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Unfit, or more?
Former Member
Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
For people that don't know, bit of background: I've had some kind of mystery illness for the last 2 years that no one can figure out, despite a week as an inpatient just before Christmas this year. Have had a whole caboodle of symptoms, including arthritis, rhinitis, optic neuritis, general aches and pains, weight loss, nose & mouth ulcers, rashes, headaches, memory and concentration symptoms, gut symptoms, low blood pressure, low body temperature, chest problems, shadows in my lungs (still unexplained) and on and on and on.
The doctors are baffled, but while I wait for my next appointment, they have suggested I might want to try to exercise a bit, and get my strength up. I'm not against that suggestion, so I have been having a go.
The problem is that even after a normal amount of exercise, it is taking me aaaages to recover. The first thing I tried was a beginners dance class with a mate, and after each weekly class, it would take me up until the next class for my muscles and joints to work properly again. This was after about an hour of moderate exercise, including warming up and cooling down.
The classes have finished for summer, so I'm trying something else. I'm not a gym girl, and never will be, but I used to ride when I was younger and loved it. So I had a riding lesson on Saturday, and the same problem. Today my legs are still so stiff I can't cross my legs or walk normally. This is after a half-hour class, of which 10 minutes was spent warming up and cooling down. Sunday I wasn't so bad, but I woke up Monday morning and literally had to be hoisted out of bed.
Annnyway, my question is this. Is this just a sign of me being really out of condition, or is it out of the ordinary? If it is just unfitness, then that's fine, and if I stick with it, I would expect to get better with time. But if it isn't, I'm worried I might do more damage by pushing my body when all it really wants to do it rest.
Any thoughts?
The doctors are baffled, but while I wait for my next appointment, they have suggested I might want to try to exercise a bit, and get my strength up. I'm not against that suggestion, so I have been having a go.
The problem is that even after a normal amount of exercise, it is taking me aaaages to recover. The first thing I tried was a beginners dance class with a mate, and after each weekly class, it would take me up until the next class for my muscles and joints to work properly again. This was after about an hour of moderate exercise, including warming up and cooling down.
The classes have finished for summer, so I'm trying something else. I'm not a gym girl, and never will be, but I used to ride when I was younger and loved it. So I had a riding lesson on Saturday, and the same problem. Today my legs are still so stiff I can't cross my legs or walk normally. This is after a half-hour class, of which 10 minutes was spent warming up and cooling down. Sunday I wasn't so bad, but I woke up Monday morning and literally had to be hoisted out of bed.
Annnyway, my question is this. Is this just a sign of me being really out of condition, or is it out of the ordinary? If it is just unfitness, then that's fine, and if I stick with it, I would expect to get better with time. But if it isn't, I'm worried I might do more damage by pushing my body when all it really wants to do it rest.
Any thoughts?
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Comments
It really could be anything, i know somebody not long ago had all sorts of problems (head-aches, feeling sick all the time, Constantly tired + a lot more symptomns) and it turned out to be an ovarian cyst - something you would never have thought would be able to affect all those other body parts.
She too had all sorts of tests and had doctors baffled but it is worth keeping on at the doctors until its sorted and dont let them fob you off.
Easier said than done with my specialist! He seems to think that a good healthy diet and regular exercise will cure all my ills, and I really wish he was right, but so far it's having the opposite effect. And I'm sick of people just thinking I'm a lazy bastard :grump:
And Tweety - That's how it always used to be when I started getting fit after a lazy patch. I'd wake up the next morning feeling a bit worse for wear, and then gradually feel better over the next day or two.
Part of the reason I'm asking is cause I know it's not normal for me in general terms, but then I've never tried to get fit after being ill for a long time, and losing loads of weight, so I wondered if that might be a reason.
I don't know really. I'm a little bit at the end of my tether with this now, and I'm really conscious that I sometimes attach real significance to the tiniest symptom, cause I'm hoping that it might be THE symptom that finally leads to a diagnosis, and then to to them fixing me, and not having to feel like this anymore.
Maybe because of your constant health problems you've become less fit than you have been previously?
Did/do you feel at the time that you are doing too much?
No, that's the odd thing. I mean, a beginners dance class is not exactly hard work - mostly it was just a lot of walking around and tapping out steps, with a little bit of stretching. And my riding lesson I was in with the beginners, so again, pretty much the
equivalent of sitting on a dead uncomfortable chair for half an hour.
I barely broke a sweat in either, and as I'm always not too bad the day after, I fall into the trap of thinking 'man, I'm fitter than I thought' and then the day after that I need Mr. K to help lower me onto the toilet
tho' i would say start taking exercise slowely... or slower than you are doing... then build it up very gradually - if it doesn't get easier after a bit of practice, then there is something wrong. i had a mate who couldn't handle running - she was asthematic; general aches and pains usually last about 3 days.
my advice: get another specialist. - if they are still baffled, get another one.
i mean, what good is your specialist actually doing for you atm?
may be look to swimming as a goal to do later.
And surely how vigourous it is depends on how fast you swim?
And yeah, the consultant is not doing a reet lot of good at the mo. They have tested and tested and tested me, and just not found much, apart from the lung business, but they're ignoring that, for whatever reason. Very frustrating.
I've been advised by someone to ask if I can be referred to Harrogate hospital instead of the LGI, as it's about 300 times better, but am worried they'd just do the same 8 or so blood tests I always have done, they'll be normal, like they always are, and they'll tell me I'm a timewaster
Yup, but they decided it probably wasn't as my joints swell. They told me they don't diagnose people with Fibro (or CFS) unless they have ruled out inflammatory arthritis, and in my case they can't rule it out. However, they also can't confirm it as my blood tests, signs and symptoms are all at odds. :shocking:
However, I wouldn't expect the ache to last all week necessarily, and I'd expect it to start tailing off after a few sessions. Of course if you're only doing that exercise once a week then it could take a while to become conditioned to it.
Nope, this is a recent development. I used to be fit as a fiddle. It's the least of my worries symptom-wise though.
You may as well do that - referral to a hospital in another Health authority might mean that they do things differently so they could pick up something the folks in Leeds haven't.
So ask your GP if you can be referred elsewhere, whether to Harrogate, Bradford, Keighley, wherever.
But don't accept an offer of referral to one of the other Leeds hospitals (which might not be an option these days anyway) as it'll probably be a case of same consultants, different day.
definitly try a new specialist; 2 yars is a long time to be ill.
Until recently I think it was a case of PCTs 'only refer out of the area if we have to'. Now, though, there's supposedly a 'choice of 4 hospitals' available, which by my reckoning would include a couple outside Leeds.
Ultimately it comes down to the GP and how forceful he/she's prepared to be.
There isn't a blood test - it doesn't show up at all in your blood. It's diagnosed by ruling out everything else it could possibly be.
One of my mum's friends lives in my area and has recently been referred to York Hospital after getting exactly nowhere with the LGI, so I assume it is possible? I need to see my GP anyway so may as well ask.
Best of luck.
Yup.
Still not sorted, however, so the advice is still useful. Thanks!
Although I do now have two awesome doctors championing my cause, so hopefully we'll get some progress at some point.