I first learned about ncah in my AP Bio class, from a video segment we watched. After hearing some the of the symptoms, I could feel my face start turning red - it really sounded a lot like myself, and I began to wonder if what I thought were unfortunate genetics was something totally different.
I had to get a shot today, so I figured I'd mention it to the doctor - not that I sincerely think I have ncah, but just that I wanted to know if I could get my hormone levels checked, considering a lot of ncah symptoms seem to pop up in other hormone level issues as well.
I'm 17 years old, have had acne since at least fifth grade, which has been treated with plenty of different topical medicines and antibiotics - some things have somewhat helped, but it's still full blown acne that gets better/worse no matter what I'm using.
I do have a lot of hair - my "sideburns" are grown out part way down my chin, there's dark hair above my lip, overall more hair than most girls seem to have. I have very short thin light hair at my temples (compared to the rest of my hair - thick and brown) which I noticed in some articles about ncah.
I'm almost 5'3, having grown pretty rapidly around 3rd/4th grade, and then just kinda stopped. I hate saying I have anxiety issues or problems with stress, because I've always felt that's just my personality, but when stressed/anxious I usually start shaking, become light headed/unable to focus, and unfortunately this happens over very trivial events, such as speaking with a stranger on the phone (ordering a pizza) or taking a test in school.
I'm not sure if it means anything, but I also sweat a lot under my arms, especially in social situations, whether I'm emotionally anxious or not. I occasionally have the feeling of my heart skipping a beat/racing, which causes mild pain and results in me coughing. My doctor has addressed the sweating and heart beats as normal, nothing to really worry about over the past years, so it's definitely something I've just accepted.
I brought up the other issues today to the doctor giving me my shot, and he asked if I had any digestive problems, such as pain and vomiting. Well, my stomach is always making a lot of noise, compared to other people it seems, whether I've just eaten or haven't eaten in awhile. But as to vomiting, no, only when I have really bad cramps, which happens 3-4 times a year (which my doctor said was normal in past visits). He said I don't fit the ncah symptoms really, also considering I don't seem to have a salt problem, and don't seem all that hairy (umm...well I wax above my lip, pluck all the dark hairs my chin, wax my arms, shave my legs...could that have anything to do with it??) and that being born in 1990 I should have been tested at birth in Ohio (it was only mandated here in 2003??).
So he said there's no point really in getting my blood checked and not to be freaked out by PBS specials and the internet. After making me seem like I was being overly sensitive and not intelligent, he did say that if I still really wanted my blood tested, I could call and get the lab papers drawn up.
Now that I feel I've written a book on my life, I guess my real question is whether or not any of my symptoms could be ncah/hormone related, and not just "normal" for my age group, as I've been told. I hope I'm not blowing this out of proportion and being paranoid, so I guess I'm just looking for reassurance/a dose of reality. I truly appreciate your time reading through all this; I wish being concise was a trait I possessed. Either way, I am going to get my blood tested, because if it shows all normal levels - thank god. And if not? Well, I'd rather find that out sooner than later. I'm sick of acne, sick of dealing with facial hair, sick of always being anxious. Especially if it's caused by something other than "just growing up".
