[hubble]

I am 22 and have suffering lingering fatigue for a year after getting a tick-borne illness (treated). I was making progress even getting back to college part time in the winter. However, start of May I woke up with shortness of breath, palps, worsening fatigue, literally over night. Been through the ringer with doctors, every test imaginable, all negative. So trying to put together the puzzle and wonder if this could be a mental illness.
1. Been to the ER 3 times in the last year (2 within last 2 months) with shortness of breath. One case for sure was a panic attack as my fingers literally curled under due to lack of CO2.
2. I did have bouts of anxiety in my late high school years, I was popular, played sports but only had a small circle of friends.
3. In college (local) I haven't made any friends, never dated a girl (although I would like to), and spend most of my free time video gaming and lifting weights.
4. Over the past year I have used video gaming to "distracting" myself from my symptoms, and spend a fair amount of time discussing my symptoms with my parents especially in the last 2 months as this has effectively made me home-bound.
5. My symptoms at this point in order of prevalence: chills, low body temp in AM, SOB/hyperventilating, palps, fatigue, head rush/lightheaded when I stand, heat intolerant, exercise intolerant, fingers tremor when anxious, easily startled. It seems like as long as I am engaged in something (even doctors appts) I "feel" better, but when I come home or around the house or am doing something not engaging I "feel" worse.

If you have stuck with me this far, he is the weird pattern that has happened over the last year (more acute now)

1. I can putt around the house I have a low level of energy but don't get that fatigued but still have symptoms. I "feel" worse when I do non-engaging actions like (say) was the dishes.
2. I can get out of the house in the AM to do something engaging like class I "feel" better and then return home in the afternoon and I crash. If I had a late class and come home after 6 I don't crash.
3. I can get out of the house in the AM to do something less engaging (like going to the mall with my parents) I "feel" OK, when I come home in the afternoon I crash. If I come home later say 9, I don't crash.
4. Bizarre things. I "feel" better when I drive in the left lane, worse in the center lane, and even worse when I am a passenger.

It is like biochemically I only have two modes, engaged I "feel" fine, not engaged I feel worse, and when I transition from engaged to not engaged especially in the daytime I feel worse. Could my dopamine, adrenal system, cortisol, whatever be beaten down by a chemical imbalance from a mental disorder like anxiety/depression? I can believe it, but it feels "hidden" to me as considering what I have gone through I am not that sad and I am not anxious all the time (that I am aware of) granted I do feel anxiety can come on quick though.
Thanks for listening.

[Skeezyks]

Hello hubble: I noticed this is your first post here on PC. So... welcome to PsychCentral! I hope you find PC to be of benefit.

I'm sorry I really would not know what to tell you about any of this. You wrote you've had every test imaginable. So I suppose you do have to consider the possibility this may be mental-health related. That may be something you'll need to explore with the help of a mental health professional though... a psychologist, a psychiatrist, & / or a mental health therapist.

I guess the one thing I can suggest here is that PsychCentral has a sister website: NeuroTalk. There are a lot of members there who are knowledgeable with regard to a wide range of physiological / medical conditions. You might take a look at the forums over there & see if there is anyone there who might have some insight into this. Here's a link:

https://www.neurotalk.org/

My best wishes to you...