My Story: It Gets Complicated

This is Part 2 of my IIH story. Read the previous chapter - My Story: The Beginning

Things started to get more strange for me in November. First of all, I started to notice small hives on my arms and legs. I say hives but at the time I didn't know what they were. They didn't itch and they each only lasted about 12 hours. In addition, I was in and out of the doctor's office for various illnesses from ear infections to GI troubles.

My GP was cutting back on hours and often wasn't available so I mostly met with his physician's assistant instead. We'll call her Amy for ease of use. Amy was nice but I found it difficult to talk to her about my troubles. I felt like she brushed a lot of my complaints off. Every time I went in I told her I was still having headaches, joint pain and I showed her my rashes but she focused solely on the main complaint that had brought me into the office.

I don't remember how many times I was in the doctor's office between the beginning of November and the middle of December. It was a lot. I felt like I was falling a part and so I kept pushing for answers. My hives were steadily getting worse, they were itchy and much more noticeable. I was also experiencing blurry vision that came and went in addition to the headaches and joint pain. Eventually, Amy decided to do some basic blood work. Everything came back clear except for my CRP which was extremely high. High CRP can indicate an infection or inflammation.

3 days before Christmas Amy prescribed an extra strength antibiotic to hopefully take care of my GI issues. On Christmas morning I woke up with hugely swollen lips. Assuming it was a reaction to the antibiotic, I skipped my morning dose and called the on call doctor after my kids were done opening gifts. I was told to stop taking the medicine and to call 911 if I started having trouble breathing. Merry Christmas!

The good news was that my stomach troubles did improve after only 3 days on the antibiotic. I now know that those troubles weren't caused by the larger issue (IIH), it was just a nasty bacteria that got involved and confused things. Unfortunately, I would also later find out the facial swelling wasn't caused by the antibiotic. I still deal with facial swelling that is kept at bay with medicine.

I ended 2014 more confused than ever regarding my health. The stomach problems were gone but I still had head aches, joint pain, unexplained rashes, facial swelling, blurry vision and fatigue. Things would only get worse in the new year.

Next - My Story:Turning Point