Hyperactive without steroids

[Neriah]

Do any other lupus sufferers have what you might describe as the opposite of brain fog; ie thoughts going far too fast and far too many of them at the same time? I'm not on steroids at the moment, but it reminds me very much of how I was, when I was - hyperactive in thought and activity, shaky and sometimes stuttering because it seems as if three or four sentences on different subjects want to come out of my mouth all at once and they all collide in the middle. Underneath it all I'm pretty exhausted. This has only really come on since lockdown, which btw, I have experienced positively, so I don't think it's an anxiety thing. Any thoughts anyone?

[Choccy8]

Hi Neriah,

Sorry to hear you're feeling bad. What you describe sounds similar to how I was feeling last summer. I felt very stressed and agitated, a sort of frantic feeling, like I was going crazy! For me, I think a supplement called N-acetyl cysteine has helped a lot. I first saw it mentioned in the Lupus Encyclopedia by Donald Thomas. There have been some studies showing it has benefit in Lupus. I take 600mg first thing, on an empty stomach. That's less than often recommended, but I find if I take more, my stomach gets a bit upset. It's also helped a lot with acne that a dermatologist thought was lupus-related. Interestingly, NAC has been shown to help with ADHD, which apparently is statistically linked to lupus. I certainly feel a lot calmer since finding this. I hope it helps, if you're able to try it. I also take hydroxychloroquine and prednisolone and my rheumatologist is happy that I also take the NAC.

[Neriah in reply to Choccy8]

Thanks Choccy8, that sounds interesting. I will look into it.

[happytulip]

Do you have any autonomic nervous system problems. Prior to developing dysautonomia and POTS which was caused by lupus I had the strength and energy of about 4 people. It's was intense.Blood tests confirmed my adrenal levels.

It might also be worth getting your thyroid function checked for good measure?

But talk to someone medical about it. Lupus does alot to our bodies and it's good to be able to rule things out through a process of elimination.

[Neriah in reply to happytulip]

Thanks happytulip, like Choccy8's response, that is also interesting though from a different perspective and I will look into it. I do have Raynaud's which has been more troublesome the last six months or so, so you may be on to something, unfortunately .

[happytulip in reply to Neriah]

You do sound like you have some signs of dysautonomia, throid disrupt or adrenal issues. And if that can be excluded then that's reassuring. Reassurance is a great thing.