Sick and Tired

It usually happens at night, when I'm asleep. I hear a knock on my bedroom door and a whispered, "Mom?" I know what's coming. This has been happening for 3 years.

I get up and ask her if it's pretty bad and she just nods. We go into the spare bedroom and open the window wide (even if it's -30 outside) because the cold air feels good on her face. I get some Gravol, a glass of water and the book we're reading and I settle down beside her. On a good night, I can go back to bed within an hour. Other nights it can last longer than two.

When I became a parent, I knew interrupted sleep was part of the deal. While I expected to be awakened regularly with young children, I didn't think it would be an issue with a 17 year old.

I remember the day 3 years ago when it all started. It was Easter Sunday and I figured that she had eaten too much candy. But the nausea and dizziness continued for several days so I took her to the doctor. She had a bladder infection so antibiotics were prescribed and I thought she'd be back to her old self in a few days. Little did I know that this was just the beginning of visits to doctors, specialists, internet searches and sleepless nights.

I am blogging about this because we are at our wit's end. We cannot figure out what is wrong with Kristen. Three years ago it was so bad that she didn't write most of her exams in Grade 9. She couldn't read without becoming dizzy and then the nausea would set in. I studied with her and that worked well but writing the exam would take all of her energy for the day and she'd spend hours in bed. For most of the summer of 2003, she hung around, had little energy and very little appetite. She lost weight and the sparkle in her eyes disappeared.

By September, she seemed to get a lot of her energy back and we thought that whatever it was, she had recovered. We thought that maybe, she had just pushed herself too hard that year and her body was simply rebelling.

For the next few years things weren't too bad except for weekly or bi-weekly episodes which usually happened at night, where she would experience nausea and dizziness. I would call these attacks because she would also get really anxious and kind of panicky. After several hours she would settle down and while the next day was hard for her, she usually recovered.

Last week, while we were on holidays, she got sick again-just like three years ago. She has eaten very little in the last few days and has actually lost some weight. Her energy level is extremely low and today is her first full day back at school. We went to the doctor who diagnosed her with Irritable Bowel Syndrome although I do not believe that is a proper diagnosis. She has none of the other symptoms (cramps, diarrhea) and the attacks do not seem to be linked to food in any way.

Is there anyone out in blog land who has experienced something like this? Can you give me some advice? Do you know of anyone else who has similar symptoms? We are so tired of dealing with this. It is heartbreaking to see her this way. She is finishing Grade 12 and has projects and exams to deal with now. She is planning to work next year, before she starts university but the way things are now, she will not be able to do that either.

I suspect that it is related to stress. I made an appointment with a naturopath, we have already done the psychologist thing and my doctor doesn't seem to have the time to sit down with us and figure this out. Gravol is about the only thing that she consumes these days along with bananas, yogurt and an occasional piece of toast.

It’s not Celiac’s, lactose intolerance, crohn’s or colitis. Contrary to my doctor’s diagnosis, I don’t think it’s IBS. She’s had blood tests (it’s not Mono) but it’s something and we’ve got to figure it out.

So my blogger friends and anyone else who reads this, I’d appreciate some advice. In the meantime, we’ll just try to get through this and I’ll keep you all posted.