Welcome to Unwritten's part of the worldwide A-Z Blog Challenge!! Every day in April (except Sundays), we'll have a new post related to the letters of the alphabet from A-Z. Our theme here on Unwritten is "I Will Survive". I hope these stories will inspire and uplift you. Comments are VERY appreciated!
D for Dizzy
By
Aubrey Wynne
We can laugh about it now but two years ago my world fell
apart. My sister, best friend and muse battles Chronic Dizziness with chronic migraines.
After a dozen incorrect diagnoses and twice that many tests, we finally had
answers. During her struggle to identify and conquer this condition, my life
was put on hold. Who would travel with me? How could I travel to Italy or
Ireland without her? Who would talk me through my plotlines?
Looking back, it began on our Alaskan cruise in June. We
hiked a mountain path and looked over the edge at the breathtaking scenery. It
made Mindy’s head spin. Literally. We chalked it up to vertigo. The ship hit
some rough waters for about a day and the vertigo came back. Motion sickness.
Once home, everything returned to normal.
 |
| Shopping in an English village |
The following November, we took a trip to South Carolina to
celebrate my 50th and my little sister’s 40th birthday.
Our rental house had a long pier that jutted out into the water where dolphins
often played: great spot for morning coffee. With no handrails (only a rope),
Mindy’s vertigo returned. In December, she had a blinding migraine with a
racing heart. The ER ran tests for heart attack and stroke. Nothing. They
called it a panic attack.
My sister, one of the most level-headed people I know,
refused this label and looked for more answers. A specialist found that a
varicose vein in her leg had burst. The symptoms matched her earlier episode.
Then she found out she had multiple kidney stones. They were removed. Next, a surgery
for a cyst on her uterus. All better.
Wrong. The tremors began. I got a call from one of her kids
telling me she was curled up on the couch, shaking uncontrollably and
incoherent. Her family doctor began tests for every scary disease imaginable:
brain tumor, ALS, MS, immune deficiency diseases, neurological issues,
Meniere’s. Nothing. Again, they labeled it panic attacks.
In the end, it took a year and a trip to Mayo Clinic to get
a proper diagnosis: Chronic Dizziness, coupled with migraines, brought on by
extreme physical trauma to the body. Symptoms: dizziness from motion,
fluorescent lighting, noisy/crowded places; tremors; inability during episodes
to speak or think clearly; white fog impeding vision; low sodium. She could not
drive--the traffic passing by would shut her down and bring on the white fog
and tremors. Shopping at the grocery store became a nightmare.
Walking calmed her and reduced the symptoms. Her family,
lost without the glue that held them together, stepped up. They took over
errands, set up a treadmill in her office that sported a computer shelf. She
could walk one-mile per hour and still work at home. For the first time in her
life, Mindy knew exactly how much we appreciated and loved her. When she lost
faith, we swallowed our tears and anxiety and found a way to make her laugh.
Throughout the long fight, she found a bright side: we no longer took her for
granted.
My sister endured a quiet hell during the next year with a courage
that made me feel small. She researched
Today, Mindy still finds her life altered by her condition
but has returned to a normal life. She can drive up to an hour without
incident. Grocery shopping is back on her weekly to-do list. The tremors are
gone. The crazy energy we all depended on is back and just in time for her
son’s wedding in the Fall. We are planning a trip to Ireland in the summer of 2015.
I want to shout from the rooftops, “She’s back. I can breathe again.”
Never take your loved ones for granted. Let them know how
much you need them. If you get a second chance to show how much a dear one means
to you, it makes it that much sweeter.
****
Aubrey Wynne resides in the Midwest with her husband, dogs, horses, mule and barn cats. She is an elementary teacher by trade, champion of children and animals by conscience, and author by night. Obsessions include history, travel, trail riding and all things Christmas.
This touched the heart. Your love for your near ones reflects and there's a great message too.
ReplyDeleteUnbelievable at the things we've never heard of that causes so much misery. I can't even imagine how much hell your sister went through. Thank God she's getting better.
ReplyDeleteSharing our stories here has the potential to help others searching for a diagnosis. A family support group is priceless.
Thank you for writing this story.
Moving post.
ReplyDeleteThanks Leona and Ruby. I'm so lucky my story had a happy ending.
ReplyDeleteAubrey, this post means a lot to me on many levels. In 2011, I went on vacation to the beach and got severe sunburn. Within 3 weeks, I was in the ER with a racing heartbeat, dehydration, and chronic dizziness and panic attacks. I was put on beta-blockers, and referred to doctor after doctor. I started suffering migraine with aura. I had every test, saw specialists, talked to psychiatrists, was given reason to fear everything from MS to Lupus to cancer. Every test, I dreaded a positive, but would cry in frustration when it came back fine. Physical doctors told me I was sick because of anxiety. Mental doctors told me I was anxious because I was sick.
ReplyDeleteAfter over a year of tests, they diagnosed me with vestibular neuronitis, a chronic inner ear disorder similar to labrynthitis. I was put on medication. I slept all the time. I gained 30 pounds. They told me in 2-3 years, I'd recover. I didn't believe them. Everything was a dizzy, panic,foggy thing. I was only 30 when I got sick, and it was crushing to think of all the things I'd maybe never do. I couldn't stand crowds, lights, noise, the grocery store. I ran out of Target in fear. I'd have panic attacks riding in a car. I'd wonder if I was having a stroke, like my mother.
By the end of 2013, I was partying at clubs with friends and even went on an audition again. Then, I caught a terrible cold/flu that was going around. I just didn't seem to get better. Two courses of antibiotics and a course of steroids cleared it up...but all my symptoms came back, worse than ever. I now can't ride in a car at all; I can't tolerate motion of any sort without disabling panic attacks and the "white fog" you speak of. It's terrifying. I've been stuck inside for four months, The ordeal to get me to see a doctor is an all-day, draining experience, and everyone has a different guess, a different referral to a different doctor. The latest diagnosis was BPPV, although vertigo and motion sickness were the only things that fit that diagnosis. My primary care doctor keeps testing me for rare illnesses virtually nobody has and scratches her head.
I'd say this has stolen some of the best years of my life, but I hope that's not true. I hope it's made me appreciate everything small a little more. It's easy to get depressed, because there is no hope or end in sight some days. Your post brought a little light into my day, a little piece of hope that said "This happened to someone else, and it was hard, but that person is still around."
Thank you for sharing, and giving me just a little bit of extra hope and encouragement.
*Hugs*,
*~ A.