Stress and Neuropathies

The above picture is an accurate portrayal of me by the end of they day😂😂 I took this picture the other night during our routine “every third day” sleep over. My husband is a firefighter, so we are on our own every third day. The sleep overs were supposed to be occasionally, but..... they’ve become part of our routine. And, I need to enjoy it because she will only be this little and taking up the bed so much longer...

The picture of Gigi enjoying her sleep is also the actual place I would like to go to during a stressful moment in life. Not just because I don’t want to deal with it... I actually can process stress quite well.. most of the time. But nowadays, the neuropathies that I deal with become exponentially worse. I would say 90% of my days include my chin having a feeling of pins and needles. It is honestly the weirdest thing I’ve ever experienced. It feels like spiders crawling on my face (if I had to pick something to explain it). I can tell that when I’m having a stressful episode, such as today and dealing with scheduling plans with friends, it starts to get worse. It freakin’ sucks, but you know what, at least I’ve finally pinpointed ONE thing that exacerbates an issue. I’ve also noticed that extreme cold or being super warm or hot causes it to increase, also. Very strange. I’ve decided to keep seeing the rheumatologist that I saw in Chicago. She is so responsive to any of my messages that I send, and that is a huge deal to me. I have an appointment next month, but on the same day, I will be seeing a specialized neurologist. There are some different tests to check if my small nerves are being affected, but I wanted to meet with the neurologist to discuss what is happening to me before scheduling tests. My rheumatologist explained that Sjögren’s patients often deal with neuropathies. There is treatment, but I would like to figure out the extent (if any) that my nerves are being messed with. I‘m open to medication, but I would like discuss all the options and the side effects. I was given Gabapentin last time I was in Chicago. One of the side effects is fatigue. And that is the LAST thing that I need. But, these neuropathies are getting bad. Really bad in my face... then in the extremities. I guess I need to bite the bullet and try it out for an extended period of time. If it isn’t helpful or the side effects are awful, I can always stop, right?

I hope my crazy neuropathy in my face can give someone some sort of calm.... if something weird or strange is going on like this, don’t let the doctors contribute it to anxiety (if you know for a fact it isn’t... or at least explore options). You’re not crazy! You know to your body. Autoimmune diseases aren’t an end... they are a journey.

Everyone have a great weekend!

-Stefanie-