General feeling of illness

11-12-2013, 09:07 AM

I posted awhile back about my low-grade fever and profuse sweating.

I have been forced to change doctors because the current rheumatologist is just not following up like I feel he should. He put me on Prednisone and Plaquenil, and scheduled me for a follow-up three months out, and I don't even have a firm diagnosis yet. They won't give me blood test results over the phone, and I cannot get in to see him before the end of January. I am in the middle of having records transferred.

I had to stop Plaquenil due to a bad reaction, and it feels like the Prednisone (10mg) is no longer helping.

In the meantime, I have a question. Can Lupus cause a general feeling of illness? I have not felt right for the past few days, but I can't figure out what exactly is wrong. I don't have nausea or anything specific.

My lupus-like symptoms are: rashes; low-grade fever for over two and half months; profuse cold and clammy sweating; pain; fatigue; and recently I developed this burning feeling on the tops of my arms, over my abdomen and my back. It burns but feels superficial, like it's on the skin. The only thing I can liken it to would be a mild chemical burn (there is no hot feeling attached to it). I'm sure I've forgotten some symptoms but those are the main ones. Oh yeah, I have peripheral neuropathy (confirmed in a test) but I don't know if lupus can cause that.

I'm concerned about this weird feeling of being sick but not knowing how. Sometimes I actually feel like I'm dying. It scares me.

Thank you for any input.

11-12-2013, 01:49 PM

Sorry you are feeling bad. Yes lupus can cause a general feeling of illness, malaise, aching all over, fatigue, etc. Depending on how long you took the Placquenil and when you stopped it, and what kind of reaction you got, you may be able to tolerate one pill a day rather than 2, but that should be discussed with your Dr. Your Dr's office should send you a copy of your lab results. That is your right as a patient. You can also look at the diagnosis marked on your billing sheet or get the ICD code for diagnosis and look it up online. Sometimes that is the only (sneaky) way to find out what your Dr is thinking when they won't tell you! Autoimmune diseases like lupus can cause peripheral neuropathy. Many patients with lupus are Vit B12 and folate deficient, which can contribute to it. I would ask your new Dr to check those levels and see if you need to supplement those vitamins. I hope you can get in to see a better Dr. sooner than end of January. It would be nice to feel decent for the holidays, and have an answer as to what is wrong.

11-12-2013, 03:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ladybud

Sorry you are feeling bad. Yes lupus can cause a general feeling of illness, malaise, aching all over, fatigue, etc. Depending on how long you took the Placquenil and when you stopped it, and what kind of reaction you got, you may be able to tolerate one pill a day rather than 2, but that should be discussed with your Dr. Your Dr's office should send you a copy of your lab results. That is your right as a patient. You can also look at the diagnosis marked on your billing sheet or get the ICD code for diagnosis and look it up online. Sometimes that is the only (sneaky) way to find out what your Dr is thinking when they won't tell you! Autoimmune diseases like lupus can cause peripheral neuropathy. Many patients with lupus are Vit B12 and folate deficient, which can contribute to it. I would ask your new Dr to check those levels and see if you need to supplement those vitamins. I hope you can get in to see a better Dr. sooner than end of January. It would be nice to feel decent for the holidays, and have an answer as to what is wrong.

I would love to feel better by the holidays! I'd settle even for just having a new doctor by the holidays. The main problems I have right now are the fever, clammy sweating & feeling unwell in general. Plaquenil caused me to have aching in my chest & neck that traveled down both arms. It was scary. It only happened a few times, but it was enough to scare me off of it.

One thing I'm puzzled about - the 10mg of Prednisone worked incredibly well for about a week, and now (about a month later) it seems to be only about 80% effective. Do people build tolerance to Prednisone?

I looked up the reason he ordered a chest x-ray & it was to rule out lung cancer. I'm very confused by his actions.

Thank you so much for your help!

General feeling of illness

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