I found this time would explain why my blood tests don't show anything. It would explain the symptoms that led to a diagnosis of fibromyalgia. It would explain why there are other symptoms that any doctor who brings up fibromyalgia tries to ignore. (My favorite is that my hands and feet fall asleep very easily. No physical/anatomical explanation can be found, so I'm told it's not life-threatening, so don't worry. Never mind the quality-of-life issues.) It would explain why I can experience bradycardia and tachycardia in a five-minute span. It would explain just about everything, maybe even the hair loss and stress rash.

It's not all rosy, as there is little likelihood I would ever be completely free of symtoms and I wouldn't be able to take most of the suggested medications while trying to get pregnant, but there are other, non-drug interventions that are fairly straight-forward and would probably be no big deal after a period of vigilance (sort of like this wheat-free thing--which would appear to have been a good meal, based on what I've been reading).

I called my PCP earlier today, leaving a message asking her to take a look at this. She's the kind of doctor who will likely look it up and happily refer me for the specific test I need (although the other stuff she's sending me for is not bad to have overall, including a sleep study to check for apnea, which can also be related). I imagine it will be a few weeks before I can get in to see everyone on the list, but I'm currently hoping I'll have some answers in a month's time.