Me and My diagnoses part 1

I was diagnosed by my rheumatologist with Rheumatoid Arthritis,( R.A.) in 2008. Prior to the R.A diagnoses, my rheumatologist described me as having an undifferiented collagen  vascular disease ( UCVD).

Undifferentiated Collagen Vascular Disease, is a disease that doesn’t allow for a prompt diagnosis, because patients sometimes developed overlapping symptoms of various Connective Tissue Diseases.

Connective tissue disease refers to a group of disorders involving the protein-rich tissue that supports organs and other parts of the body. Examples of connective tissue are fat, bone, and cartilage. These disorders often involve the joints, muscles, and skin, but they can also involve other organs and organ systems including the eyes, heart, lungs, kidneys, gastrointestinal tract, and blood vessels. There are more than 200 disorders that affect the connective tissue. Causes and specific symptoms vary by the different types.
 
For other forms of connective tissue disease, the cause is not known. In some cases, researchers believe the disorder may be triggered by something in the environment of people who may be genetically susceptible. In these diseases, the body's normally protective immune system produces antibodies that target the body's own tissues for attack.(WEBMD)

I was so stressed out during that period of (UCVD), that I honestly believed I would be on my deathbed before anyone found out what was really wrong with me!


In September 2004, I started having the worst chest pains ever. The pain was so wicked that I thought I had some sort of pulmonary disease. After all I smoked for over twenty years, and when the pain radiated to my upper back, I thought I had pneumonia or worst lung cancer. However, my chest x-rays and cat scans were negative.


This constant pain in my chest and back, compounded with my arthritic body aches disabled me so much that I was home more than I was at work. At one point I thought my heart was the problem. I went to a cardiologist and had test done and my heart was absolutely fine. I started thinking that I was going mad!


I was so depressed that all I wanted to do was to stay in bed. My body was hurt. I was in pain. I was having difficulties breathing and no one could tell me why definitively.


I want to note that none of the doctors or specialists that I saw made me feel awkward or silly. They were at times just as baffled as I was, with my medical issues. Then after several trips to my then general practitioner, with chest and back wall pain again, I was diagnose with Pleurisy. Which can be severe, one of the symptoms of pleurisy is sharp pains in chest when breathing deeply. I would use my inhalers to assist me when I needed help breathing. For my bout with pleurisy I was prescribed anti-inflammatory medicines and for awhile they worked.


Pleurisy which is sometimes called Pleuritis is swelling (inflammation) of the thin layers of tissue (pleura) covering the lungs and chest wall. (WEBMD)