Anxiety or something more sinister?

Posted , 6 users are following.

Hey guys I've been having some weird symptoms going on for the last several months.  I've been having tension-like headaches that never seem to have an end.  In detail, it feels like there is a tight band around my head and like there is a pressure in my head.  Sometimes I can feel the tension in my neck too.  Along with this I have been experiencing debilitating brain fog.  It comes at random times, sometimes when I'm out in public shopping, sometimes at work, and sometimes when I'm with my friends. Another weird occurance that I can't explain is that randomly I will feel like I cant keep my eyes open.  Its like the feeling you get when you get poked in the eye even though i havent and its both eyes.  I constantly have to blink and its awkward when people are trying to speak with me. I have highs and lows.  I have some days where I can wake up and be fine for the most part and go on with my day, and some days the head pressure gets worse throughout the course of the day.  Everynow and then I have a hard time falling asleep.  I will get to the point where I am about to fal into my sleep and I will jolt awake and my heart will be racing and I am trying to catch my breath.  One of my doctors thinks it is an anxiety attack.  I am not convinced. For the last ten days or so I have been having it bad again, and it really wears me down physically and emotionally.  I used to be in great shape.  I would run 5K 4-5 days a week and then work out at the gym after.  Now somedays I feel like I cant even get out of bed without feeling winded.  But on days where I feel better I can run and work out fine.  For the last seven months I have been fearing the worst.  I am afraid it is something like a brain tumor.  I've seen my home physician and mine doctor at my university several times looking for answers, but to little avail.  One of my doctors told me that she was certain that it wasnt a brain tumor. She thought I may be dealing with stress and anxiety so she reccomended seeing a therapist although she never gave a legitimate diagnosis.  I am not convinced it is anxiety because I really have no major stressors in my life.  I just hope some of you could give me any new ideas because I'm starting to lose hope that I'll ever feel normal again.  

0 likes, 10 replies

10 Replies

  • Posted

    All of the symptoms you've listed are that of an anxiety disorder. The tension headache has probably triggered an emotional response, which is leading to an anxiety disorder. It seems like health anxiety, which is something I've suffered with for many years. I know these feelings all too well!

    As I have epilepsy, ive had many scans and MRIs, tests on my heart etc to rule out possible causes of my seizures and all have come back fine, so even though I experience the same symptoms as you I have had all the tests to rule out anything sinister. I would imagine your doctors are right, but if you're really concerned keep badgering them, even to a point of making your symptoms out to be worse then they are, so that you can get any necessary scans or tests to rule out anything else.

    Also have you had any blood tests done? A lot of these feelings can be caused by certain deficiencies that are easily treatable, such as vitamin D, vitamin b12 or magnesium deficiency. I'd ask for a work up to be done before anything else to see if it's something as simple as taking some extra vitamins.

    • Posted

      I had bloodwork done last december after a month of the symptoms and everyting came back normal 
  • Posted

    yup all sounds like anxiety, having stressors really isnt part of it - its more complex than that. therapy will help you find out what the cause may have been, but sometimes there isnt one and its just how it is
  • Posted

    This is all anxiety disorder, not a brain tumour. I t is a common and very distressing illness (the anxiety disorder) and it responds well to therapy and sometimes some medication.

    You've had tests done but you're worrying that they missed something. Trust me, if you had a brain tumour it wouldn't come and  go! It would get worse and worse and you'd probably have seizures.

    Even if you have no major stressors in your life this disorder can hit you, and you have to learn to fight back - that's where the therapy helps. Please keep posting, so we know how you're getting on. love Tess

  • Posted

    Never lose hope. As you have read through this forum your symptoms are the same as everyone else, or quite similiar. So you can pursue the headaches or migranes with a nuerologist to clear that portion up then accept you have an anxiety disorder. Heres the basics of whats going on. Over time you probably worried about stuff. Just worried or over think but it was there. You quietly programmed yourself over and over and over. It happens. It became habit to your body. The body after a time recognizing the same ole thoughts and created nuerotrasmitter to quicken the  connections therefor going from thought to body reacting rapidly. Two different parts of the brain that now have the connection. N an easier term the language of the mind is thought. The language of the body is feelings. These have intertwined now on automatic.  Fixing this is a a lot, a lot of work. Some never so, most manage it. The science behind it cant figure it iut. If somehow that "switch" mal functiined or is inflammed or what exactly it is is still unknown to science. So it is diagnosed as an anxiety disorder until it is figured out exactly the core of it. Hapoily we are advanced mammals. We have ratiinale and hierarchy of thoughts. So learn cbt. But remeber you are now dealing with mind and body so learning is good but never eniugh. You have to react to what you learn. Put it in action. Then you are using good rationale and new thiughts to challenge you mind and reacting using this knowledge and self calming techniques and skills to challenege the body. Bith have to be done to create a change. Many give up or just learn stuff and di nit realize there are two seperate components or two parts to this to manage it. Maybe in its simplicity its a bad habit formed. Habits are damn hard to break but possible or at least managed. So cbt is the basics and a must, therapy is nice to help calm you and learn more abiut yourself, mindfullness, self calming techniques, what ever reaonates with you try. Now as with any really bad habit expect withdrawls, expect old ways slipping in expect a challenge from your thiughts or your body it will happen and thats okay. Normal bad habits break within 21 days but this can take up to a year of constant mental awareness of both mind and body. There are meds that will chemically calm it down but either way you will need to challenge all this to correct it or manage it.  The other avenue is oure denial and searching and searching for the rare disease you must have (the mind is at it again) and know even if you find an ailment as many people do have in cinjuntion, anxiety attacks are a seperate entity. I hope that explains this clearly. Acceptance is really needed so you do not continue making new connectiin between your mind and body. 
    • Posted

      Sorry about the typos 
    • Posted

      I write typos all the time!. Your advice is spot-on, as ever.

      I agree with everything you said. love Tess

  • Posted

    Hello my name is Larry in 23 I've been suffering from the same exact symptoms except I get light headed sometimes I to thought that it is something terrible I've had a cat scan done nothing showed so I'm going to neroligist for mri. My nose tends to twitch a lot which scares me. Psychiatrist gave me muscle relaxes and nortriptylin for anxiety and depression I will repost if these meds seem to tackle my problems I have hard times going to sleep for fear of not waking up

    • Posted

      I understand that fear, Larry. I suffered with it myself for a while until I talked myself into believing that there was no actual reason, medically, why I wouldn't wake up.

      I'm glad to see that you're having tests done - that's the right thing to do, but once the results all come normal, your anxiety continues because you invariably think What if they missed something?

      Please keep us updated - wwe're here to help, if we can.

    • Posted

      Thanks for sharing Larry. It's nice to hear I'm not alone and comforting to hear that it's nothing too serious. I've noticed that when I can really take my mind off of it (it's nearly impossible) that I realize that I'm feeling fine and nothing is wrong.

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