PDA

View Full Version : My story/ Weird Eyes/ Shaking even when excited



stalwartlover
09-09-11, 13:25
Hello everyone, this is my first post but I have actually been reading this forum since 2008 and it has really helped me with many things to do with Health Anxiety that have troubled me over the years. I am a (fingers crossed) healthy 22 year old. I have had various bouts of Health Anxiety and General Anxiety since I was around 15 (and it runs in my family).

I have been VERY anxious and down over these past 5 weeks and after reading these forums (not googling!),looking for some comfort and not finding it yet, I have decided to write my first post..

It may or may not be linked but my symptoms started when I was about to leave Japan from my year abroad to return back to the UK. During my time in Japan I had been caught up in the earthquake (I was in Tokyo at the time it struck) and then the resulting Nuclear Disaster at Fukushima really made it a stressful time for me. Basically, my girlfriend is Japanese and I could not stand to leave her in Japan and return to the UK so I stayed through the whole period of aftershocks/daily news about nuclear radiation etc. However, at the time I do not really consider that i was being 'overly' panicky etc. when I look back, just very concerned.

Well, before I left Japan I started to notice the floaters in my eyes again (which I have had since 2008) and then my right eye started to twitch uncontrollably daily. Added to that, I started to notice strange things with my vision like things seemed blurry when I read them but they were still sharp at the same time(?!). All this really played on me and I was convinced that i had something wrong with me like MS or with my Brain. I also had quite shallow breathing and I did not seem to be able to catch my breath sometimes (even when talking).

After I came back to the UK I thought at long last I would be OK but infact things got worse. I started to notice more floaters and and I became obsessed with my eyes. I have seen the 'little white bugs swarming about' when looking at the sky etc. but now it seemed worse. I also seem so sensitive to bright lights and cant see too well in the dark (especially if there is a single bright lamp etc. in a dark room).
Anyway, i went to the opticians (with some dread) but he looked at my eyes and did several tests (fields/pressure) etc. and said that my eyes were fine and he could not see any retinal tears etc.. With this, I felt SO relieved ! In fact, that weekend I felt great and almost out of the woods!

However..I slowly but surely started to worry about his prognosis..I started to ask myself things like "what if this is a brain/nerves related problem and he cannot see that by looking at my eyes?. And so since then I have been terrible. Two days later I started to feel chilly and then all of a sudden i started shaking all over, feeling the muscles in my neck, stomach, sides of my chest spasming out of control and my cheeth chattering together. I went full blown panic mode...thought I was going to die..Anyway, with some heavy breathing it seemed to go away each time I let out a deep breath.

But from then on I have had these "shivering/shaking" moments quite a lot. Not so bad as then, but every now and then I notice the muscles in my stomach/neck/chest etc. starting to "shiver" and it really scares me. Sometimes my heart pounds so fast in my chest its all I can focus on and all the time I get these "adrenaline rushes" (feels like butterflies/tingling warm sensation) coming over my chest and I feel really anxious and usuallly after that the shaking will start.

I have really been trying to calm down, but what has got me down the past few days is that for instance when I start to get excited about something.. I get the same feeling in my chest and then I start to get the shaking again! I thought this was all to do with anxiety..but when things like that happen it really makes me wonder what is causing this to happen and I feel so hopeless...

Added to that, I think there is a pain underneath my right armpit/side of my chest and I am panicking about what that could be/whether it is linked to my shaking/eyes/everything....My chest still seems like it is short of breath...And my eyes are still a worry as even though i do not care about the floaters I now seem to have problems looking a Patterns, lines which are close together (blinds,fence posts etc.) and it is really worrying me about my brain.

If there is anyone who has experienced something like this I would love to hear from them..thank you for reading my (too long of a) story and as you say in Japanese どうぞよろしくお願いします (pleased to meet you all!). :byebye:

HazyMind
09-09-11, 15:32
Hello!

It sounds to me like your mind is wired up to experience the shaking feeling that you feel when you feel emotional - be it good or bad emotions.

I was having similar reactions a few months back, I went through something very stressful and experienced extreme shakiness and every time I had the slightest mind jog of that day I would get the shaking, even if I was happy at the time!

What you are experiencing really does sound so anxiety related and I am sure you have nothing to worry about, well done on getting your eyes checked and I'm sure he would have noticed if you had anything to worry about so remember that happy feeling you felt when you had the reassurance as I'm sure all is fine, we get so sensitized to every feeling we feel in our bodies and because we are anxious about our health I guess we always focus on the negatives but really try and focus on the positive!

:)

SH412
09-09-11, 17:34
Hi there,

Your symptoms are so similiar to mine I could have written that myself! I too get floaters in my eyes and they started my panic! I seem to get them when in natural light or when I start to think about them! I forgot about them for a few days and they disappeared! The main thing to remember about floaters is that if they move with your eye i.e you cannot focus specifically on them then they are of no harm. If it was like a constant black spot/spots in your eyes that you could focus on then it could possibly be something to do with your brain/eyes. I also have the pain in my underarm although its my left so constantly makes me think I have problems with my heart. I have came to the conclusion that it is muscular pain. When tense your shoulders naturally rise and if that is held for any period of time, of course your underarm will get sore as that muscle is being constantly used! I am also feeling short of breath! I wouldnt actually call it short of breath....more like feeling the constant need to take a big inhale!! Its not like being out of breath after excercise! When you become fixated on your breathing, it no longer becomes a natural reactions and you start to 'force' it. Thats what makes you feel like you cant get a breath!! If you take your mind off it for ten minutes I bet youll notice a real difference! This is all well and good for me to tell you all this - I KNOW all this and still get anxious! Ive just been trying to quash any negative thoughts and distract myself !! Hth xxx

rachel04
10-09-11, 14:37
kaidensmum you summed it up well there, thanks helped me too xx

stalwartlover
10-09-11, 20:54
Thank you both HazyMind and Kaidensmum, Its great too hear from other people who have had similar problems.

I have been doing quite well these past few days in regards to the 'shaking', despite the occasional adrenaline rush and short breathing.

I think the main problem I have at the moment is trying to tell myself that what I have is anxiety and not something else very nasty. It sounds crazy but I have this feeling (which I have felt before) that I have almost 'used up all of my other 8 lives' with all the other bouts of HA that I have had (Cancer,Hiv,you name it) and now this might 'be the one'.

My main worry is really my eyes. not the floaters (although they were the first thing I noticed abut 5 weeks back) but with things like when I look at bars/blinds etc. which are close together and they look kind of 'weird' and hard to look at (kind of hard to describe..). For example, I went to my new University Halls today and I was doing really well and they I walked into my room and pulled out my chair, and low and behold.. it was check pattern.. I went anxious straight away and I couldn't help looking at how it 'played' with my eyes.
I have been very good and not googled this symptom but the fact I cant seem to find much about it on these forums has made me super anxious. I just want to get to the bottom of this and get over my anxiety, but I fear the most that I'm just trying to fool myself and this time there is something truly wrong..

stalwartlover
11-09-11, 15:30
By the way, I should add that I also have OCD.. think that could have anything to do with me being so fixated on my eyes?

SH412
11-09-11, 21:10
Are you on any medication for your Anxiety?? I know that a symptom of anxiety can be;

Distorted, foggy, or blurred vision
Dry, watery or itchy eyes
Eye tricks, seeing things our of the corner of your eye that isn’t there, stars, flashes
Eyes sensitive to light
Spots in the vision
Flashing lights when eyes are closed
Your depth perception feels wrong

These can also be more persistent when on medication...these are also side effects of taking Citalopram which I am on! The floaters no longer bother me! And now that I am no longer fixated with them...I hardly notice them! Its my heart bothering me just now and Im just trying really hard to rationalise my thoughts xx

karlwirral
11-09-11, 21:19
I have the same symptoms also. And i cannot look at chequerd patterns or thin lines either

stalwartlover
15-09-11, 04:04
Hello guys, about the shaking, i have just found that when i went outside and it was a bit cold i started to shake in the same way as i mentioned above..not like the usual way you would shake but like when i had a panic attack (muscle spasms in neck etc.).
really freaked me out ... anyone experienced this ?

stalwartlover
17-09-11, 10:45
Thankyou for the replies , its nice to know im not alone.

Its just when I seem to get over one thing, i stumble onto something new and terrifying..

For example, I went out last night and I saw many neon shop signs for example which were either blue or red ,but they looked really strange to me..almost hard to look at again like the blinds did before ..did you experience this or can you relate?

really scared there is something wrong with ny head!

julia
08-08-12, 19:28
to stalwartlover...omg i get these eye symptoms,im not on meds but very stressed at moment, came on here for reassurance, but like you said there isnt much...unlike you i darent go to the optician,but im terrified i hate the feeling, i over look ,,even on shop shelves,at home in living room, driving me nutsnow im terrified im making myself feel surreal.its difficult to explain the feeling :weep:

julia
14-05-13, 11:17
hi i just want to say i cant believe how alike we are im constantly feeling off balancr lightheaded eyes sensitive to light cant look at the gravel in my drive the fence blinds anything red flashes my brain feels like it cant comprehend what my eyes are seeing in traffic ques i cant focus or concentrate with looking at other moving objects feel panicky eyes struggle to focus from looking at phone then looking up at tv or people in shops i struggle to focus on products on shelves.yes i have floaters not so worried about them
passed eye test fine i also shake arms and legs if woke up suddenly i always feel like i can feel
i constantly feel like i can feel every nerve in my body not on meds my choice but hate the worry