Brain fog, dizziness, vision problems, head pressure, headache PLEASE HELP

So are you free of the symptoms or are they just more manageable?

Well. Let's put it this way. If I follow the diet that I figured out over the years (no sugar, no alcohol, no tea, no caffeine, no white bread, no pasta (if possible no gluten at all), but lots of vegetables, fermented food, kefir, kombucha with ginger, potatoes, brown rice, at least 1/2 gallon of water with added minerals, take my probiotics in the morning and magnesium in the evening, Vitamin B every other day, go to bed early, eat regularly and enough instead of pushing it to later - yes, then I am fine and without symptoms. Potatoes, apples, oatmeal,  ginger and aloe vera juice (no sugar added) and especially the pure water is very helpful for me... 

BUT as soon as I fall for something or have to eat something like pizza since you won't get anything else to eat on a kids party : ) my symptoms come back the next day. It's very tricky since as soon as you feel good, you think you could eat everything again... 

So I personally think my symptoms come from my gut since I destroyed the bacteria balance and gut lining with all the sugar I ate before. 

Plus I feel great when I do Yoga and stretching (especially my spine, shoulders and neck).. but I can't do any sports that are stressful for my body like tennis or running- then I am brain fogged right away.. 

I hope this helps. I have these symptoms for about 3 years now. Went to every doc possible - they all said I am fine and let me go...have done MRI, Endoscopy, full blood work with all vitamins etc...everything was normal... 

And I have to add that I am very busy and easily stressed out person.... so I think stress plays a big role in here, too... Plus I am sitting on my computer a lot for work, and have to drive my car a lot during the day as well. So one thing that could add to this is the wrong posture (kind of pushing my head forward) that could hurt a specific nerve. It's called the vagus nerve and as of right now, I am researching about the vagus nerve and read that this could play a big role in all these symptoms as well. Will let you know if I find out, more. 

Wow.. I know it’s about your health but it sounds like sooo much work.. but if it makes you feel better than u gotta do it.. I feel like my poor diet has something to possibly do with some of it.. also my neck.. possibly.. my primary doctor had me get a neck MRI and said everything was pretty much fine but I did have some type of “minor” damage or something.. I don’t really understand what he said bc he called me and told me over the phone.. I have to go see him about it. He said nothing will “cure me”.. the only thing that will give me relief is what I’m doing now which is, Acupuncture and massages 2x per month.. I was doing fine but if I wait too long to get my massage or Acupuncture then I begin feeling that drunk feeling.. or if I go to a diff massage therapist she’ll screw me up and I’ll feel dizzy instantly right after the massage.. weird..

It’s funny that you mention stress.. I do feel that’s another factor in all this.. as soon as I became a mom I haven’t really had a “break”.. my bf works a lot so all responsibility falls on me like 95% of the time of the time.. 

Going back to nutrition.. my diet is horrible.. I eat whenever I have time.. as most my meals aren’t the healthiest.. as far as excercise I joined a gym but the moment I hit lithe treadmil... there went the brain fog/ “drunk feeling”/de realization even more..!! It was sooo bad I felt like I was spinning for a while.. that totally unmotivated me and I haven’t been to the gym since...

I’m hoping this Holistic doctor, I plan to see can put me on a plan

Hi, that sounds very familiar. I went on the treadmill and got so dizzy...I won't do that again..and after my last massage I had the worst headache... What helped though is Acupuncture. 

To the stress.  I read a book the other day about adrenal fatigue and I thought that totally applies to me as well. And it kind of goes hand in hand with what I found out over the years what is good and bad for me. I am always stressed out and never get a break. When I live how they recommend it, I feel better as well. Most important is that you go to bed before 10pm and give yourself a time-out at least 20 min a day, stay hydrated and eat healthy (mostly cooked meals since they don't stress your system that much), eat regularly 5 smaller meals instead 3 big meals, do sports that don't stress your body etc. I was thinking about going to a Holistic Doc as well, they should know about adrenal fatigue. Please keep me updated. 

 

Vanessa, can i ask you how often do u get a panic attacks? If you do get them at all??and the detachment, derealization/depersonalization feeling? Do you think the panic and anxiety triggers DP? Doctors say that panic is the cause of depersonalization, but in my case, DP occurs in my most peaceful calm days out of the blue. And once i feel “gone” questioning my own existence it freaks me out so much,i get so scared that it wont go away, and i’ll stay like this the rest of my life  and i usually get a panic attack! That lasts around 10 mins. The worst time i tremble , get cold, sweaty, cant breath, and feel like i am going crazy or pass out! Some panic attack even cause a high blood pressure strike ! So i always believe that DP is the reason for my panic attacks and not the other way around.  I also get attack in my sleep i guess , coz i can wake up in the middle of the night, with a raised heart, ringing ears, trying to figure out who am i, where i am at , and so terrified ! And its hard to fall asleep after all! I wonder if that ever happened to you during those 2 years in this condition? If derealization/depersonalization Triggered a panic attacks? 

Hello! 

I don’t get panic attacks.. I do get anxiety from time to time. I had never suffered from anxiety until I became pregnant with my son. When I get anxiety.. I feel, my arm weak, fast heart palpitations, weakness, feeling faint, cold sweat, and a feeling of hot going through my body.. so many times I went to the ER thinking I was having a heartattack or stroke but everything would usually come out normal. I’ve seen cardiologist and had plenty of blood test.. everything thank God is good.

The de realization has its good and bad days.. on a good day I forget it’s even there.. it’s only when I go to a market, mall, or crowded place that I’ll get the symptoms of being dizzy.. and I can’t focus. 

On a bad day.. I feel like I’m dreaming.. hard to focus on anything.. I feel like I can’t think straight, my eyes feel heavy and super tired, I feel a bit weak.. super tired like I just want to sit down.. and sometimes it feels like I’m swaying..I often feel like I’ve had two tequila shots..Acupuncture helps those feelings a bit.

It can take up to 6 months for iron levels to improve.  Have you been rechecked to see where they are currently?  Did you have Ferritin and Serum iron checked originally?  What were your levels?

Hi Carla.. 

yes glad you found this chat room.. we all suffer from similar symptoms and well.. since doctors don’t know what it is we’re all seeking answers.. some people have great feedback.

I also have suffered at one point or another of low iron.. I see a hematologist every 2-3 months just to make sure my iron saturation isn’t low.. there’s been a total of 3-4 times I’ve needed an actual iron transfusion through ivy bc I’ve been at like an 9 iron saturation.. when I’m that low I feel faint, extremely fatigued, headache, fast heart palpitations.. kinda like anxiety symptoms.. I also have a toddler so it’s just horrible dealing with low iron levels..

The specialist has ran diff bone marrow test but everything seems normal.. he thinks it gets low bc of my monthly cycle.. who knows.. I’ve never had a iron issue until I had my son.

Maybe u need iron through ivy, through the vein.. much more quicker and effective.

Good luck

Well, I got blood test back that showed hypomagnesium. It causes headaches, blurred vision, vertigo confusion, a whole range of symptoms. I'm now increasing it to see if it helps

Hey Jeremy,

They found that by doing a regular blood test..? Is that something you need to tell the doctor to look for?  So.,, what’s the treatment plan for that?

Vanessa, you will want to ask for a magnesium ion test, it's a true indicator of magnesium blood tests. Don't let them do a normal magnesium serum test, it will usually always be normal. Treatment is increased magnesium levels then retests so often to see how levels are holding.

Got it.. I’ll have to check it out and have my doctor test me. He did test my magnesium levels a few months ago and I want low not high.. I still take magnesium vitamins 250gm 1 per day.. but I’m not consistent about it.. I feel a bit better if I stay on it.

So what’s the treatment plan for hypo magnesium?

It's basically increasing or taking extra magnesium for certain amount of time, then you'll be rechecked. It's nothing too major. I just started so I'm waiting to see if I notice results but we think this will do it

Hey Vanessa, 

So I've been reading some of the past replies and one thing that caught my attention is that you said your neck hurts on the left side down to your shoulder mine does too come to think about it, it actually never hurts on the right side. 

Sry I just re read your comment.. sonhow are u feeling so far? Did uaso suffer from de personalization.??  What type of magnesium are u on?

Yes I do suffer from that. I'm taking magnesium theronate. It crosses the brain barrier

I have only been following this post for one week now and the only thing I've noticed that's different about my symptoms from everyone else is I wouldn't really say I get "dizzy". I do however get sort of disoriented. That is usually towards the end of the day. I will say my main symptom that brings me the most trouble is my eyes. I wouldn't necessarily say it's blurry vision, it's more like a fog around my vision but the center is clear if I focus. I hope that made sense. My symptoms are worse right when I wake up, up until I get really good and woken up (around 45 minutes after waking) and if it's going to be a good day my symptoms will fade (never fully going away) but return full force in the afternoon around 5-6ish. I get really bad derealization/ depersonalization in the afternoon. Although I usually feel confused/slow for pretty much my whole day. 

Hi skyler! 

Yeah, my left neck bothers me sooo much.. I feel like I have to crack it or massage it out.. if I don’t get my Acupuncture or massage I begin feeling a tingly feeling frombthe back of my head straight down to my shoulder blade.. I’ve never been in an accident or anything I can think that’s damaged my nerve or whatever it is... doctor did a neck MRI and said nothing bad stood out lol..

I’ve heard from some moms that’s it’s normal when u h e kids bc we’re constantly carrying our children.. who knows..

Same here Vanessa I've also never been in any type of accident I actually never had neck pain until having my daughter. I have heard that the neck could have something to do with our symptoms. But it would be hard to link your problems with your neck because if nothing was serious enough in your case to stand out at your doctor how could it cause such a disruption in your life.  But then again ruling it out maybe isn't a good idea just incase because you know doctors make mistakes too. Do you feel that way?

 I haven't had my neck checked yet but I definitely wanted to. But my neck doesn't really hurt me everyday it hurts me a lot but I wouldn't say all day every day. Not enough to cause everything that's going on. But then again who knows it could be the smallest thing we are looking over that's causing this.

That's how I feel about my neck I kind of don't want to waste my time because I don't see how something like that could cause all of these life altering symptoms but then again I don't want to not check and that be what's wrong.

Vanessa, 

Do you ever feel like your life is just passing you by since you had your son? Kind of like your just watching him grow up before your eyes? It's hard to explain but I feel that way about my daughter and I'm a stay at home mom so I don't understand why I feel that way. Sometimes I feel like I'm just looking at her through a window i think that's part of my derealization/depersonalization.

I can totally relate to all of ur symptoms. And of course the dizziness! But to me dizziness is not as scary as derealization, and that tunnel vision i get it too, like my eyes are in the fog, it feels like my hole vision is going to shut down from the overload. Confused the my wholw day as well. But DP GETs way worse for me after 2 pm!  

Yes tunnel vision and derealization are my worst symptoms. It's scary, kind of feels like dementia some times

Oh my goodness Jeremy so funny you say dementia, well of course not funny but you know. 

Anyway I went through a period of thinking I had dementia. I'm only 22 will be 23 the 28th of December. My husband thought I was absolutely ridiculous. But seriously I can't remember anything what so ever. Even small things. I can't tell you what happened last week. When I think about it all I see in my head is a black hole if that makes sense. It's really terrifying and gives me bad anxiety. I feel like I'm going through the motions of life and I'm just "dumb".  My vision issues are very scary as well. They never go away they are with me 24/7. My vision is never 100% normal even on a good day. I also went through a period of really thinking I was going blind which also gave me terrible anxiety. But since I've been living this way for over a year now I've tried to convince myself I'm not going blind as well as the 3 eye doctors I have seen.

I’m definitely not rulling the neck thing out.. I still need to make an appt to see my doctor so he can go over the neck MRI results with me.. he said there was some type of “minor” something.. I don’t remember what he said.

He did say nothing would cure the neck pain.. and to keep on getting my Acupuncture and massages.. he was going to put a referral to my insurance to see if I can get approved for some type of massage therapy but I have HMO and they’re strict on things like that.

Jeremy had a suggestion (if u read the above comments) to get tested for hypo magnesium.. I think I will tell my doctor about it amd see if he can test me for that.. it won’t hurt to try.

I’m sry u feel this way Skyler.. it’s much more difficult feeling this way and having a child to fully take care of.. it’s hard.. believe me I know.. my bf works a lot so I’m with our son most of the time plus I work.. 

these symptoms can be so debilitating at times.

This week had been difficult for me.. my symptoms have been pretty bad.. I walk around feeling like I’ve had a shot of tequila, I feel like it’s a dream.. can’t focus too well, not have any type of conversation bc I quickly lose my train of thought.. I have noticed that my ears feel pressure like I’m at a high altitude.. ENT doesn’t know why..

But I do feel like my symptoms are worse in the morning amd fade a bit through out the day.

I know it’s frustrating and it takes a lot from u but don’t let it get u down. Even if we never find what’s wrong we have to learn to live with it.,

Yes I totally feel that way as well I definitely feel like my vision is going to just shut down it's really scary. Many nights I've went to bed thinking I would wake up blind. And on bad days my eyes hurt like they are sore or tired from trying so hard to focus and see all day. And above my eyebrows will be so "tired" as well. Kind of like when you hold your arm up for a while and it gets tired that's how my eyes/eyebrows would feel!

Skyler, I know!! I have trouble putting stuff in order. Like pouring cereal and realizing I have no bowl yet. Doing things backwards I guess. Yes, my vision problems are 24/7. It's like I'm lost in space. I'm good with vocabulary, long term memory, and everything else but attention span and short term memory.

Thank you it's definitely helpful knowing I'm not alone and Your so right! If nothing else we have to keep on going for our babies! My precious baby girl is on my mind 24/7 but more often than not I'm feeling so guilty that I'm not enough or I could do so much more or be so much better for her if it wasn't for these stupid issues. It gets the best of me at times but for the most part I have learned to cope. You are awesome and I hope your loved one know that because I just don't know how I would work and do everything as a mom. I feel like everything would be so much worse for because on days I'm busy and have a lot of things to do I feel even more lost, scattered, and confused. I do wish we had family around us we live 2.5 hours away from all of our friends and family and my husband works all the time as well 6 days a week sometimes 7 and 12 hours a day most days we only get about 4 hours at the most with him. So I also take care of my daughter all by myself. 

Jeremy lost in space is a good way to put it. And for me I wouldn't say I'm good with vocabulary I find myself forgetting words like I can't think of the correct term for something. I hate having conversations with new people because I feel like they think I'm crazy because I forget mid sentence what I'm talking about and I tend to ramble as well. And I also have trouble putting things in order. I even find it hard to complete things like cleaning I can be cleaning my bathroom and need something from the kitchen and go in there to get it and start cleaning the kitchen. It's so frustrating. My husband literally tells me all the time how scattered I am. 

Wow guys!!! I am so glad i am not alone !!! Jeremy and Skyler , i have it too... The memory confusion. Going through the motion , but not really being there, and i get waves of anxiety from it too. And i am scared to be in dark too coz my vision gets worse. And heavy tired eyebrows. I know exactly what u r trying to say! I also feel like i am day dreaming most of the time, and i get so deep in my thoughts that when i pull out of it, i get terrified. Like where did i just go? Am i even here. I feel “numb” , and “dumb” i go bathroom to get smth i come back without it, i am going to make a tea, and forget why i got to the kitchen. At one point i was thinking i am gettin  alzheimer's, and still do think so. But i am only 31, so hopefully its not it. Most likely anxiety and derealization play i big role in how we feel, and tricks us! I wish i could post some link in here! Skyler i have it too. I look at my 2 year” through the window”  its like ur not gettin a full pic of life. And emotionally u r not there. And u try to feel it but u cant and its scares u and gives an anxiety rush! Specially when i am tired i look at my son... as if i missed all of this 2 years of him... i am like omg did i even raise him? I feel like slept , woke up , and i am already here. Time is an issue for me Skyler. I always feel like its either too slow or to fast.. to a scary point. I dont feel the day going.  I wish i could speak with u. To share our experience.! You know engl is not my 1 lang its hard for me to even described what i feel, especially writing.  May be u could email me?  So we can exchange  numbers? 

I've been on this horrible roundabout for the past 8 months too. I have read a lot of forums, but this is the first I have read where there is a common theme in that many of us have vision changes. This is the biggest and most worrying part for me. I can handle the headaches and even some dizziness, but I hate this blurred or fuzzy vision that is constant and the trouble with white lights and shopping centres and bumping into things at night because I can no longer see in the dark. But yet all of my tests came back clear too, I have seen Opthalmologist and a Neuro Opthalmologist, Optometrists, ENT, 3 Neurologists, doctors, dentists, chiropractors, nathuropaths, you name them, I've seen them and had all the tests! But still no answers, so I am where you guys all are, we are just getting through each day as best we can and trying to manage the anxiety around why we are feeling so terrible. Anyway, at least it is somewhat comforting to know that I am not alone in this. Thank you all for sharing your experiences, we can only hope that in time we will improve and go reset to how we were before

Lanvyn, 

Wow yes absolutely. I will private message my email address. And don't worry your English is fine I totally understand and to me you are describing myself. I go in and out of rooms constantly forgetting what I went in for it is extremely scary being so young and so "dumb" and forgetful! You are definitely not alone!

Skyler have you ever noticed  that ur symptoms get more intense right before your period starts? Because as for me being in this condition for 2 year and 2 months.. i been writing down  all the little things that triggers my vertigo, and anxiety , and derealization. I know by now i can not have too much sugar, no coffee, cant handle any stress, need to get my minimum 7 hrs of sleep! Can stand wind or cold! Cant move my head too much coz vestibular gets overworked . And can not stand to much sun or brightness i always wear my sunglasses .     But the time before my period is pretty tough . I get all of my sympotoms at once! Plus i feel really down and dreadful . Since it happened to you same like in my case after having a child? Did you notice any changes in ur cycle ?( more painful?)  Have you checked ur hormones? 

I have neck pain too . I feel something is wrong from my left side head to my left shoulders ends.