Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
237053 tn?1258828426

Scary episodes...

Today I wanted to get out of the house, so I decided to go shopping.  Bad IDEA!  On the way there I noticed my arms were feeling heavy while driving.  While in the store almost suddenly I got very very weak, shaky, heavy, and dizzy.  I felt like I could barely walk or move.  I was by myself and it scared me very bad.  I hurried and bought my stuff and when signing my slip my hand was shaking tremendously.  It was embarassing.  I didn't think I would make it to my car.  When I did i just sat there.  I could barely move or do anything.  After about a half hour I felt a tad better and drove home.   I'm still feeling pretty crappy but its not as bad as it was 2 hours ago.

I've had this happen to me on several different occasions.  It comes on very sudden and completely wipes me out and makes me feel so strange and ill.  It is very scary.  It almost feels like the worse case of hypoglycemia/ low blood sugar ever.   But I don't think it is.  

Please, Does anyone get his same thing?  I don't know what it is or what causes it or brings it on, but it isn't any fun.  

Thanks.
16 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
535822 tn?1443976780
A crop of spots (rash) has come up the last 24 hours around my neck ....
Helpful - 0
535822 tn?1443976780
Yes yesterday I got out after what I consider not too long a drive... hour and a half and I was aching and stiff.. it did wear off after I moved and went to walk for coffee but I felt horrible this morning, the mornings are always bad its good I work from home I doubt I could get out early. its 1-30pm here now and I feel fine, sometimes I get like a 'weak'ankle like its going to give way..my husband knows what I have had through the years but I still get odd looks when I tell him a symptom ..what makes me feel better is that I can come here and know I am not nuts that others have the same....
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Our stiffness and hobbling sound quite similar.  When I get out of a car I'm stiff and limping for about the first 40 steps, then I loosen up.  Do you get that too?
Helpful - 0
535822 tn?1443976780
I am certain it isnt anxiety I was treated for that and panic, if anything made it worse they stuck me on Lexapro and Xanax  made me feel terribleand I went to them thinking I had Low blood sugar and was I diabetic, they said NO ..depressed.. I was surprised as I had never suffered from depression, , ,it was only coming on MH a year or so  ago that gave me the answers, as I was bitten 20 years ago,.... I had a horrible morning on waking today I had really severe lower hip pain, low in the back , I did drive a long way yesterday and the sitting in the car seat for a long time may have triggered it, I am also trying to build my immune system and taking supplements and that Ciocidal Silver, so I wondered if there was some side effects..Sorry I feel fed up with the whole battle todayI think I have to get  some Doctor to give me anti biotics if I can pursuede them I have Lyme still after 20 years...LOl, am babbling its going to be a babbling day.
Helpful - 0
428506 tn?1296557399
Hope75 is right that the good news is that both can respond to appropriate treatment.

I feel somewhere in the middle.  I have no history of panic or anxiety disorders.  Most of the time, I think it is all Lyme.  But I've had a couple of episodes when suddenly worsening symptoms did seem to trigger something like a panic attack:  My heart felt like it would jump out of my chest, and the room started to get dim.  That sounds like panic, not Lyme.

What I've attributed this to is a symptom-induced panic attack.  It started out being the Lyme's fault, with one of those "waves" of worsening symptoms coming over me that we've talked about before here.  Then, my mind responded to that in the form of panic/anxiety.  

Luckily, this only happened maybe 2 or 3 times.  Now, when I feel one of those waves of symptoms coming on, I know more what to expect and so I don't resort to panic.

I think it is "normal" to have some anxiety or panic in response to either suddenly worse or new symptoms.  I can imagine though that a person already prone to anxiety could suffer worse with this than others.

cindy903:  i do exercise regularly (though you'd never guess it from my waistline, hehe).  I do think it is an important part of dealing with Lyme.  I've always been a bit confused by the Burrascano guidelines, as he says absolutely no aerobic exercise until the patient has enough energy.  But how do you know when you can if you don't try?  There have been many occasions when I thought I was too exhausted to work out much, but once I got going, I felt somewhat better and able to do more.  

Like patsy10 said, I think I'd seize up terribly if I didn't exercise!  It is really strange, after sitting at my desk for an hour I'll need to stiffly wobble to get up and walk down the hall.  But after I warm up and loosen up exercising, I can jog!  But then even returning home minutes after completing a workout, I struggle with the stairs.  So with me, I gel up very quickly, but it's very reversible with exercise.    

I have some things around my apartment for days when I'm really not up to much physically.  I have a mini trampoline, and I'll use that to do a bouncy march-in-place, and it's very easy on the joints.  I also have resistance bands, small hand weights, a medicine ball, and one of those big balance balls.

Overall, I feel the most "normal" while I am exercising (after warming up, at the beginning I sure don't feel normal!), and that motivates me to keep it as part of my routine.
Helpful - 0
666921 tn?1254990618
I too have questioned anxiety/lyme symptoms - when I realised I might have lyme - following a tick-bite and then very stiff neck/shoulders etc; I became anxious - not ridiculously just 'worried' - then I started reading-up on lyme - when quite a few of the symptoms fitted with mine - I was convinced I have lyme - I have always been a 'get-up-and go' - sort of person - organised/a bit of a perfectionist - you know the kind of thing - well having all these lyme problems with pain etc, - has changed my very 'being' - in some respects for the better - three and a half years on - I am slowly becoming a 'better' human being - in that I appreciate things more - everyday stuff - that during my worst flares - I would imagine never being able to do - 'fear' of the unknown caused me a great deal of anxiety - thinking back to episodes of 'not being able to get out of bed' - I wonder was it - paralysing fear? my body forcing me to rest? the bugs attacking? the bugs dieing?

following six cortisone injections for neck pain - I thought I was dieing - the anxiety was overwhelming me - three days later it was like someone had flicked a switch - my anxiety vanished - I was fine - I remember clearly that moment - it was wierd but such a relief.

there are other instances I could write about but then we all have 'our' stories - I like to hear other peoples experiences - that is part of the reason 'we' are here afterall

I have 'stiffness' - some days bad some days hardly noticable - it feels 'muscular' rather than actual 'joints' - like the tendons etc; are tight /out of alignment - all being pulled/stretched - I am not taking any medication at the moment - touch wood - the unknown is there for all of us - I try - these days - to let the 'power of the mind' - work in my favour - I listen to my body more instead of fighting it - I know now when I am pushing to hard or trying to ignore the signals my body/mind is giving me - I used to get soooo frustrated /angry / etc; - all negative - I am often 'going-on' about relaxation - it is because it has helped me so much and I hope others can 'find' that same help.

tension/twitching/rashes/acid reflux etc,etc, can all be caused/exasberated by anxiety/stress - so it makes sense to me to try to eliminate the 'fight or flight' responses - unless they are crucial to our survival.

my LLMD once said 'remember the feelings can be horrible - but they won't harm you' - I guess he was refering to the anxiety of lyme ?



Helpful - 0
237053 tn?1258828426
I also feel it isn't anxiety and I don't think it has much to do with being in stores.  I've had these attacks before at home.  It's not like an anxiety attack... it feels more like a low blood sugar attack, which I've heard is common in lyme.    

I'm not saying it's not anxiety cause I can say that my anxiety has def increased since all of this, but I think it's caused from whatever illness I have going on.   I've never felt the anxiety until being sick.

Who knows what it is, but it ***** and I hate it.  
Helpful - 0
280418 tn?1306325910
I feel your pain.  Regardless of what it is, panic attack or Lyme - I feel your pain.  So, the good news is..antibiotics help if it is Lyme and therapy helps if it is anxiety/panic.  I, personally, am being treated for both.  If the antibiotics don't quell your issues, consider cognitive therapy, it can't hurt and having Lyme alone merits some therapy!  Hang in there and try not to start avoiding big crowds, etc.  You'll end up isolating yourself.  I did:(  But, I'm over that portion of my life.  I can stand in a Wal-Mart, fearless!  :)  You can get better and that's the light at the end of the tunnel.  Take care and breathe!
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
My problem as described above is definitely not a panic attack or anxiety.  It's totally related to my condition.  I can't speak for others though.

Cindy, I do exercise on a regular basis.  It hurts but I do it.  I was an avid and intense exerciser before this.  Now I am a moderate exerciser.  If I did not exercise I would be so stiff I would barely be able to move.  I have to keep moving.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
More research is needed that's for sure.

Has anyone tried a minimal amount of exercise -- whatever you can stand -- to help keep symptoms at bay.

I have found that doing whatever you can do --- and this is recommended in the Lyme bible -- Burascano's tips and hints as he calls it -- exercise is underestimated in the treatment of this.

Also, give B12 sublingual a shot. Lyme and coinfections have been known to zap this and cause a deficiency. B12 will calm one down -- it's been proven.

Hope -- you've given us some food for thought...good post! Thanks.
Helpful - 0
280418 tn?1306325910
I did that too, but I'm sure it was panic attacks.  It was terrible and I thought for sure it was a physical illness, but it was anxiety.  I can't believe how much power the mind has, but I've lived it - both Lyme and anxiety.  From what everyone is saying here, Lyme is at the root of it all - are we sure?

Does that change that fact that it could simply be a panic attack?  Perhaps Lyme could make us prone to panic attacks?  I don't know.  As a person whose had them, I can safely say, it was not caused by any sensitivity to lights etc., but due to a large store, full of people, turning me into a panic-ridden mess.  I haven't had a panic attack in years and I sit here typing under flourescent lights.  I do know others with Lyme that have photophobia, so I'm not ruling it out.  Whether I had Lyme at the time of my anxiety disorder is another question.  Let's say I did.  Did it cause me to be panicky?  Or is it just Lyme, coincidentally coexisting with an anxiety disorder?

People have noted here that when they received antibiotics, they got better, incl. their anxiety issues.  The only problem I see with that is that often, people get treated for depression and anxiety (with antidepressants etc.) at the same time that they get Lyme treatment.  How do we separate the two?  Then, there is the neurosyphilis vs. neuroLyme debate.  Syphilis makes people have psychiatric symptoms, why can't Lyme?

All I'm saying and wondering out loud here is:  how much do we attribute to Lyme and how much do we just own as a stand alone diagnosis, like anxiety or panic disorder?  I am also concerned about how much I attribute to Lyme - because therapy helped me.  It really did.  So, therapy didn't make the Lyme bug go away, it made the panic attacks go away - and I had severe panic disorder.  What if you get treated for Lyme and the anxiety doesn't go?  I would be concerned that you weren't getting treatment for a valid, nasty anxiety disorder that could cause you great problems in daily life.  

I honestly have no idea which theory is correct, but those are the thoughts that cross my mind and I think they need to be considered, with all of us.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
yes, but it does pass.  Even sooner if you distract yourself as margypops said.  I have linked the episodes to work and dept store/grocery shopping (all with fluorescent lighting) as patsy had noticed as well.  I have wondered if it is from the lights.  As I have heard they blink very fast that the human eye doesn't notice.  However I think our overloaded lyme eye and brain does and it is to much for the nervous system.  

The good news is it does get much better with antibiotcs.  There is hope :-)
Helpful - 0
666921 tn?1254990618
yes it sounds familiar to me too.  I have almost turned the car around and driven home but have always managed to carry-on - it is soooo wierd

as margypops said if you can distract yourself long enough it does ease-up.

sensory overload is a good discription by Patsy
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Yes I get this but not very often anymore.  It was very bad before treatment.  It happens to me in the grocery store or other dept. stores.  My legs get weak and I feel like I can't walk.  I think it has to do with the fluorescent lighting in the stores, along with the sensory overload from all the products.  I think the brain can't process the stimuli all at once and this is the end result.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Yes, me too -- I came to identify the feeling as the bugs coming out of hiding to hatch or feed or party or whatever they do.  It is very scarey indeed, but it does pass.  A little sip of water usually helped me, but that might have been just a self-comforting mechanism more than anything.  I would be surprised sometimes that I actually made it through what I was doing, like travelling or driving.  

Hang in there.
Helpful - 0
535822 tn?1443976780
Yup I get this also I used to think it was panic attacks, I know its a horrible feeling ,ground your self when it happens tell your self it will pass.. then distract your self with anything, talk to someone, read labels on cans ..anything it eases of once you dont dwell on it.I also thought it was low blood sugar once .
Helpful - 0
Have an Answer?

You are reading content posted in the Lyme Disease Community

Top Infectious Diseases Answerers
1415174 tn?1453243103
CA
Learn About Top Answerers
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Ask a question
Popular Resources
Fearing autism, many parents aren't vaccinating their kids. Can doctors reverse this dangerous trend?
Can HIV be transmitted through this sexual activity? Dr. Jose Gonzalez-Garcia answers this commonly-asked question.
A breakthrough study discovers how to reduce risk of HIV transmission by 95 percent.
Dr. Jose Gonzalez-Garcia provides insight to the most commonly asked question about the transfer of HIV between partners.
Before your drop a dime at the pharmacy, find out if these popular cold and flu home remedies are a wonder or a waste
Fend off colds and the flu with these disease-fighting foods