January 13, 2016 was a normal day until that evening when my life drastically changed. After eating out my family, we went to Walmart. Halfway finished with my shopping list, I got extremely light headed and off balance like I was going to fall over. I thought I was going to pass out but I only saw stars and did not reach the black-out stage. From that point on I had to hold onto the buggy for balance. After we left Walmart, I felt a little better after sitting in the vehicle. That weekend I mostly stayed at home and rested which made me feel better. (I really thought it could have been the shrimp I had for supper that night or maybe a stomach bug. When you work with children, you are exposed to various germs.)The next few weeks went by in a blur. I remember feeling off balance and I had to walk from point A to point B without looking around or changing my course. Just walking around something was a challenge. I would feel like I was still moving when I stopped. I was nauseous majority of the time.
Early February I went to a walk in clinic and tried to explain my symptoms. The doctor had me do several movements which I had to do slowly. I had the fear that I would fall over daily. The doctor said that I 'might' have some fluid, gave me steroids, and told me to come back if I did not get better. Needless to say the steroids did not help. At this point I didn't know what to do. I would have good days and bad days. If I didn't sleep well the night before, stressed, busy schedule, etc, my symptoms would be worse.
My symptoms included the following:
*Swaying, nausea, difficultly staying balanced, light-headedness, etc.
*Have the feeling that I was walking on a trampoline or giant marshmallow when symptoms were present. Felt like I was in boat.
*Symptoms were more present later in the day or when I was tired.
*Seeing Motion - being in a crowed room or around a large group of people (including outside) made me feel off balance and lightheaded. I tried to avoid these places. This triggered my symptoms majorly and felt off balance for a few days after. (This includes faculty meetings, programs, church, etc.)
*Un-leveled floors made me lightheaded and off balance.
*Could not walk down a hallway in one direction when others are walking in the opposite direction without feeling off balance. If I found myself in this situation, I would have to look down at the floor when walking. (The would tiles would make me nauseous.)
*Supermarkets would make me feel awful - swaying tremendously
*Symptoms didn’t bother me when driving - I usually did not feel the symptoms at all.
*Dark room were hard to walk in. I felt off balance.
*Could not make a lot of turns or sudden movements. Usually have to walk from point A to point B. *Cooking in the kitchen was difficult due to the amount of turns - stove, fridge, sink, cabinets, etc.
*Chocolate would make it worse. I felt the symptoms within one hour of eating chocolate regards of what I was doing.
*Could not watch people, cars, etc. pass by without feeling nauseated. This also included news ticker going across the screen.
*Spinning Displays/Screens/Photos/Movies, etc made me feel off balance.
*Could not stand in one position for several minutes without swaying and/or falling forward, backwards, or to the sides.
*Cognitive issues included short term memory loss, misplaced things, details, spelling of words, etc. *Comprehension of various dialect after leaving a store or on a bad day has diminished. - Starting taking Ginkgo Biloba (60 mg in the morning and 30 mg at night) which has helped.
*Had some headaches and neck pain - mostly on days that my symptoms are worse.
*Could not tolerate busy patterns
*Sensitive to flashing lights, strobes, etc.
* Would have good days and bad days
At the end of February and beginning of March my symptoms improved some and I was beginning to feel like I was on a roller coaster from day to day depending on my symptoms. March 8th I went to the dentist for a regular cleaning. When the hygienist laid the chair back, I felt like I was falling and everything just felt off balance. I had to tell myself that I was not going to fall and that I could do this. From that moment on, my symptoms were triggered for the rest of the week. My mother convinced me to see another doctor. The earliest I could get into see someone was the following week and that was with a Physician Assistant. (The earliest appointment with a doctor was mid-May.) The PA suggested that I take steroids again for a longer period of time, prescribed Melizine, and scheduled a follow up appointment in three weeks with blood work. The Melizine and steroids did nothing for me. At the three weeks follow up on April 4th, she referred me to an ENT. Blood work came back normal - actually great.
At the ENT appointment on April 7th, the doctor did a few test. One test was for me to stand still with my eyes closed. I could not do this without swaying and almost falling over. This was something new to me because I guess I never really stand still with my eyes closed. (Looking back now, I do remember having the feeling of falling during prayer at church. I would keep my eyes open during prayer.) The ENT doctor suggested that I might have central vertigo but would like for me to have a Vestibular test to rule out ENT problems. The test was scheduled on May 4th. In mid-April I began to have cognitive issues like not remembering things, short term memory loss, unable to spell words, forgetting events, misplacing things, and diminished comprehension of dialect. Family members mentioned that it felt like I was pulling away and closing down. I think that I was just trying to function with day to day tasks. I just wanted to go to bed and sleep for 12 hours. Around this time I started hiding my symptoms which looking back now, I see that I got really good at doing this. I would either control where I went - like attending early church with a smaller crowd, or hide my symptoms by holding on to an everyday objects like a buggy. I didn't tell many people about my symptoms because it was hard to explain. I felt like some people including the doctors thought I was crazy. Also, I am not the type of person who likes a lot of attention and I didn't want to draw attention to myself especially when I didn't know what was wrong and trying to explain this was very difficult.
The Vestibular test was a challenge in it's self. Thankfully there wasn't a rotating chair. The test consisted of lights, sounds, and air. The results came back normal. I was told that I would be referred to a neurologist - all the while my symptoms continued to get worse. I remember one weekend I wanted to go shopping. (Shopping was the worse due to the fact that you are always looking for something. I felt like I was walking on a trampoline or riding on a boat.) I decided to go anyway. I went to about 5 different stores that day and I paid for it! My symptoms went from worse to extreme for the next week. I also remember getting mad at myself for not being able to go to a store. I had the feeling that I was falling backwards all the time. The only time I got relief was when I laid down.
At this point I was desperate for some answers or help. I began taking 2 fl. oz of Ningxia RED drink by Young Living every other day. The drink helped me tremendously. I was finally able to 'somewhat' function. If I missed a dose for whatever reason, my symptoms would always come back stronger and I would just feel awful. I still had good and bad days, but the drink seemed to keep most of the symptoms at bay. I later learned that the 100% natural ingredients were anti-inflammatory.
During the summer months, I continued with good and bad days. I had to limit my activity as in events, shopping, etc. I relied on GOD to get me through each day and wake me each morning. (There were nights when the left side of head hurt so bad that I wasn't sure I would wake up the next morning. I would pray for GOD to wake me in the morning and heal me.)
Mid-July I received a call from the neurologist to schedule an appointment. (By this time I had already called TMF Neurologist Center to schedule my own appointment. My insurance company said I didn't need a referral to see a neurologist. Unfortunately the neurologist center said I did, so I waited.) The first available appointment was September 21st. During this waiting time I began to research my symptoms and possible diagnosis. Since the ENT mentioned central vertigo, I began there. After reading tons of information on the web and numerous medical journals that I found on databases, I concluded that was not what I had.
Summer continued along and we went on vacation. We went to the USS Alabama and several other places. When you have a son interested in history, you nurture it through experiences. Being on a docked boat was a major challenge but I was able to push through it. August came along and school started back. My symptoms seemed to be getting worse and I was tired of living like this but I didn't know of a possible solution. I felt like my relationship with God was growing stronger throughout this ordeal. I was crying out to him numerous times each day. I kept being reminded that everything was in God's timing and God's will - not mine.
I continued drinking the Ningxia Red drink every other morning. (On really bad days I would drink 2 oz everyday.) If I missed a drink, I could feel it the next day....almost like my symptoms were coming back with a vengeance.
On September 21st I went to the neurologist. He did a few test including an EEG and scan on my neck to make sure the blood was flowing correctly. Everything came back normal and I was given migraine medicine, an appointment for next March, and ordered an MRI. The migraine meds did nothing to help.
The challenging part was the getting the MRI done. I went to the open MRI center and attempted the MRI twice. I am extremely clostophica and I even have a hard time with elevators. During the second attempt, I tried to ear the headphones but the headphones were to large for the head cage to be comfortable. While trying the headphones, the song THY WILL by Hilary Scott came on. It was during this song that something changed and I had the feeling that God was with me and I could do this. I still get tears in my eyes listening to this song. I felt like God was telling me "His will not mine," I was finally able to endure the 10 minute MRI with lots of encouragement and a cloth covering my eyes, I had to keep my eyes open with a cloth on them to remind myself that I was NOT moving even though I felt like it.
After learning that the MRI was normal and the migraine medicine wasn't working, I decided to call UT Southwestern. At this point I was frustrated and didn't know where to turn. On November 14th I went to a doctor that focused on balance at UT Southwestern. After traveling two hours, I spent about 10 minutes with the doctor. He immediately diagnosed me with Chronic Subjective Dizziness because I seemed anxious to him. (Hello- I was hopeful and anxious that he could help me with this problem that I had been dealing with for 10 months.) He suggested that I see my primary care doctor and go from there. I didn't have a primary care doctor, so the search for one began. My symptoms were still here with good and bad days. Sometime around mid-August, I became afraid to go to the store alone or drive at night. So, this was really affecting me and my family.
Thankfully I was able to see a primary doctor on November 21, 2016. This doctor was wonderful in actually listening to me and trying to fully understand my symptoms. She spent a good 30 minutes listening and talking to me. Based on the numerous doctor reports I had given her, she prescribed anxiety medicine and suggested that I try a gluten free diet along with no sodas. She thought I could be allergic to a chemical found in sodas. I was already eating healthier. I began eating more fruits, nuts, veggies, etc during late May. This just helped me to feel better overall.
After Thanksgiving, I began the gluten free diet. After about a week of gluten free and anxiety meds, I realized this was not the problem. I was not only off-balance and nauseous, I was now a hungry, happy, off-balance nauseous person. At that point I had reached the depressed and frustrated state. I had been to 6 doctors and had numerous test run - which all said I was healthy.
For some reason, I kept thinking about going to a wellness chiropractor. While doing some research back in July, I had come across something on a website about balance and chiropractic. (At the time I had just assumed that the neurologist would be able to tell me what was wrong.) On November 29, 2016 I made an appointment with Rigsby Chiropractor in Jacksonville. I figured I might as well give it a shot...why not!
The spinal scan revealed that my neck was really out of alignment - this made me happy because I thought I had FINALLY found the problem. The next day I went back for the full report and my first adjustment. The report revealed that my vertebrae C1, C2, & C3 were out of alignment and make the X shape instead of being stacked. A few minutes after the first adjustment, I felt something warm run down the back of my neck. Dr. Rigsby said it was cerebral-spinal fluid flowing. Basically the vertebrae were pinching the follow of cerebral-spinal fluid. The fluid was adding pressure to my cerebellum which controls your balance. I never would have thought that was the problem but I am thankful that was the problem now. I am currently under a monthly treatment plan and feel so much better. The adjustments are working and most days I have no symptoms while other days I feel maybe 10%-15% of my symptoms as compared to 100% on a bad day. I still have good days and bad days, but the bad days are very mild considering what they were in the past. Dr. Rigsby has done a fantastic job of helping with my health problem. He mentioned that I will probably just have to make sure I am always in alignment .....which is a good thing compared to what it could have been. I am thankful that God has helped me through this valley and on to the other side.
I continued seeing Dr. Rigsby several times a week to once a week and now a year and half later, I see him twice a month. Now that I have been on the road to healing for a year and half (5/2018), I rarely feel my symptoms unless I have done something major to trigger them like large crowds or sitting in the balcony. When I do feel my symptoms it is for only a second or two and I wonder how in the world I survived for 11 months like that. I know one thing for sure, God got me through and I had to rely on him to overcome this. THANK YOU GOD!
