Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Debilitating aching & fatigue - really part of anxiety/depression? or malnurished? in a pickle...

Hi guys,

It's another of my longer emails - sorry in advance. I think I'm also venting here a bit too.

I'm emailing to see if anyone has experienced this decidedly NON-GI symptom set. I am slowly losing the ability to do anything of substance outside of sleep...even work has gone down the tubes.

Throughout the last 3 months, I have battled fatigue and aching like I've never had before. Starting in September, it was exhaustion after work (I'd come home & pretty much go to bed) & sleeping most of the weekend. I just didn't feel like doing anything. It's now become substantial muscle pain and aching & fatigue that keeps me home from work at times (like today) & prevents me from doing ANYTHING. The weird thing is that I'll have terrible day(s), followed by a day or days where I feel fine & have good energy. It's so odd.

The Dr. I saw for these concerns took a mess of bloodwork & urinalisis & of course everything comes back normal. Which apparently rules out any rheumatalogical diseases too (she must have ordered up those tests too). I also don't have any of the "tender points" that could lead to a CFS/Fibro Dx.

The Dr. as well as my therapist said that all of these pretty severe symptoms (along with my trademark nausea) very well could be caused by the anxiety I experience as well as a little depression that is potentially thrown in there. Have any of you experienced this as part of anxiety/depression? I'm still trying to grasp these physical symptoms as part of that emotional stuff.

Also - Dr. of course never investigated any vitamin/mineral deficiencies, even though I told her that I don't eat well consistently due to the nausea & IBS. ie) I haven't had protein or real veggies in a very long time. My therapist & roommate both think lack of good nutrition is also the cause of the aching & feeling of extreme CRAPPINESS (even though I haven't eaten balanced meals in YEARS & never had these symptoms!).

Does anyone, and especially those that have experienced this or something similar, have any input on where to start? I'm trying to figure out how to get out from under all this, and I'm kinda flummoxed. Dr's aren't much help except to prescribe psychological meds, my roommate believes fully in supplements & cutting sugar out of my diet & that my body is just WAY out of whack, and the therapist has been the most helpful of all (which I'm thankful for). But WHERE DO I START when I can't exercise when I feel like this, it's difficult if not impossible to eat when I'm nauseous, which leaves me possibly malnurished & feeling crappy...and round and round. How can I get my body back in line????

Add to the mix a messy situation with my family on the East Coast (I'm way over in California), namely my grandmother, who I always have been close to all my life, is dying fairly rapidly & I dread going home for Christmas and dealing with that emotional mess. This situation just adds the emotional/stress element that just makes the anxiety (& nausea) worse.

Can anyone help? i trust you guys and I've always gotten good solid tips for getting WELL instead of wallowing in the situation. I need that again, now more than ever.

When you have a second, I'd love to hear from you. Thanks so much in advance.

~ emily

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East Palo Alto, CA (San Francisco Bay Area/Silicon Valley)

IBS-C, pain, nausea

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