Mental Health Thread • Page 490

Victor Eremita · Mar 13, 2025 at 5:11 AM

cybele said:

TW: Details of medical procedures, hospitalization, chronic illness

I haven't posted here in a while but idk it feels like a good place to vent a bit. I have been going through a hell of a time since last fall. A bit of a story time as I try to gather my thoughts. Apologies if this is too long and meandering! I put spoiler tags around the more sensitive info.

I am currently recovering from Guillan-Barre Syndrome. In September I came down with a horrid respiratory virus that had me sicker than I've been in years. Right around the time I started to feel better from that sickness I started to get weird symptoms. My feet began to feel numb and tingling and then I felt the same in my hands.

I figured it was just exhaustion or muscle aches from the virus. I kept calling out of work (movie theater) but it was beginning to slow down for the season anyway. At the same time my symptoms got worse and worse. I kept saying it wasn't a big deal even though I could barely walk or get out of bed on my first try. I finally agreed to go to urgent care when my legs gave out as I was going downstairs from our second story apartment.

When I went to urgent care I collapsed again -- fully conscious and aware, now in a full blown panic. The doctor tells me that they're calling an ambulance because I might be having a stroke. I'm 31 years old. She tells my mom to meet me at the hospital.

I was in the hospital for 9 days. I spent the first 12 hours in the ER after the doctor there tried to discharge me when I couldn't walk. Thank whoever for the nurse who advocated for me. I was transferred to another hospital who takes my (state-funded) insurance where I spent another 12 hours in their ER before I got a room.

My mom, who I live with, visited every day and spent the whole time there. I was incredibly lucky to get a private room in the neurology ward. I was pretty quickly diagnosed with Guillan-Barre which is an autoimmune syndrome where your body attacks the myelin sheath around the nerves. I underwent a procedure called plasmapheresis or plasma exchange which was 5 daily treatments lasting 2-4 hours where my blood was taken out and returned from a femoral catheter (that was in place for 7 days) with the plasma replaced with albumin.

I was released from the hospital at the very end of October and made it home just in time to watch the Dodgers win the World Series. I had been watching the games earlier that week which helped keep me sane.

Since then I've been recovering at home. I haven't had a drink since the beginning of October which is the longest I've gone since college. I have started seeing a therapist and a psychiatrist who started me on medication for anxiety and depression with possible bipolar. My dad is very bipolar and heavily medicated for it so it's no surprise.

It's been weird. I'm still adjusting my medication doses with the guidance of my psychiatrist but holy hell. It just feels like so much at once. I've been on medical leave from work so I'm at home just in my thoughts.

I am physically getting better. I'm still using a walker for support. I have referrals for more PT/OT and to see a neurologist. Because I have the insurance I have it takes forever for anything to happen. I should make a full recovery eventually but not having a timeline drives me batty.

Mentally I'm still all over the place. I'm up and down with the mood stabilizer plus I'm having the fun side effects with appetite. I'd be more impulsive if I had the money to spend. I think it's a good thing I have this time off to deal with everything but I still am up at night worrying.

I'm going to go visit work on Friday to see the new Looney Toons movie with my mom. I'm honestly terrified to see people I know while using my walker. But hopefully I won't have to use it next month when I start back.

I don't really have a point to end on. It just feels good to kind of get everything out on (virtual) paper. I'm working on myself slowly and maybe I can make up for time I lost over the past few years.

This is so much to go through, I’m glad you’re getting better physically. It’s always frustrating to hear or read people’s stories and see where our insurance based health care system makes things so much harder.

Cameron · Mar 13, 2025 at 6:23 AM

I feel very blessed that I was able to take 8 weeks off in CA for both kids. That’s so fucked that you guys had to go through that. Assisting my wife and bonding with my infants was a highlight of early paternity. Not having to think about work or money in that timeframe was great.

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Mental Health Thread • Page 490

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