u/Odd-Yellow-5843

Hi, I’m getting my first endoscopy next week, and I’m a bit nervous. But I was just curious to see if this is a common practice. My appointment isn’t until 10am, but they’re requesting I arrive by 6:30am, is this normal? Did you guys have to do the same? And what is the reason? Also, I am getting sedated and SO anxious about accidentally ingesting liquids the day of, specifically when brushing my teeth the morning of the appointment. I am SO worried that I’m considering not brushing my teeth at all until after the procedure. Did any of you do the same or did you go ahead and brush before your appointment? If you didn’t brush, were the medical staff bothered by your morning breath or are they used to this? Thanks in advance!

37F

4’10

Non-smoker

Non-drinker

No meds

No diagnosis

No recent illnesses

I'm posting here because I feel completely stuck in the medical system. For the past three years, I’ve had a ton of weird, changing symptoms that point to a blood circulation or thick blood issue, but my primary doctor won't give me a hematology referral because my regular blood work numbers look "mostly normal" on paper. I recently got an abnormal blood smear report back that showed structural issues with my cells (like Burr cells and Anisocytosis), but nobody has explained it to me yet. I am actively having scary symptoms like chest pain and dark webs in my vision, and I really need help figuring out what this all means and how to get my doctor to take me seriously. 

SYMPTOMS 

Vascular & Extremeties:

• Erythromelalgia: Triggered by heat and physical activity. 

• Raynaud’s/Vasomotor Shifts: Alternating episodes of painfully cold, pale fingers and toes (toes will also turn slightly purple, but improve with movement).

• Facial Flushing & Paleness: Face will turn pale when I've been sitting for a while but as soon as I get up and become physically active it will get hot and flushed. 

Neurological & Head:

• Persistent Head Pain: Daily headaches, localized stabbing head pains, and pressure pain near eyes (happen at different times, not all at once). Daily dizziness. 

• Migratory Neuropathic Pain: Sharp throbbing pains and tingling that happens in different parts of my body at different times. 

• Auditory Changes: Pulsatile tinnitus, constant ringing, and chirping sounds, the chirping only happens in my right ear. 

• Transient Issues: A few times of sudden slurred speech or word finding difficulties. 

Ocular, Chest, & GI:

• Visual Cobwebs: Sudden onset of dark web-like floaters that move with my eyes, with a few instances of blurry spots in vision. Dark floaters have been persistent for two months. 

•Cardiopulmonary: Resting tachycardia, paired with shortness of breath, and squeezing chest pain. Also shock-like chest pains. 

•GI: Intermittent early satiety

• Bone pain: Specifically in my right tibia, that comes and goes and will go on for days at a time. 

LABS will be posted in comments.

37F, 4’11, non-smoker, non-drinker, no medications

Hi, for two days now I've been experiencing intermittent electric shock-like chest pains that last a second but are pretty painful when they occur, burning pain in the right thigh, and cramping pain in the left foot. Is this something to be concerned about or is it due to lack of hydration/electrolytes? I was diagnosed with leukocytosis two years ago, and due to my persistent but slightly abnormal labs for 3 years and vascular symptoms, I finally had a peripheral blood smear done that came back with some abnormalities but I'm still waiting on the pathology report. Any help would be appreciated!

Hi, I was just wondering how long it typically takes for a pathologist to review a peripheral blood smear with some abnormalities? I had mine done on Friday and results were posted the same day, but I'm waiting on the actual notes. My PCM specifically requested a path review. It’s been 3 days and I still don't see them on my portal.

Hi, I'm new here. So I just turned 37 about a month ago. I’ve been a stay at home mom since the age of 20. I REALLY want to make something of myself and feel accomplished in life. It stings a bit more when I see that my husband going on 41, is already on his second career. He was in the military for 20 years and is now a Firefighter/EMT. I feel shame when people ask what I do and my response is “I'm a stay at home mom.” I dropped out of high school in my junior year, and currently in the process of earning my diploma online. The thing is, even after all these years I STILL don't know what I want to get a degree in!! It's super frustrating! I want to do something that makes decent money, but I also want to make sure I truly enjoy it. How did you guys know? Any tips?! They would be greatly appreciated!