Here we go again...

Here we go again...

There have been a couple of times in my life when the stress was so great that I made myself sick. Literally. There was the time I was so stressed out I was coughing up blood and vomiting blood at the same time. There was another occasion when I had IBS. Another time I had abnormal pains and enlarged internal organs. Each time I've under gone every conceivable medical test and they could find no organic cause for any of my symptoms. We've ruled out half a dozen autoimmune disorders, a couple of different cancers, and a few really rare disorders that I'm not even sure how to classify. But each time the stress was removed from my life... the symptoms magically and completely disappeared.

Recently I've been having some strange symptoms. Nothing as sexy as spewing blood, but they've been very troublesome and impacting every aspect of my life. (If you haven't noticed them, it's just because I'm good at covering them up. And if you have noticed them, well shame on me.)

So, I went to the doctor to have this all checked out. We're investigating four possible causes. One, I know I have... but I don't think it's serious enough to account for my symptoms. That is the doctor thinks I might be anemic. Well, I know I am. I recently was deferred from giving a blood donation because my hematocrit was too low (My count was 33 and the cut off is 38.) But I've been taking extra iron since that "rejection."

The doctor is also investigating the possibility of a low thyroid and sleep apnea. I've already been tested for both. I've had my thyroid tested hundreds of times. It always comes back within the normal range, but on the very lowest boarder line. I also did a sleep study during one of my pervious run-ins with medical science. They said I had an unusual sleep pattern. They said I wake up frequently from what appears to be bad dreams. Duh! I could have told them that. But they said I don't have sleep apnea.

So that leaves the newest possibility. The doctor is testing me for narcolepsy. This is a disorder where the person falls asleep for no apparent reason. Frankly, I think this is pretty funny. If there ever was a disorder I would get... it would be this one.

Don't get me wrong, narcolepsy is a serious disorder. I met a woman who had it and it devastated her life. So, if you or someone you know has this disorder; I'm not making fun of them. Really, I'm not. But let's face it; the media has had a field day with it. Whenever I've seen it portrayed, it's always a cartoonish depiction. That's just perfect me for me. A cartoon. Yep! That just seems to be the definition of my life... one big flipping cartoon.

Well, if this is like all the other times, I'll end up being perfectly healthy, except for the stress and as soon as the stress goes away so will the symptoms.