I am 17 years old and have dizziness

Posted , 3 users are following.

For the past 4 or 5 months now I have non stop dizziness especially at school. I used to be on Zoloft 50 MG for 8 months because I have anxiety and we believed that the dizziness was caused by the medication since it was a common symptom of that medication so in April I was weened off the medication by my doctor and I have officially been off of it completely for 5 weeks now. Every morning I wake up and get to school when I am sitting down I feel like I am about to fall out of my chair and faint. (I have never fainted before) I always bring water to school so I am never dehydrated and I eat in the morning but I don't have a good sleep schedule I go to bed around 1-2 am but I used to go to bed WICKED late like 3-4 am. It makes me nervous because dizziness has never been an issue till 8 months ago.

0 likes, 9 replies

9 Replies

  • Posted

    Hi Jasmin, I think that you are describing anxiety related dizziness, I still get it even at my age and the more you think about it the worse it gets, it could still be the withdrawal from your meds because five weeks is not that long, if you move your head suddenly or stand up quickly does that make it worse as it could be a bit of vertigo and that would clinch it, you say you are eating properly, what do you have for breakfast and what time do you next eat.
    • Posted

      Hello, I believe it could be anxiety related too. When I don’t thjnk about it I don’t notice it but since I zone out in classes it’s all I think about and I get in panic. In the morning I eat a sandwich with cucumbers and tomatoes but sometimes I never have a chance to eat in the morning since I have to rush to school. The next time I usually eat is at 12:50 because that is our lunch. 
    • Posted

      I think that you need to be proactive in your eating regime, sounds like your basically running low on fuel, your like a car if you don't eat regular you will stop running.

      Getup earlier and have something abit more substantial, I suffer terribly if I don't eat regularly, a little and often is better than one big meal with massive time Inbetween.

      I'm positive your conditions are anxiety related, you need the GP to check you over and then change your lifestyle xx

  • Posted

    Hi,  To be on the safe side get your blood tested for low/ blood sugar/ diabetes/ anemia / hpypoglyecemia / thyroid /

    This test only takes a minute. Have your Doctor check your blood pressure at his office, mine goes to low often and I have passed out because of it. I have to get up slowly I get so dizzy at times. I also have hpypoglyecemia so I have to eat often so my blood sugar doesn't drop either or same issue again.It will help your Doctor if you tell him your family history writen in advance ex:heart issues / diabetes...ect ect. Your meds should not be causing this after that long of a break.It could be as simple as food.I've had these issues since being a teenager. You need to get this stuff ruled out. No one should be walking around with dizziness.

    Hope everything checks fine....cindy

    • Posted

      Hi Cindy, 

      No heart issues nor diabetes run in my family at all, so I am not sure that would be it. I got an EKG done in July when I had my first panic attack and they said my heart is perfectly normal. It makes me nervous though, can anemia kill you? I am nervous that this dizziness is something serious. Before I had really bad dizziness in August and I went to the doctors for it and they said it’s cause I have low blood pressure and when I brought it back to normal the dizziness went away but it’s now back... I am so nervous

  • Posted

    Hi Jasmine,

    Don't be scared I think it's maybe your low blood pressure like you told me about. I've alway's suffered from that also my dad. There is no cure for it. You need to keep yourself hydrated at all times. You also need a bit of salt every day. It's also called hypotension. My dad and myself have both passed out from this many times. You need to stand up slowly and be more careful in the heat. If you have anemia like I also have had you will also have fatigue and weakness also dizziness. I now take iron supplements X2 a day. Like I said before get your blood tested for everything while your at the lab it only takes a minute. It doesn't matter what runs in your family necessarily...rule everything out to be on the safe side. They only poke you once. Do you have anymore symptoms you can think of. 

    • Posted

      The only symptom that really sticks out to me is dizziness. But sometimes and this isn’t all the time I get heart palpitations. I believe this is an anxiety thing because it does not happen often and it’s only for a second. But honestly it’s only really the dizziness that sticks out
    • Posted

      Hi again, just wanted to update you that I got my blood pressure checked by my nurse standing up, lying down and sitting and it is all normal so I don’t think it’s low blood pressure at all.
  • Posted

    This website highlights the side effects of Zoloft (Sertraline).

    https://beta.nhs.uk/medicines/sertraline/

    Dizziness is a common side effect so I understand why you'd attribute it to that. The website says to go back to your doctor if side effects persist. What might've happened is that you've developed vertigo like Alexandria suggests.

    Anxiety can send your brain chemistry haywire and your body's response may be to make you feel light-headed. I certainly know, when I get in bad states, that I become rather unbalanced and disorientated. It's a bit worrying that it's persistent, though, and regular. I would visit your doctor, there may be a physiotherapy or drug you could try to help change the dizziness.

    Best of luck.

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