Gabriel's Life » Living with Hydrocepahlus - Adults

fatigue and hydrocephalus


(4 posts)

  1. Lemontree
    Member

    Hi,
    I have had congenital communicating hydro all my life..I am now 42. Hydro has had some impact on my life but I still managed to go on to college and grad school and I am currently a teacher.

    Someone on another site once posed the question about hydro and fatigue. I think it was in relation to brain trama that many of us have due to the hydro. I feel like I have been tired my whole life from having to keep up with everything around me. Sometimes it gets discouraging to have to work so hard at things which others take for granted. I have problems with memory and with organization, but I just keep plugging along like the tortoise and the hare!

    I haven't had a shunt revision since 1977. My first and only MRI was about 10 years ago. (They didn't have them when I was an infant.) There was some evidence of some damage but I've been told I've compensated for it.

    Does anyone else have problems with fatigue and what do you do to help?

    Thanks
    Kat

    Posted 5 months ago #

  2. mp327
    Member

    Hi Kat--

    I was diagnosed with congential decompensating hydrocephalus in 1993 at the age of 39 and was shunted in December 1993. I have that one and only shunt since and have lived a relatively normal life. I'm not sure about the fatigue issue, but I do agree that memory and organization skills are not my best. In June 2008 I was diagnosed with cancer and underwent 6 weeks of chemo and radiation. It was then that, for the first time in my life, I knew what it felt like to be really fatigued! It's hard for me to say if I've suffered any fatigue because of the hydro.

    It's nice to meet someone who has had the same shunt longer than I have! I feel very blessed that I've never had to have a revision. Last summer, I was waking up not feeing well every morning, so I underwent shunt studies and CT, along with evaluation by a neurosurgeon just to make sure everything was still in good working order. He told me all looks fine and if it's not broken, let's not fix it. As it turned out, my symptoms seem to be related to allergies. It was a relief to know that my shunt is still doing its job.

    Congratulations to you on all your accomplishments. I wish you continued good health!

    Martha

    Posted 5 months ago #

  3. Perry
    Member

    Hydrocephalus affects each of us in different ways and to different degrees, depending on when and why it was diagnosed.Lethargy is a recognised symptom. Look under the 'What are the symptoms of hydro ?'section in the link below. Good luck

    http://www.hydrocephalus.org/facts.htm

    Posted 4 months ago #

  4. jill
    Member

    Hi, Please, please get another opinion. I had my shunt put in when I was 10, (1968) It was in my head until 2008, when thank God, I went to Mayo in Phoenix because I was tired, headaches. memory problems, starting to lose coordination, bladder, etc. and I just chalked it up to age.

    I went to a NSG in 2003 at Barrows Neurological Clinic in Phoenix and he gave me an incorrect diagnosis. So I continued to worsen.

    The headaches may be nothing. 40% of people with shunts suffer from head pain, but please get a 2nd opinion.

    Anyway, Mayo fixed me with a new shunt and I am back to about 200%. And I teach school, too. Run. Hike. You name it. Don't stop until you get a suitable diagnosis. Hydro is not a joke.

    Jill

    Posted 4 months ago #

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