I am a 30 year old woman. In September of 2006 I had a car accident. I felt ok other than the fact that my stomach swelled to the size of a 6-8 month pregnant woman. I called the GI and was immediately administered every test possible. It turned out that I had 3 ulcers (non bacterial) and 2 were bleeding. I tested positive for Epsteins Bar virus.
After the accident I could hardly stay awake. I think I slept for almost 3 weeks straight. I finally regained some strength, at least enough to wash my hair.
Since September I have 5 episodes where I sleep for 3-5 days at a time. I am so weak it is chore to do anything. I can not hold down a regular job so I have ventured into the jewelry making business. This has been a God send.
It’s days like today though where I woke up feeling pretty good and and took advantage of that and accomplished as much as I could. However, there are like 5 other things I need to do and it is only 2:30 and I am exhausted, unable to to do anything but stare out the window or watch t.v.
I take antidepressants, I eat vegetables, I get enough sleep at night. What does one do…is this a life sentence? Will someone ever marry someone who has this condition, I don’t know if I would.
Thank You for reading my story. Any words of wisdom or kindness or whatever else are welcome.
Carrie
I can’t thank you enough for sharing your personal experience with me. I too have trauma from childhood. interesting. Have you found a treatment other than going back to work that seems to help?
Again, thank you!
If you see my Nickname is Referee. Last year I decided to try for a dream. I made myself walk on my electronic treamill. I had to start off at 1 or 2 minutes, one day, then the next day 3 minutes. Obviously, I couldn’t go very fast or far, but I slowly got into shape. I officiated maybe 8 or 9 Jr. High Basketball games. I was able to stop my Neurontin pain medication. They always say if you can exercise, it will help, but when you’re very fatigued, it’s hard to even start. So, I used my dream of officiating basketball games to motivate me. I thought I just wanted to see if I could do it. I could do it, but I got out of shape after the season ended, and I have had a hard time getting back into it. This is of course, basketball season, and I’m still trying to get at it again.
Just try and do 30 seconds, or whatever little bit you can do. I can’t promise anything to anyone, but the “researchers and docs” have said for several years that exercise is proven to help. I just kept saying, I’m too tired. How can I exercise when I’m so tired? I’m not sure what you might find as a motivation, but if you can try and find one, you might get some relief. I’m looking into joining a Health Club, but can’t decide if I have enough to go to work and then go to a club, and exercise, so I don’t know. I just have to try and get back into the workout. All I did was walk, and got fairly fast, but never to a run, just a fast walk. It was an amazing experience. Hang in there.