Could this be a seizure?

[mahboi]

Hey, long time victim of health anxiety here. For about the last year and a half, I've had steadily increasing concerns of a brain tumor. I'll likely go into more detail about that a little later, but for now, I just need input about this one occurrence.

Two nights ago I got in bed, and immediately upon closing my eyes, I had that "falling" feeling that jolted me awake. Now, I know it's normal for me to experience this when I'm about to fall asleep, but not right after closing my eyes like that. Nevertheless, it only happened the one time and I went to sleep without any other issues. This part might be unrelated, but figured I should mention it just in case.

After waking up, I just lied in bed for awhile. I noticed that two spots of my body were twitching, kind of in tandem. I have been having a lot of this lately and that could very well be due to increased stress. However, a few seconds after I noticed this, the left side of the top of my head suddenly went numb, or at least some similar sensation. I didn't notice anything else at this time, and the sensation faded away in maybe 30 seconds to a minute. I didn't notice anything else unusual afterward or since.

I have no history of seizures, and this is the first time I've even considered this a potential issue. As a result, I don't know very much about them. But this occurrence seemed like it could fit, even if it didn't seem too serious. Additionally, I know I've heard of people having seizures without realizing it.
If it wasn't for all the other tumor concerns I've had lately, I'd probably just pass this incident off.

My anxiety certainly wasn't at its worst when this happened, and despite being constantly anxious for years, I don't think this has happened before.

Sorry for the long-winded post, but I wanted to be as detailed as possible. I have a doctor's appointment in about 5 days for some of my other issues, but I can't wait until then to at least hear some input.

[hanshan]

Everything you describe seem to be normal symptoms. Jolts when falling asleep and various twitches, jerks and temporary numbness occur, but aren't necessarily a sign of something sinister. Your doctor will assess you - until then there is no cause for worry.

[Mermaid16]

I had a grand mal seizure many years ago. I don't remember anything of the seizure itself. I remember vaguely what I was doing before it and then I woke up in an ambulance. I have no recollection of the actual seizure itself, apart from what I was told by my partner. You would know if you had a seizure. It is very common for anxiety to cause muscle twitches. I have these often and they seem also to happen when my body is starting to relax (usually between the wake/sleep cycle). I was scared of them at first, but now I just think of them as that is how my body is getting rid of the built up anxiety in my body. I think you will be fine. It is your anxiety searching for something to scare you with. You would know if you had a seizure.

[mahboi]

Thanks for the responses. I understand that jumping to "seizure" may seem (and probably is) wild and ignorant. I don't know of many seizure cases and don't know how mild they can be.
I only worried for seizure because of how sudden the occurrence was, and because I'm naturally worried for any BT symptoms I haven't previously experienced. Nevertheless, I still can't help but wonder what that sensation was. I certainly didn't imagine it.

I might as well go ahead and explain why I'm so anxious about BT in the first place so I might hear an opinion on that, though that explanation might end up too lengthy for people to want to read. Back in May of last year, I noticed an area of my head where if I applied pressure in a certain way, I would feel pain in nearby areas of my head. My nature made me think "tumor" but I didn't take it too seriously since I knew it was based on very little. This went away a few months later, but I still feel it come up on occasion. The next month, I noticed that I had developed what felt like mild carpal tunnel syndrome. Being a frequent computer user and, more notably, a piano player, this may not be too odd and I'm still unsure if that has anything to do with this. I'm too nervous to look up connections between tumors and carpal tunnel.

Things didn't really change for awhile after that, until around late February or early March the next year. I started feeling like I had water in my ears. Shortly after, I developed a bad cold. My ears would pop like crazy just from me talking. The ear symptoms mostly went away after that, but then began resurfacing and getting stronger in May. Whenever I move the ear area or surrounding muscles (not the jaw), there is popping and cracking. This is constant and has not stopped since it began in the last five to six months. Pressure, itchiness, and pains in the ears come and go, and all symptoms are stronger in the left than in the right. Being a choral singer, I also noticed around the same time that singing was beginning to hurt in...numerous areas. It's hard to pinpoint where exactly. This, along with jaw soreness when I chew certain foods, have also been continuous since they began many months ago. I've also developed throat tightness, or some feeling of having a lump or something in my throat, in the last couple of months. One MORE thing, but I sometimes have discomfort, and sometimes sharper pains, in the left side of head. Most concerning is that this is around the same area where I felt that numbness.

Lastly, I noticed in the last few months that I might struggle to remember certain words or names that I should definitely know. This isn't too frequent and it has never stopped a conversation or anything, and it has seemed more common since I read that it was a symptom. So...that MIGHT be anxiety. But it makes me uncomfortable because if it isn't just anxiety, it instantly makes my problems caused by neurology.

That mostly covers it. The ear and jaw symptoms are definitely the most concerning, because they are always there and are the ones that are definitely not anxiety based. I know there are potential normal causes for the ear issues, but not for it to be constant for this long. The consistency screams "tumor" to me. I've looked into TMJ being a potential cause, but the lack of any sensation when I feel the joint makes me doubtful. And why are most of my symptoms stronger in the left than in the right?

Here's a quick summary of the symptoms:
- Occasional pain when pressing a certain part of the head.
- Mild Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, or something resembling it. Sometimes causes numbness or tingling in fingertips.
- Constant ear popping/crackling when adjusted.
- Soreness in jaw when chewing certain foods.
- Pain in area of mouth/cheeks/throat when singing.
- Throat tightness
- Possible trouble thinking of words or names.
- Occasional discomfort or pain, mostly in left side of head.
- Previously stated occurrence of sudden numbness on top of head.

Sorry for the essay. I see that posts here seem to be kept relatively brief. But it's good to have this all written out somewhere. I'll appreciate any further input from anyone who decides to read all of this.

[hanshan]

By all means have these checked out by a doctor, but they are all everyday symptoms that generally healthy people suffer on and off. The main difference for health anxiety sufferers is their hyper-awareness / hyper-vigilance of everything going on in their body, plus then attributing it all to a serious illness. If the doctor says you are okay, you should believe it, then try to work on your health anxiety, or the process will quickly repeat itself. Good luck.

[mahboi]

Thanks for the responses. I was feeling pretty good about things the last couple of days. But then today, while I was playing a video game, I felt a weird, heavy kind of rush in my head. It's really hard to describe it. It didn't bring on any pain or numbness or really dizziness I don't think, but it was enough to throw me off for a moment. It lasted a few seconds and I felt normal afterwards, aside from feeling jittery due to my anxious reaction.

I just can't find any explanations for what could've caused that, or that numb sensation I talked about in the first post. If they were caused by anxiety, why would they only strike during the periods where I was calm? It's to the point where my ignorant self keeps thinking "could they be small seizures?" I understand seizures are usually more overwhelming, but it keeps coming to mind. Only a couple more days until I see a doctor again, but any ideas in the meantime?

[hanshan]

I've had that, particularly when I was younger. Sometimes a strange sinking sensation for a couple of seconds for no apparent reason. At other times a rushing feeling in my head without movement, particularly if I've been sitting in one position for some time. Playing the video game may be a factor, if you tense up and don't move much while playing.

The main point is that these are normal sensations that people get from time to time. If it lasted for several minutes or kept occurring throughout one day, then that's a different matter, but even then more likely to be related to an ear problem.