I turned 32 at the end of April. The day after my birthday I didn't feel well. It wasn't anything unusual, just felt sick to my stomach and very tired. About a week after that I started feeling sick every time I ate. I didn't have an appetite, but made myself eat at least once a day because my stomach would be begging for food. Nothing tasted good! My husband made a really nice meal for me on Mother's Day. I couldn't eat a bite. The next day I started throwing up (sorry, no nice way to explain that one!) I just assumed I had a stomach bug, but as days went by with not being able to keep anything down, I realized there was something else going on. I eventually went to the doctor. I have had issues with my esophagus in the past and my doctor agreed that that was probably the problem. She put me on an all liquid diet while I waited to be seen by a Gastroenterologist. Evidently, GI doctors are very popular, because after a full week I still hadn't heard from them. I made several annoying phone calls, all the while struggling to even keep water down.
As you can imagine I was miserable and getting very weak. I had not had a full meal in weeks, which landed me in the Emergency room. My blood pressure was through the roof because I was unable to take my medication. I was admitted because they wanted to watch my blood pressure and give me fluids because I was severely dehydrated. I was released the next day still feeling sick, but with an appointment to see a Gastroenterologist the next week.
It was a long week of waiting and I was continuing to get worse. I started feeling tingling in my chest and pain in the middle of my upper back the day after I left the hospital. The following day my legs were kind of numb when I woke up. I had a hard time walking, but was able to get around slowly. The next day I had to hold on to the wall to walk, and the day after that I could barely walk at all. I knew things were bad when I took a load of laundry out of the dryer and my legs gave out. I fell to the floor. It hurt, and I was mad that I couldn't walk. I laid there for about 5 minutes and just cried. I think I knew then that this was bigger than an esophagus problem or stomach bug. But, I picked myself up and told myself I was crazy.
By the time my appointment with GI rolled around I had to be taken in to the office in a wheelchair. I explained what was going on and the doctor asked me if I could stand up. I told him I could stand, but I was wobbly. He didn't take my word for it and made me show him. He held on to my hands as I stood and I collapsed into him. He advised us to go straight to the ER. After a lot of blood tests and 2 MRIs I was sent home and told I was perfectly healthy according to all the tests. I left in a wheelchair, extremely frustrated and not knowing what to do next. I didn't sleep at all that night because I was unsure if I would ever get an answer or be able to walk again!
Thankfully my GI doctor called my husband the next day. He was upset that I was released without an answer, and expressed his concerns about the condition I was in. He called in a favor and got me an appointment with a neurologist the next day.
I had no idea going into the appointment what I was about to face. My husband encouraged me to pack a bag in case I ended up in the hospital. I was reluctant because I figured this appointment would be no different than the rest and I would be sent home with no answers. But, I packed a bag with one set of clothes. Little did I know that was not even close to what I would be needing!
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