At some point I caught something, and I'm not sure what it was. While looking at my skills, I noticed that only my "one handed" skill was decreased by 10. Which was bad since I was using a one handed weapon. That was the only skill efftected, and the number was showing up red in the skills screen. So I searched all through the menus to try and find out what was wrong with me. After I exhausted every part of the menu system, I never found any place stating what negative effect I had on me to lower my one handed skill by 10 points. I even tried just drinking a cure disease potion just to see if it would cure it. But nope, didn't work.

After a while, not sure exactly how long, but it seemed like a long time, it had somehow cured itself and I was better with my one handed skill back up to where it should have been. Anyone else experience something similar? And know where to look to see negative effects like this? I was in the menu for magic where I thought ALL negative effects should have been listed, but it only listed a couple good effects I had on.

LOL! What are the odds, I mean I JUST made another post asking this same question. I mean just like two seconds ago. Hopefully we find out.

Go to your magic and look into your active effects. You'll find your disease.

No, that was the problem.... I thought it would be listed there. It was not. I never knew what I had.

It is shown in the Magic menu, under Active Effects if I recall. Positive effects will show up as the regular text color and then the negative effects will be red. Go to the red effect, and it will be labeled with what the disease is, and what it is doing. If there is no red effect under that menu, you are not diseased or poisoned.

Someone correct me if I am wrong or missing something, but this seems to be right for me.

I had caught the STD known as Rockjoint at one point. Couldn't figure out for the life of me while my melee attacks were down in damage. then I finally found it under listed effects on the magic side of the menu. either listed effects or active effects. I just go to the statue in Windhelm before the stairs leading up to dragonsearch or whatever it is called. that statue heals you and removes any disease. So melee is back to normal now.

What I had WAS NOT listed under magic where everything else is. I saw my Nord effect, I saw my power stone effect.... but NOT anything about any negative effect from anything.

And...... if it wasn't poison or diease, which is what seems to be the conclusion..... What made my skill decrease by 10 points for so long?

-originally something flash on my screen saying I contracted something I think while fighting a skeever (sp).

most likely a bug or glitch then, that is where the diseases and poisons are located at, unless there is some other negative effect that you can have which is not one of those that I do not know about yet.

Well I will say it was annoying not knowing what I had, or how to get rid of it. The problem is it only effected a skill that I used a lot. It somehow cured itself, and my guy got better. Hopfully that doesn't happen to often.

I apologize too, the statue is in windrun or whatever it is called, the first city after riverwood. If your skills are ever decreased for any reason you can't see, just go to that statue and it cures everything. Theres so much to friggin learn with this game, its ridiculous.

Sounds like a bug. Skeevers can give you Ataxia, which increases your lockpicking difficulty by 25%, and that should have shown up in your Magical Effects display. I'm not aware of any of the known diseases that decrease your one-handed skill by 10.