Weird Sleepiness, Edema + Some Other Symptoms - Does Anyone Else Get This?

[Guest guest]

Today I'm getting that " weird sleepiness " feeling that I get either

before getting much increased pain and/or (gross alert!!) a

particularly " difficult " bowel movement. Does anyone else ever get

that weird sleepy feeling, like no matter what you do, you just

can't for the life of you stay awake?

I asked the last GI I saw in Boston about it and he sort of just

blew me off. I know it sounds stupid but it almost feels like there

are some sort of " toxic gasses " that are being leaked somewhere

(i.e., in the bowels) and that for me anyway, that is why there is

such a weird interconnectivity between what is happening in my bowel

system and what happens otherwise, the sleepiness, the pain, the

spasms (that are now somewhat controlled by the Levbid (Anti-

spasmodic)that I take.

But almost every time I'm about to get another attack I get this

weird sleepiness that I just cannot shake off. When it starts

happening I even try playing a sort of " beat the clock " game with

myself as in I better get showered, dressed, etc., because it's

happening and later I won't be able to fight it at all and will

virtually be unable to get up off the couch to do anything much less

get showered and dressed, etc.

I know I've posted a couple of times regarding the edema but I'm

throwing it out there again just in case someone else who gets it

didn't see my prior posts. It is getting really bad and I'm just

terrified to tell my pcp about it because he'll just say to increase

the diuretic that he gave me and that's causing symptoms of

nausea and pain although, as I said previously, he swears up anddown

that it doesn't cause panc problems and if I try to tell him

otherwise he'll basically tell me it's all in my imagination

basically. I sometimes get the feeling that he thinks I'm a

hypochondriac but I TRULY am not...I just know that all of these

weird symptoms are interconnected in some way, I just DON'T know

why!!

The other thing I wanted to throw out there is this: Does anyone

else get very bad acid reflux and/or vomiting in your sleep? The

acid reflux I know isn't that odd and I take Nexium for it but

lately it's gotten so bad that I wake up vomiting in my sleep with

it all in my nose and choking/coughing up very acidy, nasty bile-

like vomit. The past two nights it's happened and since I've fallen

asleep sitting up on the couch it goes all over myself when it

happens. Kind of scary to say the least as I'm afraid that I may

actually choke on it some night and NOT be woken up by it.

Sorry that this is so long and thanks for reading this far but as I

said, I just wanted to throw these odd symptoms out there to see if

anyone else gets all of them or even one or two of them or

whatever. Any suggestions or words of wisdom would be much

appreciated.

Thanks and hope you're all having a good day today!

[Guest guest]

,

I'm pleased to see your post...I, too, am struggling daily with the

sleepiness you describe. I often leave my house for work in the

morning around 6:00 AM, and lately I've been so very sleepy, that

I've nearly fallen asleep behind the wheel. Every morning, I roll

my windows down for the 30 mile drive...trying to keep me awake.

It's gotten to the point where I dread the drive...because I'm

afraid. It's kind of an uncontrollable sleepiness. Plus...I have

to take a nap in my car at noon. How pathetic!

In addition, I experience the edema you speak of. My ankles/feet

are the worst (my husband says my feet look like sausages stuffed

into my shoes..) and my knees are swollen too. My doc put me on

HCTZ, but like you, I'm fearful to take more than a very small does,

for fear of the pancreatitis side effect.

Not sure what to do....I have wondered whether it may be due to some

of the meds I'm on...duragesic patch, Norco 10/325 for BT pain,

phenergan for nausea, HRT, viokase, prilosec, synthoid. I'm so

afraid that it's the duragesic causing it, because I'm afraid that

I'll have to quit the patch, and it's the only thing I've found that

will help manage the pain, and yet allow me to work in a full time,

demanding professional position.

Any ideas are appreciated. ...I hope you are well today.

Thanks,

SamT