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Feeling down due to fatigue & undiagnosed health issues

Elizabeth CP
Blue Voices Member
Blue Voices Member

I haven't been using the forums much apart from a couple of responses to others posts. I stopped as I was too busy & trying to keep up with the forums was becoming too stressful. In September My husband went to Europe which was great although tiring due to the pace of the tour we did. Unfortunately a few days before returning home I fell heavily on concrete steps hurting my right side. I continued on relying on icepacks to manage the pain. I couldn't sleep because of the pain when lying down. The last day I came down with a bad cold which developed into a chest infection later on. The pain eased after 6 weeks & I recovered from the chest infection but have ongoing problems with fatigue & abdominal discomfort. My GP arranged pathology tests. The blood tests are normal but urine isn't. Today I was sent for a ultrasound of kidneys & bladder. Next week I have a gastroscopy & colonoscopy. My stress levels seem to be escalating out of proportion each time I see the GP & get sent for more tests. Prior to my accident my mental health issues were settling down but the last week it is much worse. I have lost my temper a few times in the last week without much provocation. This is not normal for me. I have been on a diet for several months but I am now finding it really hard to stick to it I just want to go & eat food I know will make me feel worse. The diet is a healthy one which I normally find easy to stick to because the food is satisfying.

I just want to get back on track & feel in control of my life & not feel so stressed & down. I also feel guilty for feeling this way because There is no confirmation of a serious illness.

974 Replies 974

I am still struggling with tiredness. My husband had a procedure at hospital which went OK but I think I'm still wound up about it. I;m not good at letting go. I worry because so often things have gone wrong.

I need to vent but didn't want to start a new thread. I am not expecting useful advice as there are no real solutions but I would appreciate replies letting me know people care even though they can't fix anything!!!

I've had a very busy few months so haven't had much time on BB. On Tuesday I received an email from my psych with a letter he'd attached for me to read through. It was to be forwarded to the person in charge of an organisation I'm involved with letting him know what was happening with me as I had been feeling judged or misunderstood. I had agreed for the letter to be written. unfortunately reading it reminded me of all the things going wrong making me feel worse. Yesterday I saw my psychiatrist who I hadn't seen for 2 months. I had to explain what had been happening which once again brought my focus on all the bad things which had happened. He tried to give a different perspective on some of the events but I remained stuck in my negative view. Over the last 2 months my son has been in a psych hospital & his struggles continue to be hampered by his wife My FIL died which meant a very stressful couple of weeks taking my husband to visit him frequently while he was dying & then funeral etc, Other extended family members have had some serious issues including physical & mental illness & serious relationship difficulties. Both my husband & I have been sick & there have been signs of further deterioration in my husband's condition. One of the most frightening was when an attempt to walk up a mountain almost ended in disaster after my husbands legs gave way & I had to assist him back to camp. It was over a week before he recovered enough to walk normally.

Today my husband saw the physio. I was concerned asked him for advice to ensure my husband exercises enough without overdoing it. overdoing things leads to fatigue & muscles stop functioning & take hours if not days to recover. I was told I need to see a social worker because I'm overreacting!!!! I walked out. My concerns proved valid as my husband's hands remained too weak to function long after the session. I was very down & teary the rest of the day & feel really alone. I don't like to say too much to my husband because I don't want to make him feel worse. He already feels bad that he can't help much at home & can't work & earn money.

Sorry I know many people are worse off so I shouldn't complain & I need to learn to deal with my problems better.

Croix
Community Champion
Community Champion

Dear Elisabeth~

The last time we spoke you were trying to get your sleep pattern improved. With all that is happening to you at the moment I doubt it's anything to write home about.

From the sound of it there is an awful lot happening. A death, a husband unwell and hard to care for, plus problems with an organization, dealing with a psychologist, psychiatrist and more. An awful big load, all at once.

I don't have any great advice, maybe trying to separate each thing out so it becomes a series of problems -some solvable now, some harder.

I do know that all the way though you have prevailed. Your judgment remains good -the incident with the physio proves that, pity your advice was not taken and your husband could then come out of therapy more able to function.

I do have a question. You very naturally don't want your husband to feel bad, as he can't work. I agree it is a big thing for him to cope with. In my own case I found that being able to give support (non-financial) to my wife gave me something more too. Do you think that might be the case with him, that perhaps you could lean more?

I hope this present wave of problems quickly returns to a more normal scene

Croix

Oh Elizabeth, my heart goes out to you big time. I want to let you know I am listening.

I believe it is a good thing that you did by venting out on here. So good on you! Just get it all out, rather then churning and dwelling on stuff. Do you feel a bit better unloading it all, like maybe a bit lighter?

Anyway I care about you, and wanted to let you know that I do.

Shell xx

Elizabeth CP
Blue Voices Member
Blue Voices Member

Thank you Croix & Shell for your replies. It is good to know someone cares even though there is nothing practical to do.

i am lucky to have a good psychologist & psychiatrist who both try to listen &do what they believe will help/ Unfortunately sometimes the process is confronting. Having the physio imply I was just interfering & useless was bad for my self esteem.

Hi Elizabeth,

I want to encourage you by saying that I have never seen you as useless. In fact quite the opposite. I applaud you for caring and taking care of your hubby the way you do. It is inspiring to see that. Sometimes I think we just believe lies or our eyes are clouded by our struggles and emotions, that's all.

So Elizabeth may you feel encouraged you are doing good in regards to your hubby.

Shell xx

Thanks for your support. I sometimes feel like as soon as I move forward something else goes wrong. Today I was helping my daughter and tripped over a powercord landing heavily on my knees so needing to rest & recover. Unable to help& feeling stupid. Why am I so clumsy. I'm supposed to be the carer but injure myself. My husband wants to help but I often feel it is harder supervising him doing things to help. I then feel guilty for not allowing him to do more. Sorry I'm just feeling sorry for myself & angry with myself for being stupid.

Croix
Community Champion
Community Champion

Dear Elizabeth~

Since when is tripping stupid? When I'm tired or in pain my feel do not lift properly and I've been known to trip in a most spectacular and entertaining (for others) fashion.

We all have limits, though it can be hard to acknowledge them properly, if it is less effort to do yourself than supervise then supervision is an extra task which needs to be undertaken only when you have the energy/resources.

I guess you are another one of us that is too hard on self. You are strong and resilient and caring.

Croix

Elizabeth CP
Blue Voices Member
Blue Voices Member
For me tripping or falling has very scary negative connotations. I have never been very coordinated Hated sport at school (much rather do homework) & have had a long history of falls & injuries. Of course now I'm older I don't bounce back like I used to. I have always felt really embarrassed when I fall. To make it worse I used to work as an OT & would assess peoples homes to make them as safe as possible & reduce the risk of falls. My mother used to fall & then stopped leaving the house alone due to risk of falling. She ended up in a wheelchair unable to walk. Her condition was supposed to be genetic but noone has been able to tell me what is the risk of me following her. I compensate by pushing myself to walk & stay as active as possible.

I am struggling at the moment. As mentioned in another thread my daughter is moving OS at the end of the month & is moving out of her house next Saturday. The last 2 weekends I have helped her fixing her garden & packing & moving stuff so the house is ready to rent out while she is OS. Most of her stuff will be stored at my house. The long days & heavy work gardening combined with a lo of work at home during the week trying to rearrange things to fit her things in have left me exhausted. Emotionally it has been hard due to the worry & stress & knowing I will miss her. To make things worse I arrived home late with a car packed to the brim with my daughters things to find my husband had not eaten properly since breakfast & had forgotten to take his medication. I had left food in the fridge for him to heat in the microwave. I rang him from my daughters at tea time to say I'd be late & told him to heat the food I'd left. My husband is blind & also has a condition which makes it essential he eat on time with medication otherwise he becomes too weak to digest food & can end up seriously ill.

Yesterday I woke up feeling really down. I went to church with my husband but kept crying which made me feel embarrassed & even worse. Exhaustion, feeling overwhelmed with what needs to be done, unable to move ahead with my own plans & feeling I can no longer trust my husband to manage on his own (even though he insists he can manage) all combined to trigger a very low mood. Today I'm not as depressed but I notice my jaw & teeth are aching as I'm clenching them . Anxiety is now the biggest problem.

I couldn't live with myself if I don't do everything possible to help my daughter. She has always tried to help me & others in the family needing help. He siblings hve also helped as much as they can.

I am just looking for ideas to help deal with the depression & anxiety apart from not helping my family.