Flareups, Triggers and Warning Bells
The one benefit of living through more than two decades of Epstein Barr reactivations is that I’m now more intimately aware of my body and the cycle of flareups. Though each of us will experience slightly different symptoms, the cycle applies to all of us.
First, let’s talk about Triggers. My day-job is fairly high-pressure. Being a mom of two young kids and managing a chronic illness doesn’t make my plate easier. I have learned over the years to manage my high baseline stress fairly healthfully. However, any major life disruptor can really set off my stress level because I don’t have much space for extra capacity. Over the years, I have noticed things like grieving the loss of a loved one, difficult news about someone I care about, postpartum hormone changes, car accidents or other physical trauma or something as simple as a quick stomach flu can make my entire system crash.
Let’s be real. The last two years have been a shit show. Working remotely during a pandemic has been a luxury, no doubt. But running a home and a full-time job with on-again, off-again childcare arrangements, a spouse who has to travel for long stretches for work, and the constant drip-drip of really troubling news near and far has put my baseline stress at a higher level than it should be. Add to that a loss of a beloved Grandfather, two harrowing medical scares for close friends and the passing of another in the past few months - that’s a recipe for EBV to have a FEAST. I know it, and there’s very little I can do about any of it other than do my best to process and heal.
These ups and downs of life are not in our control, but what we do with it is. It was no surprise that after these couple of tough months, a seemingly small work stress set me off. I began spiraling into intense anxiety, lost many nights of sleep and the proverbial table was set. Key triggers to consider:
Grief and loss
Car accidents, surgeries or other physical trauma
Intense or Acutely Stressful Life Moments (e.g. a confrontation, upsetting news)
Major hormonal change - pregnancy, postpartum, nursing, menopause
Though I knew I was vulnerable and I I could see my warning bells, I couldn’t seem to catch up with them in time. Typically if I amp up my antiviral and detox protocols at this point, I can often prevent a full-blown flareup. In my case, my initial signals include:
Feelings of Anxiety, Short Fuse, Irritability
Sleeplessness - typically starts with 2-4am wakings and then shifts to 4-5am wakeups - resulting in <7 hours per night of sleep
Vertigo - this could be as subtle as feeling a little dizzy to a multi-day episode
Headaches (something I thankfully don’t experience often outside of flareups)
Drumming in my Ears (My hypothesis is that this is actually the virus attacking some of the tissues near my ears. I sleep with earplugs every night and when I’m getting close to flareup, I can literally hear it coming!)
Swollen glands - especially in throat and neck area
So here I am, about two weeks into a brutal flareup. My flareup symptoms often include:
Low-Grade Fevers - For me, these are undetectable by thermometer, but I can feel minor chills and what I would describe as waves of sensation that wash through my body. These are technically called rigors, but they could be easily missed or passed off as another issue if you aren’t looking for it.
Brutal Fatigue - with inability to sleep. Many experience Fatigue with lots of unhelpful “never enough” sleep.
Brain Fog - forgetting names or words in mid sentence, losing a full thought, trouble accessing memories or facts I know very well (most often these feels similar to losing your keys…you know the thought is there somewhere, but you just can’t seem to find it)
Mouth Ulcers - Usually these are on the roof of my mouth and they make eating MISERABLE!
Mild Post-nasal Drip & Sneezing - Like the start of a cold that never turns into anything
Joint Pain and/or Generalized Pain - I also experience significant muscle tightness and jaw grinding
Digestion Issues - even when avoiding all sensitivities
Rash or skin problems - this is often on my scalp
While many experience a wide range of symptoms, I’m sharing this as a framework to think about your own triggers and warning bells. I highly recommend journaling, reflecting and looking for your personal patterns to help prevent and shorten your flareups by intervening sooner with extra self care.
I’d love to hear your experiences. What triggers and warning bells do you experience?
