Stress or a real serious illness

[demoianray]

Hello, I'm new here and I'm writing this because I've been really anxious i the last few days, thinking that I have a brain tumor, I'll explain why:

I've been having this sorta dizziness in the last 3 days with a little like a blurry vision, the only way I can fully describe it is as if it is like you are not there, and everything feels like a dream. In early 2008 I had an episode of high blood pressure and for 3 weeks I was having this panic attacks that I couldnt even breathe, and in summer I had dizziness for a few days too, but then it went away.

I've been almost obsessing with the fact that is a brain tumor, although there is no history in my family about brain tumors, but this dizziness sometimes gets me crazy, and to top it off, I have very stiffed muscles especially the ones in my neck and shoulders. So you know, I spend a lot of time in front of my laptop, and most of the time I know I have a bad posture, I would call myself a very worrisome person, I'm doing my masters right now, and I'm taking 5 classes and sincerely, its getting into me.

When I was finishing my bachelor last semester, I sometimes had muscle twitches, especially in my legs and in my left eye. And during the week sometimes I have 2 or 3 headaches, especially in the afternoon, or what I think are complications of my neck and shoulder stiffness, once in a while I can be 2 or 3 weeks without a headache.

Other things I know is that most of the time when I wake up in the morning I have a terrible pain in my neck, I've come to think that the problem are my pillows. I haven't gone to the doctor cause i'm having trouble with my insurance, I have a free one, but its very hard to get one self attended by a Dr. in here, i did a lot of bloodtests 5 months ago, a chest X-ray, a stool check, and everything went perfect, except my HDL that was a little low, and yes, its because i'm obese, I weigh 285lbs. and I'm 5'8".

In conclusion, this symptoms have come and go in the last 7 months, and I'm extremely worried that i may have a malignant tumor, i've never had any seizure in my life, and the only history of cancer in my family is my great grandmother who died of colon cancer at 70 something, and one of my aunts that is a survivor of breast cancer. That is all for the moment and thanks for reading my post.

[Dazza]

Hi

Dizziness and a feeling that you are in a dream are classic anxiety symptoms. I've had them both for a few months now.

I've also have neck problems, which might be adding to the dizziness. I saw my GP this week and he has sent me for x-rays..i get the results in a couple of weeks. but he thinks it is probably due to a trapped nerve due to the muscle tension in my neck, which is caused by our old mate anxiety.

do you drink lots of water / liquids during the day (not coffee or tea as they make u pee more and so dehydrate you)? Most of the time, headaches are due to dehydration.

[demoianray]

I drink water regularly, not very often, but I drink my 3 bottles of water a day, most of the time. And thanks for your response, I never knew that dreamy feeling was an anxiety/stress symptom.

[Dazza]

are the bottles of water small or 1 litre? You mentioned your wieght in your first post, maybe you need to drink more water to account for your weight? I'm not sure, just a guess.

Yes, the dreaminess is known as depersonalisation or derealisation. You can read more about it in the 'symptoms' section on the left hand side of the page here. I used to get it when i was depressed about 10 years ago. but rest assured, that once my depression lifted, so did the dreamy sensation, and I could 'see' things clearly again.

Keep on talking with us buddy. We are here to help!

[demoianray]

Most of the time the bottles are 20 oz. and thanks for your recomendation, I read the symptoms and I was amazed by how many I've been feeling.

So I think I may be at ease and not think that my symptoms may be a brain tumor...

[Dazza]

Yes - I know the medical system is maybe not the same in PR, that you probably have to pay etc. but there are some very simple tests that your doctor can do to set your mind at ease.

A couple of years ago I thought I had a brain tumour due to headaches that would last for a couple of days at a time. My doctor was great.. he explained to me about dehydration etc. and nonethelss did the tumour checks. he looked at the back of my eyes, as this can show any abnormal pressure that is being exerted from within the skull. It was all normal.

His diagnosis: I was stressed and suffering from tension headaches / migraines. he was right.

[demoianray]

thanks for all your responses, I will keep you posted.

[Bunnah]

Hi there..

I understand your fear. I was so sure I had something wrong with my brain, and in fact because I work in mental health I was convinced that there was no way these headaches, neck pain, and serious attacks of being dizzy could be anxiety. How could these headaches like an icepick stabbing me be stress?

This is the thing about brain tumours. Often, one has to have very specific things such as abnormal visuals, sezuires, pain so bad that you vomit. Also, the only way to see if there is something is truly wrong is an MRI.

All of your symptoms sound so much like the ones I had and my MRI was clear. ( no jokes about nothing in me head thanks LOL )

I can only advise you get to your Dr. and ask for the MRI. However, I really wonder if you should think about also asking about how you can treat these symptoms with the help of therapy and or meds for anxiety. Anything is worth a shot

Best to you

B x x x