Debilitating symptoms. Brain fog...extreme memory loss...spacey 24/7!

Hello again

I wrote about my symptoms a couple of months ago... i soon discovered that i have iron anemia so i started iron infusions and after three weeks i started to feel better... more energetic, more outgoing... iron was causing my anxiety symptoms... i can't say that my brain fog symptoms disappeared completely but it certainly got better !!! Plz check your iron levels if you still haven't...

Hi have you been tested for fibromyalgia just I suffered with all the same symptoms for years all yesterday coming back fine eventually I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia the trigger is stress hun ask to be tested as it's very hard to diagnose x

This post is gonna be long, but stick with me as this could essentially help you figure out what's wrong with you.

Tomorrow will be exactly 4 years since these symptoms have started for me. When it first happened, it was so bad I was constantly in and out of the emergency room because I didn't know what panic attacks and brain fog were. I just assumed I was dying. I eventually got to a point where my doctors were just telling me it was generalized anxiety. I'm not trying to take away from what they're saying, but it wasn't anxiety and then the symptoms, it was the symptoms that brought about the panic attacks.

3.5 years and 5 doctors later, I finally found someone who gives a damn. My doctor has run every test you can imagine. I literally at this point don't even know what he can check anymore. The worst of it was a vitamin D deficiency and a slight b12 deficiency. The vitamin D deficiency has already been treated but because of the terrible brain fog, the vitamin b12 just makes my body feel like it's going haywire at even the smallest doses.

I keep fighting because I know that something is wrong with me outside of a mental illness. In my struggle for answers, I have tried just about everything that doesn't require medication. Exercise, changing my diet, sleeping more (pfft that's a joke), and meditation. And not the breathe and relax kind of yoga. Guided deep Reiki meditation. They're great for the anxiety but don't do anything for the brain fog. So I kept searching.

I started seeing a chiropractor because of the constant neck and shoulder pain over the years that I was told was caused by being in a constant state of anxiety. My chiropractor is actually really good at what she does and recommends that everyone get an x-ray before she starts adjusting them to see what the problem is (this is not to boost sales or whatnot, she literally charges $40 for the X-rays). So this was actually my second go around at this particular place. She is a longtime family friend of my aunt and when I was younger had terrible back pain (developed early). My mom took me to see her because she wanted to prevent anything bad happening later on. Currently, my x-rays are the same as they were over 13 years ago. I had an atlas (c1) subluxation and axis (c2) subluxation which is essentially your bone slipping out of it's correct position. The curve in my neck is almost non-existent as it was 13 years ago as well but I didn't pay it much mind. I figured it just caused the neck and back pain.

Fast forward to about a week ago, I go to my doctor telling him essentially "thank you for all your help but I'm still feeling pretty crappy". He asked what was up and I gave him a written list of symptoms (my memory is shot so if I had to recall it from memory I probably couldn't). A few of the things that alarmed him was that exercising made my brain fog worse (I felt more spaced out and detached right after instead of feeling good like I'm supposed to) and something else that I can't remember right now. He said it sounded like I wasn't getting enough oxygen to my brain. To anyone else that probably would be alarming but to someone that has had 0 answers in 4 years, it was FANTASTIC news. I took this news and did more research.

I found out from my doctor that inflammation in other parts of your body can cause inflammation in your brain. I have rheumatoid arthritis and have had it since the age of 11. Yeah, sad. But I though it was weird that it would effect me over 11 years later after my RA diagnosis and to this extent. I'm 26 now for good measure. RA diagnosis was at 11, anxiety/brain fog started at 22, and I was diagnosed with the subluxations at 13.

I went back to my chiropractor after that appointment and she gave me some literature on how the a1 subluxation can effect your body. Google "atlas subluxation symptoms" or something of the like and holy moly you're gonna be shocked as to what can happen to your body when this bone is moved. It basically pinches the nerve and cuts off the single to the nerves from there down (it's literally the first bone in your vertebrae) and your body tries to keep functioning but doesn't get the correct signals so it kind of goes haywire and does whatever. This also causes your fight or flight system to go crazy (panic attacks out of nowhere for me). The lack of oxygen to the brain can also cause... DING DING DING! Brain fog!

So I did a little test. I went to the chiropractor for 4 days straight and was going to go so for two weeks (they're closed on the weekends and I took a day to rest since I also get massages before hand and too many can make me sore). I started feeling better. My headaches and head pressure were lessened, I could do homework assignments (and college work requires SO much reading), and I was able to go out with friends (something that was really difficult to do because of the detached feeling.) This week I haven't gone yet and it's been 4 days since I've been and I feel like crap again. Not as bad as when it initially started but back to the baseline crappy feeling. Brain fog is just making me feel bleh, head pressure is back, and I am pushing forward.

Like many of you, it started out of nowhere for me. THIS I can remember like it just happened. It was THAT terrifying.

I was sitting in a computer chair in my living room with my fiancé and our close friend. They made a joke and I started laughing and tossed my head back (it was really funny) and when I brought my head back up, my heart started racing. I thought I got light headed and tried to shake the feeling but it wouldn't go away. I walked around the block a couple times thinking there was some excess energy (it felt like I had too much coffee except I had stopped drinking coffee then since it made me sleepy). Nothing helped. It kept getting worse and I thought I was dying so I was rushed to urgent care where the doctor pretty much hinted that I had done some drugs but didn't want to admit it because my mom was there. I was an adult at that point and am actually very open with my mother but he said "yeah, everyone says that", and I realized he wasn't going to help me. He sent me home with an antihistamine and Zoloft. When I brought the antihistamine to my doctor, he was so shocked at the dosage for it that he ran out of the room to make sure there wasn't a mistake and literally came back saying "he was trying to drug you." Not very reassuring and I stopped trusting doctors after that, refusing any and all medication. I even told a pushy doctor once that "if you give me medication, I'm going to sell it!" That ended that.

So here I am now. Lots of money for testing later and somewhat of an answer. It wouldn't hurt to see a chiropractor. I've heard stories of people who got that bone reset and after almost a decade of exactly what we're experiencing (years of testing that tells us nothing, weird symptoms, and anti depressants that do diddly squat), had IMMEDIATE relief with all of the symptoms lifting right after. The experiences vary though. Worth looking into and you won't waste your time with all of these doctors and unanswered questions. With my subluxation being there as long as it has, it can take upwards of a year to correct. I have opted to do it the slow and steady way since some people who have had the bone reset by a specialist sometimes get worse. Like I said, the experiences vary. I feel like with my mini experiment I have made some progress and will continue to go as long as I can. Please feel free to ask any questions that you have!