Unexplained symptoms

[sausii]

I would like to ask about the symptoms I've had for 3 years. I'm a 32 yr old white male. You must understand first of all that I have gone on full disability due to this.. Here is the progression:

- 3 years ago I started having abdominal pains and altered bowels, I had endoscopies and was diagnosed with mild left colitis and mild duodentitis

- only a few days after the endoscopies, I was standing in line somewhere and my heart began fluttering and beating chaotically, it made me almost black out.  My exam at the ER was negative (echo, EKG, labs). Later, a portable monitor started picking up hundreds of extra heartbeats every day, a pulse in the 40's and 50's at times and I had never had any history of such whatsoever.. at this time I also had a very uncomfortable atypical chronic chest discomfort/pressure, and my heart constantly sped up and slowed down and blood pressure fluctuated giving me mini-near blackouts for no real reason

- This will sound strange, but it's true..not long after all these heartbeat irregularities started, I began feeling chronically lightheaded and in a state of chronic severe psychiatric dissociation feeling like I'm on some drug such as nitrous gas all the time.

-  after about 1 and 1/2 years the chest pressure and heartbeat irregularities mysteriously went away nearly all together, my pulse is always normal now, BP stable, but I am still left with severe and chronic feeling of dissociation in my head

- Sometimes, I will go in a trance all day, somewhere between sleep and wake, then the next day my mood becomes gloomy and very depressive and I become quite irritable and reculusive (not my personality) for no reason, almost like a drug side effect.. and the next day I will begin to urinate over and over again every 10 minutes.

- Sometimes, I get an odd sensation that lasts a while in my nose/mouth area. It's strange things like this and the thing above that just keep coming and going.

CONTINUED below in the comment section...

[Christopher R Newey, DO]

Thanks for using the forum. I am happy to address your questions, and my answer will be based on the information you provided here. Please make sure you recognize that this forum is for educational purposes only, and it does not substitute for a formal office visit with a doctor.

Without the ability to examine and obtain a history, I can not tell you what the exact cause of the symptoms is. However I will try to provide you with some useful information.

Often these symptoms that you describe may reflect emotional/psychiatric problems (what is called somatization disorder). This is a true medical condition whereby instead of a patient experiencing depression or anxiety, they experience physical symptoms, and once the stress or underlying issue is addressed, the symptoms tend to resolve. You mention that you already see a psychiatrist which is good. I am not sure if you have TLE based on what you provided. It may be worthwhile to obtain a prolonged EEG. It is reassuring that you had an EEG and MRI that were “normal”.

Additionally, since I am unable to examine you, based on what you information you provided, an additional differential I would have is an autonomic neuropathy. These conditions can cause irregularities in bowels, heart, urination, etc. Tests for this include tilt table and sweat function (e.g., QSART).

Continue working with your psychiatrist. It takes time for the relationship to develop and also for medications to be adjusted appropriately.

Thank you for this opportunity to answer your questions, I hope you find the information I have provided useful, good luck.

[sausii]

- I go into dizziness "mode" for a couple weeks at a time, where all day I am rocking on a boat and feeling like I'm falling over, even when sitting perfectly still, then it regresses.

- I see a psychiatrist who thought I might have TLE and gave me Tegretol,  I had a severe reaction to SSRI as it severely increased my symptoms.  

I had an baseline EEG which was negative. I have also had a brain MRI with negative results.