Trying to figure out what’s wrong with me?
I used to have really painful and frequent heartburn when I was younger. I went to my doctor and they put a camera down my throat and into my stomach where they found a large amount of redness and bleeding. My doctor diagnosed me with gastritis and put me on medication to treat it. It worked for a while but shortly after I was unable to afford the medication and I didn’t think I needed it anyways as I was experiencing no more symptoms. Recently (last 3 years or so) I have been getting the heartburn more and more and I have noticed other symptoms. When I was in high school I was a great student, 4.0 GPA, sports, extracurricular activities, etc. During my senior year I lost my motivation to do…anything basically. Im 20 now and I’ve since flunked out of 2 colleges due to an inability to concentrate. When I was reading my textbooks I couldn’t remember even the last sentence I had just read. I was also diagnosed with sleep apnea to which i contributed the loss of concentration but I remember having all the symptoms of sleep apnea well before my lack of concentration. I was reading up on anemia and possibly saw a connection with the slow bleeding in my stomach from the gastritis and the recent lack of focus. Does anyone have any other ideas or advice for me?
Unfortunately I’m not on the medication, I haven’t been able to go to the doctor due to the fact that I no longer have insurance because of flunking out of college. So I haven’t been able to afford a visit yet.
yes i do feel weak and tired but i just piled this into the sleep apnea category. So basically what you guys are saying is I need to go to the doctor asap?
Tagged with: 3 years • anemia • colleges • doctor asap • extracurricular activities • frequent heartburn • gastritis • gpa • insurance • lack of concentration • loss of concentration • medication • motivation • senior year • sleep • sleep apnea • sports • stomach • textbooks
Filed under: Sleep Apnea Symptoms
If you were bleeding (from a bleeding ulcer) you would feel weak and tired. That may translate to a lack of concentration as well, but that isn’t usually how anemics describe the symptoms. As for your heartburn, Prilosec OTC is over the counter and there are now generics in this category of meds (Omeprazole – prescription Prilosec OTC) so if you have insurance, it will be your generic copay. My advice, treat the heartburn and see if the concentration improves.
wow, i really wish i did…
Are you back on the medication? Because if you aren’t you should be. If all of this is related to the overproduction of the acid – you can help/fix that with the medication.
If you are still having issues paying for it there are medication help plans for people that can’t afford it, or you might see if you can get a cheap student plan?
Well have you followed up the doctor or gotten any blood work done? They can easily figure out if you are anemic. I doubt you are anemic due to blood loss from gastritis because that would be a more acute situation. How long has this lasted? I think I would start with a complete blood panel….
If you’re bleeding internally into your stomach you may vomit blood. It may look like red blood or it may be coffee colored. If that’s the case or if it starts you’ll want to see a dr asap. If you’re worried about paying, don’t! Just get your a** to the er quickly!