Does anyone feel weird in open spaces?

Hi

I am wondering as anyone had a diagnosis?

 

glad im not the only one always makes me feel useless as i have 2 young children so im fine normally when taking them out but also feel funny when im near any tall buildings or in an open town centre has anybody had any help from your gp or anywhere else as ive tried therapy before with therapy for you but that didnt really help

I have been this way since I was 5. I hate it!!!! I'm 26 and still trying to get over this. I work at the airport to help me get over it but it's not working as much as I need it to. I also took anxiety medicine but that did not work. It's hard to pursue your dreams because you feel trapped. I'm going to try klonopin and see if that helps. Does anyone else have any valid suggestions?

Yes Moo I have had this for forty odd years the bright lights doesbt help and the flooring mekes it worse! I dont know why but tiled flooring sends my brain into overdrive x

Hi everyone. I saw this forum and joined just to reply to this post! While I can't diagnose any of you, I would suggest you look into dysautonomia. Dysautonomia is an umbrella term covering disorders affecting the autonomic nervous system (basically affecting every automatic function in your body). The most common type is POTS (postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome). It is very commonly misdiagnosed as anxiety, as blood tests and scans are usually normal! It causes a raised heart rate (tachycardia) when upright and causes many symptoms such as dizziness, digestion issues, temperature regulation problems, fainting, chronic pain, visual disturbances, sensory overload, sleeping difficulties, tremor, shakiness, abnormal drops or raises in blood pressure, migraines, headaches, fatigue, palpitations, shortness of breath, chest pain, etc (and many more). not everyone will experience all of those symptoms. Most doctors don't know what this is!!!! It can go undiagnosed for many many years in some cases. I know of people who didn't get a diagnosis for 20 years! It is usually diagnosed by a cardiologist, but you would have to find one who is specialised in dysautonomia, as some cardiologists don't even know what it is. Please see www.dysautonomiainternational.org for more info. They have information on all of the specific types of dysautonomia, what the symptoms are, how to get diagnosed, etc. and they have a list of dysautonomia-knowledgeable specialists around the world, according to area. I hope this helps some of you to find answers, so that you don't have to feel like you're going crazy anymore!!! P.s. Shops are the worst symptom triggers, with the light, noise and heat, it triggers off symptoms badly, and people feel much worse. I have a type of dysautonomia called hyperadrenergic POTS

I used to experience that too.. but i realised that once i get used to the place , the detached feeling goes away also.. like i need to go to that place a few times and get used to the surroundings and then i feel better.

I'm so happy to have discovered this chat. It's so good to hear from others but unfortunately, it seems there is no solution . It started for me after i had my second son 5 years ago, but it wasn't this bad. Lately, it has become worse. Ive had a brain CT scan, an MRI, blood tests, seen a neourologist and also seen an Ear doctor. Everything is normal. Based on these chats, it seems that this is anxiety. I will follow up with my doctor and maybe she can refer me to a psychiatrist.

I'm okay walking on carpet and on concrete (if it is not wet)... curious if anyone feels the same.

Hi everyone...just an update. I still get these symptoms sometimes its managable though. I was told by ENT that it is a balance problem so I do balance exercises daily. Still no major improvement since starting them 4 months ago but i guess it can take a long time and also may never go but i can only hope. The balance therapist basically said to keep as active as possible and to do exercises which require you to use your eyes a lot like passing a ball etc... she said most of her patients with the same symptoms say the same thing ie its worse in supermarkets, shopping centres and open spaces. She said theres no guarantee that this will go but I had this as a child briefly and it did eventually go. She recommended i see a therapist as she thinks although there is a problem there that it is increased by my anxiety and constantly worrying and thinking about it. Also i have been tested for POTS by having a tilt table test and it came back normal along with various other cardiology tests such as an echo, event recorder monitor, bp monitor etc...

I feel dizzy only when I walk around and am around, sitting and laying down I am fine. I also feel dizzy at the grocery store, or around a large crowd. This has been happening for about 6 months. Lately almost every day. Please give me some feed back. Thank you

Hi I know that this discussion was posted a year ago, but I have to say I am having the same problem. I have felt weird in open spaces since my freshman year in college which was like 2010. That was when I used to drive myself to school. The first time I felt it was when I was heading to my car after a night class. It was the only car in the parking lot and it was in the middle, which was just great. I was terrified. I started feeling lightheaded and felt like I wanted to fall. I wanted to call my mom, but I forgot I left my phone in the car. I tried to look to see if somebody else was around, but I was afraid to move. So I decided to try to walk to the car, horrified as I was, trying not to think about it, crying. I finally managed to get to the car, releived. The next day I had my mom drive me to the doctor. I tried to tell them what happened and they thought it had something to do with my vision. So I went to get my eyes checked and I got a pair of new glasses later that year. Still didn't help. Trying to get some excerise and taking the trash out is like a chore now trying to cope with this thing. Now its like I have to be with someone in order to get across my own parking lot. I have never had a fear of open spaces, but now it just keeps growing.

I think I should also mention that I love playing video games, playing on the computer, and watching movies. I also suffer from anxiety too. I don't know if any of these things might be playing a factor in this so called dizzyness/ lightheadedness feeling, but I kind of wish that it would go away. I feel like Im afraid to step outside now, so Im spending a lot of my time in my room and I hate that