Arms, Head numbness after waking up and body burning. Effects from medication?

[saimcheeda]

I've had numbness in my left shoulder for over a month, been to 3 doctors all of whom said the same thing that I have a spasm. One doctor prescribed Nuberol to me for 2 weeks, it had no effect. I also have extreme anxiety and went to a psychiatrist 3 days ago. He prescribed me Duloxetine, Xanax, and Celecoxib.

I felt extremely worse the first day after taking these pills, had hot flashes and overall body pins. I went immediately to the doctor who said it wasn't serious and to expect this kind of effect. However, I stopped with the Duloxetine but continued with the other two. But since taking these pills I have woken each day with both arms numb (as if no blood was flowing) as well as the right side of the head. I woke up an hour after taking Xanax, and Celecoxib just now with a severe pain in my abdomen along with the numbness. After an hour I feel better. I don;t know what to do, the doctor was completely dismissive when I tried to communicate these effects to him but I don't think I'm getting the right treatment.

Suggestions Please

[hanshan]

Hello Saimcheeda,

It's quite common for people with anxiety to feel worse immediately after starting a new course of medication. There is increased anxiety about whether this is the best course of action, fear that the medication may not work or have side effects, and so on. Generally, you should give the medication time to settle in, even with fast-acting medications like Xanax. Anxiety does not disappear overnight. Duloxetine will take several weeks to show a benefit.

Your doctors believe that your physical symptoms are all related to anxiety. They may be able to see how physically tense you are when you visit. Also, you may still be tense while you sleep, causing the numbness in your arms when you wake.

Are you seeing the psychiatrist again? Along with the medication, you can learn mental strategies for dealing with your anxiety.

[saimcheeda]

But I haven't taken the medicine since and am still feeling worse. I was able to go to sleep at 8.45. woke up again at 10.45 and feel hot all over, it's been an hour since then and it's not subsiding. I can;t go back to sleep and am feeling fearful again. I can't see what the problem could be.

---------- Post added at 11:56 ---------- Previous post was at 11:42 ----------

I'm also worried if it's any kind of overdose or reaction from the medication. Or could the burning and numbness be a symptom of something unrelated to the medication and anxiety? The doctor was very dismissive and wouldn't satisfy my queries.

[hanshan]

Hello Saimcheeda,

You can see more doctors, but if they can find no physical illness and they know you are suffering from anxiety, they will conclude that your symptoms are caused by anxiety. You can never 100% discount the possibility that there is a physical cause, but the probability is that they are right.

For the moment, you do know that you have anxiety - so work on controlling that. As I said in my previous post, you would be best to continue with your medication, and try to use strategies like meditation and muscle relaxation to calm your anxiety.