Dont know whats going on, I know something isn't right!

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Good evening everyone, hope you all had a nice weekend.

Bit of a long post but if you have time please read.

I haven't posted so much on here recently as I have been feeling a bit better in terms of anxiety, I still have lots of strange symptoms that dont seem to go away but they dont worry me so much anymore.

so the reason I am posting is about all these symptoms, I just want to know if anyone has any idea with what is actually going on with me. The doctors dont seem to listen to me but im pretty sure there is something else going on other than anxiety. I am seeing a neurologist in a couple of weeks time so hopefully I can get some answers there.

Anyway the symptoms, Lighthead and dizzy, I feel like this most of the time but it varies in severeness, most of the time its bareable and just anoying but sometimes it gets bad and i cant do normal activities. I sometimes get a sudden burst of what i can only describe as vertigo, it hits me out of the blue when im just lying in bed or sitting watching tv, it feels like my brain does a flip and then it goes away with a couple of seconds. Kind of feels like your just about to pass out and then you regain your awake alertness.

Uneven pupil size and slight blurry vision that comes and goes. I check my pupils all the time now due to them being different sizes on many occasions. I have noticed a link between when im feeling really strange, lightheaded, fuzzy, dizzy and when my pupils are uneven. I could be sitting here not looking in the mirror and I know when there uneven as it coincides with me feeling weird and ill.

Random sharp headches; I rarely have a normal dull long lasting headache. The ones I have been getting are quite sudden and are like a severe pulsing stabbing sensation. The most common place i feel this is the right side or my forehead but I also get them all over the play and a lot at the back/base of my head.

Stiff aching neck; my neck just seems to be generally stiff and a bit sore. Not sure why.

If I move my head suddenly or to quickly i get really disorientated and it feels like im going to pass out.

Random body jolts; gets these usualy about 4 or 5 times a day, they dont really bother me. I have had times when ive woken up with my whole body spasming uncontrollably and it usualy takes about half an hour to eventually settle down and stop, this hasnt happend for a while now though.

Other things, just generally feeling really mentally slow, really bad memory, i forget what im doing or what im about to do about 10 times a day and it does get worrying.

I still get chest pains every day which all my anxiety stemmed from in the first place. Im not sure whats causing them, i think it may be something to do with my digestion.

I have been getting random pains here there and everywhere, just doesnt seem right.

I have a sharp click in my throat nearly every time i swollow, it has been there for about a month, this is not something imagining, it is a strange click like the swollowing mechanism is getting caught on something. My throat is quite tender.

I have diarrhea or very loose stools pretty much every time i go to the toilet now.

I have lost over 2 stone, think that may be down to when i was more anxious but i still have been eating well so its a bit strange. Also ive noticed my hair seems to be falling out, i notice some on my pillows in the morning and in the shower. Knowone in my family has lost their hair so its a bit weird, I think it may be the sertraline causing that.

Other things i find it hard to fall asleep but when i do i seem to sleep quite a lot, always over 10 hours, that might be down to the Sertraline aswell.

A few facts about me:

Im 24, male, about 11 and a half stone. Used to work out about 4 times a week but not anymore due to all this, but id still say im reasonbly fit.

Blood pressure is usually around 120/50 or 110/45, I know the top number is fine but the bottom number does seem low, but I think its always been like this and i never had problems. My brothers is pretty much the same and hes fine. I do get the thing where when you stand up to quick you nearly pass out.

My resting heart rate is low, usually around 42 - 46BPM while sitting in bed. But again i think its always been this way.

Ive had blood tests and ECG and they were fine apart from high cholesterol, which was a surprise. Seeing a neuro in 2 weeks time.

Sorry for such a long post im just trying to get some idea of what could be going on, I haven't felt right for a long while now. I know there is loads of things ive writin here but they are all real symptoms and my doctors dont seem to listen to me as they know i am suffering with anxiety, which im not denying but these things arent related.

I am honestly generally feeling calm and not anxious so i don't think these things are anxiety related.

I know this isnt a site for health advice or to speak to doctors but if anyone has any advice or has any ideas what could be going on i would love to hear it.

Thank you for reading :)

[MissHDynamite]

Hello gota.... Have you had your thyroid and iron checked recently? x

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Hey MissHDynamite, Well ive had a full blood test, which has thyroid function on there im not sure if it covers Iron aswell though, I would have to ask the doctor.

I assume thyroid was fine as doctors said the only thing that was wrong was high cholesterol.

[MissHDynamite]

To be honest, it is probably more likely to cover iron then it is thyroid... full blood usually consists of iron, white cells, red cells, liver function and kidney function. It wouldn't necassarily have thyroid in it so check you have had it done and if so, what the TSH number was. It doesn't explain all your symptoms but could account for some... you never know x

[isthisasgdasitgets]

Hi Got,
When my anx etc was real bad I had all those symptoms; lightheaded, dizzy. I was always checking my pupils and their size. I had headaches, in all sorts of places in my head, tingling sensations in the head and all over my body, my next would always feel hot, i would get shaky, chest pains, legs trembling uncontrollably, hot flushes, cold flushes......you bored yet?!

I couldn't get my words out right sometimes and my head felt confused, racy. I used to have such a good memory, now it is shot... i couldn't tell you what i ate last night!!

I lost weight people thought I had eating disorder, wasn't good. I could go on but basically it was all my anx etc On the whole I'm much better but i still get these symptoms to varying degrees, but unlike before where i was constantly monitoring my body and it's sensations, which could send me into full blown pa, i am able to focus on other things and let the feelings wash over me although they can still worry me.

There was a really useful thread on here about anx symptoms which i downloaded I will try and find it for you.

Sorry to go on, just thought it might help you to know others have exact same symptoms..mine started over 13 yrs ago and I'm still here!!
Take care, hope you feel better soon xxx

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Thanks for your reply isthisasgdasitgets?

I do get what your saying and I know anxiety can cause may things but that is my point, you say you had these things when your anxiety was bad.

My anxiety isnt bad right now, Im not monitoring these symptoms, i am just going about my day to day things. Im not posting this thread because im anxious, im more posting it because im fed up and looking for answers.

Maybe your right and im in a cycle where these feeling wont go untill I completely ignore them. But i need to be checked out and investigated why these things are happening.

I have felt fine all week been happy for once but yet these things are still there.

[isthisasgdasitgets]

Hi Got, here's the link:
http://www.anxietycentre.com/anxiety-symptoms.shtml

My anx isn't really bad right now either Got, and i feel relatively happy and well, (touch wood!) I still get these symptoms too, but they just don't send me right into a pa as they used to. I understand you want to get checked out. For your info my thyroid test proved negative.
Hope you feel better soon x

[carlos7]

i have had the same exact symptoms as u and i worry greatly.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Hi Carlos7, yes it does get worrying when we have no idea what is going on.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

In a complete Daze today, really want to see this neuro now as my head doesnt feel right at all, got to wait another couple of weeks though. Sharp headaches and weird pains in my neck.

[anxietyoverload]

Hi, not sure about some of the other symptoms but the dizziness I can! When I was younger for some reason if i moved at all i would feel like I was falling over, I literally had to lay in bed with my head up right. My mum phoned NHS direct as it was so bad. I was taking Iron drinks and everything and nothing worked. Turns out that it was my ears, your ears are your balance and if they are too full of wax or you have tried to clean them with a cotton wool bud and pushed the wax in then you will put yourself completely off balance.

Hope this helps :)

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Yea i have been thinking about my ears but i dont get the off balance thing so much, its more lightheaded and disorientated. I will mention it when im next at the doctors though.

Thanks

[MissHDynamite]

Hope your feeling a bit better today Gota... not long until your appoinment now.. phew :) x

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Hey, Thanks MissDynamite, hope your feeling better too.

Yea that appointment cant come soon enough, i feel so ill. just so weak dizzy, feel like im on the verge of passing out. I know this is not anxiety, im not anxious or panicing, i am unwell right now and want to find out whats going on.

[MissHDynamite]

I know you have waited ages for that appointment... try and sleep it off if you can. Have you eaten?

I am the same today.. had a few rough days again but I do know mine is all stress, panic and anxiety, got that body's here heads not feeling.. horrible and frightening. Have to put my tabs up to 100 tomorrow.

Big hug on its way :bighug1:x

[fruity]

hello gottogetthroughthis. i had all those sensations,symptoms when my anxietys we,re realy bad a few years back. im still not 100% but im coping. are you new to anxiety how long you had it. x:yahoo:

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Yea im quite new to it fruity, had it severely from about 6 months ago but ive been fine it terms of anxiety recently, just still have all these random symptoms.

I know there is something medically wrong. I hope I look back on this and say i was wrong and it was all anxiety but I really doubt it.

---------- Post added at 18:19 ---------- Previous post was at 18:05 ----------

I really feel like i haven't got much strength left. I just want to know what is going on, My doctors hardly listen to me and dont do tests, have refered me to a neuro which has taken ages and i feel like i wont make it to that date. NHS direct tell me to go to my doctor. I suppose if i go to A and E they will tell me to go to my doctor aswell.

I am calm I am lying on my bed with a heart rate of 45BPM. Not anxious, I just feel so weak and ill, my head doesnt feel right at all, dont know what my options are really, just have to risk waiting for the neuro appointment i suppose.

[sunday]

hi Got

i am the same - lightheaded/not here/feel weird. The vertigo thing -does it feel like your 'falling'? this is what i have, feels like i'm falling for a second and then i'm ok. i also feel like i'm often walking on 'air' like i'm not solid -on a boat or soemthing?! its all very strange!

[almamatters]

Hi Got I can so relate to you at the moment and just wanted to send my thoughts. I am going through the same thing in a slightly different way. I have the dizziness ,loss of balance ,blurred vision ,aches and pains ,swollen lymphs and that is just off the top of my head. GP feels I am suffering from anxiety, I am arguing it is physical, I visit weekly and complain I am not being taken seriously. I usually end up crying which then gives the impression I am depressed as well. Am waiting for various referrals as well which are deemed non urgent so take weeks. Been to A and E three times with vision balance problems and never get anywhere as blood tests are always fine and my heart which is usually 170 bpm when I arrive drops to under 100 after being there for half an hour. So conclusion from them anxiety . Like you I hope they are right !! :flowers:

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Thanks guys.

Yea Sunday it does kind of feel like im falling, for a couple of seconds then it stops.

If it isnt anxiety what could it be, some sort of virus or a disease, I have no idea but i really do not feel right at all.

[sunday]

well i have had these feelings for over 18 months and they havent got worse so i'm guessing it is anxiety. Plus the feelings make us feel 'weird and uneasy' which i guess is what anxiety is all about!:ohmy:

[MM]

Anyway the symptoms, Lighthead and dizzy, I feel like this most of the time but it varies in severeness, most of the time its bareable and just anoying but sometimes it gets bad and i cant do normal activities. I sometimes get a sudden burst of what i can only describe as vertigo, it hits me out of the blue when im just lying in bed or sitting watching tv, it feels like my brain does a flip and then it goes away with a couple of seconds. Kind of feels like your just about to pass out and then you regain your awake alertness.

Wow, this sounds so much like me! My worst symptom is the dizziness/lightheaded/whatever you want to call it. I have such a hard time describing it to doctors. Literally 24/7 I have some bit of lightheadedness, but every once in awhile I get a strong feeling that the floor is moving beneath my feet or that I'm falling and about to faint. Just yesterday I had to do a group project around university but I had to tell my group I had to go because I felt so awful. Most of the time I stay in bed just because I don't want to deal with the feeling that I'm moving when I know I'm not. I've never checked my pupils when it gets really bad- I'm probably going to avoid doing that since that'll just scare me more. I as well feel mentally slow, like I can't concentrate, yet I do it anyway!

My neck is always sore/tight. If I move my neck at all it hurts and I feel more dizzy. I have also gotten sharp pains on the side of my head but that doesn't worry me as much since it's only for a few seconds then it goes away. I've also lost weight, but I don't have much weight to lose. My stools are also not good.
Also I'm the same way with sleeping, I have a hard time falling asleep. It feels like every other day I can't fall asleep at all. When I do sleep though, I'm sleeping for 12 hours, and I could sleep for even longer if I didn't have things to do.

I've been to an ENT and a cardiologist so far and I also got an MRI. Everything is normal including my blood tests (iron and hormone levels are normal). I haven't been to a neurologist though. I know your appointment is in a couple weeks, but can you let me know how it goes? I haven't decided if I should set up an appointment yet. I've been trying to convince myself it's all anxiety but I'm also not that anxious yet I have all these symptoms that started in the summer when I was off from uni! (around 5 months ago).

I just realized I wrote a lot, I just wanted to show you that you're not alone! sorry for the long post!

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Thanks MM it means a lot.

Yes it is just so hard to just try and ignore these symptoms when they are so real and affect our lives everyday.

I will definitely let you know how it goes with the neuro.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

What are these pains in my head, they are really severe, they suddenly hit and only last a couple of seconds then go away untill they come back every 20 minutes or so.

I never ever had headaches before all this stuff and now they have got progressively worse over the last few weeks.

[johansaken]

They are called "brain zaps" and are apart of the hell of anxiety/HA

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Thanks Johansaken, Im not sure these are the brain zaps though, I have had them and I thought they were more of a thud/shock these seem like more of a stabbing pulsing sharp pain.

Hope they are the zaps anyway. Just seems like its never ending symptoms when i dont even feel anxious.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

I really dont know what is going on, my memory is so bad now, i keep losing track of what im doing, I walk downstairs to get a drink or something to eat and come back up with nothing. Im missing out words in my sentences then going back to edit it, once ive re read it. I do stuff like throw the towel in the toilet as my mind must think its a tissue for a second, or go to clean my teeth with a comb, just random weird stuff. Im just in a daze/trance like state i feel vacant. Along with all these other symptoms.

Just need to see this neuro now but i just hope everything ok. I want to beleive its the anxiety or stress or even the medication causing these things but my anxiety is ok at the moment so it doesnt feel like its that causing it.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

An hours sleep, man things are so much worse when you dont get enough sleep.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

What is wrong with me, i felt slightly better yesterday, didnt feel good but it was bareable. Now all of a sudden its like somethings just hit me, i feel so weak and dizzy, im getting chest pains and random pains all over, in the area of my kidneys and just under my left of rib cage aswell. Its like some major fatigue just comes over me in 10 minutes and im ****ed. This is just doing my head in now, i want to know whats wrong with me.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

:wacko:

[Charlee123]

Im interested to no what happened at your appointment x

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Haven't had it yet Charlee, it is next week so I will let you know what happens

[MM]

hey, how are you doing? I ended up scheduling an appointment for a neurologist and I have that on monday since I've been feeling worse. When is your appointment?

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Hi mate, Mines on Tuesday so looks like you'll beat me there. Let me know how it goes, hope it all goes ok.

[Charlee123]

How did your appointment go? X

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Went ok, I was asked my symptoms and how this all started, they just did some basic tests. Tested my reflexes, strength and looked at my eyes. He said as I have so many varied symptoms he doesn't think there is anything major wrong.

He has given me a form to get a CT scan and then I go back in 4 weeks time.

[Nikkii28]

Hey,
i dunno if you remember I had more or less your symptoms. Do you feel better knowing that the Dr isnt too worried? its weird, I felt back to normal for like 10 days and this week its slowly creeping back. I'm wondering if it is in fact anxiety related :(

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Hey Nikkii, yea its horrible, you have a few days where you think yea im ok, im starting to feel better and then all of a sudden you feel ill and strange again with weird symptoms.

Its never ending, just fed up. If theres nothing medically wrong with me and im not worring about these symptoms then why cant they go away.

[Jules147]

I have read through the whole list of your symptoms and all are familiar. The one that is a giveaway that you are still really anxious (and by the looks of it having mild panic attacks that seemingly come from nowhere) is the stiff, aching neck. It is part of the fight/flight/freeze response and is a survival mechanism to protect your spine in the event of attack by a predator. Think sabre-toothed tigers and stuff and think of how a dog's neck thickens and its hackles rise when it is ready for a fight.

The memory issues are the rational brain shutting down as you go into fight/flight/freeze mode. The amygdala, your brain's control centre, works faster than rational thought which is why the latter is shut down when your brain senses impending threat to your survival.

It works so fast that you will be tricked into thinking that you are not actually anxious when in fact you are but haven't had time to register the sense of being threatened consciously and formulate it into words in your mind.

If you manage to break the fear > symptom > fear cycle your background anxiety levels will fall and you will cease to be in a constant state of alert.

[Nikkii28]

Jules,

your post makes a lot of sense. for the last few days Ive had terrible shoulder and neck pain with a niggling headache. When I massage my neck (i looked up self massage on youtbe) it felt better and my head stopped hurting.

i have someone trained in massage coming to sort out my shoulders, maybe you should try this too GGTT, I mean it can't hurt and i find I feel relief from the head pains when I do .

I should add that currently I'm still in pain, in my neck and the back of my head but I can feel the tension in my muscles and my mum felt my shoulders earlier and asked me why I was 'Tensing'

I WASNT haha. xx

[natsplatt]

Anti depressants do all that to me would sooner be depressed without all the weird side effects of meds.sertraline made me feel like I was on speed and i couldnt sleep / eat or shut my head up . Prozac gave me pains in my head and weird pupils i couldn't get up for days.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Thanks natsplatt, yea i think you may have been right, a combination of the anti depressents and anxiety were giving me a load of weird symptoms. I still get some of them and the haid pains are still there and they are worrying but i think things have settled down a bit and im not as bad as i was before.

[JackInTheBox]

I usually get those pains when I'm going in to full HA mode. Usually I took an anxiety pill and they went away. Since I started to manage HA better they've vanished.

I also used to have random stings all over my body, mostly at the back and chest. According to the doc those were caused by very angry muscles under tension from the HA/anxiety

Oh I used to have the kidney pains too, they turned out to be caused by a bit of scoliosis on the back, fixing my posture and upgading my chairs/matress took care of them.

Hang in there! You'll win this, just keep your cool and make the articles of this site your mantra, it's working wonders for me.

[Gotagetthroughthis]

Thanks Jackinthebox, thats a really nice post.

Sounds like your doing really well, hopefully I can start to do the same.