Aa
Dropping things
I am a 42 year old female, otherwise healthy. My only medication is 5mg Lexapro, which I have been on for about a year.
For the last month or so, I've noticed I keep dropping things! I'd say a few times a day. It's like the part of my brain which used to automatically know how tight to hold things is not working as well, so I'll pick things up without enough grip and drop them right away.
Is this a normal pre-menopausal symptom? Maybe its because its winter and cold outside? I don't know whether to mention it to my doctor or ignore it! Thanks!
For the last month or so, I've noticed I keep dropping things! I'd say a few times a day. It's like the part of my brain which used to automatically know how tight to hold things is not working as well, so I'll pick things up without enough grip and drop them right away.
Is this a normal pre-menopausal symptom? Maybe its because its winter and cold outside? I don't know whether to mention it to my doctor or ignore it! Thanks!
i. Have you found out what's going on with your grandson? I hope you have, but if not, I'd recommend seeing his pediatrician and then a specialist, which hopefully, the pediatrician will recommend.
I perpersonally drop things all the time and it is both those that I have just grabbed and those that I have been holding. I also have a very strong irritation about this, of things falling on their own, and when I can't get something to stay where I have placed it. I can't stand it when I move a dish or anything like that to do the dishes, and everything falls and causes a domino effect. I also have a little bit of a problem trying to even grab anything.
I have always been curious, so to speak, if I would get diagnosed with MS because I have this and many other symptoms, in addition to my biological mom having been diagnosed with it in her late forties and passing away at 50 (though I realize not from the MS technically...)
Any thoughts from anyone?
I perpersonally drop things all the time and it is both those that I have just grabbed and those that I have been holding. I also have a very strong irritation about this, of things falling on their own, and when I can't get something to stay where I have placed it. I can't stand it when I move a dish or anything like that to do the dishes, and everything falls and causes a domino effect. I also have a little bit of a problem trying to even grab anything.
I have always been curious, so to speak, if I would get diagnosed with MS because I have this and many other symptoms, in addition to my biological mom having been diagnosed with it in her late forties and passing away at 50 (though I realize not from the MS technically...)
Any thoughts from anyone?
My grandson is 10 years old now, and for the past 3 months he has been dropping stuff without any reason ,this happened tonight again , can anyone advice me on where I should start seeking help .I found him crying in his bed ,and told him it was just an accident ,but as he was reminding me on how many 'accidents ' he already had ,I remembered.So I know that I have to act on this problem right away as he is upset about his condition.
Thank you
Regards
Lindaf
Thank you
Regards
Lindaf
How much do you knit? I think that is my problem too. I am 60 and I haven't knitted for a while. I started to make scarves for my grandsons a couple of months ago. Now I have noticed that my right hand has less strength than my left hand. I have been blaming the knitting. What do you think?
Thank you for your info. I keep dropping things. Your connection to cervical spine problem made perfect sense. Ever since I had cancer (DFSP) in my upper back, I've had terrible trouble with numbness in my hands and weakness in forearm and hand strength. It's getting worse and now I drop things all the time. I had my cancer 10 years ago. Thank you.
Once I was looking for an invention that I created with tape and paper, which was a computer-type invention, at night. I wanted to see where I put it, so I found a flashlight in a drawer. I looked in my den, and after I looked for it (I couldn't find it), I was walking innocenly to the drawer where I found the flashlight, and I dropped the flashlight unexpectedly! I have always had this type of problem, jerking muscles. I think that I may have a muscular disorder, not severe, of some sort. That is all.
DEAR GNANA, I apologize for your frustration with receiving information about MY experience and my response to the original poster more than FIVE YEARS ago concerning her dropping things and her only medication being Lexapro. Naturally I took my own experienced and told her of mine. I DID tell her she should ASK her doctor about any medicine substitutes she could try. I DID tell her Zoloft was milder, and for each patient, a drug acts differently, and for me, I don't care what the literature says, lexapro shoudl be taken off the market.
Now, as to your situation as a nurse, being on an SSRI for many years before you had neuropathy problems in your fingers, it's probably unlikely the Zoloft is doing this. However, SOMEthing is. Your situation being what it is, which is completely different from the original poster, i might suggest you have a neurologist look into the possibility of peripheral neuropathy caused from a cervical spine issue. This is especially true from you already experiencing a lumbar issue, which often is caused by arthritic changes, same thing could be said of your cervical spine, but this is merely my best information as I know it. By the by, I'm sure you realize, as a nurse, that a lumbar problem is not going to create a problem in your hands.
DEAR NPIDGEON, I would aksyour prescribing doc to review any side effects your meds may have relating to the neuropathy you feel in your hands. A scan of your neck may prove the origin is at the vertebral levels, but it's also possible the signals are not getting there from your brain, as you suggested. Me, I had an EEG and a brain scan, and I am okay, so aside from Zoloft causing a change in my eye-hand coordination to where I dropped stuff, I got much worse from chemo-induced peripheral neuropathy, I really can barely type now, I must re-read everything several times, I drop so many drinks and whatnot, I had to get a sippy cup, and my feet are almost unbearable to walk on. I fear paralysis with good reason, my spinal cord is curved and my lumbosacral spine is all broken up, all from a car accident. So, MY complaint these days is docs don't give out the right nor enough of proper pain killers. it's either that or surgery, and i do not believe surgery will cure chemo-induced neuropathy. But that's nothing to do with you. i'm just trying to differentiate between dropping things becaus eof medication and dropping things becuase you cannot feel it. Hope this helps. GG
ALL, please keep in mind we are all-volunteer, we do this because people come here to get help. I have not come even close to violating the terms of this website, I remain one of the top neurology answerers,and while my "specialty" is back injury, I also have gathered more information about medications and other neurology components as they have affected me. Everyone here expreses their very best opinion, generally based on personal experience,and if you don't agree with whaqt someone says, chalk it up to different patient experiences.
Another poster would be more likely to respond to you, besides me, if my name wasn't on it, becuz I try to reply to anything with my name, in followup, despite this being an old post. So, instead of pushing me around for trying to help, and instead of pleading your case so as to put my case on the shelf, START YOUR OWN THREAD! Don't bury it down in an old post. State your problems, what you think migh be it and why, what others have told you, IF YOU'VE BEEN TO SEE A DOCTOR, what did they say, what meds are you on, and so forth. So many times, we see, "My head feels funny, what is wrong?"
And for those of you have chosen to refute rather brutally what I had to say, you really need to recognize you are angry undoubtedly from probably a painful or at least a frustrating health issue, and it's okay, i understand perfectl why you're doing what you're doing. But you need to realize that not everyone shares your attitude. Most people, while suffering, and let me tell you, I AM SUFFERING, even so they will try to be polite. This world has enough anger going around.
But, guess what, as I typed out the answer to these two latest posts, I realized I'm really not enjoying this anymore. My health issues have become hellish, and I cannot stand up to the lunatic fringe, so I'm done being polite and offering what good I can to very little information, and this is because TWICE in a VERY OLD post, two people, apparently two diff people, have pushed me up against a wall that I don't belong there, my life circumstance has done that for me. So, I will not post here any further, any more, and I'll take it off my favs list, despite my desire to help people more than anything except my art and dogs, and say bye bye to this challenging effort for patients who come here for help only to criticize and doubt, and who DEFINITELY don't have enough sense to see a competent doctor.
Sincerely not yours anymore, Gail
Now, as to your situation as a nurse, being on an SSRI for many years before you had neuropathy problems in your fingers, it's probably unlikely the Zoloft is doing this. However, SOMEthing is. Your situation being what it is, which is completely different from the original poster, i might suggest you have a neurologist look into the possibility of peripheral neuropathy caused from a cervical spine issue. This is especially true from you already experiencing a lumbar issue, which often is caused by arthritic changes, same thing could be said of your cervical spine, but this is merely my best information as I know it. By the by, I'm sure you realize, as a nurse, that a lumbar problem is not going to create a problem in your hands.
DEAR NPIDGEON, I would aksyour prescribing doc to review any side effects your meds may have relating to the neuropathy you feel in your hands. A scan of your neck may prove the origin is at the vertebral levels, but it's also possible the signals are not getting there from your brain, as you suggested. Me, I had an EEG and a brain scan, and I am okay, so aside from Zoloft causing a change in my eye-hand coordination to where I dropped stuff, I got much worse from chemo-induced peripheral neuropathy, I really can barely type now, I must re-read everything several times, I drop so many drinks and whatnot, I had to get a sippy cup, and my feet are almost unbearable to walk on. I fear paralysis with good reason, my spinal cord is curved and my lumbosacral spine is all broken up, all from a car accident. So, MY complaint these days is docs don't give out the right nor enough of proper pain killers. it's either that or surgery, and i do not believe surgery will cure chemo-induced neuropathy. But that's nothing to do with you. i'm just trying to differentiate between dropping things becaus eof medication and dropping things becuase you cannot feel it. Hope this helps. GG
ALL, please keep in mind we are all-volunteer, we do this because people come here to get help. I have not come even close to violating the terms of this website, I remain one of the top neurology answerers,and while my "specialty" is back injury, I also have gathered more information about medications and other neurology components as they have affected me. Everyone here expreses their very best opinion, generally based on personal experience,and if you don't agree with whaqt someone says, chalk it up to different patient experiences.
Another poster would be more likely to respond to you, besides me, if my name wasn't on it, becuz I try to reply to anything with my name, in followup, despite this being an old post. So, instead of pushing me around for trying to help, and instead of pleading your case so as to put my case on the shelf, START YOUR OWN THREAD! Don't bury it down in an old post. State your problems, what you think migh be it and why, what others have told you, IF YOU'VE BEEN TO SEE A DOCTOR, what did they say, what meds are you on, and so forth. So many times, we see, "My head feels funny, what is wrong?"
And for those of you have chosen to refute rather brutally what I had to say, you really need to recognize you are angry undoubtedly from probably a painful or at least a frustrating health issue, and it's okay, i understand perfectl why you're doing what you're doing. But you need to realize that not everyone shares your attitude. Most people, while suffering, and let me tell you, I AM SUFFERING, even so they will try to be polite. This world has enough anger going around.
But, guess what, as I typed out the answer to these two latest posts, I realized I'm really not enjoying this anymore. My health issues have become hellish, and I cannot stand up to the lunatic fringe, so I'm done being polite and offering what good I can to very little information, and this is because TWICE in a VERY OLD post, two people, apparently two diff people, have pushed me up against a wall that I don't belong there, my life circumstance has done that for me. So, I will not post here any further, any more, and I'll take it off my favs list, despite my desire to help people more than anything except my art and dogs, and say bye bye to this challenging effort for patients who come here for help only to criticize and doubt, and who DEFINITELY don't have enough sense to see a competent doctor.
Sincerely not yours anymore, Gail
1 Comments
I know you're off this site but just in case...when you mentioned back injury, I thought of what I am dealing with - arachnoiditis.
I am 57 years old and I am not on any antidepressants. Only Caudet for blood pressure and collestral. The last 2 to 3 months I keep dropping things, Mainly on picking things up, I don't
seem to have a grip on the item properly. I also keep hitting wrong keys on the keyboard or phone. The end of my fingers go numb if I am driving, knitting or writing. I wounder if this is why I keep dropping things. Maybe I can't feel them properly, not that that still doesn't explain missing keys on the computer. To me that is brain to hand problem. Can you help. twice I have asked my GP about it when I have been there for other concerns and it just seems to be forgotten about.
seem to have a grip on the item properly. I also keep hitting wrong keys on the keyboard or phone. The end of my fingers go numb if I am driving, knitting or writing. I wounder if this is why I keep dropping things. Maybe I can't feel them properly, not that that still doesn't explain missing keys on the computer. To me that is brain to hand problem. Can you help. twice I have asked my GP about it when I have been there for other concerns and it just seems to be forgotten about.
I have been on Zoloft for 12 years and just started the uncontrolled dropping started 6 years after beginning taking it. So please stop giving false hope like it will get better. It gets worse and being a nurse I don't know how you can positively say Zoloft causes this. mine started after spinal fusion "lumbar".
SAOIRE, thanks for your opinion about my reply to a post from four years ago. I had shared my personal insight on my use of both Zoloft and Lexapro, in saying Zoloft was milder. And then, in this patient-to-patient forum, I said she could ASK to switch to Zoloft, as relates to her problems gripping things. Now, you said this was "dangerous to post incorrect info about medication," but I think when taken in the context for which my reply was meant, which was my detailed experiences as another patient, saying she could ASK to switch drugs, I'm not sure how come you decided to characterize that as "dangerous" and "incorrect."
But I thank you anyway because it led me to do a little reading about all the SSRIs, and as it turns out, most SSRIs, including the above-mentioned three, are about the same when it comes to how potent one or another is, and actually effectiveness for a particular disorder is more how SSRIs are reviewed, and in fact Zoloft and Lexapro are considered by some literature to be about equal as to how good they are. So, indeed, my experience was my own and is not shared by the medical community, nor do they particularly discuss it in any meaningful way, either.
So, for me, I wanted to help this lady who posted, and while Zoloft and Celexa might neither one be milder than Lexapro, my reply was correct as to how I experienced Zoloft, and also was not dangerous since I said she could ASK to try Zoloft. Now, all three of these medicines are prescription only, so in the end a physician will decide what medicine their patient should have, which is precisely why I told this poster to ASK. All of us who post give diff opinions, tips, and try to help explain what's going on. At the bottom of each page of MedHelp, it explains this is not an expert forum. There IS however an "Ask A Doctor" section where a physician will reply.
So, in the end, I think your admonition was over the top. And I hope for anyone else who reads this and is on an SSRI and is dropping things will consider it just might be their medicine and maybe their doc can try another type. So, in the end, I defended this sitution heartily because I felt your post reprimanded me, and I really don't need that today or any day, thank you very much. I am too wrecked up health-wise to put up with a bully. GG
But I thank you anyway because it led me to do a little reading about all the SSRIs, and as it turns out, most SSRIs, including the above-mentioned three, are about the same when it comes to how potent one or another is, and actually effectiveness for a particular disorder is more how SSRIs are reviewed, and in fact Zoloft and Lexapro are considered by some literature to be about equal as to how good they are. So, indeed, my experience was my own and is not shared by the medical community, nor do they particularly discuss it in any meaningful way, either.
So, for me, I wanted to help this lady who posted, and while Zoloft and Celexa might neither one be milder than Lexapro, my reply was correct as to how I experienced Zoloft, and also was not dangerous since I said she could ASK to try Zoloft. Now, all three of these medicines are prescription only, so in the end a physician will decide what medicine their patient should have, which is precisely why I told this poster to ASK. All of us who post give diff opinions, tips, and try to help explain what's going on. At the bottom of each page of MedHelp, it explains this is not an expert forum. There IS however an "Ask A Doctor" section where a physician will reply.
So, in the end, I think your admonition was over the top. And I hope for anyone else who reads this and is on an SSRI and is dropping things will consider it just might be their medicine and maybe their doc can try another type. So, in the end, I defended this sitution heartily because I felt your post reprimanded me, and I really don't need that today or any day, thank you very much. I am too wrecked up health-wise to put up with a bully. GG
Zoloft is not a weaker version of Lexapro, Celexa is. It is dangerous to post incorrect info about medication especially anti depressants. I have 7 yrs experience working for an internist who specializes in psychosomatic medicine and am very fascile with medications. I also drop things randomly usually I'm holding something in my hand and I almost drop it it's almost if my hand gives out on me I heard it could be migraine related as I suffer from migraines as well
I have noticed for 2 months dopping things going to neurology in august on 19 meds and now neurontin 800 mgs for neuropathy!! Any info woud be helpful I am 65 years of age thank you Donna
Dear Flo,
Everytime I hear certain symptoms, especially with SSRIs, I know exactly what is going on. I've been on Zoloft off and on for eight years, and used Lexapro for two years. The first time I started taking Zoloft, an equivalent dose to your Lex, I also started dropping things. I had read somewhere about that, so I knew what was going on. So, I believe you will learn to adapt to it, that is, it won't bother you that you do this after a while.
Long time ago, I used to have excellent hand-eye coordination, liked to art, a whiz at the keyboard, and NEVER dropped anything in my life (except the end of a heavy couch one time :) Well, I drop stuff all the time now, my paintings are a little messy, I hit the wrong keys on the computer all the time. Can't get my hand solid around an object or put my hands where I want them to go. It's like my hands are a little stiff. Can't get a grip! Ha! At first I missed being able to handle things, but the benefit of the SSRI, I wouldn't trade for anything. The stuff kind of slows a person down, to where they don't care if things don't go right, which is exactly what you want. I have a neurologist I see regularly, and he tests me sometimes on my thinking powers, and I don't have any kind of physical brain problem at all. It's depression that I take the medicine for. I am depressed from an accident I was in sometime ago, the pain bothers me.
I also have some insight on Lexapro versus Zoloft that I want to share. If you find you are not being helped very well by the Lexapro, you can ask to switch to Zoloft, a milder version of Lex. You might want to just keep the dose less than 100mg. I go from 50mg to 75mg, depending on how depressed and upset I am from one year to the next. Been on it for years, a very good drug. But Lexapro, wow, that was too strong for me, and I was on a dose that was really too much for me. But with BOTH drugs, I dropped things.
I know this will help you, not to worry, this is a normal side effect of the SSRIs. If you have any other questions about your SSRI, I will try to keep up with this fast-moving forum and answer them for you.
GG
Everytime I hear certain symptoms, especially with SSRIs, I know exactly what is going on. I've been on Zoloft off and on for eight years, and used Lexapro for two years. The first time I started taking Zoloft, an equivalent dose to your Lex, I also started dropping things. I had read somewhere about that, so I knew what was going on. So, I believe you will learn to adapt to it, that is, it won't bother you that you do this after a while.
Long time ago, I used to have excellent hand-eye coordination, liked to art, a whiz at the keyboard, and NEVER dropped anything in my life (except the end of a heavy couch one time :) Well, I drop stuff all the time now, my paintings are a little messy, I hit the wrong keys on the computer all the time. Can't get my hand solid around an object or put my hands where I want them to go. It's like my hands are a little stiff. Can't get a grip! Ha! At first I missed being able to handle things, but the benefit of the SSRI, I wouldn't trade for anything. The stuff kind of slows a person down, to where they don't care if things don't go right, which is exactly what you want. I have a neurologist I see regularly, and he tests me sometimes on my thinking powers, and I don't have any kind of physical brain problem at all. It's depression that I take the medicine for. I am depressed from an accident I was in sometime ago, the pain bothers me.
I also have some insight on Lexapro versus Zoloft that I want to share. If you find you are not being helped very well by the Lexapro, you can ask to switch to Zoloft, a milder version of Lex. You might want to just keep the dose less than 100mg. I go from 50mg to 75mg, depending on how depressed and upset I am from one year to the next. Been on it for years, a very good drug. But Lexapro, wow, that was too strong for me, and I was on a dose that was really too much for me. But with BOTH drugs, I dropped things.
I know this will help you, not to worry, this is a normal side effect of the SSRIs. If you have any other questions about your SSRI, I will try to keep up with this fast-moving forum and answer them for you.
GG
Do you have headaches,migraines, or abdominal upset for no reason?
Here is the question - do you start to pick something up and feel clumsey and the item drops and you have to pick it up again? Or do you pick it up, have a good grasp and then your hand automatically opens and the item falls.
When I have a migraine, sometimes I have to lean over three or four times until I successfully pick something up. It is definitely related to migraine, (mine are worse with perimenopause, I'm 43) It really looks like yours is like mine and is nothing to worry about but I always recommend going to a neurologist for at least an initial eval. If it eases your mind, my daughter has migraines and has broken a hand, a foot, a hip - its always been in sports but we both can just bounce off a wall walking down a hall. We have both had MRI's and the best board certified neurologists. For both of us, it is just a symptom of migraine - but have it checked out just for your own piece of mind.
Here is the question - do you start to pick something up and feel clumsey and the item drops and you have to pick it up again? Or do you pick it up, have a good grasp and then your hand automatically opens and the item falls.
When I have a migraine, sometimes I have to lean over three or four times until I successfully pick something up. It is definitely related to migraine, (mine are worse with perimenopause, I'm 43) It really looks like yours is like mine and is nothing to worry about but I always recommend going to a neurologist for at least an initial eval. If it eases your mind, my daughter has migraines and has broken a hand, a foot, a hip - its always been in sports but we both can just bounce off a wall walking down a hall. We have both had MRI's and the best board certified neurologists. For both of us, it is just a symptom of migraine - but have it checked out just for your own piece of mind.
Have an Answer?
You are reading content posted in the Neurology Community
Top Neurology Answerers
Allentown, PA
ON
Queensland, Australia
Queen Creek, AZ
Find out how beta-blocker eye drops show promising results for acute migraine relief.
In this special Missouri Medicine report, doctors examine advances in diagnosis and treatment of this devastating and costly neurodegenerative disease.
Here are 12 simple – and fun! – ways to boost your brainpower.
Discover some of the causes of dizziness and how to treat it.
Discover the common causes of headaches and how to treat headache pain.
Two of the largest studies on Alzheimer’s have yielded new clues about the disease
