Quote:
Just about every symptom I have, from pain to fatigue, is usually blamed on depression without any tests being done for anything else.
Originally Posted by LovebirdsFlying
How do you *become* diagnosed? What kind of tests are run?Just about every symptom I have, from pain to fatigue, is usually blamed on depression without any tests being done for anything else.
When I first started complaining about the symptoms, my doctor at the time also wanted to blame depression. I protested and pushed for further tests. I have a masters' degree in psychology - I knew that if I had any depression symptoms, the pain was causing the depression, the depression wasn't causing the pain. Even with my degree though, I had to push the doctors for the tests.
Ironically, after I applied for disability, my disability attorney referred me to a neurologist friend who was very knowledgeable on Chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia - the neurologist was shocked that my previous doctors had not tested for neurological conditions. He said that with my symptoms all of the physical causes should have been ruled out, before assuming it's depression, chronic fatigue or fibro. He said it could have been MS, brain tumor, or narcolepsy. He acknowledged that the probability was that it was chronic fatigue/fibro, but he still felt the tests should have been run (he ran them and they were thankfully negative).
The tests I had done were
lyme disease
thyroid and other endocrine panels
autoimmune disease panels
sleep study (I'd highly recommend. Make sure it is testing not just for apnea, but has an EEG as well).
A brain scan (don't remember if it was an MRI or CT scan).
A seperate narcolepsy test (it was an EEG, but there was something different about it than the other EEG).
A mental health exam to rule out depression as the primary cause (the psychiatrist I was sent to agreed with me that my pain and fatigue was causing depression, the depression wasn't causing the pain and fatigue)
It can be rough if you don't have great insurance, because some of the tests are costly, and you and your doctor can determine which you feel are necessary and which are not. I'm biased, but I really recommend the sleep study. There's a specific sleep pattern that is associated with fibromyalgia (alpha EEG anomaly). Some studies have found up to 80% of fibro patients to have this type of sleep disorder (I have it - I spend almost no time in the restful deep stages of sleep. My symptoms improved tremendously when I was prescribed medications to help increase deep sleep).