Hi Everyone its LP,

I have been a member for a year and 1/2 and have been struggling with the terms of whether or not to test. I try to forget that I am potentially gene positive so I visit the site on occassion to read up and say hello with the many of friends I have made here.

I am not sure whats happened over the course of the last month but I am not feeling on my game. My wife says its stress but i've been stressed before and i've never had these sorts issues.

Basically, a mild head ache and slower response time. I used to be alot more patient but have been eaisly agitated, loud noises, kids screaming etc gets me all worked up which I can controll it but never used to bother me so much. I recently have been sleeping at least 8 or more hrs after waking i'm feeling rested. I used to get by on avg 6hrs.

The most conerning is a general uneasiness with in my balance more so in transition from sitting to standing. I've also noticed a feeling to twitch my body or head. I can control it if I think about it and other times it doesn't bother me if I am focused on a different activity.

Stange, A month ago I was fine, now I am not sure what to do. Don't really want to go see the doc and have this in my records if you know what i mean...

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Regards,
LP

Hi LP, Regardless of any disease process, at the age of 35-45 we all start to have physical changes. Including all the 'symptoms' that you mention. Starting with a need to sleep more hours at night. Anxiety issues with work and kids creep into our subconscious and we become more irritable. Too much noise or other stimuli can really get on our nerves - and cause headaches. Even mild photophobia occurs. Plus unsteady movements can certainly be a sign of overall physical and emotional fatigue. It is easy for 'us' HD families to point first at HD. But the more likely thing is diet, lack of exercise or other stresses. The fact that you've noticed it since last month just tells me you keep exellent track of your body and it's changes.

I certainly am hopefull for you that it is not HD. Something I learned in school 'When you see hoof prints, think horses first - then zebras'

Best of Luck, Robeen

Robeen,

thanks for your insight and advice and appreciate the support. I am going to start to make some slight changes to my daily routine and schedule a physical just to get some general questions sorted out.

rgds,
>>LP



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/10/2008 05:13AM by lpbp011.

Robeen,

thanks for your insight and advice and appreciate the support. I am going to start to make some slight changes to my daily routine and schedule a physical just to get some general questions sorted out.

rgds,
>>LP



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/10/2008 05:12AM by lpbp011.

I am usually one for saying trust your instincts. You notice your own body changes years before any doctor can verify them, but with HD, I'm not so convinced. Once you start thinking about HD, you start to search for symptoms until it becomes an obsession and a self-fullfilling prophecy. I have tested negative to HD, but still believe I have the symptoms! There are other explanations for these symptoms such as aging, poor sleep and stress. If you find you're obsessing, you can get get tested to put your mind at rest (or make it worse if it's positive!) or you can find yourself a good genetic counsellor to discuss your concerns with (even if you have no intention of getting tested) and get prescribed an anti-depressant. I believe you can test 'annonymously' if you're prepared to pay for it, but that depends on your location. Testing isn't something to take lightly, once you start the testing process, the stress and worry seems to be exaggerated even more with HD on your mind 24/7. A good anti-depressant will help you relax and you may find the symptoms disappear as quickly as they appeared. If not, the anti-depressants will certainly help you adjust to the idea of having HD and the anxious wait for the test results. Hoping for your sake its fatigue and worry over nothing. All the best.

Hey lp, maybe just a general physical would be good too, you know, get your blood pressure checked, cholester, sugar levels, that sort of thing, could be just something like one of these things maybe?