Symptom or Side Effect…or Could It Be Something New?

Living with chronic pain or a chronic illness is difficult but it can also be extremely confusing. Very often chronic pain or chronic illnesses come with a wide range of symptoms. And medication can come with a long list of possible side effects. Sometimes it can be hard to know whether you’re dealing with a symptom of the condition or a side effect of the medication you take. And just to throw a spanner in the works, an issue you’re having might be neither. It might be something new entirely.

If you don’t know whether a health issue is a symptom, a side effect or a new problem, it can actually be dangerous.

The Dangers of Not Knowing Whether an Issue is a Symptom, a Side Effect or Something New

Most days, I feel tired and sluggish. Living with chronic pain is physically tiring. It zaps your energy. However, I take several types of medication for my pain and the most common side effect listed for each one is tiredness. So is my tiredness a symptom of my pain or is it a side effect of my medication? Or could it be a combination of both? But then again, it might have nothing to do with my pain or my medication at all.

If you’re a regular reader, you’ll know that I live with various types of pain. I have back and rib pain all the time. A couple of times, when I have described my rib pain to my GPs, they have sent me for chest x-rays just in case I’ve had a blood clot on my lung. I was sure it was just my normal rib pain but they wanted to play it safe. On both occasions, I was correct – there was nothing else going on. But my GP was also correct to check it out.

It worries me a wee bit that I could have a serious health issue but I put up with how I am feeling thinking that my symptoms are normal. That has happened to me in the past.

I Put Up With Feeling Ill Because it Was Normal

A few years ago, I was feeling so lethargic and generally off-colour. My back and ribs were playing nasty. I felt as though I was hurting everywhere so I was taking extra pain medication. That extra medication always makes me feel quite nauseous and dizzy so I was putting up with how I was feeling. However, as the days went on, I felt as though I could barely stand up. I was lying curled up in bed trying to ride it out thinking my symptoms were normal when my husband persuaded me to call my doctor.

My GP saw me as an emergency that afternoon and when he took my blood pressure, he told me it was dangerously low. It was so low, that he called an ambulance to take me to the hospital. He said that he couldn’t let my husband take me in the car in case something happened to me on the way. That should have shocked me at the time but I was feeling so crappy that it just went over my head.

While in the hospital, a blood test revealed that I had pancreatitis which is very serious and can be life-threatening. It had been caused by gallstones. A scan showed that my gallbladder contained multiple stones. The surgeon couldn’t believe that I’d never been to the doctor complaining about gallbladder pain in the past. We surmised that I’d been putting up with it because I am used to living with pain in that area so it seemed normal.

I had to stay in the hospital under the care of the High Dependency staff for a few days before having emergency surgery to remove my gallbladder.

I Thought it Was Just a Normal Bad Spell But I Was Dangerously Ill

Afterwards, I gave it more thought. I had been having one of those weeks when it felt as though my pain was flaring more than normal. A week when fatigue hit me harder. A week when I felt as though I was suffering from every side effect listed for my medication. I had been putting up with it because feeling like that was fairly normal for me. But I was actually dangerously ill.

A few months later, my GP was being extra thorough and asked me to explain exactly how I was feeling. I gave her a list of my symptoms but I kept saying, “but that’s just normal for me.” She did some blood tests and discovered I had low Vitamin B12 and was deficient in several other nutrients. She then did some more tests and discovered that I had coeliac disease.

Now when I say to my doctor, “but it’s just my normal pain”, I have a feeling they don’t really trust my judgement. They’re probably right.

Many People With Chronic Illnesses Find it Difficult to Know if an Issue is a Normal Symptom, a Side Effect or Something New

I know that this happens to other people living with a chronic illness or a chronic pain condition. We don’t always know if a symptom is related to our condition or if it’s a side effect of medication. And, very often, we really have no idea if there’s a new issue. We just get so used to pain, tiredness and feeling unwell that it becomes normal.

A ‘healthy’ person would see their doctor if they developed unusual extreme pain or felt generally unwell. But people living with a chronic illness or chronic pain don’t take action because it’s normal to feel like that.

Symptoms like tiredness, dizziness, feeling lightheaded, feeling nauseous, headaches and being in a lot of pain can be normal symptoms or normal side effects of medication. But there could be a thousand other reasons for any of those symptoms. Most of them won’t be serious. However, those same symptoms might actually indicate that there’s something seriously wrong.

Tips To Help You Cope With Side Effects of Medication

Some Doctors Make Patients Feel As Though They’re Time Wasters

Many GPs probably wouldn’t want us making appointments to see them about those ‘normal’ issues. Some GPs would think we were wasting their time. Some might advise us to stop focusing so much on our health. And some might even think we’re hypochondriacs.

So we often put off going to see doctors. We feel guilty for wasting their time. And we certainly don’t want to be labelled as hypochondriacs.

So what can we do?

We shouldn’t ever feel guilty for taking up a doctor’s time as it could be dangerous if we don’t see them when necessary.

• Be Your Own Expert: We need to try to become experts on our bodies, our conditions and our medication so that we notice if something is different, even if it’s just slightly different.
• Symptom Diary: Maintaining a symptom diary can show any changes. Then you can observe those changes and determine whether or not you need to see a doctor. If you complete a symptom diary at the end of the day, it will only take a couple of minutes so you won’t need to focus on it for too long.
• Learn About Your Condition: Learning about your condition is important so that you recognise all possible symptoms. You can also ask other sufferers in support groups if certain symptoms are specific to the condition. If they’re not, then you might need to see a doctor to investigate.
• Patient Information Leaflet: The PIL which accompanies medication lists all possible side effects. It also tells you whether side effects are common or rare and tells you if a side effect is serious enough to warrant telling the doctor.
• Blood Tests: Ask your doctor for routine blood tests at least once a year to check things like iron levels, Vitamin B12, liver and kidneys. (Certain medications also require regular blood checks. The PIL will tell you this.)
• Involve Other People: Ask the people closest to you to let you know if they think that your symptoms aren’t normal. (Remember, I was putting up with my symptoms when I had extremely low blood pressure and pancreatitis. It was my husband who said that I needed to see a doctor.)
• Trust Your Instincts: Learn to trust your own instincts. If you have a suspicion that something isn’t right, let your doctor know.
• Some Things Shouldn’t Be Ignored: Never ignore symptoms such as chest pain, bleeding, blistering rashes, breathing difficulties or unexplained bruising.

10 Common Symptoms That Shouldn’t Be Ignored

Living with a chronic health condition really is confusing. We should never feel afraid of telling a doctor about new symptoms. Those new symptoms might be serious so shouldn’t be overlooked.

---

Thank you so much for reading.

If this post resonated with you, I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments.
And feel free to share it with your friends or support groups.
Take care,
Liz.

Subscribe to my blog and follow me on my social media accounts to keep up to date with new posts:

• Facebook
• Instagram
• X
• YouTube
• Pinterest