Mysterious fatigue, weakness and brain fog

[sleepyGene]

I have been struggling with fatigue and brain fog for several years now.  I have managed to maintain a steady gym routine, however.  Recently, though, I am suddenly losing strength and my fatigue is worsening.

I have been to many different doctors and specialists with the only consistent and abnormal findings being:
a)  Low vitamin d.  Currently about 23 but has been unmeasurably low.  Vitamin d supplements seem to increase my fatigue and concentration problems.
b)  Consistently elevated bilirubin (~2.5)

It all seemed to start in 2007 after a bout of serious idiopathic pericarditis.  Since then I have recurring episodes of neck and shoulder pain that worsens with breath.  These episodes last about a week and used to occur every 2-3 months.  These have tapered to one every 8-12mo.  

Almost 2 years ago now I caught pneumonia for which I was placed on Zpak (3-day).  I seemed to get about 25% worse after this illness.  The Zpak caused me to lose my sense of smell temporarily and to have EXTREME anxiety for weeks.

I don't know what to do next because most doctors end up wanting to put me on an anti-depressant when I KNOW that is not my problem.  How can I get an idea of whether a doctor will even attempt to get to the root of the problem before I pay several hundred dollars to see him/her?

[jack_black]

sorry, i just noticed the question. folate deficiency -> megaloblastic anemia -> intramedullary hemolysis -> increased bilirubin. look it up if don't believe.

BTW, it would be nice if the OP ever came back with some follow up. without follow up all that discussion is useless, IMHO.

[fntn]

sleepyGene -

If your first message isn't a typo: bilirubin ~2.5 (mg/dL ??), then you need to get this looked at by a GI doctor asap! A chronic level of 2.5 or higher will cause jaundice and can be a indication of bile flow obstruction and/or serious liver issues. And a pill or vitamins won't fix those problems - any type of unresolved bile duct blockage can lead to a great deal of liver damage or even cirrhosis.

[thescience]

could you elaborate on the connection between folate and bilirubin levels? thanks

[thescience]

oh, and obviously start taking vitamin d supplements with fat containing meals. people take 2,ooo iu three times a day easily. GI for life makes a really potent liposomal vitamin d. i knew someone who had indication of altered bilirubin and that form made the stools darker from a yellowish color. we arent sure what happened but maybe there was a calcified obstruction that blocked the bilirubin from exiting into the intestines, and vitamin d freed that up by raising phosphorus levels which broke the calcium down.

[thescience]

work your way up to taking mms cds for 8 weeks at full dose (3 drops 8x a day). discovermms.com

[jack_black]

Re: elevated billirubin levels
Things that need to be checked: liver function tests, hemolytic anemia, vit B12/folate deficiencies.

[jack_black]

One more thought. Occult infections is a good consideration too, but they tend to produce a generalized fatigue. Once I had fungal infection in sinus and felt like sleeping all the time.

[jack_black]

Brain fog can be caused by number of things, but I would put food allergy/intolerance very high on the list. Between gluten intolerance and lactose and fructose malabsorptions, the majority of the general population is affected to some degree. Some more than others. When you have it and don't know it (most people don't), vitamin and mineral deficiencies follow. Fixing the underlying cause is more important than popping Vit D capsules.

[dizzywussie]

Reading your post felt like the story of my life for the past 15 years, I'm originally from East Asia the part that is sunny all the time, 1 year after i moved to UK I start to feel unwell, dizziness blur eyes fatigue and generally feeling unwell, I have had many many tests for many things, diabetes, stds, blood protein tests see if I have cancer, MRI scans, eye test, all come back normal, doctor said at the end that I was depressed!

Couple of month ago, I had a vitamins test and came back My vitamin d was low 17 should be 50-100.

I have been talking 5000 iu of vd3 for 8 weeks now and still not feeling much different, but I did get from other suffers that it will take 6month to feel better and 1 year to recovery,

Saying that I do normally suffers really bad heyfever itchy eyes running nose and coughing non stop, since I start talking vd3, the heyfever has not been that bad

[sleepyGene]

VJ, thanks for responding to this post.  I'm glad that you were able to be cured!  How did the dentist come across you issue?  Did you not have pain before that?  Also, I've read the article you pointed out.  Unfortunately, he mostly lists a bunch of controversial causes that are hard or nearly impossible to actually test for.  I guess that's why I don't come across a lot of posts about people actually ever recovering from brain fog.  It looks like you're one of the lucky ones.

I've been to see numerous doctors in numerous specialties.  Pretty much all of them think that either nothing is wrong, don't care or think I am depressed.  The only thing depressing is feeling less than 100% every day.  

I am seeing a new 'naturopath' (actually an MD utilizing supplements and nutrition therapies) who believes I have Candida issues.  I am using a supplement called Candicyn and watching my carb intake.  To be honest, I am not yet sure if I subscribe to the diagnosis of Candida overgrowth.  There is so much disagreement on the web.

[vj001]

Hi sleepyGene, yes I was lucky.  I changed my dentist to a one near where I lived for the convenient sake plus other reason. As a part of new patient protocol, my new dentist took a little over 20 x-rays around my mouth and saw the infection in my left upper jaw.  He asked me why I waited so long. Strange thing was I didn't feel pain and thought I was always having sinus reaction. I talked my family physician but he was cluelessness like me. I thought my brain fog was connected to to sinus allergy.. I was mentally confused too and unable to make a decision. now I got better but it's not 100%. Just recently found out I have high amount of heavy metals poisons and in the progress of detoxing. Also stop eating sushi and seafoods and no more hair dyes nor vaccines.  Also the metal fillings in the tooth were heavy metal. My new dentist replaced them with non toxic materials. I am in low carb diet with moderate exercises and lost 40 lbs.

[vj001]

Hi sleepyGene, yes I was lucky.  I changed my dentist to a one near where I lived for the convenient sake plus other reason. As a part of new patient protocol, my new dentist took a little over 20 x-rays around my mouth and saw the infection in my left upper jaw.  He asked me why I waited so long. Strange thing was I didn't feel pain and thought I was always having sinus reaction. I talked to my family physician but he was cluelessness like me. I thought my brain fog was connected to to sinus allergy.. I was mentally confused too and unable to make a decision. now I got better but it's not 100%. Just recently found out I have high amount of heavy metals poisons and in the progress of detoxing. Also stop eating sushi and seafoods and no more hair dyes nor vaccines.  Also the metal fillings in the tooth were heavy metal. My new dentist replaced them with non toxic materials. I am in low carb diet with moderate exercises and lost 40 lbs.

[vj001]

Hi sleepyGene, yes I was lucky.  I changed my dentist to a one near where I lived for the convenient sake plus other reason. As a part of new patient protocol, my new dentist took a little over 20 x-rays around my mouth and saw the infection in my left upper jaw.  He asked me why I waited so long. Strange thing was I didn't feel pain and thought I was always having sinus reaction. I talked to my family physician but he was cluelessness like me. I thought my brain fog was connected to to sinus allergy.. I was mentally confused too and unable to make a decision. now I got better but it's not 100%. Just recently found out I have high amount of heavy metals poisons and in the progress of detoxing. Also stop eating sushi and seafoods and no more hair dyes nor vaccines.  Also the metal fillings in the tooth were heavy metal. My new dentist replaced them with non toxic materials. I am in low carb diet with moderate exercises and lost 40 lbs.

[vj001]

How can I remove duplicated posts? not sure how this happened i probably clicked the buttons 3 times?

[vj001]

I am sorry for what you are going though. I also had brain fog for 8.5 years and got really bad 2 -3 years ago.  In my case, stress and high carbohydrate (e.g. sugar, rice, flours, alcohol) intake seem to make it worst but it was not the cause.  Supplements help to reduce the inflammation but did not fix the problem. I had MRI, visited the eye doctor, took many blood works and all came back negative.  I was cured last year 2013 by my new dentist, turned out I had a serious root canal infection in the upper jaw, nearby left nasal area.. After removing the nerve, cleaned up the root canal and with 2-week of antibiotic intake, all of the sudden the brain fog completely went away.  I am taking supplements to recover from the damage, e.g. lost sense of smell, minor numbness on my left face and not getting enough oxygen in the brain. The supplements really helps during the recovery process but the root cause must be fixed.There are other brain fog causes such as Candida overgrowth, food allergies, mold infested room or contaminated air will cause brain fog, too; I had been through this path and it's a long story. Pay close attention to your surroundings and take notes.  Check out this website http://www.drlwilson.com/articles/brain_fog.htm. It is educational and helpful.   ps. talk to your doctor and dentist; you might want to get a 2nd and 3rd opinion. Good luck and best wishes.

[mary607]

im not sure if a seizure can last all day everyday but gone untreated maybe its possible? i dont know. if thats what the radiologist said then id get another mri not by the family doctor only because he didnt tell you the first time around the diagnosis ya know? and get an eeg to test to see if anything is abnormal as well.
are you on any meds? cuz ive had a drug that made me have the brain fog.
hope your doing okay doesnt sound pleasant

[sleepyGene]

I did have an MRI about a year ago which my family doctor said was 'normal'.  However, I tend to think he just says that when it's not 'bad'.  The report from the radiologist listed 'Subependymal Heterotopia' which apparently could be known to cause seizures.  I've never had a noticeable seizure and I'm not sure what's going on with me are seizures because it's all day, every day not episodic.

[mary607]

they should do a home sleep study then. also an eeg for the siezures incase. it would record anything abnormal. they diagnosed me with TIA have they ruled that out for you? i had the brain fog thing too thats why im asking. led to a stroke. have you had an mri done?

[sleepyGene]

mary607, thanks for the reply.  Those are interesting ideas.  However, the 'neck' pain is not like a stiff neck it's like an internal nerve kind of pain and it is constant for a week or two not transient like a migraine.  

As far as the seizure that intrigues me a bit, but again the brain fog etc. is pretty constant and I am fully aware of everything all the time.

It seems that I wake up feeling the worst.  I think I may have some sort of sleep disorder.  Unfortunately during the one sleep study I had I was unable to actually sleep so I don't think my results were reflective of reality.

[mary607]

sorry didnt mean silent seizure. its called blank stare seizure

[mary607]

have they looked into migraines? its possible to have silent migraines if you dont have pain. the brain fog fatigue neck hurting  and  concentration problems sound like it could be migraine. or a silent seizure. im not a doctor but may be look into it? hope you feel better and good luck!