Hello all, this is my first post!
I would like to start this by asking the questions:
Is there "something" here?
What should I do?
For starters, I'm male, 25 years old, 175lbs (79kg), and 6'2" (188cm).
In December 2016, I developed a rash all over my body. I saw the doctor about this rash and she diagnosed it as pityriasis rosea. The rash cleared up after about two months, but by March 2017 I started to notice some odd neurological changes that I couldn't quite figure out. My symptoms were/are:
Mental fog/fatigue/slowness
Lost ability to do mental math
Flat voice/affect
Emotional blunting and anhedonia
Fatigue
Poor memory and ability to focus (worse than baseline)
At this time I was taking Adderall for ADHD and depression and there was a lot of stress going on at work and home. The Adderall treatment started in September of 2016 and the medication worked well until the onset of the above symptoms; I am no longer taking it because it does almost nothing to my ability to focus, raise my mood, or clear my head. My psychiatrist thought it might be that PTSD was triggered and was causing my psychological symptoms.
More recently, within the past three months, I started noticing numbness in my right hand, pins and needles feeling all over my body, random muscle twitches and spasms (not painful), and minor balance and coordination issues. My vision might also be deteriorating, but I haven't had this checked.
The onset of the physical symptoms prompted me to see a neurologist, and she ordered an MRI to check for MS at my own request. She was also unconvinced something underlying was going on and came to the conclusion, like the psychiatrist, that I had overlapping psychological issues combined with carpel tunnel and physical changes related to aging.
However, I have this nagging feeling at the back of my mind this isn't the case. HHV-6 and HHV-7 have been associated with the onset of many neurological diseases, including MS and CFS. In addition, pityriasis rosea has been associated with HHV-6 and/or HHV-7 reactivation. Most importantly, my neurological symptoms appeared within a month of the rash disappearing.
So, for the more opinionated part. I'm trying to not look at who I was with "rose-colored glasses", but my entire personality has changed. I was exciting, loud and vocal, outgoing, intelligent, quick, and charismatic. And, to be honest, also reckless, overly-emotional, and kind of a jerk and know-it-all. Now? I've lost all that, good and bad. I can't string a coherent sentence longer than ten words, people always ask me to repeat things because I talk so quietly, and I have no emotions to get worked up about.
Should I try to investigate this further? Should I contact the HHV-6 Foundation and ask for their opinion? I have been thinking about ordering a lab test from PersonaLabs that tests for IgG and IgM antibodies for HHV-6. I have Kaiser insurance, so trying to get them to do anything that doesn't get me out the door immediately is difficult.
I appreciate everyone taking the time to read this and look forward to your responses!