Anxiety or what

[alymerfud]

I am currently on 25mg of zoloft and lmg of ativan if needed for anxiety. The last month I have some weird symptoms that I have never experienced with anxiety before. I get a hot burning itchy flushing feeling that starts on my back, then neck and my face around my nose and chin get burning and itchy and turn red and the upper part of my arms near my wrists. It makes me feel very irratable and then I do start to feel anxious. Has anyone had this from anxiety...its almost daily now. I am going to see my doctor again on the 4th as I have been tested (blood tests) for Lupus but when I read the Lupus site they say that is a hard disease to diagnose.

[jitters]

Some of the symptoms of lupus...

Swollen, or painful joints
Do you get a rash when you go in the sun?
Do you get mouth ulcers?
Do your fingers/toes go blue, white or red in the cold?
Have you ever had a low red blood cell count (anaemia), low white cell count, or low platelet count?
Do you get extreme fatigue, even when you've had a good night's sleep?
Have you ever had pleurisy (pain in the chest on breathing in)?
Do you get a red rash on your face, across your cheeks and nose, in the shape of a butterfly?

If you've answered yes to three or more of the above questions, then there is a chance that you may have lupus.

Look at your symptoms, to get a diagnosis of lupus, patients usually must have at least four of the following-

1. Characteristic rash across the cheek
2. Discoid lesion rash
3. Photosensitivity
4. Oral ulcers
5. Arthritis
6. Inflammation of membranes in the lungs, the heart, or the abdomen
7. Evidence of kidney disease
8. Evidence of severe neurologic disease
9. Blood disorders, including low red and white blood cell and platelet counts
10. Immunologic abnormalities
11. Positive antinuclear antibody (ANA)

The doctor Should have done tests for the none visible symptoms and added those to the visible ones. Make a note of all your symptoms, even the ones that you think are not connected. Take this list with you when you see your doctor. Also make a list of any questions you have.

Autoimmune diseases tend to run in families, although they can change in their expression from generation to generation. Your grandmother may have had lupus, your mother Graves' disease, or your sister diabetes. Look back at your family history, and tell your doctor if anyone had an autoimmune disease, it may help with the diagnosis.

However the dianosis of Anxiety does make sense as the brain which triggers Anxiety and Stress related physical symptoms also controls the Auto-Immune system which is why so many Anxiety sufferers have symptoms which mimick Auto-Immune diorders in my case it was Crohns which is also difficult to diagnose however if the symptoms seem to come and go when you feel anxious or worried then it is probably Anxiety. I finally admitted I had Anxiety only when I had 4 panic attcks in three months after having suffered for 3 yrs. So if your not sure treat the Anxiety, Becuase even if it is not the cause, illnesses do not react well to stress.

Duncan