No jokes, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis I don’t believe it. How on top of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis have I had some sort of health problem since the 28th December. This time it is a kidney infection and I feel miserable, in pain and totally fed up.
I was diagnosed with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis in December 2012 so this will be my tenth year since the diagnosis which changed my life in so many ways. You can read more about ME and its symptoms by clicking here The Myalgic Encephalomyelitis Journey . It’s not been an easy 10 or so years but the last few months have been awful.
From COVID to a Kidney infection and not forgetting being rushed to hospital all while suffering with Severe ME
This all started with a positive COVID diagnosis for my Husband on 26th December closely followed but my positive diagnosis on December 28th. Fortunately or unfortunately for me, my ME or Myalgic Encephalomyelitis was so bad at the time that I didn’t feel much from COVID, I had a couple of bad nights being really hot and uncomfortable but this is also something I get with ME.
Things then turn up a gear on the 20th of January, when I had to have an ambulance out as my blood oxygen readings on my watch were very low. In the hospital I was seen immediately as at first they thought it was Angina but it turned out to be a very bad abscess which left me unable to talk due to the swelling on the side of my face as well as inside my mouth. Two courses of antibiotics later the swelling settled but I still had a large abscess on the gum. It does mean another tooth out which I am not looking forward to as well as further investigation into the front 3 bottom teeth. While with the Oral & Maxillofacial team at the hospital they kept asking me had I fallen as they saw a lot of damage. While I have fallen many times since being ill I don’t feel like I have ever hit myself in the face.
So getting over 2 infections very close together you will feel tired regardless of your health being excellent or awful like mine, so yes I am exhausted. Unfortunately, it has caused me to pass out but I am resting up as much as I can and sitting up for a while before standing. The day I was booked in to have this tooth pulled I had started experiencing a bladder infection or water infection so I had to cancel the appointment. I knew the pain immediately as I experienced this when I was 18/19 years of age. Once you know that pain you never want to have to go through it again, but you know straight away what it is if you ever have the misfortune to go through it again. When I had it all those years ago it did also spread to my kidneys which is a pain that should be thrown into the pits of hell.
So Saturday morning with pain so severe I couldn’t breathe properly, any movement even slightly was bad enough to bring me to tears.If you think you could be suffering from this you can find information here https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/kidney-infections-symptoms-and-treatments or on https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/kidney-infection/ Don’t forget my daily medication includes Morphine so you know the pain must be really bad if Morphine isn’t helping. While taking a medication like Morphine to control my ME is a huge help, I do wonder if in cases like this that it could have masked the pain so that I didn’t pick it up early enough leaving this to be a lot worse than I first thought.
Out of hours
Back to Saturday Morning, I called our out of hours GP who had an answering machine set to advise all calls to go through 111. Being a Saturday it took a while to get through as they were very busy but after explaining everything to Alec he advised me due to the severity of my symptoms I would have a Dr call me back within 2 hours. 2 hours turned into 10 am Sunday and after going over everything with him he arranged for a prescription to be sent to our local chemist, this would allow my Husband to go collect it and we could start fighting this infection. My Hubby got to the Chemist at 2 or 3 pm only to be told that they had not received it. I was unable to get back in touch with the Dr without going through 111 so after several tries and sitting in a queue for too long we had to admit defeat, we just couldn’t get in touch in time for the prescription to be sent before closing. Leaving me in another night of agony. Fan Fuckin Tastic.
Monday comes and rather than calling 111 again, I tried my own Drs only to be told that I need to go back to 111 to get them to get a prescription reissued. Seeing as I had spent a lot of the last few days in phone queues I thought I would just give a quick call to the pharmacy just in case. Of course, it has somehow miraculously appeared, great I finally feel like I am getting somewhere. That pharmacy is great of a weekend as it is open when mine is not, previously this was a late night chemist but for some reason, they now close at 6 pm which means my Hubby can’t collect it for me.
I hoped that Dad could help but unfortunately, he was at a funeral which yes you have guessed it that means that I was left with severe pain for another night, I don’t even want to think of the long term damage it could be doing.
This brings us bang up to date, it’s Tuesday 1st March 9:05 am UK time and I’m hoping that today I can get someone to collect it for me, I’m crossing everything that Dad messages me very soon to say yes. Remember not all heroes wear capes, some answer to Dad, mine certainly does.
Fighting infections is hard on the body and one after the other on my body is certainly taking its toll. I’m hoping that the rest of the year I will be able to get back to doing what I love which is making a difference. I had so much planned for the year so yes this is a tough hand that I have been dealt but I will get back on track.
Friends with ME
My advice to any Myalgic Encephalomyelitis sufferers out there is to always report any abnormal symptoms to your Dr or reach out to other sufferers. While they can’t offer medical advice they can certainly offer their experience and their support. We have a support group available to all Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/CFS Patients should you need help or advice, you can find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram ( I have included links at the left-hand side of this paragraph )or you can contact me at ask@alishawhittam.com
Ukraine
Of course, I couldn’t give an update without mentioning the crisis in Ukraine, first I have to say that I hate politics.
What is happening to those families is truly awful and it certainly does put life into perspective. I will never understand war as the people at the top who cause or plot these things sit in bunkers or war rooms well protected, while the people who never asked for this have to shut up and fight.
The families who were just going about their lives have their homes and neighbourhoods destroyed, kids have to say goodbye to their Dads not knowing if they will ever see them again, some of those fighting are not more than kids themselves.
I have always lived by the motto that I would never ask anyone to do something that I wouldn’t do myself and while some may think it’s silly, naive, pathetic even I think it’s something we should all keep in mind. These people sat in their well-protected areas with security guards around them wherever they go will not lose families or friends, yet Mums of the people fighting will in so many cases never see their sons again. That is until one day they hear a knock on the door only to be told by people who never met their son that they believe they died in combat.
We must always remember that what we see on the TV or read in the papers is not the real story. We never get to know the real story until the statute of limitations is passed and the documents are made public, with lots of redactions of course.
Having people fight a war for you without giving people the full story and a choice should not be allowed. If you want an army to fight for you then stand shoulder to shoulder with them especially now as we have technological advances that allow you to do anything anywhere. What Putin can see from his war room he can see from a laptop. It makes me sick.
My love and support go out to all of those affected by war or in the name of war.
Sending love always ,
Alisha ❤️