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Platelet count and stress
- ImPatient
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- Vicky14
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Antsonparade wrote: I have a very stressful job with a less than understanding boss. I work in an elementary school and when i was first diagnosed with ITP, I was coping with the death of a student (due to DIPG) it was a terrible event for the entire community. I started passing out that weekend and thought it was due to stress but it was really due to a low hemoglobin level (4 units). Since then, i have noticed that stressful times result in major lows. In December, my doctor determined that i needed another 4 rounds of rituxan. I am off work because of the risk of illness and noticed that even though we started fostering 4 kids and that caused a lot of stress, my platelets have been ckming up on their own. In fact, any time i am not working, my platelets rebound nicely even before rituxan. Am i crazy? Has anyone else experienced this?
Looking for insight...i am not one to just quit a job...i have worked here for 15 years but on the other hand, no job is worth my health.
I think stress can play a big part, but maybe other factors are involved too, it just is part of the environment where it can occur. I've also had more stressful periods since where I've not been ill, so it's quite confusing...I'm currently measuring HRV each morning using phone app and chest strap, it is a measurement of stress and your level of flight/fight and how balanced your nervous system is, I'm interested to see how sleep, alcohol, exercise etc all effect our 'stress'. I think we can also be stressed without knowing it and some things that seem like fun relaxing things, drinking wine, exercising, parties can put stress on the body.
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- Vicky14
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I've read Gabor Mate and Bessel v d Kolk, I think it's fascinating stuff, I also think the relationship between number of 'ACEs' (Adverse Childhood Events) and illnesses in adulthood is fascinating, I definitely had a few ACE's and big stresses during my relapses....I've also been in a massively long remission and I wonder if that was after coming out as gay, I wonder if part of me was attacking myself, when I was in a state of not accepting myself. Would love there to be more research on all this as I find the most frustrating thing is not knowing the common factors between relapses. i know other things are involved, but I think sometimes emotional stresses can make us more susceptible to viruses and infections etc.ImPatient wrote: Can you change the thing that is stressing you? I'm crossing my fingers that you don't need splenectomy or that it works well for you at least. I read a few books about stress and health by Bruce Lipton, Gabor Mate, Bessel v.d. Kolk, Alice Miller etc.- if anybody is interested. But it's not directly related to itp.
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- mila78us
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- Vicky14
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All I can say is that I've had different times on steroids, the first time they didn't work for me, but a few years later they did. So I guess, it is an unknown what will work for you. I think that is the most frustrating thing about this illness, the unpredictability and the unknowns.
You say that the medication for depression doesn't seem to help much, can you get other support like counselling or a depression support group. Sometimes counselling can really help in feeling less alone, or even just talking to a friend that is a good listener. I do think the emotional side of this illness is neglected by the medical profession, they just deal with counts....
all the best with everything, hope you are feeling better soon
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- mila78us
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- Vicky14
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Also nice to hear others verbalising your thoughts/concerns etc
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- EdwardJacob
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