Hello all,
Altho my son is recovering great from his surgery this past September, his symptoms have basically disappeared, except for some anxiety (which is much better than before) and FATIGUE!
He is 18, is a senior in high school and works part time everyday after school. he can get 12 hrs of sleep and still struggling to keep his eyes open at school and work. Today he said to me...I cant take this being so tired all the time...please help me mom. I know surgery is hard on the body and Chiari is known to cause fatigue.
Please let me know of anything that has helped you all with your fatigue..foods/vitamins...etc
Thanks in advance for your replies.
Charlene
Has he been tested for sleep apnea?
4 months was not all that long ago for a decompression surgery. I would consider that school plus homework plus working is too much. If at all possible I would drop the after school work. I was still very tired at 4 months- not falling asleep at work tired, though. Maybe he should have some blood work done???
Jenn
I would ask his doctor about a sleep study. I had a very successful chiari surgery many years back now, but even after the surgery have always battled fatigue and excessive hours of sleep! My neurosurgeon and the sleep doctor I was referred to said it is very common for people with chiari to also have a sleep disorder.i thought the 2 sleep studies were very helpful ( the first was the overnight test, and the 2nd was the daytime sleepiness test.) they will be able to tell if theres any sleep apnea, or be able to see if he’s not entering the right stages of sleep etc.cpap machine works for many if he woukd have apnea(didnt work for me at all though!) Stimulants, such as adderall or provigil are oftn used to treat narcolepsy/hypersomnia and may be prescribed if other treatments like the cpap machine don’t work.
Id say ask his neurosurgeon about the sleep test; it never even occurred to me that sleep apnea could apply to me at my age! I’d say its definitly worth looking into! You could also directly ask your doctor about the stimulants option; depending on how comfortable you feel with his doctor; just be careful they don’t just think he’s just trying to get adderall for “fun” or to “sell” as it is a controlled substance. For me personally, i am prescribed adderall (for both A.D.D and excessive daytime sleepiness) and it helps tremendously with staying awake as well as for the foggy brain.you hear a lot of bad things about adderall etc, but for me it has given me a shit at being able to keep up with everyone else and being able to function.
If you have any questions, feel free to message me
-gretchen
Thanks so much for all the suggestions. I took Steven back to the Dr. because he just wasn't feeling better from a cough and found out he tested positive for legionnaires. That is a bacteria based lung infection, who knows where he picked it up but Dr. put him on two rounds of z-packs. He is feeling better and the fatigue is a little better. I also started him on B12, that seems to be helping also. I take him back next Tuesday to have another round of follow up blood work and will mention the sleep apnea. I don't think he has POTS because he his blood pressure never changes and he never complains of any lightheadedness. He is very active, he works on his car all the time, lots of bending over and squatting and getting back up and I have asked him if he ever feels funny after doing any of it and he said no..why? he looked at me funny, like what are you talking about...LOL. But I will ask the doctor about POTS also...you never know with Chiari what is going on.
thanks again and will keep you posted after Tuesday's appointment.