Just stuff

[flutterbee]

My cognitive issues are getting worse. I'm hoping it's related to some kind of flair and is temporary rather than progressive.

A week ago Monday, I was looking at apartments. Fortunately, my mom was with me because as the woman was explaining the floor plan to me, she might as well have been speaking a foreign language. I had to keep asking her to repeat herself and explained that I was having trouble concentrating. Finally, my mom grabbed one of their brochures and explained it with that. It's so embarrassing.

I forget what I'm talking about mid-sentence. I have to stop and ask the other person what I was saying. My memory is horrible. Often, I start to respond to posts only to stop because I can't find my words and can't explain what I'm trying to say. I KNOW what I want to say, I just can't say it. I love my mom, but lately it's been frustrating to talk to her on the phone. She has a really bad habit of interrupting with questions or comments and then I forget what I was talking about and have to start over. I have no concept of time...hours, days, weeks, etc. I couldn't tell you if something happened last week or if it was 2 months ago.

I don't even know what this post is about. I'm just frustrated. I'm 34 years old and my mom and I had a conversation the other day about how it would be better if my new place was one floor instead of 2. Stairs are so hard for me. I've been having so much pain in my SI joint, hips, knees and ankles. Going up is ok. It's going down that's hard. Often I think I'm at the bottom step and I really have one or two more steps. It's a miracle I haven't fallen yet. The thing I'm most excited about in my new apartment is that the laundry room is on the 2nd floor with the bedrooms. Not the private patio. Not the large bedrooms. The laundry room. Less trips on the stairs. I'm 34 years old for crying out loud.

Ok. Done whining. Thanks for listening.

 

[mrscatinthehat]

Sending hugs. It can be so frustrating to not remember stuff. I hope it is just temporary. Are you getting enough rest etc?

Take care of yourself.

Beth

 

[timer lady]

Heather,

What are the doctor's saying about your cognitive/short term memory issues?

Have you had tests for any blockage in your arteries? Any of your medications contributing to your exhaustion & grogginess?

Just thinking off the top of my head for you.

No you shouldn't be feeling this way, 34 or not. But it is what it is. Now is the time to look for answers.

I'm glad that your mom was able to join you on the apartment hunt.

I'm learning to ask for help - even though at the sweet young age of 50 I should be able to handle various things & find I cannot. Whew knew how confusing laundry could be?

Having said that there are a couple of books that I've ordered & have been using to help me get through this patch of being down & out.

One is "Living a Healthy Life with Chronic Conditions". The other is "Cereal for Dinner: Strategies, Shortcuts, and Sanity for Moms Battling Illness".

Both helpful. Nonspecific in illness - more coping with many of the day to day life of being chronically ill.

(hugs) to you this morning.

PS: One of the things I have requested (i.e. demanded) is that important communications come to me as email or I will forget. I've got most of the treatment teams on board, family & a couple of my doctor's offices for appointment reminders. It's a good way to track things when you have memory issues

 

[DammitJanet]

Heather...I hope I can get all this out. LOL. I have the same problem with trying to remember what Im supposed to be saying in posts.

I have started replying to people and then realized I didnt have the foggiest clue what I was saying anymore. I was just rambling and not making any sense.

I hope people here forgive me if I do that.

I couldnt manage a two story apartment to save my life anymore. I might be able to get up and down one time a day if I was really lucky.

 

[Marcie Mac]

Heather, what does your doctor say this is from? I can relate as I have been having similar problems with memory, although not to the degree you are.

I noticed the more stressed out I get, the worse it is. I pose questions as "Did I ask you about XYZ?" SO will say, yes, you did, twice. And I will say "oh, ok what did you tell me?" I can't slow down my thoughts enough to pay attention to the answer the first time (or second)

I have a doctor appointment comming up soon cause I have to address it, I have been having way too many blond moments lately. When I took a TOVA test a few years ago to rule in my ADHD, the report showed that there was a possibility that I suffer from Petit Mal seizures. If so, they must have not been too severe to warrant the doctor doing any further tests. But lately, I have been zoning out a little too much for comfort. The other day we went out to eat, he was talking, I started zoning. I pulled into the handicapped space, turned the truck off, got out, shut the door.
Didn't put it in park (though I did put on the brake) nor did I take my keys out of the ignition. SO doesn't want me to drive anymore till I get to see the doctor LOL

But I find it interesting that I don't have any problems at work with forgetting anything, and can multi task without missing a beat. That may have to do with my hyper focusing the minute I sit down at my desk.

Its very disconcerting though when you can't keep track of a conversation.

Marcie

 

[Big Bad Kitty]

(((((((((Heather))))))))))


I'm coming up short on words of comfort (it's early) but I'm here for hugs.

 

[busywend]

Well, take this for what it is worth, but my feeling while reading your post was it would be temporary.

I, too, have problems with memory and focus. It is worse at times. I believe it to be hormonal and another one of those female things we must deal with in our lives. I also think when there is a diagnosis or symptom that involves this type of problem, it just means it is twice as bad as the usual hormonal cognitive problem.
Did that make any sense?

Anyway, I am sorry that you are having this problem. I hope it improves soon.

 

[hearts and roses]

{{{{{Heather}}}}} Sending you some supportive hugs. I am thinking along the same lines as busywend - that it's temporary and possibly related to hormonal changes.

I, too, will forget midway through a sentence what I'm trying to say or thinking about. And last week I was reading a very common word in a book and for the life of me, I couldn't figure out how to pronounce it - took me 5 tries to get it right. That really left me feeling unsettled.

I think it's worth bringing up with your DR. Take it easy and be sure you're getting enough rest.

 

[susiestar]

I am so sorry you are coping with this. Postit notes are what get me through.

fibro can do this, as can any number of medications. Might be worth listing your medications and going in to ask the pharmacist about them. Or at least call. My drugstore has several pharms taht have phd's and I find they are the most helpful at uncommon symptoms.

After you talk to the pharm, maybe see your doctor. I know from helping my gma that many times having too much of a medication can do this, esp if there are a anumber of medications.

Hugs,

Susie

ps. Many of us here battle this. We understand the frustration and hte rambling posts.

 

[HereWeGoAgain]

I sympathize with you. I've had trouble with forgetting stuff pretty much since birth according to my mom. I cannot get away from the house on the first attempt, I invariably have to go back for the cell phone or my sunglasses or the list or my wallet, etc. Sometimes I make three trips out to the car, doing the "Oh, yeah!" turnaround and going back for a forgotten item each time. Or I'll stop in mid-sentence and pause for so long, trying to remember what I was talking about, that the other person will have to prompt me (one reason I do better on message boards and in writing than in person).

Your posts are well-written, logical, coherent and on-topic from what I've seen, so it may seem worse to you than it really is.

 

[Star*]

When I get like this Wynter - I have high sugar or my cortisol is off the charts. We just refer to it as

I can't brain today I have the dumb.

Maybe its time for a medications tweak?

Hang in there...Feel better.

 

[flutterbee]

MrsCat - thank you for the hugs

Linda - I've had 2 heart caths since the original angioplasty. I have several small arteries too small to stent with small blockages (around 30%-40%) and that's being managed with medication. My heart is working efficiently now.

Janet - I knew you would understand. LOL

Marcie - I do the same thing with my kids...forget I asked them something and then ask them to tell me what their answer was. I can't count how many times I've parked my car either in the garage or in a parking space and take my foot off the brake only to realize I forgot to put it in park. I actually let my 16 year old with a permit do most of the driving anymore. Several times recently I put food on the stove, turn on the burner and walk away for a few minutes only to return and discover I turned the wrong burner on. It did affect me at work. I would look at stuff I did all the time and feel like I'd never seen it before. It's very disconcerting. I KNOW I KNOW how to do it, but I'd have to figure it out again.

BBK - I can always count on you for hugs.

Wend and Jo - It's not hormonal. I take medications every day that keep my hormones at an even keel. I've noticed it's much worse when my pain is increased or when my fatigue is.

susie - thanks for understanding if I ramble.

Herewegoagain - the nice thing about writing is you can stop if you are rambling or can't find the words and all evidence just goes "Poof!" LOL.

Star - Thanks. :smile:

My doctor wants me to see a rheumatologist. She's convinced I have rheumatic activity as opposed to fibro. She also wants me to see a neurologist for the cognitive stuff. She thinks I may have had a stroke. However, she wants to do the rheumy first as some of those conditions can explain the cognitive issues, as well as predispose one to heart disease. She wants me to have an MRI of my head and neck.

I feel like I'm in a fog most days. I feel very scattered, to say the least. I feel stupid. I had an employer once tell me that I had a near photographic memory and my therapist at the age of 16 told me how articulate I was. That's all gone. Some days the simplest tasks seem daunting.

 

[totoro]

You don't have to make sense here!!! You could ramble on for pages and we would still love you!!!

I am sorry this happening to your young body...it must be scary, hard, frustrating. Make you want to scream. You are such a trooper in your posts. I hope the apartment is what you need and makes you comfortable.

I hope your health comes back to you...

by the way... I have had to fix MANY typos... I think most of us here have issues. you are handling yours like a champ. :bravo:


:flower:

 

[Steely]

:cool-dog:
Just wanted to send big puppy dog hugs...............I know how horrible you must feel, and frustrated, but it will get better.

FWIW, your posts are perfectly coherent, logical, and always helpful. I would have never know you were having cognitive issues.

Hang in there, and I hope they find the reason behind what is going on.

 

[Wiped Out]

Sending gentle hugs and saying a prayer. :angel: Wish I had some great words of wisdom-it's been a long day.

 

[rejectedmom]

I hope they find the cause and can treat it effectively. by the way I have never seen any posts you have made where you didn't make a whole lot of sence. -RM

 

[flutterbee]

Like I said, when I can't find my words, don't have the mental energy or whatever, I either don't post or start to post then kill it. I do the latter quite often.

 

[Star*]

Say Wynter -

Humor me and do a google search on Metabolic Syndrome X. Thyroid also makes you have the dumb if untreated.

I just don't know what's so wrong about being unarticulate. I mean when I have days like this EVERYONE finishes my sentences, asks very little of me and I end up wandering in my car for hours hoping I can remember where home is. ROAD TRIP (bonus)

Get cortisol levels checked. The test is real easy. WOndering in my wee brain....if you have coronary blockage maybe there is a connection to not getting enough blood to your brain.

Thinkin out loud because the voices in mah head are all talkin' at once and i can't hear mahself think.

Hugs

 

[flutterbee]

Thanks, Star, I'll google that.

My thryoid has been checked twice this year - in February and in August. I've had blood tests for dozens of things. I do not know, though, if my magnesium has been checked and after a post by Loth on the Natural Treatments board, I'm going to insist on that.

I haven't gotten lost since my heart attack - although before I was doing that more and more regularly. I'd get lost in my own neighborhood or forget where I was going or turn down the wrong road and think, "Gee this looks different" and not realize I was on the wrong road. At least THAT part is better. Now I just feel really slow, scattered and confused.

As far as I know, my carotid arteries haven't been checked which is why my doctor wants the MRI of my head and neck. My uncle had his checked when he got ONE stent and I got FOUR. When I explained to my doctor what I thought was an adverse reaction to medrol (steroids), she said that my symptoms sounded suspiciously like a stroke and since it was not long after my second heart cath (a risk factor in addition to heart disease), I guess that's why she has that hanging in the back of her mind.

It's just very disconcerting to say the least. I have two kids depending on me and me alone. It's terrifying.

ETA: I googled that. I have 1 of the 3 needed. My HDL is low - it's 45 and needs to be at 50. Everything else is ok.