Kickas.org Forums Ankylosing Spondylitis General Discussion #1 AS Web Support Group AS/autoimmune link to mental illness?

We must always be wary of any such symptoms as it could mean permanent nerve damage (Neuropathy) or Cauda Equina Syndrome. It is something that must be checked out by an experienced doctor as late treatment is seldom of much use. Nerve damage whether caused by Cauda Equina Syndrome or by any other cause is rare but need urgent treatment. Check out Cauda Equina Syndrome on Google.

Fatigue yes and along with it heavy anxiety (shaky voice, shortness of breath, some trembling, easily upset/irritable). It sounds like the fatigue is a very common experience, the anxiety not so much.

My anxiety cleared up a great deal the last week since taking celebrex (NSAID) although the fatigue remains.

Glad to hear your AS and the relate fatigue have been better for some time Tim. If I recall when I used to post here more frequently a few years ago you had had success with NSD so I suppose that was the main driver behind it?

Hello Didier,

Yes for some time now NSD is backbone of my treatment. But I also eat a lot of probiotic food and typically do a fast most Fridays and do not eat until dinner at night (and only salad and some fruit) to give my GI a day off from food. In my case I believe my AS is very much tied to my GI health.

Prior to NSD I had a lot of success with azulfadine for 7 years... but had to discontinue due to side effects.

Best to you.

Tim

I had another bout of inflammation. SI joint pain for a few hours that made it painful to walk, but then the pain went away on its own with no meds, leaving only a heavy inflammation feeling with fatigue and anxiety that was lasting for days. Very tired, anxious, and my thinking patterns changed pretty dramatically from positive to negative. The last two days for example, though I had little pain, I was very tired and just mentally blocked, unable to think clearly or 'activate' physically. I laid down for 48 hours, tired, sad and anxious.

Finally I decided to take 2 celebrex and quite suddenly my energy came back, so much so that I found it hard to even go to sleep because I was feeling so positive with lots of energy.

This morning when I got up I had a lot of the celebrex side effects - dizziness, tinnitus, cold hands, bit of blood in the stool. Yet I didn't care that much because I also had this energy and almost euphoria. Logically I need to lay off the celebrex now to avoid any more side effects but wow what a difference.

Both my rheum and GP say celebrex is intended for managing pain symptoms, and that taking it primarily for energy and mood is unusual and not advised. Perhaps it's a placebo, but the effects are pretty consistent and dramatic.

Maybe this was also related to the weather getting better today - here in Canada it's been very cold and dark for May and today seems to have warmed up.

Hi Didier,
Stress and A.S are directly linked for me.
Worry, anxiety or stress and depression bring on A.S (with a two month delay).
With management it goes away. CBT, meditation, reading and youtube to find out whats going on all help.
I have not found a way to get rid of fatigue, I just live with it. This alone gives me sadness as it limits my life and have to live around it.
I tried NSD for over a year without any result.
So now I refuse to accept stress as it makes my life not worth living.