real or not?

[nicobella]

Hi there. I am a 31 yr old female. My major complaints for about the past year have been vertigo/lightheaded and headaches/sinus pressure. I also have this overwhelming constant feeling or fear that I am going to pass out...go unconscious...or have a seisure or something worse. I have been to an endo, neurologist, internist and ENT.  I have had an MRI of the head and neck with contrast. BOTh normal. I am still waiting to go for my balance test. I was diagnosed with hyperthyroid last April but have been off meds since last August and levels have been stable. The vertigo is really bad some days and then others it is bareable. However it is always there to some degree. I am not sure if the dizziness is making me think i am feeling lightheaded, going to pass out or have any of those other fears i mentioned above OR if i really am feeling them and could possible happen. I also was anorexic/bulimic for about 10-12 yrs. Been in remmission from that for about a year. Could the purging have caused a brain or neuro problem?? Is that possible? All the doctors tell me It is just anxiety but i don't see how i can have vertigo ALL the time if that were the case. I forgot to mention that i also have floaters and extreme brain fog (or detatched vision). I am really feeling like I am going crazy....!! Can there be something else neuro going on that the MRI would not show??

thanks.

Melissa

[CCF-Neuro-M.D.-PW]

I cannot give you a clinical diagnosis over the internet, as this forum is purely educational



It is encouraging that your brain scan and other tests do not show a serious neurological disease. Dizziness is a common problem and is best evaluated by the dizzy doctors, the oto-neurologist, who specializes in diagnosing patients like you. The Cleveland Clinic has two oto-neurologists for example. They use spohisticated tests such as video-nystagmography to diagnose dizziness. In this test the doctor watches your eye movements with a video camera, while your eyes are in special goggles and with performing certain maneouvres. Other commmon test ordered for these symptoms that can reveal a diagnosis are tilt table tests. In this test, your blood pressure, heart rate and symptoms are monitired carefully as you stand on a tilting table that tilts from 0 to 70 degrees.



Migraines or headaches themselves can also commonly cause dizziness adn vertigo due to the connections between head and neck pain and the vestibular balance system of the brain. Other causes need to be looked into first before attributing this to migraines. An intense feeling of fear can sometimes be related to a seizure, although your story does not support this theory a lot, but an EEG might be a useful test to get, especially if you have this feeling during the EEG.



Ask your doctor about these tests or a referral to a dizzy doctor, you will never look back!



Good luck

[nicobella]

I forgot to mention that other than the vertigo affecting my vision I also experience blurry vision from time to time. And there are times when things just look weird...like further away for closer than normal. Plus the lights in a grocery store really make me bug out. As do the shelving with all the products on it. Makes me more dizzy and freak out. All of which make me get those butterflies in my stomach constantly.

thanks again.

[nicobella]

Ok..Lyme disease?? That was out of thin air actually. Quite funny really. I was never bitten by a tick. But thanks anyway for your response.

[yvonnel]

Hi,

SORRY TO HEAR ALL THE THINGS YOU ARE GOING THRU, I MYSELF HAVE EXPERIENCED THESE PROBLEMS, AS I USED TO HAVE SEVERE PANIC ATTACKS WHICH SOUNDS LIKE WHAT YOU ARE HAVING, YOU ARE WORRIED ABOUT THE SYMPTOMS YOU ARE HAVING AND IT IS MAKING YOU HAVE ANXIETY AND PANIC ATTACKS, I ALSO HAVE THE PROBLEMS YOU ARE HAVING AS WE SPEAK, BUT I ALSO HAVE BUZZING, BURNING, WATER SENSATION IN MY HEAD AND NO ONE KNOWS WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME, ALSO HAVE THE WATER AND BURNING FEELING ALL OVER THE INSIDE OF MY BODY, I TRY NOT TO PANIC, I HAVE WENT TO THE SAME DOCS YOU HAVE AND NO ONE HAS AN EXPLANATION FOR IT, ALL I DO IS PRAY, AS I WILL FOR YOU AND ALL THE OTHERS ON MED HELP

[Citizen T]

nah thats not anxiety... something is wrong.   Ok, this time how about a Lyme titer, a Lupus screen, ANA screen, Protein C and S, CBC, Comp MP, B12,  repeat MRI, MRA and MRV of the brain, and MRA of cervical-4.    Also get a chest xray and EKG performed during dizziness.

[Citizen T]

also get checked for orthostatic hypotension

[nicobella]

I was never bitten by a tick so why lyme disease?? the doctor's have done a bunch of tests...blood and otherwise. I wore a holter monitor for 24 hours and had numerous EKG's done. aqll neg. I have also had a chest x-ray done. Are you a doctor??

[patsy10]

A very large percentage of people who have Lyme never saw a tick bite or rash.

[CarlW]

Sounds like too many tests.  Sounds like the only people making out good with all these tests are the doctors.  How many times do we hear about something like this where the person goes and takes and pays for all these tests to find out nothing? They only end up more confused.  Does anyone ever actually find out what is wrong after all these tests are done?



Nicobella, I feel just like you except for that it sounds like you have the virtigo worse than I do and for that I am sorry.  I also feel stupid and sometimes I forget completely how to think...that's pretty scary.  Is that what brain fog is? And what is a balance test?

[Citizen T]

Your questions was 'real or not'?  The only way to find out is through testing.  Your doctor most likely only did basic blood tests.  You should get additional testing, the tests listed above rule out certain systemic disorders as well as immune system problems and inflamitory conditions, as well as others.   An EEG and TSH + free t4 should also be checked (TSH was probably allready checked in basic testing but free t4's need to be checked too).

[jan]

I had the vertigo and feeling like I was going to faint almost 24/7, also brain fog.  I was diag with neurocardiogenic syncope and inappropriate sinus tachy.  I think the NCS alone would cause those problems.  It is similar to the orthostatic hypotension that someone mentioned.  Once I was treated I got my life back to a large degree and rarely have brain fog.

[nicobella]

so what tests should i ask for??