4 ms·

I had the same symptoms as you about 5 years ago, and it was from having a poor diet and an anxiety disorder (that i did not want to admit I had).

liedra 16y ago
Hey good on you for realising this, anxiety issues can be very difficult to admit to. I hope everything is good for you now :)
kmano8 16y ago
I also had some similar symptoms 2 winters ago. Turned out to be anxiety, stress, mediocre diet, and a bit of hypochondria. What finally got me out of the rut was taking a trip to San Diego, spending time with friends away from my commute in the cold/dark hours, and realizing that maybe it was all in my head. It was difficult for me to accept that I could be psychologically messing with myself, but this was ultimately the problem.
- grandalf 16y ago
  Congrats for realizing that those sorts of "minor" things can have a significant impact. I think that this guy has something similar, which is why I suggested he go to Costa Rica in the last HN story.
  - kmano8 16y ago
    Thanks. It all started in some October when I had some sort of bad reaction to something (maybe food) that caused a massive headache/vomiting all day for me. I got pretty worried about the cause. The headaches nagged everyday on through winter and into March (when I finally went to California). I went to specialist after specialist.. had blood tests, MRIs, etc. The actual headaches were real and not just in my head, as it were -- the search for something that wasn't there was really what brought me down. And ps- symptom checking online is the worst thing I did to myself (can't stress this enough).
    - grandalf 16y ago
      Symptom checking online is a huge mistake, I agree. It's fascinating to think about the role of an "official, correct diagnosis" into the psychological aspect of the suffering. The most uncomfortable suggestions are those that are accompanied by not reassuring stamp of authority. What, go to Costa Rica and eat fresh fruit and swim and learn to surf? That's crazy, what I need is a pill... etc. It's not just health but the experience of feeling/being healthy/unhealthy that is profoundly important. It's rather humbling how complex the human body (below and above the neck)!
savemylife 16y ago
I resisted the possibility of a psychological aspect to this for a long time, but eventually (when other things didn't pan out and enough doctors told me "it's all in your head") I gave in. So I've seen several psychiatrists (both in the US and abroad), tried every kind of drug, and spent many months in psychotherapy. I feel like I really did investigate that angle thoroughly, and it's not the problem. I'm pretty confident in saying that it's not in my head.
- Alex3917 16y ago
  Have you tried smoking high-CBD cannabis? If you have both muscle problems and brain fog, then it's possible that the brain fog is coming from the CRP and other stuff that's getting released as your muscles break down. CBD is non-psychoactive and doesn't even act in the brain, it just attaches to receptor sites on your muscles and works as an anti-inflammatory. It won't fix the root problem, but I'd recommend trying it (in moderation). High-CBD cannabis pretty rare, but they do sell it at Harborside in Oakland. This podcast explains the science much better than I can: http://matrixmasters.net/archive/Various/218-Little-TellsCannabisTruth.mp3 http://matrixmasters.net/archive/Various/218-Little-TellsCan...
  - carbocation 16y ago
    > it's possible that the brain fog is coming from the CRP and other stuff that's getting released as your muscles break down CRP is not released by muscle breakdown. It is a predominantly liver-produced acute-phase reactant that is an inflammatory marker. Myoglobin, on the other hand, is released by muscle breakdown, but this is only appreciably released in severe circumstances such as a crush injury. The major harm of myoglobin is to the kidneys, not the brain, and I'm quite certain that CBD does not help this. >CBD is non-psychoactive and doesn't even act in the brain CBD acts in the brain.
    - Alex3917 16y ago
      Thanks for correcting the science. My more general point though was that chronic low-level inflammation causes a large percentage of depression / brain fog type things, and CBD can help with this: http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=inflammation+depression http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&#3... And depression/anxiety causes inflammation too, so you really have to break the feedback cycle.

liedra 16y ago

Hey good on you for realising this, anxiety issues can be very difficult to admit to. I hope everything is good for you now :)

kmano8 16y ago

I also had some similar symptoms 2 winters ago. Turned out to be anxiety, stress, mediocre diet, and a bit of hypochondria. What finally got me out of the rut was taking a trip to San Diego, spending time with friends away from my commute in the cold/dark hours, and realizing that maybe it was all in my head. It was difficult for me to accept that I could be psychologically messing with myself, but this was ultimately the problem.

grandalf 16y ago
Congrats for realizing that those sorts of "minor" things can have a significant impact. I think that this guy has something similar, which is why I suggested he go to Costa Rica in the last HN story.
- kmano8 16y ago
  Thanks. It all started in some October when I had some sort of bad reaction to something (maybe food) that caused a massive headache/vomiting all day for me. I got pretty worried about the cause. The headaches nagged everyday on through winter and into March (when I finally went to California). I went to specialist after specialist.. had blood tests, MRIs, etc. The actual headaches were real and not just in my head, as it were -- the search for something that wasn't there was really what brought me down. And ps- symptom checking online is the worst thing I did to myself (can't stress this enough).
  - grandalf 16y ago
    Symptom checking online is a huge mistake, I agree. It's fascinating to think about the role of an "official, correct diagnosis" into the psychological aspect of the suffering. The most uncomfortable suggestions are those that are accompanied by not reassuring stamp of authority. What, go to Costa Rica and eat fresh fruit and swim and learn to surf? That's crazy, what I need is a pill... etc. It's not just health but the experience of feeling/being healthy/unhealthy that is profoundly important. It's rather humbling how complex the human body (below and above the neck)!

savemylife 16y ago

I resisted the possibility of a psychological aspect to this for a long time, but eventually (when other things didn't pan out and enough doctors told me "it's all in your head") I gave in. So I've seen several psychiatrists (both in the US and abroad), tried every kind of drug, and spent many months in psychotherapy. I feel like I really did investigate that angle thoroughly, and it's not the problem. I'm pretty confident in saying that it's not in my head.

Alex3917 16y ago
Have you tried smoking high-CBD cannabis? If you have both muscle problems and brain fog, then it's possible that the brain fog is coming from the CRP and other stuff that's getting released as your muscles break down. CBD is non-psychoactive and doesn't even act in the brain, it just attaches to receptor sites on your muscles and works as an anti-inflammatory. It won't fix the root problem, but I'd recommend trying it (in moderation). High-CBD cannabis pretty rare, but they do sell it at Harborside in Oakland. This podcast explains the science much better than I can: http://matrixmasters.net/archive/Various/218-Little-TellsCannabisTruth.mp3 http://matrixmasters.net/archive/Various/218-Little-TellsCan...
- carbocation 16y ago
  > it's possible that the brain fog is coming from the CRP and other stuff that's getting released as your muscles break down CRP is not released by muscle breakdown. It is a predominantly liver-produced acute-phase reactant that is an inflammatory marker. Myoglobin, on the other hand, is released by muscle breakdown, but this is only appreciably released in severe circumstances such as a crush injury. The major harm of myoglobin is to the kidneys, not the brain, and I'm quite certain that CBD does not help this. >CBD is non-psychoactive and doesn't even act in the brain CBD acts in the brain.
  - Alex3917 16y ago
    Thanks for correcting the science. My more general point though was that chronic low-level inflammation causes a large percentage of depression / brain fog type things, and CBD can help with this: http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=inflammation+depression http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&#3... And depression/anxiety causes inflammation too, so you really have to break the feedback cycle.