Anxiety?

[Momzilla]

I have been a very healthy 43 yr. old mother of five until I'd say the past two years.  Since then I've been having strange symptoms that have been written off as variant migraine symptoms.  It started with slurred speech, shuffling gait, confusion for several hours and myoclonic jerking that prompted my husband to bring me to the ER.  I was eventually put on Topamax for migraines which I ended up getting at some point along the way for several weeks non-stop and eventually mild seizures (infrequently), even on the Topamax at 400 mg per day.
I have had vertigo with vomiting, nystagmus, double vision when looking to left, I wear hearing aids for sensorineural hearing loss, and starting last March, I had to start sitting on a stool in the morning to blow dry my hair, I thought because I was so tired.  I have sleep apnea, will get CPAP soon.  It really was because my legs were so weak.  I ended up in the ER not being able to lift my feet.  Was at work and my feet stopped working.  Couldn't lift my legs off the stretcher, hardly a few inches and had dorsiflexion problems.  SO weak.  My new neurologist ordered MRIs of my thoracic, lumbar and cervical spine, did an EMG, Nerve Conduction Study: all came back normal.  (Had a normal MRI of brain last Feb) Now my  feet and legs are cramping like mad so painfully.  My doctor wants me to see a psychiatrist, saying I'm suffering from ANXIETY.  I find this ridiculous.  How could anxiety make you stop walking?  Is this possible?  I am NOT making this up.

[sharon6922]

Have you tested for multiple sclerosis? They blame EVERYTHING on anxiety. I have been in your shoes so many times in the last two years & they use the anxiety card everytime. I believe that my symptoms cause anxiety NOT anxiety causing the symptoms! I know how you feel but just keep fighting them on it, if you accept its "anxiety" you will NEVER be taking seriously. I have been in unbelievable pain with my chest for 2 years & only know are they taking me seriously because I have threatened to take legal action because the hospital actually did find a problem, I have suspected MS.....so for two years they blamed it on anxiety and now the realise I'm not making it up. Go your doctors and demand more tests and if they say no, go to someone higher.

Ive been where you are and I know how you feel!

Best wishes! x

[Sherrizim]

Hi,

I wasn't sure from your last post whether you wanted the name of the author and book, or not, hence the delay in my response.  I've decided to go ahead and post the information.  Here is a disclaimer.  I don't know if I believe what he writes, at least not in its entirety.  The book is called The Divided Mind: The Epidemic of Mind-Body Disorders, written by John E. Sarno, M.D.  My psychology supervisor gave it to me as a reading assignment, and I haven't finished it yet.  I also haven't had a chance to discuss it with my supervisor, either.  The author tends to repeat himself a lot, which is a bit frustrating.  For those interested, one of his previous books is titled The Mindbody Prescription: Healing the Body, Healing the Pain.  One of his first books was about back pain specifically.

S~

[Momzilla]

I very much appreciate your response.  Thanks!  It's just good to get things off your chest in a forum such as this.  The book sounds interesting, thank you.

[Sherrizim]

I think that anyone with your symptoms would be feeling anxious, but that doesn't mean that anxiety is the cause of your symptoms!  Your indignation is understandable.

Many believe that there is such a thing as psychosomatic disorders, which is defined to mean that, for emotional reasons, your brain produces various changes in the body that result in very real, physical symptoms.  People with psychosomatic disorders are not making up their symptoms!!!  But in this case, generally the best treatment/cure is to work through emotional issues with a psychotherapist.

However!!!!!  As many people on this forum have experienced and will tell you, tests often come back negative/normal for a variety of reasons when the symptoms are truly organic in nature.

There are others on this forum who are more qualified to discuss your symptoms and offer advice about additional tests that you might want to have.

If you are interested in any additional information about psychosomatic disorders, though, I could provide you with the name of an MD who specializes in the field and a book he published recently.