1. Community
  2. Mental health
  3. Anxiety Disorders

Read this if you're experiencing dizziness, burning pains, heart trouble, hearing problems, tirednes

Posted , 13 users are following.

timtheturtle
timtheturtle

Hi,

I'm writing this to see if it can help anyone who has been told that they have 'anxiety' or 'stress' - based on diagnosis of physical symptoms.

All this started when I was 21, one night. I felt weird, like I was going to die and even contemplated calling the ambulance. I woke up dizzy and then the fun started! It's been coming and going now ever since... Burning arms and legs, dizziness, heart trouble, muted hearing, shaky, sensetive to light, tired, trouble concentrating. I've had all the tests - nothing.

I've been told 'it's just anxiety'. Man, I wish you could let the doc experience your symptoms for 5 minutes. They'd totally freak out! I've been doing my own research however and it has helped me a little to understand the very physical aspects of anxiety that I'm yet to really read about anywhere in conjunction with it. I wish the docs had told me this as I am a man of science and like to know cause and effect. I could be wrong with this but it might help others to understand their symptoms - and even help them get rid of them, or at least some.

The fight or flight response is a series of physiological / chemical responses that happen in the brain and body to start a chain of events based on a genuine threat. Adrenaline, cortisol, epinephrine release, nerves firing, increased heart rate, muscles tightening. All of this causing body temp to rise and a whole host of other processes to become disturbed (the body focuses on limbs, brain, heart - this could explain digestive issues, skin problems, burning sensations, heart palps, breathing difficulties, etc).

For me, this has gotten stuck in the 'on' position. This means that I'm constantly under physical and mental stress - even if I'm not stressing about anything. That makes you tired, dizzy, irritable, in pain and constantly worried about what the hell is going on. You can easily become stuck in a cycle of feeling physically under stress (because you are) and stressing as a result of the stress! The underlying triggers would be subjective and unique to the individual (social anxiety, adhd, virus/cold, stress) but once the symptoms start due to a prolongued period of fight/flight or an initial panic attack it's a tough cycle to break.

I'd be feeling perfectly fine one minute and then out of the blue I'd notice how dizzy I was, how tired my arms were etc. For me the diziness is the hardest part. It's a sensation I could only link to how I felt when younger after crying (you know how you would cry, then feel out of it for a minute). That's the same kind of dizziness for me, which would make sense if it were cognitive issues.

I have also made a link to Dopamine for the burning limb sensations, as it's associated not only with anxiety/depression but also RLS - which perfectly describes my symptoms. I'm still researching this however so I could be totally wrong.

Another bizzarre and more recent issue is muffled hearing. This comes and goes too suggesting that it's not permanent damage. I think I may be on to something new scientifically here too, although I again could be talking nonsense. 'Reversible hearing loss' is a protective mechanism that the body has in response to loud noises (google it). I think for me this mechanism has become a part of my anxiety response and the body performs the protective function as a saftey net - another part of anxiety disorder. This is likely not a problem for most, but for me it is and I'm curious to know if anyone has experienced anything similar. There is no research on this and I can only link the sensation to previous past experiences of going to a loud gig - and experiencing hearing loss the morning after. Intersting stuff anyway.

Anyway, I'm always wary of the web and the fact that 'everyone's an expert' so don't take my word for anything. I've simply spent long enough looking up neurological disorders, CFS, auto-immune disease, alleriges, food intolerances etc so finally started looking for scientific answers for physical symptoms of anxiety. I can't believe I didn't see the link between how something mental can cause symptoms so physical.

Hope this helps and would love to get some conversation going on this!

Again, I'm no expert so please take with a pinch of salt and do your own research. 

If we can understand this, maybe we can kick it's ass once and for all!

Best

3 likes, 19 replies

19 Replies

Next
  • sharon70125
    sharon70125 timtheturtle

    Posted

    hi i get a lot of pain all over my body and sometimes the pain can make me sick and i also get pain in my ears it comes and gose somedays its really bad that i dont want to get out of bed but i just have to keep going sometimes i dont sleep as the pain in my back hurts and it gets anoying im in pain most days and it gets me felling low thats when its at its worse is when im low and down 
    • timtheturtle
      timtheturtle sharon70125

      Posted

      Hi Sharon,

      I've struggled with similar things. It feels like I'm down because of the pain, it's hard to know which way round it goes. Always burning/acid feeling in my legs, forearms and lower back - sometimes head/face too. Plus the dizziness/difficulty concentrating - that's the worst.  I've noticed over the years that the times when I've been happiest, I've had no symptoms really, or I've not noticed them at least. That's rare. I don't go out sometimes because I feel physically awful from these things. My guess is nerve pain from overstimulation, or muscles being repeatedly tight, too much adrenaline...the list goes on and it seems to be all related to anxiety/stress overload. After all, our brain controlls everything! How long have you been suffering? Did it all start quickly?

    • sharon70125
      sharon70125 timtheturtle

      Posted

      Hi thanks for your info I just fell so alone at the moment even though I have a boyfriend I still fell alone I don't get out that often as I get so scared and I think that people will notice that I'm Down as its hard to be happy I sometimes say to my self why has this happened to me I've been like this for 4 years but only got media for it a year ago and I fell its got worse but I'm on new tablets and been on them just over a week now so I'm feeling really bad at the moment thank
    • timtheturtle
      timtheturtle sharon70125

      Posted

      Sorry to hear you're feeling bad. I'm the same sometimes, when I go out I just feel weirdly panicky for no real reason (although I was definitely socially anxious when younger - perhaps as I've grown up I've supressed these thoughts). I just feel like a bit of a shell and switch in to autopilot when I have to talk. Exercise is the best natural solution that I've found so far. I would recommend 100% getting to a gym that has a spa too. It's worth the money. Some of the best moods I've had are when I've gone in feeling the worst / lowest. Do some light cardio and get some music on. New music helps as it's distracting. You'll find eventually that your free of your thoughts and then the endorphins kick in, which naturally lower adrenaline and you use up some of that 'fight or flight' excess. Once you've exercised, have a swim and hot tub etc. I've found that swimming and fully submerging myself is great for the senses. Take it easy but even if the exercise hurts a little (my joints usually hurt bad, even though they're fine) you'll feel better for using up some of that stress response. 
  • amandal38
    amandal38 timtheturtle

    Posted

    This is such GREAT information! I'm constantly in pain only to be told it's "anxiety", some days are better then others.
    • timtheturtle
      timtheturtle amandal38

      Posted

      Thanks Amanda. Again, I'm no pro, just a guy who's sick of not knowing! Please share anything that you find or discover. I'm still connecting dots as I feel that the more we can know about how these things work on a physical level, the better understanding we'll have to use as ammunition to help beat it  smile
    • sharon70125
      sharon70125 amandal38

      Posted

      Yep it's not fun and it drags you down so fast and everything you do or don't do it's painful you can't sleep for long as your back gets sore and the strangest thing is that you fell the pain building up as you sleep and it wakes you up and you fell so helpless as you lay in bed trying to forget about the pain it travels everywhere giving you more pain I just fell so painful at the moment and helpless
    • amandal38
      amandal38 timtheturtle

      Posted

      This is EXACTLY how I feel. I just want answers to the problem and thenjoy a solution to fix it......
  • victoria90562
    victoria90562 timtheturtle

    Posted

    This is awesome information. I've been getting dizzy lately, and been having a lot of non real feelings. Like I'm in a dream. I know it's all due to stress and anxiety. I ended up taking myself to the ER because of some of the things I've been feeling, the provider told me she wants an CT scan of my head to make sure we weren't dealing with a tumor, everything was perfectly fine, and I was told I had early stages of Bells Palsy, so I got put on some meds for that. Anyways, my stress is mainly due to where I live. I love my family and in laws, but my sister in law and her family p*ss me off. I can't stand nonstop yelling. I can't stand the disrespect they show each other. I'm from an all military family, I grew up talking things out, never rausing your voice. If you disrespect someone, you would get pulled aside and told is a very calm but intimating voice, you better stop it before you regret it. I hate this place and it's causes stress on my marriage too.
  • michelemuffin
    michelemuffin timtheturtle

    Posted

    I was just seen in the ER last week and was diagnosed with anxiety. My symptoms are severe dizziness, heart palpitations, sweaty hands, nausea, chest pain and burning sensation. I was given xanax and it has helped when I have an attack I just hate when I get the episodes cause it is frustrating and scary at the same time. I have had my ears checked, MRI done on brain and a stress test on my heart and all is normal. Its hard dealing with this every day.
  • timtheturtle
    timtheturtle

    Posted

    It's good to know that we're not alone in this frightening situation. So many times I just feel like that if the symptoms stopped, I'd just 'go back to normal' and be fine again! It's a vicious cycle but one that seems to affect so many people. It's unfortunately a natural human brain reaction as a coping mechanism (which clearly isn't coping very well!). We're not really designed to live in this type of environment I guess which some people must handle differently. It would certainly make sense that your brain can become more wired to minor stresses be it social, work, health or anything else and end up perceiving them (all be it subconsciously) as a threat and responding accordingly - physically. It does suck, but in time is something that we're all gonna beat. We have more knowledge at our fingertips than ever before. Will post anything more I find helpful... All the best people smile

    (PS. RE the 'out of body' feeling - my guess would be that there's so many processes / thoughts going on in our unconscious minds that we simply can't focus on the NOW, leaving us feeling as though we're 'watching' ourselves. Just a thought as I have experienced this too and always tried to consciousely evaluate why I felt like this)

    • sue73
      sue73 timtheturtle

      Posted

      Your analysis of the mind/body process is wonderful - I did get there in the end though it took me about four years. I agree with all your conclusions. It does help enormously to properly understand and believe that your brain (the most powerful organ in your body and in charge of all the rest of it!) is generating all this horrible stuff. It means you can begin to take charge and explain to yourself what's going on when the world around you recedes and your skin is on fire... The out of body feeling is sometimes called depersonalisation and at its worst you can feel as if you're sitting inside your own head looking out of your eye-sockets trying to control your limbs at a distance...ugh, it's horrible. And then you don't believe the ground is quite where it should be and walking gets hazardous... anyway, ten years on I'm developing a sense of humour about it all and most of the time I function very well! – though I tend to believe that chronic anxiety, like alcoholism, can't really be cured, you just learn ways around it...
  • Yammy1
    Yammy1 timtheturtle

    Posted

    for me the hardest part is being short of breath, I think i can cope with all the other symptoms but this has me beat. i know im not breathing properly ie too shallow but im tired of constantly feeling down because of thissad its literally  driving me madfrown
    • timtheturtle
      timtheturtle Yammy1

      Posted

      Is it a result of a tight feeling in your chest? Can you stop, take a moment and do some slow breating exercises?
  • maureen_65564
    maureen_65564 timtheturtle

    Posted

    Omg that's me!

    What are you doing for it?

    I need input!

    • nikki683
      nikki683 maureen_65564

      Posted

      You have the shortness of breath? I certainly do and I am incredibly tired of it! It's all the time and the more I concentrate on it the worse it get. It feels like I just can't get enough air

    • charlie67769
      charlie67769 nikki683

      Posted

      It's so horrible I know. The more you focus on it the worse it gets. So difficult to distract yourself though 

Back to top
Next

Report or request deletion

Thanks for your help!

We want the community to be a useful resource for our users but it is important to remember that the community are not moderated or reviewed by doctors and so you should not rely on opinions or advice given by other users in respect of any healthcare matters. Always speak to your doctor before acting and in cases of emergency seek appropriate medical assistance immediately. Use of the community is subject to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy and steps will be taken to remove posts identified as being in breach of those terms.