numbness and tightening , right arm and face

[Clough]

I'm a 41 yr old woman. Several months ago I had 2 incidents about 2 weeks apart where I became numb in the right thumb, it spread into my right arm and right side of my face within hours of starting. Both times it stayed for about 2 days then faded. I went to my Dr and he ran every blood test available and sent me to a Neurologist. He (the Neurologist) said the only thing that stood out was that my red blood cells were larger than a previous test 2 years before. During his examine he made reference to my having "fast reflexes" Lymes is neg (several times now) but that test is meaningless, I had Lymes and was treated for it but never tested positive then either. EEG was fine. Brain MRI is fine. Unfortunately a c spine MRI was done without gad when looking for a disk compression, the report reads that there are mild degenerative changes and mild to moderate neural foraminal stenosis. They describe vague areas of slightly high signal in several places on my spine, further describe it as subtle and ill defined. I have since had a 3rd MRI, the 2nd of the  c spine with gad - still waiting on results.

I do now have fleeting slight tight feelings on my right face and right arm which can spread to my left side - most shoulder, upper arm and neck. These are usually short lived sensations. Only once I felt discomfort when my right arm felt "overfilled with blood" but clearly was not. This year (season) I have been able to work about 7  hours aday as opposed to my average 10, I feel tired by mid day. And I've lost my tolerance for heat it seems, the sunlight feels scorching. These things are not good, as I work a labor intensive outdoor job

I do believe the next test will be a lumbar puncture.

My question is, are there any "real" reasons for all these symptoms or am I becoming hypersensitive over normal meaningless sensations? Is this just "getting older" I didn't think it would be so sudden.

[caregiver222]

I believe there are "real" reasons for your symptoms. You are not a hypochondriac, nor are these changes "normal" with aging. It sounds like you have a good physician who has hit all the right notes in regards to testing. Here are a couple of thoughts to throw out. Your symptoms are "focal", meaning they are on one side. This is significant. Your symptoms "come and go". This is significant. The fact you have "short livid symptoms" is a significant finding. It appears clear that "something" is intermittantly acting on the brain. I also believe your alteration is taste is a significant finding. Sunlight sensitivity is a significant finding. Sensitivity to heat is a significant finding. The MRI would not necessarily show anything if the problem involved an intermittant problem that has not as yet caused any death or tissue. I have no idea what is wrong with you, but I have a gut feeling this is a circulatory problem. There is a great deal of anecdotal evidence that high doses of omega-3 oils (3,000 mg a day) increase the "lubricosity" of the blood cells and encourage circulation. And a baby aspirin a day.  I would stay away from vitamin E, because although it has many benefits, there are some problems with high doses. I can think of no contraindications to this protocol. But I encourage you to ask your own physician. This doesn't get to the root of the problem, which may be related to your blood cells. If I had a direction to go in I would seek out a specialist in blood disorders for an opinion.

[Clough]

Just realized that the bad taste in the water I've noticed recently  - doesn't taste that way to anyone else and I've detected it in other water sources... like I've sprayed my tongue with OFF repellant.

One week after my last MRI and I never heard anything, I've called today to see if they forgot me or what?