My Health Part 2

Some of you may remember me writing a blog entry about my own health. For those of you that didn’t, you can view it here http://carersvent.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/my-health.html.
I wrote that back in June last year and since then a lot has happened.

I think I will start with my mental health. Well I finally got referred for some counselling, but unfortunately the only kind of counselling available on NHS is CBT. But I thought I would give it a go anyway …. and you know what? It has actually helped!
I have become a bit calmer as a carer and I have also worked through some of the guilt I had bottled up. So in this instance CBT has helped, but the only trouble with it is that it only deals with the hear and now and not the past.
So what about my physical health? Well I personally don’t think that has changed much. It’s no worse or better, but I do now at least have some answers.
For the past few years I have been having problems with my legs. To cut a long story short, I saw a neurologist back in January this year and he has given me a diagnose of Fibromyalgia. Yep, the dreaded F word! Those of you that read my blog and have followed my blog will know that my husband @raspberrytalk suffers with this condition as well.

So is this just a strange coincidence or is there more to this condition? This is something I will talk about more in another post.  

Also, I have been given a diagnose of a condition called syncope, which is basically another word for fainting spells (well that's how I understand it).
So, I have some answers to what was and still is going on with my health. Meanwhile I am still having to care for my husband full time. One of the things my CBT lady wants me to do is to have more me time, which I have done, but I have only been able to do this when family were visiting. Yes, having time for myself is important, but it is hard to do when you are the prime carer for someone with not only physical health conditions but also mental health problems.
Since last June I have had loads of blood tests. If I remember right some of my markers were slightly high, so the docs wanted to check them a month later. When they rechecked them they were then showing up normal, so that was the end of that.

 

 

The neurologist put me on vitamin D and he also requested I have some more blood tests! Hopefully these will give the doctors and me some more answers.
I also have a had a psychiatric assessment because I was having hallucinations. The psychiatrist basically said there’s no real help they can give me because they no longer do counselling …. what a waste of time that was …. never mind.
But it did give me opportunity to talk about things, however briefly, and I did get prescribe something to help me sleep. I now no longer take SERTALINE but instead I am now taking MIRTAZAPINE at night to help me sleep … seems to helping so far.