Stuck Between a Couch and a Hard Place

This past week has been brutal. For six days straight, I’ve had the worst headache and fatigue of my life. The pain settles right at the base of my skull, and anytime I try to get up and move around, the dizziness kicks in and I feel like I can’t catch my breath. I wish I could say I’ve been enjoying a cozy week of rest, but the truth is—I’ve either been in bed or on the couch, and none of it feels restful. I physically can’t function.

Yesterday, I saw my gynecologist to check in on my anemia and heavy periods. At this point, we’re still trying to figure out whether I’m dealing with a virus that knocked me off my feet or if my anemia is behind all this. She ran one final blood test to check for von Willebrand disease, which is a bleeding/clotting disorder that can sometimes cause heavy periods and anemia.

If that test comes back positive, it means another trip to the hematologist for treatment of both the anemia and the bleeding disorder. If it’s negative, then the plan is:

Endometrial biopsy in two weeks (just to cover all bases) Follow-up in four weeks to talk about a possible endometrial ablation

For now, we’re holding off on other iron treatments until we know the root cause. As much as I want a quick fix, my doctor made it clear we don’t want to treat the wrong thing.

So here I am—in the in-between. Waiting. Resting. Trying not to lose my mind on this couch. I’m way over it. I want my energy back. I want to do simple things again without feeling like my head is splitting or that I might faint just from standing up.

But until we have answers, it’s more sleep, more patience, and more hoping that soon I’ll get back to living instead of just lying around.

If you’ve ever been through a health mystery, you know how exhausting the waiting can be.