Anxious Adam

[asteiner]

Hi guys. I'm 30 and have been experiencing the same symptoms. It started with a numb patch on the top of my head than transitioned into a visual problem where I feel off and kind of dizzy but not like the room is spinning. The visual problems start after waking up and are worse at work where I sit at a computer. Then the anxiety kicks in which only exasterbates the symptoms. I have already scared myself into believing it is either a tumor or MS since I am getting some tingling in my feet now which only increases my anxiety levels. I have never experienced anything close to this. I have saw a GP and he took blood which was normal and told me to go buy some meclazyne, a dizzy suppressant that does not seem to help. I am currently setting an apt to see a neurologist but I am struggling with this mightily, since it seems my anxiety has caused me to believe and accept the worst tumor\MS already. I constantly have nervous breakdowns and it is taking a huge toll on my life. I get solace from reading all of your posts because they give me hope and let me know that I am not alone in this struggle. In all honesty I hope its just anxiety since I believe I can manage that. I am hoping for the best, can anyone relate?

[Hidden]

I used to be dizzy a lot. It would happen randomly. I understand. I also had a tingly patch on my head every once in awhile. But I no longer get dizzy and the patch never bothered me as it is infrequent and only occasional.

[cazadoo]

Hi im sorry for all of us who struggle with the physical effects of anxiety and its relations. I have big problems with vision and feeling dizzy. Sometimes i feel my vision is like looking at the road on a hot summer day where it hazes if you know what i mean. I would love to learn to drive but apart from anxiety i feel others wouldnt be safe with me on the road with my vision. Ive had eye tests and have glasses but like you say what is to be done about vision blurr and dizziness. If you have any luck let me know please. Caz

[Deecey]

Hi there, anxiety and all its symptoms really can take its toll cant it and can take over our lives. Ive lived with GAD generalised anxiety disorder most of my life and have had a couple of major breakdowns, had every symptom imaginable and isn't it weird what symptoms you can get. The tingling will be all down to the affects of adrenaline, I use to get this, and head rushes, and lightening pains right down my arms and it is all the continuous adrenaline that our bodies are pumping out is doing. What coping strategies do you have? I exercise, go to yoga, have just joined a mindfulness class which is brilliant and I have a few mindfulness books which get me through, I write stuff down in a journal, not just the negative stuff but I concentrate on whats went well that day i.e. you managed to get up, get dressed, get to work, speak with people that sort of thing all the time congratulating yourself for having the anxiety but still functioning and kicking it in the face. People with variant mental health do not praise themselves enough, we are strong people. Hope your feeling better. Dee

[asteiner in reply to Deecey]

Thanks for the well wishes. I have an appointment set to see the neurologist on Dec 30th which see like a long time from now. The scalp numbness has seemed to have gotten worse but so has my anxiety. The dizziness or vision issues have seemed to get a little better. I am still stressing over what this could be and am still fearing the worst of course. I have breakdowns every now and then. I hope this is nothing serious and does not last. Hopes to for good news soon! Happy holidays all.

[Kenya40]

Hi,

I believe that it's anxiety. I used to get dizzy and feel all sorts of weird pains in my head, still do from time to time. Its been 20 years since I've been dealing with anxiety. I've had every symptom under the sun. I know it's scary but you will be just fine. I wish you well my friend

[Rhar]

I get similar feelings. I get what I would say is really woozy in the head, feel faint, feel very off balance when walking at times. I also feel like I have weakness in my arms and fingers at times. My head constantly feels strange

[Rhar]

Thank you but pretty sure mine is related to anxiety as I have panic attacks. Thank you though

[DeeDee412 in reply to Rhar]

Anxiety is a powerful thing and causes us all sorts of symptoms which we then think to believe is something else. Panic attacks make you feel extremely light headed and dizzy/faint - I've experienced this a lot with my attacks too. It's horrible and at times makes me feel pretty afraid of the possibility of maybe fainting, especially in public. 'luvtohelp' has been posting on my posts too thinking she knows whats best for me and it's really starting to hack me off, so much so i deleted my post I can probably assure you it isn't a migraine... trust me, if you had a migraine you would know. Its excruciating pain, and a migraine isn't something that's constantly with you, if it is then there's something seriously wrong and should probably see about it.

I find getting my breathing under control helps me best, and counting as a i breathe. Therapy in the form of CBT has helped a lot too overall, would highly recommend. Hope you're coping well.

[veganese]

I have similar problems. Balance off, eyes funny and sometimes vertigo. I have severe neck and shoulder tension which I think is part of the problem. Trying to balance I tense my whole body - especially my legs! Not easy to live with but I try to accept it. I'm going into the city today to see my son off on the train, then meeting a friend. I find situations like this difficult but I try not to avoid doing things like this. I find busy place like the city and shops make me worse. I tire very easily, well it's only natural with the brain working so hard dealing with keeping me upright and all the sensory information. I think think the more attention we give to symptoms the more they manifest. Hope this helps.

[veganese]

I've read both your posts and thew word 'could' is mentioned in each. My understanding is that some forms of migraine are painless. I was researching my own symptoms at one time and came across this information. As much as I have chronic tension in neck and shoulders, I don't get painful headaches - for which I am very grateful - but it does seem to affect my balance mechanism.

[veganese]

Personally, I don't want to take tablets. For extreme distress and for short periods perhaps it's useful. It's only masking the real cause - assuming symptoms are caused by an anxious state brought on by a particular mindset. It doesn't happen overnight and it won't disappear overnight. Certain conditions can exacerbate the adrenaline response such as issues with diabetes, thyroid etc. but mainly the fear of fear perpetuates the anxious state. Not sure what you mean by "people are stuck with the mindset that it is anxiety and nothing will change their mind". We search the internet and find that millions of people are presenting the same set of symptoms. Many people go through test after test until finally they have to conceed that it is anxiety.

[Rhar]

I do agree, whilst I know luvtohelp was trying to be helpful it wasn't the first time she had told he I had migraine. I def do not have migraine so it was annoying me!

If she found out that was her reason for symptoms I can understand telling other ppl but I am certain it's not my problem!!

It's just so hard battling these awful head symptoms day in day out! I'm at my wits end!!!

[DeeDee412 in reply to Rhar]

Yeah i was told all sorts of things that didn't apply to me too, i know myself better than anyone, because i am myself and i know how i feel and what i've been through! Received more rudeness than you have from her though.

It's honestly soo horrible isn't it? I literally just experienced it coming home on the train. My panic attacks come in different forms but feeling faint and unstable/funny head is one way they can affect me.

Have you ever tried therapy before? There's actually some quite good apps out there too, it may sound a little silly but i found one that had a meditation track , like somebody giving you a relaxing speech and i used to listen to it either in the morning or before i went to sleep and it does calm you down quite a bit. The key is to remain calm which is hard when your body makes you panic so much

Relaxation techniques are helpful although don't cure the problem. Sadly i think anxiety/panic attacks is something that will always be with us but we can perhaps control it better at times, it's hard because it's your own mind that is doing it to you, and it's your own mind that will get you feeling better, but i used therapists to help me get to this place.

I also find it reassuring to talk to other people on here who are experiencing the same things! It's nice to feel normal if you get what i mean, sometimes i feel really alone and embarrassed of how i think, but being around others on here makes me feel quite a bit better

Feel free to drop me a message any time you want a chat, i hope you start to get relief from these head spells In exactly the same boat, its tough but keep positive

[asteiner]

I thought I would update everyone since I am coming up on my year anniversary with this issue. Unfortunately I am still dealing with this!!! What I described as scalp numbness in the past has turned into scalp pain, which can sometimes be nearly unbearable. I have been through multiple tests, including an MRI without contrast, which have found nothing out of the ordinary. I am frustrated beyond belief to say the least. This has been the most exhausting and painful year of my life!

The neurologist I have been seeing has diagnosed me with a Migraine disorder which is very odd because I have never had Migraines before nor do they run in my family. I just don't get this! I have been prescribed to Nortriptyline and Neurotin which do not seem to help much...I am at my whits end. I now believe this is something I am probably going to have to deal with for the rest of my life. It takes such a toll on everything I do and I have never been the same. I will continue to fight for answers or a cure but I am demoralized beyond belief. I guess the good news is that the doctors do not think that this is anything life threatening. All I know is that I wish I was better. This has not been a fun journey at all. I hope to someday comeback to this forum with good news to share.....someday.....

[asteiner]

Hello again-

Well I have reached my one year anniversary with this condition and unfortunatley little has changed. I have now seen 2 neurologist, 2 GPs, a rheumatologist (waste of time), an ENT, chiropractors, and a psychologist. Some of these visits have helped a little but nothing takes the scalp pain and wooziness awary (my 2 biggest complaints). I had and MRI and have been tested for Lymes, thyroid disfunction, and auto-immune diseases with no positive results. My main neuro thinks that this is a form of migrane/tension headaches that are dirven by my anxiety. I do not necessarily disagree but the pain and wooziness still persist after all the meds we have tried to fix this it can be hard to accept. I now know this is not MS or a brain tumor after I had the MRI and neuro visits but before that I was completley conviced it was one of the two. I was already invisioning myself wheelchair bound for the remainder of my life. Thanks to Dr. Google and my exceptional imagination I still have been having some difficulty shaking off the MS thoughts but I am working on that with the psychologist currently who diagnosed me as a hypochondriac obviously. I still struggle with going into stores and being at work under the white light and sitting at a desk behind a computer all day. I have currently started to take cymbalta so we will see how that goes. My new year resolution will have to be to give into the fact that this is completely anxiety related, because trust me, it has taken a long time to come to this conclusion because of the severity of my symptoms at times. I know that I will have to battle this acceptance issue many times down the road as I will no doubt convince myself that this HAS to something else, something sinister and deadly because that is just how I am wired. I have to have a better attitude when dealing with this. I hope to one day come back to this and tell you all that I am doing better and I hope the same for you all as well! I know that I may have to deal with this for a long long time but I will continue to fight it the best I can. I keep telling myself that, I SHALL PREVAIL!

[asteiner]

New diagnosis is NDPH, New Daily Persistent Headache. The Neuro thinks its being caused by the Trigeminal Nerve which is flaring up and causing pain. She ordered an infusion and then probably going to try some new meds. Going on 2 years now...Not fun!

[Jf86]

Wow sorry you have been going through all this. Keep us posted on your progress and good luck!

[asteiner]

Hello, another update. I have found something that seems to take away a lot of the burning scalp and forehead issues...Xanax. Unfortunately it has to be a scheduled addictive drug but this has to mean that it is highly related to stress/anxiety/depression correct? Unless Xanax has some type of tension calming abilities which I have read it does. I do not want to become dependent on this drug or any drug but if it increases my quality of life from where I was at certain points I feel the risk may be worth it! I have had increasing chest pains although. The chest and back pains have almost become my number one complaint now. I think it is costochondritis but I am not sure. My hypochondriac tendencies tell me this is some form of cancer building within my chest wall or some for of Fibromyalgia that I will struggle with for the rest of my life. The doctors I have mentioned it too aren't too concerned and I had a EKG which was normal a while back. I just want to feel normal again! I am working on my 3rd year of this struggle currently. Hopefully things make a turn for the better. I shall prevail!

[emdub]

Just wondering how this ended up for you. I have the same thing going on.