This is a story – that means, grab a cup of Joe or 4 or 12 depends on your fatigue level – pop a Ritalin or you guessed it 4 or 12 again determined by your level of fatigue. Maybe take a shower in the middle of this or a 48hr nap ;). @#$@ take a week off work if you’re working (That’s what I’m doing).
Disclaimer - EBV has driven me slightly… no… no… absolutely crazy and… ;)
-My Intent-
Maybe someone will search something that shows up here and know they are absolutely not alone in the slightest. I'm going to make an attempt to be highly detailed. This has been my experience solely. The amount of symptoms expressed here may not match yours entirely. If there is anything I’ve learned over the last few months of research, it’s... EBV rears its head in some highly eloquent yet normal symptoms and other times it’s like… “I’ve had 1 to many at the bar – and I just need a porcelain god right now – get out of my way – where did my wallet go – what is the meaning of life – squirrel – should I get my haircut – lets go see a movie – why can’t any of you make a decision – I’m going home – where are my keys – squirrel – who are you? – And… you wake up on a park bench wearing nothing you put on the night before. ”. To sum that up, it’s as random as a drunk person trying to find their way through an entirely normal night using a simple fraction the amount of brain power they normally have whilst trudging through low levels of insanity – and you only have one shoe (Why that matters I’m not sure, but it does!).
You are loved, you are not alone, you will thrive once again, the world is and will forever be your playground, be a kid, laugh at yourself, do not cry, breath in and out, notice the sky, notice the stars, notice the life and love in all things. Most importantly, look in the mirror and say I love you.
-Let’s get started-
So 4 months ago I awoke with this odd sensation in my head - It was kind of like a headache, but it wasn't. There was also a bit of a crook in my neck - some slight pain almost like it was stiff. I thought I had just slept badly and continued through my day, thinking ah it'll get better after a good night sleep tonight.
Nothing really changed in the first day - low level pressure sensation (I would not describe this as a headache but more like literal pressure), coupled with the slight neck pain. I kind of just felt out of it.
I went to sleep that night with no trouble at all and woke up feeling refreshed in the morning. I remember waking up taking a deep breath and being like Ah! - All better. I zipped about my morning routine and I remember clearly standing in my bathroom brushing my teeth when, what I like to call now the Epstein Ping – Hit. The world for maybe 1-3 seconds went spinning (Visually almost like vertigo, the world was a kaleidoscope). That's all it took for my adrenaline to kick into high gear and my body to start dumping Cortisol like it was going out of style.
The effect was immediate – my hands and feet went all tingly and the pressure in my head hit like a ton of bricks. I remember the clear thought of “Something is undeniably wrong with me.” Followed immediately by “OMG!!! I’m dying… Holy @#$@!!!!” then directly after that. “Call 911, Mom, Sister, All loved ones, the plumber (wait… what), no the doctor! - Your therapist, maybe your therapist’s family (really...), wait you still haven’t accomplished…. In your life.” I digress… I’m the type to flip when anything medical shows up in the slightest. I’ve had Anxiety issues around this in the past. (Most probably in the present ha-ha)
I want to inject right here that my life outside myself was for all intents is quite stressful – I work in the IT field as a Network and System / Developer / DB / Help Desk Support / Can you get this “electronic thingy” to just work for me please - Administrator for a 70-80 employee small business here in Colorado. I took it upon myself in the weeks leading up to this to start detail training in several areas of my profession and my relationship with the woman I love was on the fritz. I had a lot of thoughts traveling through my head daily that I was not good enough, coupled with the undeniably monstrous amount of work ahead of me. I was literally running through my days for a year without any downtown before any of this.
So the journey began,
I didn’t actually do any of those things I was thinking about, I told myself nothing was wrong – practiced some deep breathing and the tingling went away after about 5 minutes. I chalked it up to Anxiety and that’s where I lived per the many opinions of others including professionals for 3 and ½ months.
It’s all in my head,
Turns out no it $%^@#$# isn’t.
Getting into detail about those 3 months. After the first couple of days my symptoms were pretty consistent and continue to be 4 months later. I walked around in an Alien world. That’s the best I’ve got for yeah… sorry. Everything in my life was seemingly falling apart (It wasn’t, but I sure was.) I walked around every day with this relentless pressure in my head that made even the slightest bit of interaction with the world nearly impossible.
Continued....