Head

[Minnie87]

Hi everyone.

I know I have severe anxiety and I have symptoms 24/7 with no respite.palpitations,butterflies etc.

But the main symptom that literally leaves me housebound is my lightheadedness.ive had this 10 months now.

My head feels “off” all day everyday.the feelings are really hard to describe.

When I stand I feel like I will faint.or like I’m off balance.when I’m sat,there is like a swaying feeling in my head.or a heavy feeling/light feeling.i never have headaches.

Doctors say anxiety.

I’ve had a complete blood count(to reassure me) thyroid,diabetes,anemia,b12,kidney,liver function,ecgs,blood pressure all normal.

I don’t know where to go from here?i don’t leave the house because I feel so unwell all the time.

I know I have anxiety,but what can I do about this one symptom that is destroying my life.has anyone had this and recovered?please help!!!

[Damian]

I think I see what you mean. It sounds a bit like the feeling you can get if you stand up too suddenly, except you have it all the time.

What are you afraid would happen if you went out? Are you afraid you would actually faint, or is it more that your symptoms are unpleasant and easier to manage if you're at home?

[Minnie87 in reply to Damian]

Thank you for replying!

Yes it’s that my symptoms are just so uncomfortable that when I have tried to go out it’s unbearable.

[Ragdoll15]

Hello Minnie. Yes, I feel exactly the same feeling dizzy and faint when standing up. Like you all tests seemed normal so it must be anxiety. I am trying to just ignore it now and think if I faint, well so be it, not easy though, but strangely enough it does pass if you try to relax it through. The worst part for me is feeling so unwell all the time and not living a proper life! I get the swaying feeling in my head if I attempt to go outside.

[Minnie87 in reply to Ragdoll15]

Wow you sound exactly the same as me!

It’s life changing isn’t it.

Can’t even remember the girl I used to be.my family are at their wits end.

[Ragdoll15 in reply to Minnie87]

Yes, I just want the old me back. I had to stop driving too because I didn't feel safe anymore. Also people cannot understand how we feel and think we should just pull ourselves together, if only we could. I am also struggling with medication at the moment. I am trying to wean off venaflexine and I am getting awful withdrawal symptoms. So this plus the usual feelings is very difficult I feel I just want to hide from the world.

[kama24]

Oh Minnie I am so sorry to hear about your balance issues. Has the dr. ever thought it was an imbalance in the middle ear causing Menieres Disease. You could be standing up too fast as well. I sometimes feel light headed but not for long periods of time. I read where they suggest you stand in front of a fan and see if the cool air settles you, or better yet go outside when it is really cool (I do find the frigid air perks me up). There is a test they do with BP....having you sit then stand up. Sometimes the BP actually drops thus causing woosiness.

[Minnie87 in reply to kama24]

I haven’t actually ever had my ears checked.i might ask my doctor.

Because of my other symptoms(butterflies in tummy,racing heart etc) they have just said it’s anxiety.

[kama24 in reply to Minnie87]

Yes, anxiety seems to fit any symptom, rather frightening!!! I have prescription meds for my balance when it is really bad. Also I do the Epley maneuver several x a day when it is there. Take care.

[cortisolqueen]

First off let me say how sorry I am that you are going through this, it really is awful. No one can possible understand how you feel unless they have suffered from anxiety also. I too have anxiety and panic attacks. It all started 3 1/2 years ago. Much like you, I had constant dizzy feelings. It was triggered by a bad case of vertigo which scared me to death and lead me down a journey of panic attacks and severe anxiety. I had to go on medication to calm down. I thought I was dying every day of some different disease. Thankfully the dizzy feeling went away but I still have anxiety. Some days are good and I feel like my old self and somedays it is back on me so bad, I feel like I am back to square one. Somehow we have to stop fearing the anxiety because we just fuel the fire when we try and fight it. We have to accept that we have anxiety and nothing more. I am here if you ever need to talk. I don't know about you but I seek reassurance all the time and that just fuels it also.

[Minnie87 in reply to cortisolqueen]

Thank you so much for your reply.

The first line of your response actually made me cry.i wish my family and Friends could experience how we feel for just an hour.maybe then people wouldn’t be so flippant.

If you don’t mind me asking,how long were you dizzy for?and how did it finally go away?i can’t even imagine feeling well again or even leaving my house.its amazing that you overcame that.i know you said you still suffer some days really badly,but I think in the dizziness going you have actually made real progress.

I am exactly like you,I seek reassurance all the time.which as you said,fuels it even more!

Some days I don’t know which way to turn.

Same goes to you.always here if you want to chat x

[cortisolqueen in reply to Minnie87]

The dizziness stayed for about a year or so. I was so afraid that it would turn into vertigo again that I didn't drive any where except my job for over a year. I take Dramamine every day still. I rarely ever feel the dizzy feeling any more. It is so hard to believe that anxiety can cause all of this isn't it? I also wish that everyone could experience what we go through for at least one day and then they would understand how scary it is. Have you ever noticed that on these forums we all suffer from the exact same things? That in itself should tell us it is anxiety and nothing else but for some reason we just keep fearing the symptoms and living a vicious cycle of anxiety, fear, anxiety and more fear.

[Sangeetdhanda23]

Hi Minnie. I know it's hard to have such sensations . Can I ask u to do one thing ?? Next time u get this light headedness aur heavy headedness just try to observe your scalp hair . Try to feel them with your palm and observe if they also feel light during stressed situation and fully dense like feeling when not stressed . I think I've sensations similar to u . My hair feels light or thinned when I'm stressed like they easily got pressed down with my palm pressure . But when I'm not stressed i.e when the head seems to be in balance I can feel that force required to press them down with my palm like they've become more dense now. It's very scary . I too try to check my symptoms day in day out. Tell me if u have same feelings with ur scalp hair .

[Kkimm]

Hi Minnie

My heart really goes out to you because I have certainly experienced all the same things. You might remember that post I sent which you said you found inspiring in which I described how I have recovered over a period of 18 months and actually did a wild life holiday in Sri Lanka a few months ago after not even being able to be in a room on my own 18 months before when first developing GAD.

I know it is incredibly tough for you especially being very young as I imagine you are. I cannot imagine having to deal with anxiety at your age. There is a sure fire way of recovering but it is not easy. Firstly are you on a good antidepressant? That is alot if help if you are but if for some reason you cannot manage to take them you can still recover. A benzodiazapine such as diazepam can help you instead or as well as long as you are very careful not to increase the dosage as they are addictive. Having a good therapist is also great but they are not always available to us.

However what is really crucial whether or not you take meds is that you need to set yourself tiny goals each day. As you are not going out at all because of how ill you are feeling you could start by giving yourself something to do within your home that challenges you just a little bit. The important bit is that you do it whether or not you feel ill or dizzy. You just ignore the feeling and do it anyway. When you have done it you give yourself a massive pat on the back and tell yourself you are on the road to recovery. You may actually be able to find an activity you enjoy which will also reward you such as a craft activity of some sort. I am into photography, particularly wildlife so I enjoyed printing off photographs and putting them in albums. I then enjoyed looking at the albums. Another idea might the cooking and gradually you may feel able to have a friend/s over for a meal.After a week or so you should set yourself a task of doing something outside the home. Maybe just a walk for 5 minutes. I remember how difficult that was and at first I would give up or do it then feel really miserable because I had felt so ill when I did. However it does not matter if you feel worse than usual, all that matters is you did it and when you get back home you tell yourself you did a great job and then reward yourself with a safe activity you enjoy such as watching a film or if nothing else feels safe curling up in bed for 30 minutes but no longer.

Never stop setting the goals and you definitely will get there! However bad you feel it is only anxiety and cannot hurt you.

I and others on the website would love to hear what progress you make. It will seem very slow at first but you will get there. The important thing is never give up, just push yourself a little every day, never think you have failed and do not fear the symptoms just work through them. Fast walking or running are particularly good because they cause a natural peak in feel good chemicals in the brain.

You are on the road to recovery.

My very best wishes

Kim

[Willie211]

Stress and anxiety does very strange things and the physical symptoms are sometimes very, very hard to understand and connect up with. Many times it feels more physical than mental. But it really is your body reacting to anxiety. The only way out that I know is to WILLFULLY accept the symptoms - over and over and over. By totally accepting - you give yourself time to heal. So many people fight the symptoms and go to doctor after doctor with no result. I know I did. Learning to willingly accept - and letting go is the only solution. It works slowly - but it is a way out.

[Holmeydaisy]

So sorry that you feel so unwell and unbalanced. I too have suffered the same thing but not as extreme. I have been getting EMDR therapy (check this out) and it has been extremely helpful. It is an interesting and very effective therapy to combat anxiety and fear. Yoga and meditation and a plant based diet are also very helpful. I hope this helps.

[Hgolden]

I believe what you're describing is called "brain fog." Many times, it's a sign of chronic stress and that you have brain inflammation. If this is you, finding ways to clean up your diet (be especially sure to cut out processed grains and carbohydrates as your brain uses this as its primary fuel) and to reduce stress will help.

I've seen doctors for the same thing and they can't find anything because they don't run the tests that test for inflammation. So annoying.

Wishing you the best of luck!

[Hidden]

Hey how are you? Have you ever tried any meds? Like zoloftnor Ativan or Xanax?

[cortisolqueen]

Yes I do the same things. I even just start up a conversation with total strangers and ask...Have you ever had anxiety? Lordy they much think I am completely crazy. I really wish we could stop this bad habit.

[Amrinlama]

It’s all set in mind that you are afraid and nicotine makes like these to me too but plz step out motivate go running fitness press harder to get more fit make busy mind then only you are out of anxiety

Don’t google nothing everything is ok we are fine only when we had quit cigarette nicotine play like this with our brain

[Amrinlama]

Soya milk has help me the lot

[cortisolqueen]

well I just started up a conversation with a total stranger. I work at the Post Office so I see lots of people each day, one of my first customers this morning was a sweet young girl and I just had to ask her if she has ever had anxiety. I tried so hard to resist the urge for reassurance but I could not stop it. Turns out she has suffered from it also and is on the same medication I am on. She has had all the same symptoms all of us have. The reassurance helped for about 10 minutes, LOL, then it was back to the negative thoughts and physical sensations.

[Hidden]

Hi Minni, I read your other posts as well and yes, could be me. I too have these strange sensations in my head but this is a new symptom adding to all others. I have it about a fortnight now every day. And yes, it feels like I m going to faint, or as if I was on a ship rolling waves in a storm. I thought it was vertigo but it isn t. Anxiety my GP s as I'd. Welk, here we go again. I try to do everything in my household... I try to ignore it, but when it comes to driving I can t ignore it, can I? So I stopped driving. I ve stated exercise again hoping it helps with this symptom. Fingers crossed. Hope we c a n beat this soon.