Hi there, I am a 20 year old male living in Melbourne, Australia. So I have always been a really emotionally independent person. I never need anyone's help or support and I don't usually seek to be sympathised or empathised with. However, I have reached sort of a tipping point and talking to my parents or close friends has been useless as they just do not understand.
At the age of 12 I was diagnosed with ADHD (not medicating). At the age of 13 I was diagnosed with Hypothyroid (medicated). At the age of 15 I was diagnosed with a glandular disorder where my brain does not signal my testicles to produce sufficient levels of testosterone (medicated). At the age of 16 I suffered from a go-kart accident, breaking my left hand and I can no longer use my left hand to write essays or over long periods of time due to nerve and ligament damage (I'm left handed). Today, my diagnosis of Fibromyalgia has been confirmed.
At the beginning of this year, I moved out of my parents place to start my uni life. I started attending one of the top 30 universities in the world, University of Melbourne. I was full of life, excitement and hunger to achieve all my goals and dreams. I started my university life perfectly, balancing my social life, my education, my health and my passion for racing karts.
Then about 3 weeks in to semester (3months ago), everything started to change. At first I was just tired and weary. Then I started to get demotivated. After that my legs and knees started hurting. After this, my vision got slightly hazy and I started seeing halos at night. I thought this was as bad as anything could get, but then my brain got foggy, I would forget words and feel slightly disoriented. Then I started to feel a sensation of being off balance. Then everything I ate started giving me stomach aches and pains. After this I started to lose the urge to socialize and attend my lectures. After that my sex drive began to decline. Now, my palms and soles of my feet feel strange, I get pins and needles very often, and I feel like I am becoming stupider as every day passes.
Now I just finished my semester and I managed to fight through everything to get the grades I expected of myself. However, I feel this is such a hollow victory as I don't know how much longer I can go on like this. With the trouble sleeping and the constant pains and the constant addition of new symptoms, I don't know how much lower the quality of my life can get.
I have gone from being someone who had a very healthy and enjoyable sex life to someone who hardly shows interest in women. I have even had an occasion where I could not 'get it up'. I have gone from being very witty, energetic and vibrant to just sort of living like a zombie. I have gone from being a very sharp thinker to feeling like my brain is a foggy mess. Worst of all, I have no motivation to do anything. The only thing I feel I can do at this point in time is to try to ride it out and well, reach out to other people who are experiencing what I have.
So, here is my story. What's yours?
Lets talk as I am sure we can all do with a bit off understanding and support from each other.
-Hersh
At the age of 12 I was diagnosed with ADHD (not medicating). At the age of 13 I was diagnosed with Hypothyroid (medicated). At the age of 15 I was diagnosed with a glandular disorder where my brain does not signal my testicles to produce sufficient levels of testosterone (medicated). At the age of 16 I suffered from a go-kart accident, breaking my left hand and I can no longer use my left hand to write essays or over long periods of time due to nerve and ligament damage (I'm left handed). Today, my diagnosis of Fibromyalgia has been confirmed.
At the beginning of this year, I moved out of my parents place to start my uni life. I started attending one of the top 30 universities in the world, University of Melbourne. I was full of life, excitement and hunger to achieve all my goals and dreams. I started my university life perfectly, balancing my social life, my education, my health and my passion for racing karts.
Then about 3 weeks in to semester (3months ago), everything started to change. At first I was just tired and weary. Then I started to get demotivated. After that my legs and knees started hurting. After this, my vision got slightly hazy and I started seeing halos at night. I thought this was as bad as anything could get, but then my brain got foggy, I would forget words and feel slightly disoriented. Then I started to feel a sensation of being off balance. Then everything I ate started giving me stomach aches and pains. After this I started to lose the urge to socialize and attend my lectures. After that my sex drive began to decline. Now, my palms and soles of my feet feel strange, I get pins and needles very often, and I feel like I am becoming stupider as every day passes.
Now I just finished my semester and I managed to fight through everything to get the grades I expected of myself. However, I feel this is such a hollow victory as I don't know how much longer I can go on like this. With the trouble sleeping and the constant pains and the constant addition of new symptoms, I don't know how much lower the quality of my life can get.
I have gone from being someone who had a very healthy and enjoyable sex life to someone who hardly shows interest in women. I have even had an occasion where I could not 'get it up'. I have gone from being very witty, energetic and vibrant to just sort of living like a zombie. I have gone from being a very sharp thinker to feeling like my brain is a foggy mess. Worst of all, I have no motivation to do anything. The only thing I feel I can do at this point in time is to try to ride it out and well, reach out to other people who are experiencing what I have.
So, here is my story. What's yours?
Lets talk as I am sure we can all do with a bit off understanding and support from each other.
-Hersh
