Anxiety attacks or something worse? Vision issues, foggy concentration, no energy.

Posted , 2 users are following.

So, I've had a pretty crazy year. I was born with a heart disease and two years ago, I was 23, and I had open heart surgery to replace a valve. I was told I'd have a full healthy recovery, so I paid it no mind and went into life full of energy. About a year post op, I was working (I work in front of a monitor for about 8+ hours a day) and my vision started to blur immediately and I felt like I was going to pass out. I couldn't close my hands. Naturally, I rushed to the ER.

All the tests checked out and they told me it was a panic attack. Panic attack? From what? I've never been stressed or anxious a day in my life. From this point on, however, I started feeling sicker. My balance was out of wack, my stomach was constantly hurting. I felt like I was constantly drunk and having these weird out of body experiences. Not only that, my memory was constantly foggy and I was getting tongue tied. I felt like all of the sudden I had developed ADHD.

I saw my physician and he suggested Labyrnthitus. I saw an ENT, and he dismissed it and said it sounded like Vestibular migraines. I saw a gastro, and he gave me a clean bill of health. Ended up in the ER, they did a CT scan and said my brain looked great. However as days went by I felt more tired, depressed, and anxious. My vision was constantly straining and my 20/20 vision didn't help as much as it used to. I started seeing floaters. Fast forward a few months and I'm about a year and a half post op, and I'm on a business trip for work. I get massive pains in my chest and I start spitting up blood. Pulmonary embolism.

I had two clots found in my lungs two months ago, and my hair suddenly started to fall out. At this point, I'm racking my brain because I know there's something wrong with me but every doctor tells me I'm perfectly fine. They run a bunch of bloodwork and it's a blood clotting disorder, and they think I have an autoimmune disease. Turns out I'm negative for everything and my bloodwork is great. I have to take blood thinners daily, though. I finally see the Neurologist and he does a full exam and says there's nothing to worry about, judging from the exam and my past CT scan. Says its chronic migraines.

I go back to normal and start working again, but notice my vision is still giving me issues. My right eye, three times in the last month, for about a minute has out of my control moved towards the left forcing me to go crosseyed until I can take a moment, rub my eyes, and take back control of it. They've given me glasses thinking it'll help, but it just makes the migraines worse. From April to about a week ago I started feeling normal and back to my old self again without many fears or worries, but two days ago I jumped up and went to the restroom and my right eye filled with white. It was so dense I couldn't see through it and I called an ambulance. My vision returned to normal about 10 minutes later but I was pretty frightened. They suggested it was a headrush or a migraine but it was something unlike I had ever experienced.

Long story short, it's been the worst year of my life and I spend so much time on the internet looking up what could be wrong with me despite doctors telling me I'm fine. Yet I battle these horrible symptoms constantly. Foggy memory, poor concentration, and trouble focusing. There's a voice in my head constantly telling me something is wrong, and at this point... I don't know if there is or I'm just doing this to myself. Can anxiety cause symptoms this serious? 

I've spent the last day researching MS and now i'm convinced it could be that. 

I'm just wondering if there's anyone out there with anxiety like this or if I should keep pushing my doctors convinced that it could be something more. Some days I wake up feeling fine and energetic, and some days I'm so lethargic and off balance. My life has taken a nose dive this past year.

0 likes, 3 replies

3 Replies

  • Posted

    obviously the issues you are experiencing are making your anxiety a whole lot worse. i used to push the doctors for everything and i think they just gave me all the tests to shut me up. mine always came back fine but i still to have issues with a certain part of my body( its a bit embarrassing to go into to if you know what i mean🤣.). you have definatly been through hell by the sounds of it. are you taking medication for anxiety?

    • Posted

      Hey there. So they tried starting me on lexapro but because of my history being totally fine before this, I was pretty opposed to it. I took it for about a month and didn't like how it made me feel and I got off of it. Everyone tells me the stress and anxiety is normal from my history but I've always felt so normal before this. I've definitely been through hell.

      My problem is my doctors do give me good results and tell me I'm fine, yet I have these issues with coordination and concentration, and a big problem with energy. Sometimes I just feel crazy and wonder if I'm causing most of the symptoms or if they're actually there, you know?

  • Posted

    yeah i know exactly how you feel. i have terrible health anxiety and in a constant struggle with symptoms that are real or ones im manifesting in my head. i know what you mean by the coordination thing, alot of the time i feel as if the world is never still through my eyes and my short term memory has really been efected which scares me. when it comes to meds it takes a few months to work and are well known to make you feel worse at first

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.