Help!!!

[ShinKato]

Hi, I have no clue were to post this besides here, seeing that I have 90% of the symptoms... It all started 1 year ago, I had an extreme pain in my chest (around my upper left rib cage and and going to my left arm, so I went to the ER. The doctors did some blood tests and a EKG and came back to tell me it was a panic attack... okies, so I blow it off and try to get some relaxation in my life. About two months after that, I had an extreme pain in my lower abdominal area, around my left and right sides. Went back to the ER and they did more tests, came back and told me I had IBS and costochondritus, gave me some antibiotics and was told to rest. It never really disappered, but I learned to get used to it. Around January of this year, my wife gave birth to our little boy and everything seemed to lessen up in pain, so I thought it was just stress about my wife and the pregnancy. Around march of this yr, everything came back, in full force with more this time, I work in the retail industry as a Manager and I have to keep up with everything, I was helping one of my stockers, while on a 15 foot ladder, when everything around me started closing in... the walls, shelfs, people, floor everything all came at me at once and I suddenly passed out and fell off the ladder, thanking god there was a customer behind me that grabbed me before I hit the floor. I woke up in the ER, numbness in my head, left hand and extreme pain around my sternum, the doctors gave me a full body CT, an MRI, ECG, EKG, and a stroke test... everything came back totally normal... again. Now, this is were I'm at, I wake up everyday, with extremely weird 1/2 second headaches, numbness in my left hand (left side of palm, little finger, and ring finger). I'm dizzy around 98% of the day and talking very dizzy, like every few minutes I feel like I'm leaving my body, like I'm not here, then everything comes back to normal, I also have really weird hand, finger, arms, legs and feet convulsions or (twitches) they usually last from 1 minutes to 5, and with no pain, but it feels like I'm having a full body "charlie horse" or whatever. I was in wonderful health, ran 5 miles a day and also played DDR (Dance Dance Revolution: it's a japanese dancing arcade and I played it around 6 hrs a day, which comes close to doing a 20 mile run). I do smoke cigerrates, around half a pack a day... but the pain has gotten so bad that I have resulted in doing two things I thought I never would do, Drink and smoke week... I know it's extremely unhealthy, but pain meds and anti-inflamation meds are not doing anything, and drinking just stops the pain, not the twitches, but pot (weed) actually surpresses it as long as I'm smoking (no, I do not and will never smoke around my child for ppl wondering). This is getting totally out of hand and the doctors have told me it's in my mind... if it's my mind, then why do I constantly feel like I'm going to stop breathing or my heart stops beating, another thing, my heart pounds extremely hard, but no pain... and the doctors told me this is fine in a 25 yr old... fine if I can watch my little toes move to the beat of my heart? I know this is a looong question, but I feel like I just don't want to go on anymore... please help.

[Sammie4258]

Okay, two things came to mind. first of all, I am speaking to you from experience.
#1. Have you a history of sudden death in your family? Especially at ages under 50 years or under? If you don't, then don't worry to much.  If you do, we need talk.
#2.  Any time you have symtoms such as you have described, and you have run all the tests such as you have described, and they have all come back normal as you have described, they call it conversion disorder.  It is a rare neurological disorder and can cause all the symptoms you described. I have a severe form of it an have all of the symptoms you described and then some. the good news is typically, you don't die from it however, it can pose some problems that can be life threatening but if you know what they are you can be on your guard and get help.  if you have any more questions please send me a message.  good luck.

[Sammie4258]

I am sending you a message so if you are still there hang in there.