Lamictal rhinitis

30F 5’ 7” 160lbs Allergic rhinitis, chronic sinusitis, ADHD
Had endoscopic sinus surgery in 2021 that helped tremendously with sinusitis, no longer have chronic infections and blockages. Had my tonsils removed at age 4.
Current medications: Zyrtec 10 mg, Montelukast 10mg, Flonase 2x/day, oral birth control, adderall and lamictal for unrelated ADHD/ mood problems
My house is very clean and dust-free (I know this to be objectively true I was a cleaning lady for years in the past), I have air purifiers in every room, I was my sheets and all bedding at least once a week, shower daily, do sinus rinses, saline spray, vacuum a few times per week.
I have a doctor’s appointment next month with my PCP, but my allergies are horrible right now. I don’t know what else to do. I need a referral from PCP for allergist or ENT, I’ve never gotten allergy testing because it’s expensive and I already try to avoid suspected allergens. Allergy shots are completely unaffordable. Can I add any other OTC medications to the current cocktail of allergy medications?
I’ve been on allergy medication for over 20 years, maybe it’s not working anymore I don’t know. I’m desperate though, please help me. My eyes and so puffy and itchy and blurry and won’t stop tearing, I’m sneezing non-stop, I’ve been blowing my nose 24/7, congestion, throat irritated, headache, fatigue, all of it.

Hi all, Thank you all for contributing to this discussion. I have the same issues as yours and this can be helpful to find a solution for everyone.
I'm a migraineur and currently under Lamictal 150mg as my neurologist thinks these symptoms are related to persistent aura without infarction. By now I can't see any major improvement.
I think it could be useful to make a list of all our comorbities in order to understand if we all share a similar pattern of diseases that might cause the problem.
I do have: Bronchial asthma Allergies to dust mites Rhinitis Migraine with and without aura Visual snow syndrome Slight GERD

Hi, I (39/AFAB enby) have been suffering from the hiccups for at least 1.5 years. That's when I first noticed it; it happened to coincide with recovery from a knee surgery that involved general anesthesia. I have no idea if the two are at all related or if I just had a lot of free time on my hands after the surgery to realize I had the hiccups all the time.
Anyway, for 1.5 years, I've had the hiccups 12-15 times a day, each episode lasting 5-15 minutes. Sometimes I could get rid of them using various methods people have taught me over the years, but at other times I couldn't get rid of them & just had to wait for them to stop.
I don't have GERD (I've been tested) or drink to excess, no chewing gum, no eating too fast, no spicy foods, no indigestion. Anything that every site (medical or otherwise) says causes hiccups just doesn't apply to me. At this point, I don't care why I get them & just want them gone. They disrupt my life.
Finally, about 7 weeks ago, I went to my PCP and told him about my issue for the first time. He looked at all the meds I was taking (see below) and said that methotrexate could cause hiccups. I can't stop my MTX since it treats my lupus, so treating the hiccups was the only option. He said the way to stop them was a low dose of thorazine; he prescribed 10mg thorazine nightly (and 40 mg famotidine). It took about two weeks, but the thorazine finally did its job & for the last 5 weeks, I've only had a single hiccup here or there very occasionally.
However, as was to be expected, I've gained weight, about 8-10 lbs in less than two months. Since 2019, I've worked extremely hard through diet and exercise to lose 80 lbs & it's exceedingly important to me that I don't gain any of it back, not even 10 lbs, for my own mental and emotional well-being and self-worth (as sad as that may sound).
I decided to stop taking the thorazine about 3 days ago, hoping that maybe it was something I wouldn't have to be on forever to keep them at bay and maybe those almost two months on the med were enough to break the cycle (🤞). No such luck. The hiccups are back.
Do you know of any other treatments for chronic hiccups that don't require taking an antipsychotic? I'm going to schedule another appointment with my PCP, but I'm having knee surgery on Friday and have way too much to get done at work before then in order to make an appointment this week.
Meds I'm taking (leaving out the thorazine): - Levothyroxine 50 mcg daily; hypothyroidism; started 2015 - Wellbutrin xl 150mg daily; depression; started 2017 (just decreased from 300mg 2-3 weeks ago) - Hydroxychloroquine 300mg daily; lupus; started 2018 - Methotrexate 20mg weekly; lupus; started 2021 or 2022 - Aimovig 140mg/ml weekly; migraines; started 2018 - Famotidine 40mg daily; hiccups; started 7 weeks ago - Topamax 50mg nightly; neuropathy in inner ear; started 2023 - Trazodone 300mg nightly; insomnia; started 2018? - Lamictal 50mg daily; mood stabilizer; started 2024 (decreased from 100mg 2-3 weeks ago) - Alprazolam 0.5mg PRN; severe anxiety or panic attack; started 2024 - Folic acid 1mg daily; MTX use; started 2021 or 2022 - Hydrocodone 7.5mg/325mg PRN; knee pain (upcoming knee surgery on 3/29/24) - Ipratropium bromide .06% nasal spray 2-3x daily; non-allergic rhinitis - Docusate sodium 100mg to 200mg daily; chronic constipation/IBS - Fiber gummies 2.5mg every other day; chronic constipation/IBS - Miralax 17g packet PRN; chronic constipation/IBS - Bisacodyl suppositories PRN; chronic constipation/IBS

30M, current weight: 190LBS, height: 5'8", don't smoke, rarely drink.
DXs: obstructive sleep apnea, ETD , deviated septum(had corrective surgery, then surgery to correct the first one), chronic allergic rhinitis, poor dentition, shortness of breath, hyper mobility in all joints, back pain, lower back pain, neck pain, pain in right shoulder, other fatigue, essential hypertension, orthstatic hypotension, chest pain, chronic pain, arthralgia, GERD, migraines without aura, anxiety, depression, adhd, chronic high blood pressure, psoriasis, Ankylosing Spondylitis, chronic constipation, convergence insufficiency, dyspepsia.
Current RXs: Omeprazole 40mg once daily, sertraline 150mg once daily, Strattera 60mg once daily, propranolol 60mg once daily, Lamictal 100mg once daily, amlodipine 5mg once daily
For the last month and a half, my blood pressure has been constantly 130/90, recorded up to 170/130. I have been taking clonodine for a bit over a year, initially for adhd, then kept taking to help maintain my bp. I previously took olmesartan, but taking both dropped my bp too low, causing dizziness and disorientation. Then recently, my bp had spiked, and taking both barely had an effect. I was then prescribed propranolol, and now amlodipine. My last checked bp a few hours ago was 158/103.
I'm becoming more and more concerned about the risk of blood clots, heart attack/stroke. I'm not sure what to do or how to proceed. I'm waiting on some appointments and test results. I'll give more info as asked

(Please forgive my poor english, English is not my first language and I don't have much concentration for written text at the moment; or antyhing actually. I am trying my best to use the right English terminology here, but my brain has an hard time at this moment to find the exact terms as it constantly gets back to French and when I can't concentrate: I can't see the mistakes. I'll do what I can to at least relay my interrogations and give you guys a backgroud for them) ( I am not used to Reddit post form, I hope I got it right Redditers)
Hi everyone and brainwizards,
I wish to have an hint about the procedure in the USA or Europe with execption patients having resistant depression. When do you start looking for metabolic and physiological etiology for the persisting caracter of a bipolar depression, after how many tried treatment (counting ECT, intra-nasal Ketamine and TMS. I did them all and it didn't work enough or I had too important side effects) do you dig deeper to find the cause of the refractory factor of a depression episode. I did religiously the 22 treatments (willl explain bellow ) my psychiatrist gave me to try to cure it, but nothing really worked out. I am better since the ECT (I had 28 of them until I couldn't bare it) and the Ketamine. Then, since the Prégabalin I got a lot better, but stillI am absolutely not back from the deep depression pit. I understand that our public medical system is crumbling and that they try to save as much cost as possible, so they prioritize trying every regular treatment known before investigating further because of the costly and jammed systeme. However, after fiver years without any answers, I feel that it's more than the time to investigate the cause further; more than trying to treat it as nothing is really efficient and whilst I am still suffering and seeing my life passing by. I lost everything as it lingers, got into a deep poverty position and I just can't suffer and live like this anymore. Nevertheless, I know too well I can't die because it would destroy my loved ones and that would be against my sens of morality .It hold my hand dozens of time. Even though I tought I couldn't hold or think about anyone else anymore, at the last instant I was hold back by love. I could not die knowing I would leave false-guilt and sadness behind me. I realized and decided that I had to sacrifice myself and live, even a torture because my love for them ( and the morality) is greater than everything I could suffer; i resignated myself to live a long time ago and I was hopeless. Dying would have been soothing for me, living means suffering without much hope. But, now I am a bit better and would like not to suffer and fake smile until I die and just be able live. I used to be a very joyfull person and this sadness as taken a toll on my idendity. I would like to live ultimately, but not to suffer like now and before and wait indefinately. So I am stuck and there is no sun to see on the horizon for me, it seems. I am fighting to stay alive and to break down my previous traumas, but the system is now drowning me. I can't work and the governement prestation keeps me in deep poverty and cause me more anguish because I have to fight every six months to get my prestations (which is less then required to live minimaly here and too much to deal for my mental state) even when we have doctors reports because they try to pay as less as possible. My preciouuus love one is the only thing preventing me from being on the streets.
I (F31) am from Canada and unfortunately I am an "exception patient". I am Bipolar type I with a resistant-depression for the last 5 years and I have ADHD (also multiple traumas during childhood and later). Mental illness runs in my family from both sides and we all had much trauma in our lives. One of my sibling(M39) (HPI) is diagnosed with Asperger, and Bipolar Disorder and the other one(M36) has schizoaffective disorder. They both had many depression with suicide attempts as well, also they had psychosis and toxic psychosis in the past but they are now both doing great. They both weren't hard to treat even as deep as they went. My mom (HPI) has Fibromyalgia and had many depressions in the past, she thinks her father was bipolar and he was a violent alcoholic. We all have anxiety problems and are hypersensitive. My biological father has a narcissic personnality disorder and has a toxicomania problem lasting for 30 years.
I know you brilliant guys like to have as much information as possible, if so, here's a quick glance at my medical history relating to my resistant dépression.
Very long story short, usually during the summer, I had chronic episodes of depression with strong suicidal tendency from around the age of 16 that got worse growing into adulthood with family tragedies and resurfacing of childhood trauma. At 17, during a family tragedy moment, I have been diagnosed with a major depression. I wanted to die, I was just so exhausted and felt like my heart was too heavy and hard like it needed to be drained. However, my mom noticed and I went to the emergency and the urgentologist diagnosed it and prescribe me a strong anti-depression (I don't remember the name of the molecule, but the parmacist was surprised I got somethig so strong). Nevertheless, I took it only once because it was two strong ( I was so amorphous that I coudn't keep my eyes open) and I didn't have the mental state to deal with changing molecule or going back to the doctor because I was overwhelmed with my family crumbling down. I just ignored that I needed treatment, which I know isn't great, and went on without talking it. No one noticed. I got a bit better and continued running on anxiety. Later, at 23, I have also been at one iota from ending my life, but having suddenly in my head the image of my mother's face when she tought my brother would die from his suicide attempt ( it striked my heart) hold me at the last moment. Thus instead, I found a last alternative to try and I went to cross Spain walking, alone and in silence during 35 consecutive days (882 km). It was momentarly an effect of salvation, I was uplifted. Yet, again, at 25 I had enough of this sneaky and lingering suffering, I felt like a lost cause. I was just weary of life (like if I was a 100 years old) and was filled with sadness, immensly tired, both physicaly and mentaly, so decided to end my life alone violently (jigai was my alternative as it is pretty hard to stab myself in the heart as I needed to "drain" the weight in my chest), but fortunately one of my friend read through my behavior and they rush me (I had no choice and my desperate best friend face was paralyzing me) to the hospital. The Psychiastrist there prescribed me Celexa and sent me home.
(From the beggining of the depression episode I have psychological counsel during an hour or two everyweek and I am fully using it. I have a good introspection ability and I dive deep, sometimes too deep though. I've realized and learned a lot, I even sublimated important traumas and nervous bad reactions)
Three days later, in the beggining of 2017, I started a very strong maniac episode and was hospitalized for 6 weeks. My new psychiatrist (Let's call him Gandalf, he's the best I have ever encountered, a devoted person) concluded that the mania episode was sparked by the Celexa that was prescribe and that anti-depressants are not appropriate for me. He then tried 7 different regular treatment to stop the mania, but nothing worked until he tried Lithium (1200Mg, apparently I have "super" kidneys or something. All my doses are over the normal limit, even the Ketamine I had). After 4 weeks of lithium my mania was running out, but I still in there when I started to dive deep in an incontrollable way into depression. It was suffering as I never would have imagine, it was impossible to bear and I wanted to die every second. I kept repeating over and over that the time was unbearable and endless. The extreme anhédonia was the last nail in the coffin, every second seemed an existence of torture. Also, during that mania I got hooked on the Vape (Nicotine) and still am, my dosage is not high though. Gandalf follow the standard procedure at first, as he is compel to and we tried every possible molecule even the newest here, like Latuda, ( I will list them if ask, I have to dig a bit as time as gone by, but it was everything standard I could try was tried; they were all taken to highly dosages). I had to live the torture of waiting everytime for 4-6 weeks, to no result or the worst side effect (for exemple:acatisia).
Gandalf was trying everything he could ( he is the best to me ) and took counsel with his collegues. Throughout all of this tale I was always prescribe anxiolytics like Lorazepam (I stopped before Ketamine) and Seroquel (small doses)
After 8 or 9 Treatments, Gandalf told me we were to try ECT and it seemed promissing, so I tried. I learnt that it was efficent and they would try a row of 6 first. We tried with minuscule effects so I got to 12 ECT (which they had previously told me was the maximum) and then I started to very respond. So, exceptionnally they kept going until I couldn't take it anymore ( 27 or 28 ECT was my last because I was starting to loose my sense of direction and had a constant headache so torturing I couldn't get out of bed or think or talk. However, it worked partially and got me up and out for around 30% from the dark depths (if it is quantifiable;100% Being my neutral normal self). As I couldn't do it anymore Gandalf took counsel with his fellow wise brainwizards and they decided to try other drugs, but to no avail. Not enough reaction or too important side effects. But we kept: Lamictal ( we didn't know if it works and just kept in on in case it does, if I understand clearly), anxiolytics and Lithium bien sûr. We tried Seroquel (I think it was the 13th molecule tried) as main molecule to treat the depression, it worked a bit much than the previous molecules, but I took 55 pounds in 2 months ( I was 170 before on 5 foot 7 inches) and started to have a very high blood pressure. It was to much for me and Gandalf agreed so we moved on.
During the first 2 years I had insominia, but somewhere after I stared to be able to fall asleep anymore, but without getting energy from the rest.
I have to be transparent. Sometimes it was so hard not having anything efficient to ease or sooth me and not having the possibility to ask Gandalf for more or better( as he gave me everything possible) that to stop the non-stop intrusives anxiogene or dark thoughts, I started to smoke cannabis sometimes. However, sometimes it was a lot for me, but I am so scared of psychosis that I kept it as a last resort until the Ketamine. Sometimes, in the very hard times, it was for a few days straight (if so between 2 to 3g/day max).
Gandalf, started to suspect that I might have a sleep apnea problem ( I never slept well, insomnia or always tired even when I slept, I used to fall asleep incontrollably sometimes during the day ,no matter if I ate or not). So somewhere around 2020, I did a polysomnia at the hospital, but apparently, nothing concerning showed up.
So, after 20 tried treatment, Gandalf took it higher and went to seek counsel from the one/or ( I ain't no specialiste )greatest researcher in psychiatry of our province, even of the country. ( You might know who that is). They got me into the new technology of TMS (in french we usualy call it "neuromodulation") and I was very pleased because it seemed, again, so promesing and with not much side effect. Quickly, it seemed to be efficent. Nevertheless, around the fifth week of treatment, waiting for the subway, I realized I was starting an hypomania or the beginning of a mania, when I wanted to tell everyone how beautiful they were and that my thoughts were starting to go much faster. I went back the next day and after a test to evaluate my mental state, they announced me that It was, as I feared, hypomania and that I couldn't do it anymore.
I was devasted. I thought we had run out of options.
But the same researcher was running an other experimental trial treatment for exception treatment: Ketamine (he also offered me a Pacemaker, but I refused because it sounds like a social suicide with the changing of the voice to an "old smoker voice") . At the time, he told me I was the most exception from the line of exception patient that qualified. He had me stay at the hospital for a week to get 3 perfusions of Ketamine, he was amazed by the dose I needed, 50 Mg, ( he couldn't believe it, as for all my dosing, because 50 mg is the maximum for everyone male/female). Then they gave me the intra-nasal one to do myself at home. It worked well, I got out and up for like another 25%. Also, I had already lost interest in food (a great distress for me as I am usually gourmande) and Ketamine gave me constant nausea, so I almost completely stop eating. Thus I lost all the weight I gain from Seroquel and even more, I got thinner like I haven't have been since I was 19. Strangely, my breasts volume had slowly increased in the previous years, but it got more big than ever as I was loosing weight. They are still that volume now ( they are a cup bigger than when I got sick five years ago) Also, my menstrual cycle is quite weirdly irregular, it has always be irregular, but then and now it's just weird and my cramps too. I thought it was the IUD.
However, I got to a plateau with the Ketamine and I even toggle back in the depths again (once I had a psychological choc), so they had to give me "boosters", which consisted in two treatments a week (usually once a week 50 mg). It got me back to the plateau, but never higher. After almost two years, Gandalf and this researcher announced me that I couldn't continue this treatment because there were no improving and they couldn't justify that I resume it with no result for this long to the government (it is very controlled with narcotics of course). Even though I really hated this treatment and wished for something else, I was devasted again because I tought, as was said to me before, that it was the last option.
I have to say that during the 4-5 lasts months of Ketamine I started to consume Cannabis again, it was to hard and hard to resist as I was still suffering immensly, even though I know it is a mirage of ease ultimately.
Yet, Gandalf surprised me, as I was crying hopelessly, that one drug haven't been tried. I was mesmerized, in front of my perplexity Gandalf explained me that he didn't try it before because I was so deep in depression and it wouldn't have been enough, but now as I was higher from the depths than I was before the TMS and Ketamine, it was worth a try. My mood was very better in general, My way of thinking changed and I thought less about dying, but my TAG ( General Anxiety disorder), that I developped with this resistant-depression, was still dragging me down deeply. So as it works with anxiety he tought it might be a great option to climb the last steps. Especially that it has mostly no important side effects and this was a big preoccupation with me. This molecule is Pregabalin.
At first, it was incredible. The two first day I felt calm, or just quite normal I guess, but quickly after that slowly on the course of a few weeks, I got back down a good bit and reached again a plateau. We kept it as it was the only thing available for me at the moment. After the first few months, me and my preciouuuus loved one, realised (more him than me) that I was suddenly snorring. I didn't think it was very important and negleted to say it to Gandalf. I had only a 25mg increase of Pregabalin. But, when I told him he was very concern. He told me it is strange that with such a small increase that I start to snore.
He then started to contemplate the hypotesis that I might have an hidden sleeping condition or a condition causing micro-waking up ( I couldn't find the English term in french they say:" micro-réveils") constantly during the night which could explain the refractory caracter of my depression episode and it fits with my general fatigue and constant exhaustion (psychologic, intellectual and physique) which is/are (I don't know the difference between both) one of the worst symptoms I have. Later, I realized that this new snorring was also enhanced if I took any more small dose of quetiapine, a Benadryl, or anything that might cause drowsiness. I had to stop taking seroquel from 1pm because even an half after would result in a loud snoring that prevented my preciouuuus one from sleeping and I was even more tired the night I snored. Thus, since then I suffer and have to go trough my anxiety and agitation for half of the day when I could take a Seroquel to ease.
From that moment my meds are: Apo-Lithium 1200mg/day (2 months later we increased of 150mg); Lamictal (Lamotrigine) 100mg; Pregabalin 200mg at night and 150mg in the morning and 4 doses of 25 mg of Seroquel. I had been ween off the lorazepam, oxazepam and the small doses of seroquel were the replacement.
Also, I started to have dyspnoea and my sinus always seemed blocked, I have a hard time to swollow( probably the lithium here) and my lungs weeze now almost all the time. I suspected it was mold in my appartement, but I don't have enough money to do the aerial test if it's in the walls. There is rationnal possibility for it as there have been 2 important water breaks, but no visible signs and Gandalf reassured me if there is, it is not known to cause resistant-depression. So, as I am too sick to take care of myself and dealing with calls and appointment; I just lived with it.
For the polysomnia: the system was jammed up and the wait is long for tests. In the meantime, maybe a year and 2 months after starting Pregabalin, I got a massive mood drop in the depths and got hooked again on cannabis. I knew ( and Gandalf too) that it wasn't helping my cause, of course what a trap, but I didn't have anything else and it helped with ruminations and intrusives thoughts. However, I turned everything around in my psyche and about 3 months later I started to reduce to the minimum possible (progressively) and since then I smoke the equivalent of a long joint every night (1g). My sudden and vertiginous mood drop worried Gandalf and he told me that the sleeping problem was now his first hypothesis for my state. He seemed even more confidant than ever, it gave me hope, but the public systeme is a maze to deal with. Thus, I wait and endure all the pain holding myself from letting go for my entourage whom I can't harm with grief and culpability; when they have nothing to do with it. Sometimes, on the worst days, I think that staying alive is my sacrifice, because it is so hard. However, I am now determine to live and have a normal life. Even in the most dark depths, I never stop loving life and beauty, I still see it all around and was all along. Recently though, I feel like my hope has almost run out with my energy and ultimately, if it was possible, I would be at peace in death. I thought many times about "medical help to die" as it was debating in Canada (obliviating it would be almost the same for my loved ones). However, I've got to say that now I hang on running on my anxiety and living an hour at the time in my safe cocoon.
(Also, I have done a ton of introspection during that time which helped me getting through the swirling waters and even sublimate a huge PTSD )
I am sorry If it isn't pertinent, but I am not qualify to see or discriminate what is or not: I also realized I have reflux ( especially when I lean foward) and my abdomen seems distended, I guess it is the lithium, which makes me drink almost 4l a day, and all the meds I take at the same time. Still on the physical part, I sometimes have pinching or stabbing sensation in the chest since the last 8 years. I thought many time I was having a heart attack because the pain was so intense and my left arm gets numb aroud and the shoulder and armpit if I lift my arm and push my elbow back. I have been told that I have one sternum rib that is up from the sternum and it might cause the pinches becuse of a certain nerve, but I don't think it explains the stabbing sensation almost always on the left side and randomly place. On an other note, again i don't know if it is pertinent or not to you wise wizards, maybe with the new link microbiota-brain that is starting to get investigated, I now (or I didn't realise it wasn't normal before) kind of feel my peristalsis when aliments pass before and in the left "elbow" of my intestines then i feel it "falls" down. Then I feel it going more further. I also had two important allergic cutaneous reaction during this depression, for which we never found the source or cause. It just went away with the antihistamines. I sometimes gets the tiny little kind of "pimples" and they go away quickly.
Finally when I got my appointment (pre-test) with the pulmonologist ( it is the pulmonologist who evaluate and decides if you are eligible for a polysomnia even when they have a request from an other specialist like Gandalf) last spring ( there was a confusion also it should have been last february). Even if it was just suppose to be a preparation for the apnea test, the pulmonologist, of course, routinely listen to my lungs. His face changed a bit and seemed worried, he listened more and run out of the room to come back with a Simbucort 200 pump and show me how to use it right away. I told him about my physical symptoms and he was concerned. I aked him if it could be the cannabis or vaping and he told me that it irritates and didn't help, but that it surely wasn't the cause. He was overall more interested with my chronical sinusitis and last bronchitis than my smoke consumption or sleep. The polysomnia test seemed then out of his mind and he told me I had to go urgently pass a complete respiratory test, a lungs radiography and to see an ORL. It was confusing to me and I forgot to insist for my sleep test and he forgot too. Which is a catastrophy because of the delayed and jammed systeme that we need to follow. He gave me the pump of symbucort to take home and instruct me to absolutely take two inhalations twice a day. I did and I saw a difference, but when I told Gandalf, he told me to be aware if it seems to increase my anxiety. The thing is that I am so anxious and sometimes it just skyrocks without any trigger we can see. I can't really know if there is a difference on my anxiety, but it is more anxiogene not knowing and feeling I absolutely need the pump to breathe correctly. Obviously my vaping increases the dyspnea and I feel like I can't get the dose of nicotine, so it's a vicious cycle, but with the pump it helps with that too.
( I stil don't now if it is relavent or not, but just in case it is) Surprisingly, despite the symptomes persisting, also the worriness and urge of the pulmonologist, the radiography showed nothing concerning, my lungs capacity according to the tests is quite fine. He told me that he was suprised by my great lung capacity and that finally I don't really need the pump and to take it as I please or just not. I was quite confused because of his previous worry and because I felt I need the pump. As it is hard for me to get on a new routine and I just didn't care anymore I stopped taking it regularly and I take it now when it feels to hard too breathe to come up a set of stairs. However, for the ORL I have no clear results as he botched my examination. The ORL is a well known bad doctor, he seems more interested about saying that he is a doctor than help people. I was disgust and shoked, but I can't go to another one. According what's on Ratemy Md, my experience and other of his patient I know, he is a known ethic wreak, he botches his patient, catastrophically give wrong diagnosis, he is absolutely insentive (which is dangerous with people in my mental state : I thought about killing myself when I got out; it was plain horrible), gets rude and even hurt his patient (he hurt me with the camera when he forced it somewhere behind my nose, I just said politely and calmly "ouch! Sorry it hurts" and told me with condescedence and a loud gasp "Madame calm down!". When he arrived, he told me that he didn't even look at my file. I was there for maximum 8 minutes including the camera. He shamed me for having cats as apparently it irritates my upper respiratory system. I tried to ask him if my chronic sinusitis might be a cause of the problem and he told me that it was my vaping the problem for it, but as he cut me off while I was talking; I coudn't explain to him that I have chronic sinusitis since the age of 10 so it is not a valid assumption. He concluded( after I had to ask for it as he was showing me the door just giving me a paper without any explaination about the drug or the diagnosis) ,without looking at my file nor asking me much question, that it was an allergic rhinitis "periannuelle" (I can't find the english term, but it means that it goes on in continuity). Also, rudely concluded that the Lithium or my other meds were causing the swallow problem and the snorring. He precribed me Omnaris and the pharmacist back home explain me it has to be taken twice a day, two spray shots in each nostril at night. Anyway, absolutely disgusted and plain scared from this experience, I complained about it to Gandalf and I ask him to look at the RateMds so he can appreciate how he is problematic and he already knew who I was talking about. Of course he didn't tell me what he tought of this ORL, but he told me it was serious and would take care of it. Especially, that for me it was the last straw of my trust in our system.
At that time, Gandalf increased of 150mg my daily dose of lithum and since then, 4 months, I have inflated like a balloon. I've taken around 30 pounds which is causing me to be even more inconfortable in my body and my upper abdomen feels so tense all the time. Gandalf thinks it might be "water retention". I drink a bit more than 3.5l of water a day and more than 4 when the heat strikes. ( I must add that I have always drink more water then normal, it is even a running gag, and that I have an hyperactive bladder)
Thus, since then we are juggling to try to find me an appointment to do the polysomnia test again because the pulmonologist forgot to prescribe the test that Gandalf required, but it is a really nightmare of madhouse right now. Because it fell in the cracks, Gandalf has to start again all the procedure and it is around 2-3 months for the pre-test with the pulmonologist again and then it would be 1 to 3 months (and I will be in first "priority").
I can't wait more, it's been 5 years of suffering and we don't know why I am still in this state. There is no answer nor hope on my horizion while my life is passing by. I am hanging on because of my care for my loved one, but being in the dark and suffering for this long is tiring and costly. I feel like our system is abandoning me. Gandalf is doing his best, but he feels too that it is a systemic problem because he can't run any test just like that and the system is doing anything to save money.
All that begin said, dear brainwizards, do you think I should insist on Gandalf to investigate physiological or metabolical (or anything you think is relevent) etiology or a treatment for my condition? I have tried and hoped so many times, but I can't afford anymore to hope something will work and crashed down because the horizon is lightless again. However, I have never been that hopefull and gandalf too: the sleeping problem seems to me the best explanation so far as everyday I wake up feeling like I haven't slept, have no energy (physical, emotional and intellectual, I ran on anxiety as if it was energy, always to exhaustion) and that I always had sleeping problems. Nevertheless, I want to be prepared if nothing comes out of the polysomnia ( but I am worried about the possibily to really detect an "hidden" apnea as they didn't see it the first time, it seems to manifests clearly only with sleeping drugs. I could take one of the seroquel (50mg) that I skip usually to prevent snoring and my preciouuuuss loosing sleep.) I can't keep on like this, waiting that I will be on the streets because of poverty ( as I am from one finger to be) or end up transcending my moral sens that's preventing me from ending my suffering because I will be so tired and despaired from my society and aborted life. I can't get there, but I can't live with an hopeless horizon.
Gandalf is the most devoted and competent psychiatrist I have ever met, altruistic and keeping up with research, but he seems tired as he is drowning with cases right now and also discourage by our system that keeps his hand tied. He is getting very impatient with the pulmonology and he is telling me to rush and also try to get the appointment. To no avail, the system is jammed.
I am now angry and more anguish as I feel I am suffering in vain when it could be something that could having been detected a long time ago if I lived in Europe or in the US (with an insurrance). It costs me and my family a lot. What if I had already end my life and it could have been cured if they had look further earlier.
I coudn't fit every details and the progress in my cogitation course throughout this almost 6 year endless night. I hope you still get the picture of my resistant depression. If you curious bainwizards are generous enough to read my post and have questions, I will answer them as clearly and quick as I can.
With a glimps of hope that something will come out of this post,
I thank you all deeply for reading my post, I hope someone will make it to the end.
A wanderging rasberry hoping to just be wandering in the sunlight and not being lost.

F53 Diagnoses: Essential Hypertension (mychart also says Malignant Hypertension & several uncontrolled , 2014 though it was updated in 2016), Nontoxic uninodular goiter, Bipolar, Allergic Rhinitis Unspecified, Eustachian Tube Disorder, Obesity Medications: Clonidine, Amlodipine, Lisinopril/HCTZ, metoprolol, potassium chloride 10 MEQ ER tablet Ibuprofen, Lamictal, Allegra, Flonase
​
Hi, I have a phyiscal in the beginning of March, my last wellness check my blood sugar was good, I am not pre-diabetic, cholesterol was fine as well. I just wanted to share that bc of the hypertension & weight Been on all those meds for hypertension for at least a decade & have dealt with hypertension since I was around 20. It runs in my family. I had to start taking the Rx Potassium about a year ago . I recently started Lamictal and it is has curbed my appetite, including urge to drink immensly. But I realized I was really dehydrated yesterday when I thought I had a sore throat but it was just extreme thirst & I was not urinating very much. So I am trying to stay hydrated. I had a traumatic incident in my youth that makes regular unflavored still water very difficult for me to drink, so I drink sugar free sports drinks, seltzer, diet soda, and a cup of coffee black. It just dawned on me after I ordered a powdered sports drink that since I am on Rx Potassium, maybe I need to not drink those, or limit how many. My part of the country is already getting warm & by April I know it will be very hot and I'll need to be even more mindful of staying hydrated. I have every intention of discussing this with my primary care doc when I see her next month, but that's four weeks from today. Thank you.

I am treatment resistant and my delightful summary of medications consists of...

• Sertraline (Zoloft SSRI, 50-100mg) on and off from January 2013 to 2021. It used to take the edge off my irritability but worked less and less over time and then didn't help me. In 2021 it suddenly started making me really angry and irritable so I stopped taking it.
  
• Escitalopram (Lexapro SSRI, 10-20mg) on and off from 2015 to date. It also doesn't do anything much except soften the irritability, but it's better than nothing.
  
• Various benzos (Xanax, Valium, Klonopin, Ativan and some other ones like Etizolam, Bromazepam, Nitrazepam and Phenazepam) from February 2017 to date. I now only take Klonopin and have taken 2mg every night for 6 years. Xanax was the ONLY thing that actually worked to take away my specific type of anxiety (that constant dread, doom and fear) AND my anhedonia. I was able to enjoy things, my appetite came back, and I slept better than I had in my whole life...it was amazing. Of course, the tolerance forms and then it doesn't really work anymore. So I tapered off with help from Valium. I prefer Klonopin to Valium so I still take it as it still helps a bit and is better than nothing. Before I took benzos, I barely spoke to people as I was SO self-conscious and awkward. I stuttered and my brain would go blank. Benzos made my stutter mostly go away and I was able to actually be more myself.
  
• Doxylamine (Restavit, Unisom, 12.5mg) I started taking half a 25mg antihistamine when I tapered off the Xanax and then tapered down the Valium, as I knew if I had to go back to not sleeping again thanks to my lifelong insomnia, I'd have trouble dealing with anything. I didn't want to take a sleeping pill, and the half Doxylamine worked really well and allowed me to sleep, and it still does 6 years later.
  
• Moclobemide (Aurorix MAOI, can't remember the dose but it was twice a day) in early 2018 for a month. I felt no change except for immense sleepiness an hour after taking it, that didn't go away even after a month, and I couldn't function when I kept falling asleep all the time.
  
• Methylphenidate (Ritalin, 5-10mg) in early 2019. Omg. HORRENDOUS. I was diagnosed with ADHD after 30 minutes with a psychiatrist and I highly doubt the diagnosis was accurate, but even so...the Ritalin was a nightmare. I couldn't focus or think at all. My thoughts stopped flowing and I just lay on the couch all day, incredibly tired, dulled, bored and depressed. I was slurring my words, my pupils were tiny for some reason, I had a headache and chest pain the whole 4-5 hours it "worked" for. I also ate nothing for 2 days. I normally have no appetite due to anxiety and depression and this made that even worse.
  
• Venlafaxine (Effexor SNRI, 75mg) in mid 2020 for about 6 months. It amplified my already constant feelings of dread and impending doom and at the same time really pushed my anhedonia way up. It was 6 months of utter apathy mixed with high irritability. I couldn't even be bothered going back to my doctor to get more or try something different, and it was during this time I started sleeping really late into the day. I stopped abruptly, felt no withdrawls or anything, and just went back on the Zoloft I still had at home. I felt slight relief.
  
• Lamotrigine (Lamictal, mood stabiliser, up to 150mg) in mid 2020. I took this during part of the Effexor time and then part of the Zoloft time, and I may as well have been taking chalk or Tic Tacs. I felt no difference in anything, except after 150mg I became the most lethargic and apathetic ever, and my memory became terrible. I'd be speaking and would lose words. I never left the house. After I went off it, it took about 3 months to feel my cognition return to normal.
  
• Duloxetine (Cymbalta SNRI, 60mg) in late 2020 for 6 weeks. No good. I felt more depressed than usual, with dark thoughts, and my anxiety worsened. I couldn't find comfort or relief in anything other than sleep.
  
• Fluoxetine (Prozac SSRI, 20mg) in mid 2021 for 2 months. THE WORST ANTIDEPRESSANT SO FAR FOR ME! I learned that I can't take activating antidepressants as they make me SO hideously anxious, with so much excess nervous energy that has nowhere positive to go. My stutter came back, my hands trembled, my speech sped up really fast, and yet I still slept all day as there was nothing I wanted to do due to the anhedonia. I was also incredibly irrritable and angry all the time. After 8 weeks, I couldn't sleep for more than 2 hours and my insomnia returned worse than ever, and I had to go off it. I stopped abruptly and didn't go onto anything else. I felt ok. It took about a week for the excess nervous energy to subside and it took a month before I could sleep normally again. It was like it negated all the effects of the Klonopin and the Doxylamine.
  
• Vortioxetine (Trintellix, 10mg) same as Prozac in terms of the irritability and excess nervous energy but less severe. I took it for a month before realising it was just not helping.
  
• Tramadol (Opioid / Serotonin agonist, 50mg) this was for my constant headaches and it worked well for that, and it was hoped the Serotonergic peoperties would help my mood too. And they did, but only slightly...like for a few fleeting minutes each day I'd feel a lift in both my dread-feelings and my anhedonic boredom, but it was so brief and then it was gone. Then after 2 weeks, it stopped doing that entirely. It's too potentially addictive to increase the dose and keep taking it long term.
  

So...it's quite depressing (no pun intended, lol).
Of the natural supplements and OTC meds I've tried...

• Ashwagandha made me SO ANGRY as I was trying to go to sleep. I was yelling at myself in my head.
  
• Valerian made me tense and wired.
  
• L-theanine powder mixed with iced tea gave a VERY slight lift in mood that lasted about 30 minutes.
  
• L-tyrosine powder made me feel sick, faint, overheated, extremely tense and wired, and completely out of it.
  
• Magnesium does nothing at all for my anxiety or sleep.
  
• Hydroxyzine made me extra awake, tense, wired, irritable and restless.
  
• Benadryl had the same effect. REALLY agitated. Like I was extra tired but too wired to be sleepy.
  
• Promethazine (Phenergan) I took this antihistamine every night from age 10 to 25 to help prevent morning Rhinitis, but it never helped me sleep. I have had Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder and Insomnia since early childhood and it made no difference to that. When I tried to stop taking it at 20 though, I couldn't sleep AT ALL so it took me 5 years of on and off trying to get off it.
  

Anyone else care to share?

37F Height: 5'5" Weight: 128 lbs, caucasian. Current medical conditions include chronic tendonitis, bipolar disorder / anxiety and chronic rhinitis. Medications I take are Adderall (20mg) Clonopin (1 mg) Lamictal XR (100MG) mirtazapim (15 MG) flonaise (50MCG) and Zyrtec (10MG) and occasional cyclobenzaprine (5mg) Azithromycin 250 mg for 5 days and ibuprofen 200mg or naproxen 500mg for muscle pain.
I'm currently taking a z-pak for a sinus infection, I took the first dose yesterday forgetting that I had taken a calcium supplement a few hours before. Then today I accidentally ingested orange juice with calcium 😒 I read calcium can lessen the effects should I be worried I'm wasting my medication?

37F Height: 5'5" Weight: 128 lbs, caucasian. I'm having extreme congestion and pain in my nose where I injured it 3 weeks ago I have been having symptoms for about three and a half weeks. Current medical conditions include chronic tendonitis, bipolar disorder / anxiety and chronic rhinitis. Medications I take are Adderall (20mg) Clonopin (1 mg) Lamictal XR (100MG) mirtazapim (15 MG) flonaise (50MCG) and Zyrtec (10MG) and occasional cyclobenzaprine (5mg) and ibuprofen 200mg or naproxen 500mg for muscle pain.
I currently have Covid with mild symptoms that seemed to go away in a few days, but then it turned into what I think is a sinus infection. My sinuses are extremely sensitive and every time they get clogged I'm almost guaranteed to get an infection (I get at least two a year) and never in my life has it gone away without antibiotics. If it stays in my sinuses can probably stick it out until my quarantine is over, but my ear is starting to hurt and if it turns into an ear infection (which it inevitably always does if I don't treat my sinuses early) I don't know how I'm supposed to get treatment. Will an immediate care treat me or do I have to go to the ER? Which of course I'd rather not do... Also this may also seem like a silly question, but will having a sinus infection prolong the virus in my body? Because my sinus symptoms are the only symptoms I have right now, the cough fever and chills have all subsided.

37F Height: 5'5" Weight: 128 lbs, caucasian. I'm having extreme congestion and pain in my nose where I injured it 3 weeks ago I have been having symptoms for about three and a half weeks. Current medical conditions include chronic tendonitis, bipolar disorder / anxiety and chronic rhinitis. Medications I take are Adderall (20mg) Clonopin (1 mg) Lamictal XR (100MG) mirtazapim (15 MG) flonaise (50MCG) and Zyrtec (10MG) and occasional cyclobenzaprine (5mg) and ibuprofen 200mg or naproxen 500mg for muscle pain. Doxycycline 100mg for an ear infection.
I've been breaking out in a hive-ish reaction yesterday and today when I woke up, and I can't figure out why.
It's not serious and hasn't progressed much in 24 hours, but my skin is extremely itchy and redish and I'm slightly blotchy in some places with a stuffy nose.
First I thought it was this body pillow that I got with a bamboo cover, or maybe it was the new chemical smell or something cuz the night before last night I brought it into bed with me and started getting itchy all over. I had to take a Benadryl n to be able to sleep. So I ditched the pillow all together and washed every single piece of bedding/surface or clothing that it possibly touched.
Then I washed my hair... Only to start getting the same reaction from what I thought was my new shampoo? But the shampoo I bought was sulfate-free, gluten-free, perfume free, supposedly hypoallergenic... Although it had several forms of glutamate in it which I hadn't had any shampoo before. I'm sensitive to MSG, which wasn't in the shampoo but it has glutamate in it and although I had no idea if that was it I figured maybe I should just wash my hair again and switch to my other shampoo (which has sulfates in it but I've used for years and recently I never had an issue.) So I washed my hair again, and I still felt it. Then I washed my hair with just dish soap AGAIN, and it seemed to finally go away.
I spent the night feeling fine, until the very end of the night all my air filters in the house suddenly started going crazy (in the red indicating something was in the air) and shortly after that the reaction suddenly seemed to come back, and for some reason it felt like it was coming from my hair. Which it hadn't all night it's the third wash! I thought maybe it was in my head, but when I woke up today my whole face was swollen (not too bad but noticeable to me) and I was extremely itchy ALL over, not just around my neck and face where my hair is.
I am dumbfounded. I have big air filters every single floor, I washed all bedding and clothing on the hottest setting, I washed my hair three times, with dish soap! I even took another body shower before I went to bed. I haven't changed anything us about my lifestyle, and anything I did I eliminated/washed thoroughly. I feel like I am going crazy!
But then I thought, could it be that I'm having a reaction from the HEAT in my house? I did turn it up quite a bit while my hair was drying. Although it seemed to be fine all night, like I said until right before I went to bed. I did turn the heat up hotter than usual though, as my top blanket was still drying...
But my air filter is have been being triggered on and off, I don't know why. Nothing has changed in my house!
I have no idea what to do at this point. It seems ludicrous to wash my hair AGAIN, not to mention I'm suffering from a back injury and it's very difficult for me (and I lost a LOT of hair.) I'm physically and mentally exhausted from spending literally all day trying to de-allergen my house and body to no avail. My whole body hurts yet I'm still itchy and stuffy, I want to cry 😭
This is a problem that's been plaguing me in different forms for the past couple months, I keep on thinking it's from different hair products and I've tried a multitude of hair products that are supposedly hypoallergenic but nothing seems to work. I'm waiting to get in with an allergist but I have to wait months till my appointment, in the meantime I don't know what to do!!

37F Height: 5'5" Weight: 128 lbs, caucasian. I'm having extreme congestion and pain in my nose where I injured it 3 weeks ago I have been having symptoms for about three and a half weeks. Current medical conditions include chronic tendonitis, bipolar disorder / anxiety and chronic rhinitis. Medications I take are Adderall (20mg) Clonopin (1 mg) Lamictal XR (100MG) mirtazapim (15 MG) flonaise (50MCG) and Zyrtec (10MG) and occasional cyclobenzaprine (5mg) and ibuprofen 200mg or naproxen 500mg for muscle pain. Currently prescribed amox-clav 875 mg 14 tablets for 7 days (which I'm not sure if I should be taking right now)
I've had three sinus / ear infections since september. The first doctor put me on amoxicillin and it seemed to make it worse, the second time the doctor I saw put me on augmentin and that seemed to mostly clear it but not completely... I went back to her and she put me on Doxycycline for an ear infection, but it's been 6 days now and doesn't seem to be getting much better. Now BOTH my ears hurt, before it was only the left one. I went on the internet and I didn't see the doxycycline was used to treat ear infections, did she put me on the wrong antibiotic? What can I do?
Also, I read that Lamictal I'm on can decrease the effect of an antibiotic? Is this true?

37F Height: 5'5" Weight: 128 lbs, caucasian. I'm having extreme congestion and pain in my nose where I injured it 3 weeks ago I have been having symptoms for about three and a half weeks. Current medical conditions include chronic tendonitis, bipolar disorder / anxiety and chronic rhinitis. Medications I take are Adderall (20mg) Clonopin (1 mg) Lamictical XR (100MG) mirtazapim (15 MG) flonaise (50MCG) and Zyrtec (10MG) and occasional cyclobenzaprine (5mg) and ibuprofen 200mg or naproxen 500mg for muscle pain. Currently prescribed amox-clav 875 mg 14 tablets for 7 days (which I'm not sure if I should be taking right now)
I am a former smoker. I do not drink alcohol, I only ingest THC and CBD no more than 20 mg a day for each.
My back has been in extreme pain for a long time, but I recently got it worked on a bunch (chiropractor / massage / physical therapy) and it's still hurting. Today after the chiropractor, I leaned my head back too far accidentally and now I'm in excruciating pain and can hardly move. I have been taking muscle relaxers and naproxen,I just had a prescription for Flexeril refilled on the 12th. It said take three times daily, there were 30 in the scripts, so I'm assuming that means 10 days. But I messaged my doctor and she said she had just refilled it therefore she wouldn't feel it again, is that because I'm not supposed to take it more than 10 days? Because I am in a lot of pain and 10 days have passed, they are the only thing that seems to help.
I was thinking of going to an immediate care and trying to get a an opinion / possible refill prescription, but I want to make sure I'm not going to waste my time and have the doctor tell me I can't get it refilled again until I take a break or something. I honestly don't even like taking them that much because they make me feel nauseous / depressed, but again it's the only thing that seems to help with the pain. If I shouldn't continue taking the muscle relaxers what else can I do? Ibuprofen, naproxen, thx and cbd edibles CBD none of it seems to do much.
BTW I am working closely with a great physical therapist, today she concluded that I should stop all other back treatments besides physical therapy to make sure this doesn't become an issue again until I have strengthened my back. But until then, I'm still in a great deal of pain and it is getting in the way of my life!
I do also have some tylenol/coating 325/325mg lying around last time I was prescribed some that are like a year old, but I'm not sure if that would help with the pain I'm feeling and those also make me feel sick.

37F Height: 5'5" Weight: 128 lbs, caucasian. I'm having extreme congestion and pain in my nose where I injured it 3 weeks ago I have been having symptoms for about three and a half weeks. Current medical conditions include chronic tendonitis, bipolar disorder / anxiety and chronic rhinitis. Medications I take are Adderall (20mg) Clonopin (1 mg) Lamictical XR (100MG) mirtazapim (15 MG) flonaise (50MCG) and Zyrtec (10MG) and occasional cyclobenzaprine (5mg) and ibuprofen 200mg for muscle pain. Currently prescribed amox-clav 875 mg 14 tablets for 7 days (which I'm not sure if I should be taking right now)
I am a former smoker. I do not drink alcohol, I only ingest THC and CBD no more than 20 mg a day for each.
I bit through a canker sore, really painful i see teeth marks and it feels like there's little flaps from the broken sore inside of my mouth. It is hard to talk, hard to eat and swallow. Right near the top of my right bottom lip, near the teeth. My tongue touches it when I'm resting, it's impossible not to touch. It's not that swollen and not bleeding but I'm afraid it will get infected because it feels like there's skin hanging off.
How do I care for it? How long will it take to heal?

37F Height: 5'5" Weight: 128 lbs, caucasian. I'm having extreme congestion and pain in my nose where I injured it 3 weeks ago I have been having symptoms for about three and a half weeks. Current medical conditions include chronic tendonitis, bipolar disorder / anxiety and chronic rhinitis. Medications I take are Adderall (20mg) Clonopin (1 mg) Lamictical XR (100MG) mirtazapim (15 MG) flonaise (50MCG) and Zyrtec (10MG) and occasional cyclobenzaprine (5mg) and ibuprofen 200mg for muscle pain. Currently prescribed amox-clav 875 mg 14 tablets for 7 days (which I'm not sure if I should be taking right now)
I am a former smoker. I do not drink alcohol, I only ingest THC and CBD no more than 20 mg a day for each.
I just started taking doxycycline 100mg twice a day for 10 days. I'm on my 5th day and just took my eighth pill, but I took it on an empty stomach and it made my stomach upset. When I ate food, I puked it all up. This happened minutes after I took the pill, and why I didn't see an actual pill come up I'm afraid I puked my medication out. Should I take another dose? this is for a particularly tenacious sinus infection that was resistant to the first round of amoxicillin and has only now started to feel better with augmenten, I really don't want to mess up my regiment!

30M with depression (MDD) and GAD. Height 184cm, weight 62kg, non-smoker, social drinker Medication: lamotrigine, tranylcypromine, clonazepam
I've been on Lamictal for four weeks and had flu-like symptoms for a few days (chills with no fever, mild sore throat plus rhinitis).
I noticed these red spots around both inner ankles tonight (and some on my feet). They're neither itchy nor tender. Is this a rash?
https://ibb.co/9ckHbmf
https://ibb.co/bFS6v66

I've been on Lamictal for 4 weeks now. 12.5mg first week then 25mg until now. I noticed these red spots on my ankles tonight that are not itchy or tender. I wonder if they could be Lamictal rash.
I'm a bit more worried because I had flu-like symptoms for a few days this week (chills with no fever, rhinitis and mild sore throat) which is why I've stayed on 25mg. Doctors reassured me the symptoms were a simple viral infection (common cold etc). I figured I'd keep the dose until I'm sure.
https://ibb.co/9ckHbmf
https://ibb.co/bFS6v66

[Edit: TLDR: Chills controlled by metformin, losing effectiveness, need solution. No diabetes, no PCOS.]
[2nd Edit: Non smoker; do not consume alcohol]
F 58 Bipolar disorder, Migraine, Trigeminal Neuralgia, Insomnia, Allergic Rhinitis, Low Thyroid. Meds: Generic Welbutrin, Estradiol, Flonase, Frovatriptan, Amovig, gabapentin, Lamictal, Levothyroxine, Lithium, Medroxyprogesterone, metformin, modafinil, singulair, ranitidine, Pataday eye drops.
Ok, y'all, you can forget most of the med list, because what's going on started some time back, when I wasn't taking most of that stuff, but finding out what's going on or where to go to to find out has taken on a new urgency.
Back in the early 2000s, I started having these cold spells. I mean, one time I remember taking a rectal temp and it was 93F. I was just disorganized at that time to where, while I collected info for the doctor, it didn't necessarily get communicated with him, so I just tried to live my life as best I could. Anyway, I had read that anecdotally, Metformin helped with bipolar, so my doc got onboard and wrote me a script. Glory be! If I take Metformin exactly as directed, I have no chills! I questioned my doctors at the time as to what was going on, and it was "Doesn't matter, the Metformin works."
Well, recently I started taking thyroxine, and learned the hard way that it increased the metabolism of metformin. I have adjusted the dosage of metformin and had side effects, so I dropped back down and started to take the ER version. In other words, I can't tolerate the strength of Metformin I need to take to keep from getting cold, but I'm okay 90% of the day, it just runs out. I just discontinued a medication notorious for interfering with other meds, so I hope that will help. However, I am not optimistic.
Do y'all have any ideas? Thanks
P.S. I do not have diabetes or PCOS

Hi! First, the required stuff:

• Age: 44
• Sex: Female
• Height: 5'4"
• Weight: 160
• Race: Caucasian
• Duration of complaint: About 3 months
• Location (Geographic and on body): Mid-Atlantic, USA (Nose)
• Any existing relevant medical issues (if any): Occasional migraine, lumbar spasms. Neither of these are concurrent with the complaint.
• Current medications (if any): Please note that even the newest of these medications I have been taking for over a year with no ill effect. None of them have been titrated up or down recently.
• Effexor
• Gabapentin
• Klonopin
• Lamictal
• Omeprazole

I think that's it! So let's talk about my nose.
I'm an entertainer -- I sing and dance. I sweat profusely in the process and keep a towel at hand to pat my face and neck down between songs (I have no idea if that's relevant.) I've Goggled the matter, of course, and come across 'exercise induced rhinitis,' but this seems to consist of the full range of allergy symptoms: nasal congestion, sneezing, watery eyes, etc.
What happens to me, specifically, is that ONE nostril (my left) emits a clear, very, watery mucous -- almost like I'm sweating through my nose (it's most definitely from my nostril and not sweat from my face dripping down around that area. I can feel it as it comes out.)
Sweat is perhaps understandable during the energetic dancing I do (though it, too, is embarrassing,) but a runny nose is not! I get very up close with my audience, and wiping my nose is impossible to miss. Please help!
Thank you,
Lizzie

This is a throwaway because I am not typically comfortable discussing the full extent of my personal medical history, but it's going to be relevant for this post. And also yes, this is a personal question - although I think this is a really touchy and hard point, I am trying to decide if, maybe on some very very small level, I should identify as disabled... less-abled? medically-imperfect? I don't know. Let me explain, but hold on, this might take a while.
The first, maybe easiest (?) issue I face is Bipolar II disorder. I'm diagnosed (I think... I mean that the counselor (who had advanced degrees - I believe a master's and PsyD but I can't remember exactly now) at the university student counseling service strongly implied that he felt that was an appropriate diagnosis and helped me, briefly, obtain some meds for it). It turns out that I pretty much can't actually take any of the meds for bipolar (more on that in a second), so I'm currently unmedicated and due to other life conditions have not been able to see a therapist, so pretty much no treatment. Fortunately, I appear to more or less be stable for now, but as people familiar with bipolar are aware, a few good months (and not perfect, mind you) does not mean much in the scheme of things...
So in that quadrant I suppose yes, it's appropriate to identify as mentally ill (I won't say mentally disabled because that has a different connotation, I think). And it's certainly affected my life, even though I haven't really been able to get much out of it - my school history is beyond abysmal in large part due to my depression and more infrequently due to issues on the other side (mania, hypomania, mixed episodes).
The other one, I guess, is the one I'm wondering about, because it's pretty unclear to me. I also have Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD). In short, my kidneys are genetically fucked up and don't know when to stop growing (spoiler alert: never) and pretty much look like bubble wrap. Causes lots of health problems, the biggest of which being that eventually those kidneys fail and transplant or die type situation (well, dialysis). I'm not there yet, fortunately.
Which I guess is part of the problem. When I was diagnosed, almost four years ago, the imaging scans showed my kidneys being (according to the doctor that treated me) about twice as large as normal kidneys. I have no idea what the rate of growth is, but presumably that means that my kidneys are even larger than that. I also have a very slight body type/bone structure - I'm 5'4" and weigh a little over 100 lbs. As you can imagine, my abdominal cavity is rather limited in space. This is one of the complications associated with PKD - pressure, pain, and bleeding as a result of burst cysts, which usually happens when the abdomen decides to do with the bubble wrap what everyone does with bubble wrap... only that bubble wrap is my kidney tissue. Yeah... ouch.
In short terms, this means that I'm very sensitive to pressure on my back/flanks and that I can often experience pain related to cyst bursts. I won't say it's excruciating, but it's often hard for me to describe because I also inherited (from the same person I got the kidney disease, actually) a morbidly high pain tolerance, so I have a tendency to not accurately indicate my pain until I'm literally doubled over.
It also means that on a practical level, I do have physical limitations, like realistically not being able to stand on my feet (with the weight of half of my body over my abdomen) for more than like an hour at a time before curling into a fetal position, even sitting can be taxing after a few hours so I'll need to lie down for a good while, and of course any accidental abdominal pain/pressure is a lot worse for me. Oh yeah, and that also includes menstrual cramps, because I have a uterus. So if I get cramps (which fortunately is not always during every single period for the whole duration), it can put me pretty seriously out of commission.
It also causes me to have moderate-to-severe hypertension which, other than requiring some dietary constraints (and getting what exercise I can while most exercise causes a lot of pain) doesn't really affect my day-to-day life, other than doctors getting on my case for managing my BP.
But, since I'm not on dialysis, my kidney function (according to blood tests) was fine based on my last checkup (which admittedly was about 8-9 months ago, but I'm only supposed to get checked once a year), and I am technically functional, it seems inappropriate to call myself disabled, and I can't think of a better term other than "fine, just in pain a lot in a way other people don't usually have to deal with".
Oh yeah, and I also can't take any medications contraindicated for kidney problems, which, coincidentally, is apparently the vast majority of medications prescribed for bipolar, except lamictal which I get a rash from which is apparently potentially deadly. So yeah. No meds for me.
And the last one... frankly, it's almost embarrassing to bring up, but I think it is actually something I think about. I have really severe allergic rhinitis. Yeah, basically hay fever. I don't have anaphylactic symptoms, fortunately, but let's put it this way - I honestly don't know what it's like to not have a runny nose or to actually be able to breathe comfortably with my nose any more.
And despite the fact that this is a pathetic "illness" that I really shouldn't be complaining about, I can almost safely say that it is actually the one that negatively affects my life the most, or at least the most obviously. Allergies are the reason that even after medicine (both prescription and OTC) there are days where I can't get out of bed because too many holes in my face are so watery I can't see, hear, or breathe enough to not feel lightheaded. Allergies are the reason I can't wake up in the morning for having snored all night instead of getting sound rest, and it's the reason why I have skipped on homework or class more than any other factor combined.
But it's fucking allergies. It's not even a debilitating food allergy. I just have the unlucky problem of having an ENT apparatus that hates most pollens, grasses, molds, dust mites, pet allergens, random proteins in the air, etc. It's not like a real disease or anything... no fever or really unusual symptoms, other than a constantly runny nose sometimes.
So I mean... I want to say that makes me something. I want to say that it's obviously an issue that causes me distress and difficulty in life. But it's so.... not a real issue.
All of this said and done, of course I don't ever want to get into any sort of hierarchical battle of disabilities. Of course I don't ever want to say I have it better or worse than someone else. I don't want to appropriate someone else's term of identity if it's not consistent with their understanding of it. I don't want to have more reasons to complain about my lack of privilege (I've got enough to worry about, I think). It's not about a blame game or some sort of agenda or some secret club I want access to.
But I guess I wanted to ask the other people who might have some insight into this matter. How do I navigate this?
And again, please know that I am asking in good faith and in no way mean to belittle the experiences of others. I know intent isn't magic, but again I'm looking for feedback about any area of my understanding that may be problematic, and I really do want you to check my privilege as it occurs.
Thank you so much for your time and thought.