I am a 22f, and my right eye is twitching, as well as the eyelid on that side being swollen. I also have a pretty bad headache with this. I am an everyday vape user, and on no medications other than a copper iud. How concerned should I be about this? I very rarely get headaches, and I have eaten and drank plenty of water, but my head just continues to hurt worse.

18 years old male

As a result of difficult life circumstances, I have suffered for many years from anxiety attacks manifested by vomiting. Today I am 18 years old, and in the last ten years I have vomited once a week on average (there are stressful periods when I vomited several times a day, and there are periods when I did not vomit for long months). I am very afraid that this has caused irreversible damage, and to be specific I am very afraid of esophageal cancer. It is clear to me that it is not possible to diagnose via the Internet, but the question is, from a clinical point of view, are prolonged vomiting a significant risk factor for esophageal cancer, or are these much longer periods of time? I was scheduled for an endoscopy at the end of the year, but in the meantime I am very afraid.

Female 45 No smoking, drinking or drugs 11 stone

I've had an awful cough about a month. They were and are coughing fits which make me retch and vomit and breathe oddly (like quick gasping breaths following the cough) I saw a GP and he said viral.

Anyway now I've developed rib pain which is pretty excruciating. I can barely move. I thought maybe costochondtritis which I've had before, but this pain is mostly on my right side and under my right breast. It hurts to push on it. I feel it in my back also. Does this sound like costochondtritis? Pain killers are barely touching it

Hello all. I have a question about heart rates and if what’s happening is normal. I am 23F with history of asthma. The only heart problem in my family is a congenital heart defect that my grandpa had (don’t know specifics) that he needed surgery for in his twenties. My little sister has POTS which I think is heart related?

I’ve noticed that almost every day, around 11am-12pm, my heart rate drops. Usually below 50. The lowest I have seen it go is 40, but it is generally 45-49. It usually stays low for about 5 minutes before jumping back up.

This typically happens after I get up for a bathroom break at work. After standing up and walking around for a while, I need to sit back down because I start feeling dizzy, hot, nauseous and weak. The feeling subsides after a bit, and I’m usually able to get back to normal.

It doesn’t always happen in the 11-12pm timeframe, but I’ve definitely noticed a pattern at that time. I spoke to my GP about this and he said he would check my heart rate, but he didn’t end up even checking it. When I brought it up and the end of the appointment he said it was probably nothing. It felt like he was trying to rush me out the door. Should I get a second opinion?

I wear an apple watch which tracks my heart rate - I wasn’t sure of the accuracy so I asked my GP who told me it was generally reliable. But he also didn’t check my heart rate when I told him about this so I don’t know if I can trust him.

F26, after gym injury in February had mpfl repair and removal of part of broken patella also in February. My recovery was bad, range of motion wasn’t back and now I’m stuck with 12 extension and 100-110 flexion. 🥲 Pain started In June. Drs want to do second surgery in October because they suspect arthrofibrosis but they are confused because of non-stoping 24/7 pain, even when not doing anything. So they ordered CT scan. My next appointment is in September and I would like some explanation of my CT scan because I’m inpatient and not sure should I wait till September/October. 🥲

CT of the knee (it’s translated from German): Computed tomography of the left knee joint from July 24th, 2024: Examination technique: Multislice spiral CT of the left knee joint with preparation of axial, coronal and sagittal MPR in the bone algorithm. Layer thickness of the primary reconstructions <= 1 mm. Lateralized patella. Two drill channels in the patella from the medial side following MPFL plastic surgery. Fragment of about 7 mm width along the ligament on the medial patella, suspected fractured osteophyte or calcification of the attachment. Patchy hypodense bone structure in the patella, distal femur and tibial head. No further evidence of fracture. Joint effusion and thickened-looking joint capsule. Assessment: Suspected fracture of an osteophyte or calcification of the attachment of the ligament on the medial tibia. Patchy osteopenic bone structure around the knee joint DD with minimal loading. Joint effusion.

16F 176 cm (5’9) 50kg (110 lbs) (Am I too skinny? Some people say so but I don’t see it) So basically 3 months ago I “fell” from a 20 meter bridge. I was conscious up until the surgery or something. Basically conscious for a while, no head or spine injuries and I still don’t remember. Why don’t I remember? I need to recover it. I need to remember and the fact that I don’t disturbs me greatly. I will not get disturbed by those memories, I do not get disturbed by gore and stuff like that, not knowing brings me a lot of discomfort. Makes me wanna relive it again. I like this kind of stuff, it’s interesting. So I would like to know what it’s like to experience it. How do I recover it?

Trans Female (AMAB), 26, 5'9" 160lbs, White. Do not smoke [cigarettes], Drink <1 a month, smoke delta 8 THC ~2-4 times a month.

Current Medications: Concerta 36mg (for ADHD, don't take daily, only on days where I'm working my desk job), Estradiol Valerate (IM injection .3ml of 10mg per 1ml bottle [hormone levels at normal AFAB levels as of most recent testing).

Existing Conditions: ADHD, history of mild disordered eating problems but have been maintaining a healthy weight for ~1+ year. Mild psoriasis, IBS (was really bad as a kid, previously only very mild for the last several years).

Primary Complaint: I've been having periodic back pain for the last ~6 months, very unpredictable, seems to come and go. Generally like an extreme soreness that radiates from my just below my shoulder blades and down around the bottom of my ribcage. Tends to focus on my right side, but sometimes both. Almost never feel it when I wake up in the morning, but starts in the evening and seems to get worse at night. About a month ago it was really severe for several days in a row to the extent that it was interfering with my ability to fall / stay asleep. I took the maximum recommended dose of both OTC Tylenol and Advil for about four days every night before bed.

At the same time my stomach started getting really upset. Extreme bloating, stomach felt heavy, abdominal muscles felt really tense, very frequent, loose, mucous-y stools. Lots of belching and gas after eating meals. Previously I would only get IBS cramps once or twice a month for a day or two, and that was only if I had eaten something really spicy or high lactose (as far as I am aware those seem to be my only trigger foods). The backpain went away after about a week (that was around a month ago) and it has not come back since, but my stomach continues to feel super upset virtually anytime I eat. I feel constantly bloated, and my stomach looks extremely distended after eating pretty much any meal regardless of size. I feel like I'm struggling to make a bowel movement and when I do its usually very loose, but I have had relatively little pain or cramping. I would consider this a notable change from my usual bowel movements.

My normal GP only has appointments like a month out, so I went to a different provider in her network who had earlier appointments because the stomach problems (especially the distended abdomen) has been causing me a lot of distress. He told me my back and my stomach problem are both just because I'm stressed. I tried to tell him that I don't feel stressed (I'm a grad student and its Summer, if anything this is the least stressed I've been in the past year as I have way more free time and no classes to worry about), but I don't think he really listened. He tried to prescribe me an anti-anxiety med, which I again, said I wasn't comfortable with so then he wrote a prescription for Cyclobenzaprine 5mg (for my back) and Hyoscyamine .125mg for my stomach, which to my understanding are both antispasmodics and both have constipation and bloating as common side affects?

Background: I am in graduate school, I am working full time at an internship but have no other major stressors in my life at the moment. I go to bi-weekly therapy and not once has my therapist ever mentioned the belief that I should consider taking an anxiety med. I haven't taken Concerta in about two weeks. I generally stick to a low FODMAP diet.

TLDR: Dr. Prescribed me Cyclobenzaprine 5mg (for my back) and Hyoscyamine .125mg (for stomach) in response to complaints that my back has been hurting and my stomach feels bloated and distended after meals. I'm really tired of my stomach feeling super tense and bloated all the time, and I want to trust that he knows what he is doing, so I'm tempted to try them, but I also don't feel super confident that he was actually listening and I'm sorta worried taking one or both of these might actually make the exacerbate my main symptom of concern (bloating and distended abdomen).

I'm a 52yo female that began having cognitive changes plus some twitching. And MRI found the the following: "Indeterminate 5 mm nondependent focus of signal abnormality within the anterior aspect of the left lateral ventricle suggesting a nondependent focus of fat/lipid" I've had 3 MRIs in the past and nothing had EVER been found. Of course they call today wanting to do a CT scan follow up test. Does anyone have any similar report verbiage? Thanks.

Male: 32 yrs.

Some people I’ve come across whom had previously fractured/broken a femur have expressed sharp pain and a very tight IT band (making it super hard to bend at the knee). Is this possibly due to the trauma the of the bone breaking or due to the surgery (or a combination of both)?

M25 187cm 72kg

What is this rash ? I just noticed it and it itches slightly maybe ?? Hard to tell because I also hace some mosquito bites. I have it mostly on left foot and just few dots on right. Nowhere else on the body.

I was walking with flipflops around in some park close to the sea. It had some dead leafs and green leafs on the floor. Thats all I rememberm and when I came back at apartment wich is like 3-5 mins from there I noticed this rash

To add... im in Slovenia (EU).

Hi dermatologists (I assume), 44 y.o. male coming down with HFMD the second time, the first being when I was 40. Full spread of lesions forming on my hands, feet, throughout my mouth, and even on my chin under my beard with swollen glands preceded by nausea, headache, fever, lethargy (for a few days before lesion development). I have kids who are 5 and 6 currently; and my wife is a NP who does medical on in-patient (all types of patients; medicaid, kids, geriatric, parents, indigent...) at a psych hospital so plenty of vectors heading my way. Happened upon some public education campaign called "Your Dermatologist Knows" so before I go to my HMO primary and possibly get some shaky info (and a referral to one of y'all or whatever), I thought to see if any board certified derms can answer a couple quick questions or had any insight.

1. Am I just super unlucky to get this twice (can more than one kind of virus that can cause the same pattern of symptoms? did I lose immune response to the first/only one?) or is it possible that there's something wrong with my immune system?
2. Does anything help speed this up? I mean, if it lasts the same as last time it'll be a week of painful walking and swallowing, followed by like 2 weeks of disgusting skin peeling and just grossness. Dr. Google found a 1996 study that said 13 patients uniformly had success with acyclovir (even though it shouldn't have directly engaged with the HFMD-causing virus)? We have some valacyclovir in the house in case a cold sore ever shows up...even if not indicated specifically, is it worth a shot if taken at or below an adult HSV treatment dosage?
3. Should I expect the symptoms to be less intense and shorter lasting as with some other virus-caused stuff since I've had it before?
4. How worried do I need to be about other things that could also be tiny painful red bumps that are ONLY on the feet, hands, mouth/face area? I mean, should I RUN to the ER because there's a (small-ish) chance I have something weird/major, or am I pretty much chilling a bit and waiting this out?
5. If I'm the type who gets it twice, are third and fourth and so on times not out of the question? Can people just be prone to certain conditions? My wife and kids have never had it to this extent. My wife not at all (career nurse and now NP) and the kids sore throats and cold-like stuff only around the time I had this POX and CURSE.

Thanks for any clarity, doods

45yr old female, 5'9", 244lbs, 1 yr post op gastric bypass, asthma (was very well maintained before this) & previous septic arthritis from feb 23 with a picc line, resolved with no other issues (I think that's all that's relevant to this)

I've been feeling pretty awful for 5 days now. Went to my Dr yesterday because I couldn't sleep due to coughing. Tested positive for covid & flu B.

Since this morning, I'm super foggy and having trouble thinking or focusing and I have a terrible all over headache that just won't go away even after taking acetaminophen and guaifenesin-codeine cough syrup. Lights and lots of sound hurt. I have a history of migraines, but this doesn't feel the same, just off. I have trelegy and inhalers (needed my inhaler the last couple of days). Also pretty nauseous. I took phenergan 2 hours ago and it helped, but it's coming back.

I'm staying hydrated, taking extra vitamin c, d & zinc.

Is this just part of having them both together? At what point do I need to be concerned to ask about having more tests done? Do I just need to ride it out?

I have anxiety and this is just making it worse. Thanks for your time.

22 Male, 5'10 170 pounds. As far as I’m aware, no asthma, or medications for that. Have taken pepsids for gerd.

Keep testing negative for covid.

Been sick for 4 weeks, currently: consistent chest tightness, crushing feeling at times, feel hard to take a deep breath or breathe in general, started off as a sore throat, then a bunch of coughing and yellow phlegm, mucus.

Now weeks later I'm left with white phlegm, coughing that hasn't gone away, heart palpitations, elevated blood pressure although a couple days ago it read 121/, breathing problems, almost fainted a couple times a week and half back. And again, chest tightness, felt crushing a couple days back.

For the fainting episodes, the first time, was in the car, felt like the world started spinning, but chalked it up to dehydration. The second time it was like really really hard to breathe, then my heart rate jumped up, my fingers and head got tingly, felt like I was gonna pass out. Albuterol Inhaler maybe helped for about 20 mins. Then I felt like shit again. Both times it seems mouth breathing made it way worse.

They think it's pneumonia, or bronchitis, but now I'm having weird heart stuff starting since almost 2 weeks ago, been scared it's like chf or something. My 02 reads high usually 98-99, my ekgs have been a bit weird, dysrythmia in one or aka abnormal rhythm, the next one normal rhythm but possible left atrial enlargement, waiting on my 3rd one. Can't see the cardiologist till next month X ray found nothing in my chest, blood test including heart blood test all keep coming back normal and healthy. Bummer.

So how did we get here. I workout a lot and run a lot, my sleep was bad for awhile, and perhaps I have a lot of sodium in my diet? I went running in 96 degree weather (US METRIC), which is really hot but I do it all the time feels great. Then I had work that same day. Then I got sick. Thought it was just a normal cold, kept exercising, working, playing pickle ball, and it seems I’ve gotten worse and never really bounced back. But at least I don’t have a lot of mucus or yellow phlegm anymore. But still the white phlegm and a chronic cough that didn’t go away.

Sorry for the vent.

35m got a burn in the kitchen on Friday. Now it’s vacation and I’m wonder if it’s a bad idea to go into the Atlantic with this burn . Thanks in advance

Brain fog, migraines, mental slowness.

29M, 280bs, 6foot 5. I have athsma, cluster headaches, migraines, depression, anxiety.

List of symptoms (including stuff that might not be related)

• Migraines
• Brain fog
• Pressure in head
• Lethargy
• Tiredness
• Sore muscles
• Lack of motivation
• "Brain Zaps"
• Stutter (that I've had my whole life) getting worse
• Sleeping problems.
• Short term memory problems

I have been to the doctor about this before, and these are the things we have ruled out:

• Brain tumor
• Seizures (a basic test)
• Brain annureism
• auto immune disorders (I'm willing to try again)

*Thyroid Problems

For as long as I can remember, I've had brain fog. I realized this in early 2019, long before covid. But recently I have noticed its getting worse, a lot worse. Its all I can think about. I don't know what caused it. But recently they've gone from tolerable to way worse. I'm finding it harder to talk, focus, and think things through. I'm currently in the process being tested for sleep apnea through my primary care physician, but I'm hoping posting this will gain insight into what else it might be.

Edit: also might be worth mentioning, I have neck strain and eye pain. I was in a car accident a few years ago and ever since then my neck has hurt. That might be related to when it start getting worse, I'm not sure.

16m sometimes when i strech or something i just lose vision for a second and lose balance a couple of times i even fell on my knees from this i have this for about 3 years now and it seems to get worse it gets more and more common for me to expirience this and have more loss of balance i also feel pressure in my eyes i never loss consciousness. should i be woried?

Hi there, Asking here cause google doesn't seem to help and I can't get an appointment till Monday When should I be concerned/go definitely see a doctor or urgent care facility for lower right abdominal pain (that I would be concerned specifically for appendix pain). I’m a male, 21 years of age.

Symptoms are currently uncomfortable feeling when I walk (maybe 1-2 pain level) when I cough, brace/ create abdominal pressure it goes to 3-4 sharp pain that subsides after l've stopped that pressure. Have had this feeling for 24 hours now and hasn't gotten worse per se. Did heel strike tests yesterday and felt no pain, did one this morning and felt a sharp pain of 4ish. Don't feel pain when I physically press on it with my hands. Thanks

28yrs old. Past year or so I've been dry . Even when I climax it's dry. Only time it's wet is when I ovulate and even then it's on the drier side. 2-2.5 weeks ago my man of 7yrs and I got intimate. Every since I've been a waterfall. The discharge is comparable to ovulation discharge but not stopping. What could this be? I don't have a yeast infection or sti from my knowledge so far . All I know is I've noticed such a change that I'm making a post about it lol.

We use pull out method as "protection". This the first time this issue has happened to me .

Backstory also in case it matters.. got my period at 9yrs old & my mom got menopause at 38 so Ive been concerned that I might get it early as well. I haven't been tracking my periods (smh) but I noticed my period last time seemed like it came again quicker than usual. When I start these periods I start off & end off in brown blood which ppl have mentioned low progesterone.

Can you wear a holter monitor while taking amoxicillin at the same time for another infection, I am just wondering about the mix of adhesive to amoxicillin

A few weeks ago I fell ill, my throat was swollen for almost two weeks, causing that throat slime stuff to build up and become slightly hard? My throat is better now, but I think my current problem may have stemmed from that. I can't eat. I don't mean to sound like some half done joke, but I physically cannot eat. The last time I hate a full meal was around 8am or so? It's currently 22:42. I think you all can see what I'm getting at. All that aside, the skin on the back of my arms are very sensitive, and not sensually. See, it's currently winter here and 11°C right now, so my arms are in agony, and my feet, well let's just say if I take it out of the blanket, it feels like it's throbbing. Yesterday I had a migraine that was so bad one of my veins on my face was visible (I do not get migraines)

I'm sick and tired of feeling like this. So tired that when I got home, I immediately went to sleep. I'm still sleepy. Please, I'm just begging that someone might know what the hell is happening to me

For some idea, I'm approximately 78kg in weight, 17 years old, 190 cm

I’m on day 4 of my second bout of covid, and I am double vaccinated and once boosted. I was super sick the first full day of symptoms (nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, chest tightness, weakness, shakiness, fatigue, fever, chills, cough, sore throat, diarrhea, insane body aches that mostly presented in jaw, head and neck pain), that all started to get slightly better on day 2, slightly better again day 3 but add congestion and sinus pressure, now day 4 it’s mostly congestion, sinus pressure, some jaw pain, intermittent loss of taste and smell, slightly runny eyes, sore throat, cough, and fatigue.

I’m 24F, 270lbs, 5’5”, and am currently taking sertraline, lamotrigine, esomeprazole, Syeda birth control pill, a probiotic, an iron supplement, and a vit C supplement.

Should I start Paxlovid at this point tomorrow on day 5 of my illness? I’m concerned about the side effects, interaction with my other meds, and possibility of more issues with it than without it. What has been your experience starting it this late in the illness?

Hello. I am a 24 year old guy. It's currently summer at where I live. Humidty is 74% at the night I'm writing this. My eyes have been itchy and bloody since June started. Same thing happened previous June too.

Symptoms:

-Occasionally itchy eyes, especially during late hours

-Bloody eyes, meaning blood vessels are visible on white parts. But the weird thing is, they highly appear on the white parts that are in open. The whites under eyelids aren't bloody. Also, vessels appear much more on the left side of my left eye and the right side of my right eye, from my POV. Also, time of the day doesn't matter for bloodiness. It can be bloody when i wake up or not bloody late at night, or vice versa.

-Eye dryness ans tiredness on late hours.

-It may not be related but also, lately my eyelashes go in my eyes often.

I went to doctors for it twice with a 1 year gap. They both said it's caused by an allergy and gave the same (IIRC) eyedrops: Patanol and Maxidex. They gave different instructions though. Latter doctor said I should use Patanol twice a day until symptoms are gone, and Maxidex; 5 times a day for 5 days, and after that I should reduce the number of appliances by 1 every day. So it was like: 5 5 5 5 5 4 3 2 1. He also said if allergy comes back, I can use Maxidex once in 1-3 days, though I'm not sure if it was for Maxidex. I am also writing here to make sure he said that for Maxidex and to get thoughts from you guys. At the time I used those eyedrops, I went away from my city for holiday. And symptoms were gone. So I'm not sure if they helped or I was okay because I left my environment. But I think they did help. Symptoms came back maybe 2-3 weeks after I came back home.

Some details about my daily life:

-I spend a lot of time using my PC in a day. I don't take many breaks.

-I have my window open left to me (1-1.5m) most of the time I sit at my desk. Wind occasionally blows hard. I'm telling this because maybe it's what dries my eyes.

-I use red light in evenings, though I doubt that will have bad effects.

-I like to sleep sideways, maybe it causes those sides of my eyes to go bloody I don't know.

Our family has been suffering through this unknown condition for 3 generations now. I've had my blood checked and my dad has gone to a doctor about it.. but we've gotten no answers. My dad and I are trying very hard to get to the bottom of this. This has been going on for far too long.

Height: 5"0'

Weight: 125

Gender: 23F

No medications, no smoking, unknown medical issue.

Here's what happens. If I eat a small meal (What I consider normal.. I don't like to stuff myself) I may get lightheaded, body shakes really really bad, and if it gets bad enough I will pass out.

This happens sometimes but not all the time. Usually once a week I'll go through this. The only way to fix this is to eat anything I find.. and alot of it. I've trained myself to eat as soon as I see the warning signs (lightheaded/shaking hands) but sometimes I miss that window. This will usually take me about an hour to recover from. It's became something I just live with. Eventually the shakes may turn into seizures when I'm older. They seem to get worse the older we get. My dad is just starting to experience seizures now and seizures are how my grandpa died.

I went to get blood checked while it was happening during work (was on the brink of passing out) and the nurse said my blood sugar is normal. They couldn't tell what was wrong. Same story with my dad.. he's gone to a doctor and told me he got no answers.

This all started when I turned 18.. i'm 23 now. When I showed my dad the first time my hands started shaking I was told "yep.. looks like you got the family shakes". That's all. It's still a mystery to us lol.

Anyways.. I would like to know where to go to even begin finding this condition our family has. What medical professionals would be the best start? I really need to figure out what this is and soon.. my 2 children may also end up with this condition. 😢

Thank you for taking the time to read. Any advice would be a tremendous help for us.

32f 210lbs. No gallbladder. Today I’ve had very weird back pain accompanied with severe stomach pain. I’m not sure if it my anxiety (because my mom was diagnosed with ALS) or if something it truly wrong. My symptoms are a sharp pain in my mid-lower back along with waves of cramping that hurts and some diarrhea.

Hi all,

Writing here because I cannot get health insurance until September. I (30F, 5'4 138lb; on no medications; history of GERD, slightly high cholesterol, and anxiety) have been feeling dealing with a painless squeezing sensation in my chest for about 3 years now. Looking for opinions on what this might be. My paternal uncle died of a heart attack at age 40.

The first time I felt it was 3 years ago when I was sitting in a bus, doing nothing. It feels like something in the middle of my chest (behind the sternum) is squeezing inwards or being squeezed by a fist. It only lasts about a half a second and then it "releases"/stops and then I feel my heart racing. The sensation is not painful whatsoever, but I feel like I can't move/breathe while it's squeezing.

Back then I was drinking one 12oz coffee or latte per day, so I hypothesized the problem was caffeine-induced heart palpitations. I went to the doctor and was diagnosed with GERD and slightly high cholesterol. The doctor also said I had a heart "arrhythmia" but didn't seem concerned about it. I started drinking more decaf and changed my diet. The squeezing problem slowly went away as did the GERD chest pain.

In 2023 I began having caffeinated coffee again and didn't get symptoms. In 2024, my GERD started acting up after a weekend trip full of cheat meals. I was also drinking coffee later in the day than I normally would. At some point I started getting the squeezing sensations again. It happens regardless or whether I'm sitting or standing, but recently I felt it three times in a row (within 10 seconds) after I started walking on a treadmill. It keeps happening at least once per day. Does anyone know what this could be, is it palpitations, esophogeal spasms, angina, caffeine or histamine-induced cardiac arrythmia? Is there some kind of test I should do that wouldn't cost too much out of pocket?

Male, age 26, 176cm, 56kg.

Photos: https://imgur.com/a/952KoVU

My skin started to experience this a few weeks after my scrotum developed a itchy red skin rash. Gp Doctor prescribed me with antifungal creams like MiCreme and Ointments but after using it for a month or so it didnt work and he still keep thinking it was fungal.

Anyways, havent been back to the doctors but after looking at the internet it seems my scrotum had lichenification as the Google images look exactly like my scrotum condition so have been using Elocon cream. Im also using Elocon cream on my thighs as not sure if in wrong but it seems to be making my unknown brown crumble paper dry skin conditoon on my thigh able to be teared/peeled. Elocon cream also has been helping the scrotum lichen but comes and goes.

TLDR: want to know what this brown dry itchh skin is called on my thighs. Texture feels like brown crumbled paper and each day seems to be able to be teared/peeled off especially since each day smalls bits of the skin comes off. Hard to do daily activities and walk or sit due to this condition

25F, 5’7, 120lbs. Rheum appt coming up and I’m not sure what questions to ask. Included details below, and open for suggestions! I don’t know what I don’t know, but I understand rheum isn’t black and white.

History: Celiac disease, hypothyroidism, trigeminal neuralgia, small fiber neuropathy, raynauds, chronic constipation (unknown cause; colonoscopy was clean), horseshoe kidney with occasional mild hydronephrosis, ADHD. (Not an anxious person per se, but taking lexapro, trying to reduce stress and started therapy to see if I’m subconsciously causing these issues)

Medications: levothyroxine, linzess, lexapro, carbamazepine, methylphenidate, birth control pill, B12 injections.

Why rheum referral? Chronic mild neutropenia (ANC 1.2)/leukopenia (WBC 2.5)/platelets dropping (PLT 260 > 220 > 180 in 6 months). Unresolved body aches, severe fatigue, weight loss, rashes in sunlight, mouth blisters, slow healing/easy bruising.

Other labs BUN 21

Creatinine .93

eGFR 85

Sodium 142

Potassium 4.9

Chloride 105

Carbon dioxide 25

Albumin 4.5

AST 57

ALT 64

RBC 4.5

HGB/HCT 14/40.5

UA: dark yellow, cloudy, +1 bilirubin, specific gravity 1.01, pH 5.5, +1 protein, urobilinogen 1.4, blood +2, occasional hyaline casts. No glucose, ketones, nitrites, leukocytes esterase, squamous epithelial, WBC, RBC, bacteria.

I will try to make it short ans sweet. Had my daughter 2yrs ago and had the baby blues (OBGYN rx’d Escitalopram 10mg) but never took em as i knew the root of the cause (sleep deprivation from a newborn haha) Stayed home with her for about 1 1/2yrs. Tried the SAHM thing but it was lonely so i returned to work and my days got 100% better.

Soon after i returned to work my father was diagnosed with Cancer (thank goodness he is doing soo much better)

But…. I am their oldest their translator for everything. Back and forth with appts for PET scans, biopsies, MRIs u name it. Also sort of their therapist- as since i was a child they would tell ALL their worries. (I love my parents to death but…) now I developed a fear i never had. Any ache or pain i have i think the is something “bad” i have been having a headache (localized) on and off. Losing hair. From stressing about. I turn it off quick. I get home to my kids. We play, we read, my coworkers and my partner r the best.

Saw my Dr and she rec. i take the Lexapro and maybe see if i can see i therapist to help me turn off those scary thoughts. Told me she doesn’t blame me for feeling the way i do.

Now, if i were ur daughter/friend (im in my 30s) would u say Lexapro is good? I was told no side affects much since it is such a low dosage.

How do u help patient deal with such scary thoughts? Again. I enjoy life, i play , we read, i love to hang out with friends and all. My head just becomes scared whenever i have an ache.

Thanks a bunch!

My (22F) issue started in the beginning of May when I developed sores on my gums. They look like oral erosions and leave my gums purple and bruised. They would almost appear as if they were clearing up but would come back worse and eventually spread to other areas of my gums. After about 3 weeks of them not going away on their own I reached out to my doctor and he insisted it was first HSV (which came back negative) and then tested me for parvovirus. This came back positive however at this point I have had these sores for weeks (much longer than the course of a typical parvovirus infection). I tried to express that I did not believe that parvovirus b19 was causing my sores. He ignores most of my concerns insisting thats whats causing the sores and puts me on 40mg prednisone for 5 days (the sores come back) and then he puts me on 20mg prednisone for 14 days. (the prednisone did help but all healing stopped once the meds were stopped)

No surprise the sores come back under my tongue and on the back of my gums and now I feel like a shell of human being after the prednisone. I went in for another appointment about a week and half ago and now he will finally admit parvovirus is probably not the root of this issue and brought up autoimmune issues instead. He put my on antibiotics for 5 days as a last ditch effort and he has referred me to GI (I have had a CT in the past showing thickening and did a colonoscopy but the biopsies were negative for ibd) and Infections and diseases clinic but I am truly at a loss. I cant be seen by any of these clinics until almost october. Has anyone else had a similar experience or any advice? This is my first ever post on reddit I am desperate for answers or relief. Thanks!!!

18m

Recently got back from Italy. Was there for 10 days, constantly sweating everyday from inter railing. On the 9th day it started raining in the morning and throughout the day. I was in the rain for quite a bit but it was humid. I stayed inside until it stopped and was sunny, walked around for a few hours and came back to the hotel only to start itching and scratching only to discover massive hives and rashes all over my body. Went to sleep and in the morning they were mostly cleared up, then went into the sun and they started again but once in an air con place they lessened. Back home now and when I woke up they were fine but come night they have started again.