Wierd Numbness, etc... after finally getting rest

[cam94z28]

I have been through a lot the last few days. I hadnt slept for 3 days due to panic attacks in the middle of my chest jerking me back awake every time i dozed off (anyone else get those). I finally saw a doc (without insurance) and was given ativan and ambien. I was feeling horrible when i came home with pin pricks and numbness randomly all over my body. I was very stressed out/panicked at this time though. I came home, took the ativan, and slept for 11 hours. At first I felt fine, then I realized I was still exhausted, and the nerve stuff hadn't gone away. The best way i can describe it is like a woozy spaced out feeling in my head, with numbness randomly at different places in my body. It only lasts for a second or two at a time, then seconds to minutes later it happens again somewhere else. Usually in the legs, feet, arms or hands. I also get a numbing or prickly (like when your hair stands up) tension feeling that radiates from just above the shoulder area around the back of my head.
This bothered me so much I eventually started feeling really bad and took an ambien 10 hours after being awake and slept again for 8 more hours. I woke up and was STILL exhausted, yawning frequently and just feeling generally tired. The numbness, etc... was and is still there. Is it possible the ativan or ambien are denying me restful sleep, or is it the anxiety?

Sorry to sound like a hypochondriac, but I've never felt like this before and I'm worried. Are these symptoms of panic? If I'm not obviously panicking but still worked up can that cause symptoms like this?

Additionally I just feel down all the time. Every day i come up with another reason why something is wrong with me, I have a brain tumor, or i'm dying. Instead of putting my worries behind me they're becoming me. And I've convinced myself that an MRI is the only thing that'll satisfy my fears. I had a CT Scan without contrast about 4 years ago, and it came back normal. I told myself I'd never go back on depression meds but it may be time again.

Maybe someone out there can do something to ease my fears, and get me back to living a normal life.

[Granny Primark]

Hi cam,

Really sorry your feeling so unwell.
I get a numbness in the side of my face when im really stressed. My daughter has also had feelings of this. The doctor told her it was also down to stress.
I can fully understand your concerns and i understand you totally when you say that your worries are becoming you.
My mum had a saying "you die if you worry and you die if you dont, so why worry?" However some people are just born to be anxious.
Hope you feel better soon.

Take care
LYNN xx

[cam94z28]

Hi loopylynn,
Thanks for the reply. It's good to know someone out there can identify. The isolation, and feeling that you're the only one is the worst part of this whole thing. The bottom of my left cheek and down just into my neck started getting numb/tense/twitching as well, before the rest of my numbness came on.

I'm not normally like this. i had been on serzone for 3 years in the past and came completely off it over 4 years ago without a second thought. Recently though, after a week off work with nothing to do(very bad idea I now realize). I started wallowing in my own thoughts and fears. That's how it happened the last time, for 2-3 days I started progressively worrying more and more about problems that didnt really exist, until I panicked myself enough to where i couldnt even sleep. I do have a vision, or neurological problem (undiagnosed) where I see pretty bad trails in my vision if I look at something, then quickly look away. That's what started it back up this time. I hadn't worried about it in years.

The numbness sensations do seem very real though. I'm not numb to the point that the muscle fails, but its like a perceived radiating numbness. Which is one of the reasons i freaked out that it was a heart problem. I wonder if some kind of back problem or partially pinched nerve can cause these symptoms too? I don't really have any back pain though.

[ricochet]

Hi
i get all of the symptom's you are having, the only things i can add to them is breathlessness and light headedness. Not so bad now though as i am seeing a counsellor. Just have to try and occupy your mind with something else but it's really hard to do.

Anyway just letting you know that you are not on your own.

Sorry i can't be much of a help yet but will keep you imformed if anything works good for me.

Hope you feel better really soon.

Richard.

[Meg]

Hiya

Your numbness and pinpricks and tingling are all very normal in anxiety especially if you're over breathing.

We hold oursleves soo tightly that the nerve ending are gripping on and get a sort of cell cramp which the feels to you as numbness or tingling.You can try this by clenching your fist very tightly for 10 mins and see how you feel when you finally release it although I bet that you don't get to hold it for 10 mins ...

Yoga, tai chi, massage are all very helpful But bear in mind that this is not an overnight solution, it didn't appear overnight so it takes a while to let go and relearn to let go....

Numbness
Numbness in arm (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=2671)
NUMB ARM!!!????? (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5535)
numbness?? (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6456)
Numb Left Hand (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6608)
[Link removed as post deleted]
Huge panic- Numb Face- No sleep (http://www.nomorepanic.co.uk/showthread.php?t=7145)





Meg

proactiveness, positivity, persistence, perseverance and practice = progress

[cam94z28]

Well the feeling has become more of a burning over the last few days. Do numbness and burning fall into the same category?

Meg, those links are all helpful, but most of them talk about numbness from sleeping on a limb. That's not the case with me, just sitting in a chair, I get the numbness(now burning) randomly at different points in my body, including around the eyes. Although it does seem to ease up when I can keep myself from obsessing over it for brief periods of time.

I couldnt sleep again last night due to obsessing over these feelings. For me it's not normal to be completely exhausted from plenty of sleep when I do sleep, as well as feeling burning randomly in my feet, legs and sometimes the palm of my hands. I feel like something is flowing through my veins causing it(leukemia?), and it has really got to me. It seems to go through a rhythm almost, feet burn, legs burn, left palm burns, eyes burn, over and over! and now the intense burning is lasting longer, for 10-30 seconds around my eyes, and 5-10 everywhere else. I broke down crying for about an hour earlier because I think there is something seriously wrong with me, and I can't see a doc or even get blood work done till monday.

If it's not anxiety, what realistically could be causing it? Nerve damage has gone through my head a few times, as well as brain tumor and neuro problems. The burning seems to come in phases and getting progressively stronger as time goes on. Can a swollen brain or a tumor cause symptoms like these? due to the tension headache type chill i'm getting wrapping up around my head.

BTW, I'm only 26.

ricochet,
It's nice to know i'm not alone. I may be seeing a counselor, and or going on meds soon, after I get some tests and make sure theres nothing really wrong with me.

[Meg]

*Although it does seem to ease up when I can keep myself from obsessing over it for brief periods of time.*

If it were something medically serious it wouldn't abate.

*I feel like something is flowing through my veins causing it* probably adrenalin.

Hope your doctor can check you over and reassure you







Meg

proactiveness, positivity, persistence, perseverance and practice = progress

[cam94z28]

Meg,
It did go completely away, as far as I could tell, once i fell asleep with the help of 2 ativan (Lorazepam). The ativan, a benzodiazepine anti-anxiety drug, itself actually made the burning go almost completely away before I even fell asleep. Without it I'd still be up. Not really sure what that means though. If the ativan was numbing the anxiety, which was causing the sensations, or if they went away on their own. They seem to be slowly coming back though now that I'm awake again.

I also had the lightest nights sleep I've had in a long time last night. Usually I'm out till i wake up. Last night I was awake every 2-3 hours looking at the clock, took me 15-20 mins to fall back asleep and never really felt like i fell asleep. My dad reassured me by the fact I was snoring the entire time, though. Last time i took the ativan, (4 days ago), after being up for 3 days, I only took 1, and it knocked me out cold for 11hrs. Last night I slept from 11am to 3am this morning (I needed it), but was like sleeping on feathers the entire night.

Can adrenal exhaustion cause burning sensations like that too? and effect your sleep quality? Whenever I get like this, something seems to drain emotionally or internally over a few days till I hit the deep end. Even now after a full night sleep i still feel like I can't sit still.