Stress

Apparently if you have at least 5 health problems that can be caused by stress, you're probably stressed, even if you don't know it.

Well, at least, I am. Who knew?!

Sure, I get stressed during midterms and finals and just sometimes when I take on a bit too much, but I LOVE taking on a ton! I LOVE staying busy. But apparently I'm more stressed than I knew.
And according to my doctor that may be one of the many ways my mind and body handles stress and that's okay, not even a bad thing!

But, .... I've had bladder/kidney problems my whole life. I had bilateral reimplementation of the ureters (I think?) when I was 15 months old. Over the past year I've had multiple bladder and kidney infections. Within the past few months I've had more supposedly unrelated health problems. I've been to a ton of doctors, on a bunch of different medications, and I've been fine. I have felt better, but just not ... satisfied. Everyone's been looking at things individually, according to their specialty (Why wouldn't they?)
So, Mother's know best, right? Yeah! Mine totally does. She referred me (and my sister, who's had a lot of the same problems) to a new specialist. (Ha, Yep, that actually worked! She had seen him before, so they took us.)
This past Thursday I saw a urogynecologist, Dr. Biller, at Vanderbilt. I LOVE him! Best doctor ever! A urogynecologist "has expertise in gynecology, urology, and bowel dysfunction in women. Due to the close proximity of the pelvic organs, there is frequent coexistence of problems in adjacent organs." Yes, I did just quote my brochure. :)

So, the diagnosis is ... Levator Myalgia, caused by (dun dun dun) Stress!! So, from my understanding of it, it means that my pelvic floor muscles are way too tight, constricting my pelvic organs (hence all the problems!).

It's caused by any type of stress, emotional, anything at all really, or physical, like my surgery when I was an infant. Whatever it was I apparently internalized the stress. (So, some people grind their teeth or tense their shoulders when they're stressed without thinking about it; its kinda like that, apparently.)  So, Who knows how it happened.

Doesn't matter! Time to fix it! I've been referred to a physical therapist and a pyschologist, to help me figure out and sort through my stresses, because I'm still in denial that I'm stressed. (hah, joking, kinda, okay, I'm coming around to it, but I'm not like a grumpy grouch stress or going to hurt you kinda stress, and I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing!)

After talking with my doctor, I reread all of my medical notes and brochures from my previous diagnosis, like IBS, GERD and all, and found that they're all caused by stress! (in addition to a ton of other possible causes). 

So, who knew?! It's all really fascinating to me and I'm super excited to have answers!

And now, I have yet another reason to be crafty, to paint, to exercise, and to bike ride! Stress Relief! :D