Christine’s Story: Years Without Relief
“As a little girl, I had the same symptoms, just no one was able to pinpoint where they were coming from. So I would wake up in the morning and I would be very ill. Sometimes I would throw up, get sick, have a bad headache, didn’t want to get dressed, didn’t want to move. Sometimes my parents would let me stay home from school, but then they would be upset when after about two hours of lying down, all of a sudden, miraculously, you’re running around, you’re jumping, I wanna to go play with my friends. They say, ‘No, you’re sick’, and people start to not believe you that you’re really feeling ill, when actually it’s some of the worst feeling you could imagine. And it does alleviate itself, it can dissipate a little bit and then goes right back into it, and you have no fever, doctors can’t find anything.”
How long have you been suffering from these symptoms?
“It started around second grade, and it didn’t stop until a few months ago when I got my wonderful glasses. I’ve been suffering with this pretty much my entire life. It’s hard for me to remember a time where I could just wake up and be normal; that’s never happened for me.”
Aside from being sick and nauseated daily, what other symptoms did you experience?
“I had many symptoms. I had extreme neck and shoulder pain, that was almost always constant, it was every single day. My nausea, I had extremely intense nausea, especially in the morning, but it would come throughout the day. I suffered from daily headaches and weekly migraines. Sometimes the headache would turn into a migraine, but I had a headache every single day, without fail. Anxiety, tons and tons of anxiety.”
What kind of doctors had you seen prior to coming to Vision Specialists?
“I’ve seen cardiologists, who thought maybe neurocardiac syncope. I’ve seen psychologists, thinking maybe it’s the anxiety causing this. One of my least favorite things to hear when I was growing up was, ‘Sometimes when I’m sad, my tummy hurts too.’ Basically that just means, ‘We don’t believe you.’ I’ve seen a neurologist, I’ve done sleeping exams, I’ve had electrodes glued to my head. I’ve seen a gastroenterologist where I’ve had a camera down my throat, all sorts of different things.”
How long had you worked at Vision Specialists before you had an exam?
“I was at Vision Specialists for two days before I had my exam. It was a life-changing day, it really was. The exam itself, it was long, but it was easy. Nothing hurt, it was just a very, very thorough exam. I can still remember the first time having the glasses on and just, my shoulders immediately go back, you feel like you’re floating. No pain in my neck or back, my anxiety was almost nothing. It was such an intense, overwhelming feeling to feel so good, it made me cry.”
What’s changed in your life since you started wearing aligning glasses?
“There’s so many things. I’m a lot more outgoing. The anxiety reduction has been amazing for me. I truly love that. Going to the store with ease. I don’t have to make a list, I don’t have to focus. I mean, it’s always good to have a list, but I can make it through the store on my own. Throwing and catching a ball is incredibly easy. Just little physical things. Not walking into the wall anymore. Not getting pants caught on everything because you’re bumping into cabinets. That’s pretty nice. Just basic time management, now that I don’t have to take care of being sick so often, my day belongs to me for the first time in my entire life.”
What would you tell someone with symptoms similar to yours?
“What I would say to someone who’s questioning, maybe on the fence, I would definitely tell you to take the test on the website. It really is there for a reason; it’s super informative. And it gets really hard to keep going back to the doctor over and over again when you’re not getting any results, but you just have to have faith. I can’t imagine what my life would be like if I got here years earlier, but by the same token, I can’t imagine if I had waited 15 years from now and gone without this. There are no drugs, no one’s cutting into you. Even if that’s the last thing you try, it’s so important, and once you start, they can tell you right away if you need it. It’s a wonderful, wonderful exam.”
Make an Appointment at Vision Specialists of Michigan
For the doctors at Vision Specialists of Michigan, the most satisfying part of our job is helping patients who’ve been suffering for years from uncomfortable and sometimes debilitating vision-related physical symptoms get their lives back. To receive treatment for dizziness, headaches, migraines, anxiety and vision problems, contact us today at (248) 258-9000 or fill out our BVD questionnaire online.
