QUERY:
My question will be a bit long winded, but I wanted to provide a brief history for
better understanding. I have been experiencing frequent illnesses lately
such colds, uterine infections, and low energy. This year I have been sick
with colds about 3 times. This year I've also had 2 full medical exams - once
in March and again in August with good results both times. I feel that I am more
susceptible to illness these days. I have only begun experiencing this within
the last 1.5 years. I've had concerns that maybe my immune system is weak, and
have had the HIV blood test, and the results were negative. I'm not sure what
else could be the problem. I take relatively good care of myself.
I exercise regularly and try to eat right. I will be 37
this month with no major illness to date.
Also, I've started having acupuncture sessions for my asthma condition, which is normally
not a problem until a I catch a cold in which case I develop a respiratory infection.
I just recently recovered from a bout. My
acupuncturist told me that my tongue was a funny color just yesterday, and asked me if I
had a problem with my liver or bladder. I didn't realize what she was talking
about until I looked at my tongue this morning. It was a grayish color.
And I also began feeling low on energy again with frequent urinating, and my
throat is a bit raw. In light of my concerns, what would you advise at the point?
Would you suggest I see a specialist?
ANSWER:
Dear L,
I'm glad you decided to write us here at The Inn because your question is
excellent and one that many others can relate to. You describe your
symptoms well and it does sound like you have done most of the initial work
to rule out organic disease. I do have some suggestions for you to
consider, and you may not need a specialist's visit at all!
I'd hope that as part of your full physicals your provider checked to make
sure you were not anemic, that you do not have a liver virus like hepatitis,
or feeling the effects of a thyroid gland that is not working well. Those
are all simple blood tests and can help rule out some common causes of a
depressed immune system and fatigue.
If your physical examinations and blood work show no abnormality, you may
want to consider stress as a cause of your fatigue and frequent illness. I
know we may not want to consider this possibility, and some people hear this
as, "It's all in my head! No way!" but physiologically, stress does
suppress the immune system. As we do more and more research on this
relationship, we are able to see clearly that stress is hard on our bodies.
In looking for a way to explain my point to you, I found an excellent article. I
copied some of it to put here for you because it was so relevant to what you
have been experiencing:
>>>>Psychological stress has also been shown to increase susceptibility to
viral infection. Subjects exposed to stress showed increases in infection
rates from 74% to 90%, and clinical colds rose from 27% to 47%. Earlier
studies have shown that medical students have an increased risk of
mononucleosis during examination periods (McEwen & Stellar, 1993). This is
not surprising, as stress does suppress the immune system; latent viruses
then have an easier time resurging, since the body cannot defend itself as
well (Brosschot, et al, 1994). This is supported by studies showing that
colds and other infections manifest themselves on weekends after busy and
stressful work weeks. Additionally, studies on monkeys have shown that
ulceration showed up most severely during the rest and recovery periods,
rather than during the stress period itself (McEwen & Stellar, 1993).
In conclusion, psychological stress does have a significant affect on the
immune system. It raises catecholamine and CD8 levels, which suppresses the
immune system. This suppression, in turn, raises the risk of viral
infection. Stress also leads to the release of histamines, which can trigger
severe bronchoconstriction in asthmatics. Stress increases the risk for
diabetes mellitus, especially in overweight individuals, since psychological
stress alters insulin needs. Psychological stress also alters the acid
concentration in the stomach, which can lead to peptic ulcers, stress
ulcers, or ulcerative colitis. Chronic stress can also lead to plaque
buildup in the arteries, especially if combined with a high-fat diet. This
buildup is called atherosclerosis, and is often responsible for angina or
heart attacks, which are usually brought on by acute stress themselves.
These diseases are by no means the only ones connected with psychological
stress, although they are the most common. Further research is needed to
clarify exactly how stressors contribute to each of these problems, so that
treatment can be given to protect the body from these diseases. <<<<
L, of course I don't know what your life demands of you, but if your
doctors have really looked at every other physical possibility, perhaps
considering that some kind of stress is contributing to your physical
problems may help you make whatever changes might allow you to stay healthy
most of the time. Remember that we change as we mature, and the level of
stress tolerable when we are 24 is not the same as when we are 37! We need
to adjust.
Best wishes,
Dr. Kerr