I became severely stressed when I began taking care of my two boys without any help because that’s when my older son’s sensory issues and “fight, fright or flight” issues really kicked in.
Sensory Processing Disorder Drove Me Over the Edge
He was crying about everything almost non-stop, and almost nothing I could do could console him.
I read an article the other day from SheKnows Parenting called, “How To Talk To Your Pediatrician About Sensory Processing Disorder” that summed up Sensory Processing Disorder very well: “The difference between a finicky child and a child with sensory processing disorder (SPD) is that the child with SPD will often react in what you would consider a highly over the top manner, such as prolonged screaming and crying.”
That was my older son, and that’s what drove me over the edge.
A Whole Host of Sudden, New Symptoms
Because of this, I developed middle-of-the-night insomnia, extreme irritability, shingles (twice), bronchitis (which I’d never had before), the worst case of poison ivy ever (I took a 6-pack of steroids which made it go away until I stopped taking it, at which point it came back with a vengeance), systemic Candida, chronic sinus infections, suddenly irregular cycles, a uterine fibroid (which caused intra-cycle bleeding) and an ovarian cyst.
I had never had “female” issues before, but now I was loaded with them! And all of these things happened within a year and a half’s time.
Stress Led to Uterine Fibroid
Shortly after, I developed a uterine fibroid. It was about an inch long and, luckily, was pendulous, making it easily removed with surgery.
I remember my gynecologist at the time telling me I had three choices: 1) do nothing; 2) remove it surgically; or, 3) remove it surgically and also perform an ablation to make sure it never, ever came back.
This kind of scorched-earth policy on my body freaked me out, so I chose not to do that. I went ahead with the surgery, which was easy enough, because he led me to believe that the fibroid would not likely go away and may, in fact, get bigger.
I suppose I could have gone for a second opinion, but the only other gynecologists I knew of, that most of my friends knew of, were his colleagues, and so I assumed I would just get the same answer.
Adrenal Fatigue
I was bone-tired and needed 2-3 hour naps every day, and even then I woke up tired. I was more tired than I usually had been throughout my life.
I remember needing naps as a teenager. Even as a young woman, I remember taking naps on the couch at lunch. In fact, when my brother came to see me recently, the first thing he asked my boys was, “Does your mommy still take naps?”
In any case, naps were necessary, but they weren’t making me any less tired.
Other symptoms of adrenal fatigue that I had were low blood pressure, feeling dizzy after rising from lying down, brain fog, poor immunity, craving salty and sugary foods, unexplained hair loss (it used to come out in clumps in the shower – ugh!), insomnia and a tendency to startle easily.
As far back as I can remember, I’ve had low blood pressure (which doctors said was never a problem – yeah, right!) and dizziness after rising. I must have had a mild case of adrenal fatigue almost all my life!
Craving carbohydrates (breads, cereals, crackers, cookies, bagels, etc.) and sweets is another sign of adrenal fatigue. It can also be a sign of a system Candida or other pathogen infection, too.
That’s because a lot of times (or always? I’m curious!), these two issues go hand in hand. The preferred food of Candida and pathogenic bacteria is carbohydrates in the form of sugar, grains and starches.
