# Medical people, what do my symptoms match? I'm seriously confused



## Darkbloom (Aug 11, 2013)

@JTHearts go see a doctor, if your parents care about money more than about your life then go find yourself new parents lol
This does't sound like something you can cure on your own

And talk to your gf, she has some unhealthy habits


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## Halcyon (Jun 21, 2013)

I kind of doubt all of these symptoms could be caused by a psychoactive drug unless you're allergic to an ingredient in it (you should always check for that when starting a new one) but regardless of if it's that or something you contracted from your time in Mexico, you should get it checked out because a month is a very long time to be as ill as you've been and it will take a toll on you. Even if it does go away on its own, which is doubtful given it's been so long, there could still be long term complications from letting it go untreated for so long........ 

I don't think it's HIV though. Your symptoms don't really match that, so I wouldn't worry about that. 

I hope you get whatever it is sorted out, in any case.


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## Halcyon (Jun 21, 2013)

Living dead said:


> And talk to your gf, she has some unhealthy habits


It's not really that simple.


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## Darkbloom (Aug 11, 2013)

Halcyon said:


> It's not really that simple.


I'm sure it's not simple but it doesn't sound like something you get over like 
Gf: "You know, I like cutting my gums sometimes"
Bf: "Ok. Wanna see a movie tonight?"

Idk lol


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## hal0hal0 (Sep 1, 2012)

I concur with the @_Living dead_ : *Go see a doctor* (and yes, I am an _actual _"medical person" and probably better trained than most on this forum to identify disease and not an armchair physician who simply googles things and quotes WebMD). Clinical presentation based on symptoms like these (vomiting, fatigue, altered mental status) don't really lead to a differential and random people on an internet forum are going to have limited information.

I am perplexed why people are saying you do or do not have HIV "based on symptoms" considering HIV doesn't always present symptomatically (i.e., can lie dormant as a retrovirus). Personally, I would not be drawing such conclusions one way or the other.

Your symptoms are very general and nonspecific, so it could be a number of things (which is why differential diagnoses often depend on labs/cultures/etc. to actually determine cause and therefore, proper course of treatment). People try to self-diagnose, but without proper data, it's not terribly reliable. 

At a glance, infection of some sort is a possibility; sepsis can cause altered mental status and delirium and it's not self-limiting either (i.e., it won't just "go away" like a common cold). Fatigue... sepsis can lead to a state of hypotension (low blood pressure) where you are not perfused adequately, so I could see fatigue being common in infection (and it is, from my work in hospital... then again, lots of diseases can cause fatigue so again, not a striking symptom). I would like to see a white blood cell count at the very least, personally, that can tell you pretty quick if it's an active, systemic infection.

So: Google "urgent care clinic + your city" or emergency room. This seems like it's been going on a while, yes? Has not been going away on its own, therefore, seek professional help.


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## Halcyon (Jun 21, 2013)

Living dead said:


> I'm sure it's not simple but it doesn't sound like something you get over like
> Gf: "You know, I like cutting my gums sometimes"
> Bf: "Ok. Wanna see a movie tonight?"
> 
> Idk lol


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## jamaix (Sep 20, 2013)

JTHearts said:


> @_jamaix_
> 
> I've actually been wondering if it might be one of my medications. Neurontin is super helpful but if I remember correctly I think I started it just a few weeks before all this started. I don't want to go off of it though, it's way too good at controlling my anxiety


If it is the medication, perhaps the doctor can adjust it somehow so that you can continue taking it? Or maybe it is interacting w/another medication and that might be the problem. I would definitely talk to your doctor and explain your concerns, and see if they can't find the cause of this. It certainly doesn't seem like feeling nauseous and fatigued all the time could be good for you. I hope you get to feeling better soon!


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## Skeletalz (Feb 21, 2015)

JTHearts said:


> I want to go see a doctor but my parents will be angry


What the hell, why would you even care about something like that?


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## angelfish (Feb 17, 2011)

InSolitude said:


> Giardia? Untreated it continually recurrs basically every time you start eating gain. Not a medico but my coworker told me about his bout of it recently. Hardest thing was finding a Dr willing test for it. Not a diagnosis either you need to see a Dr to get a proper assessment.


Ah, that's a good thought. I remember when studying abroad, being cautioned about drinking water in certain areas lest we come home with "a little friend"... 



hal0hal0 said:


> I am perplexed why people are _saying you do or do not have HIV "based on symptoms"_ considering HIV doesn't always present symptomatically (i.e., can lie dormant as a retrovirus). Personally, I would not be drawing such conclusions one way or the other.


Occam's razor - or in this case, the inversion: if it doesn't look like a horse or sound like a horse, it's probably not a horse. I personally do not tend to present with normal symptoms due to a genetic condition, but most people do, because, well, _normal_ presentation. 

The reason I and perhaps others mentioned HIV sounding unlikely was for balance; JT seems disproportionately concerned that it's HIV. The more intimidating a diagnosis and/or prognosis is, the more people tend to avoid the doc, and it's pretty clear that JT needs to go. I'll take risking being an armchair idiot if it encourages him to seek real medical attention - because, even if he does have HIV, the sooner he gets help, the better, anyway. That said, it's certainly true, theoretically, that he could have anything under the sun, but he asked what his symptoms _sound like_, not what he has. Incidentally, HIV does typically have the latency phase, but it also has an acute set of symptoms at onset which tend to mimic the flu. 

I really do hope that everyone reading this knows that no one here, even if they're a highly trained and seasoned professional, should be handing out diagnoses on a recreational forum. I sort of figured that was an assumption that all of us were running on. As for my personal credentials, I have some formal medical training/education and have worked several years in healthcare, though certainly am no MD. It's fairly irrelevant in this conversation, anyway, since we're just speculating. The only professional advice I can give for JT here is "We need to refer you up! This is beyond my scope of practice!"


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