dizziness, spaced out, headaches and shakiness

[helpmepleez]

For the past 4 years I have been experiencing horrible symptoms. It seemed that the whole thing started as a sinus infection but then I went for a CT scan of sinuses and they were clear. I have been having symptoms of dizziness, head pain, shakiness and a spaced out kind of foggy feeling like i am watching my life from the outside - all day every day. There are some times for a couple of hours during the day that the symptoms may lift and give me a few moments to live- but not much. I have been to about 30 doctors- including ENT's allergists, neurologists, chiropracters, opthamologists. psychologists, dentists and everything else u can think of. All CT scans, MRI of brain and blood work keep coming back clean and ok. Nothing I try seems to work. There was a period of time about 3 and a half years ago that the symptoms lifted for about 4 months and then it returned full force. Some of the weird parts are that the shakiness seems to be seasonal - coming in spring and lasting thru summer and its miserable like a tingling pins and needles sensation thru out my body. I have also been getting what some doctors seem to diagnose as recurring sinus infections- like 10 a year- i take anti biotics and i feel slightly better until the next infection but i still have the other symtoms while I am on the medication. I have hay fever and allergies to mold dust...Every doctor tried diagnosing something different- like migraines or TMJ or some sort of other odd thing. I've tried tons of medications. I dont usually have all the symptoms at once...they kind of take turns. One doctor suggested moving to Arizona as it may be a sinus issue but the ENT's say I have no sinus isue- just regular allergies and the allergists say that they have never seen symptoms like these for allergies. I tried psychologists even though the ony reason I am stressed out is cuz I can never live....before this sickness I was the happiest person around- and even psychologists turned me away as normal. Is there anyone out there that may know something that can help me - please??......I can not go on like this anymore

[ChineseChick]

Hi. I was wondering if anyone has found an answer to these issues?  I've been having the same symptoms for 6 months.  Saw cardiologist, ENT, neurologist... did head CT, blood tests, EKGs, echocardiogram, holter monitor, etc.. everything normal....but I don't feel normal.  I've been mostly at home the last 6 months, scare to drive because I just don't know when the symptoms will appear.  Brain fog was pretty bad when the symptoms started but that seems to have disappeared.  My left eye also feels like there's a layer of film on it and I would lose focus for no reason.  My PCP is running out of specialists to send me to :(

[7578J]

Hope this helps, I've had the same symptoms for 20 years, Tried everything, eventually my shoulder began having a lot of pain, stress made everything worse as did damp,wet environment and weather change. I eventually learned of Occipital nerves on the net. I knew pressure on the back of my head helped, and learned of ice on the top of and back of my head helps alot.( it can put me to sleep from relief) try putting and Ice bag on your head, if it works you may realize it maybe one sided, typical of a nerve, I have had 3 neck disc fusions to try to relive this problem to no avail. I just under went a LESSER OCCIPITAL NERVE RESECTION. Very painful recovery. I now know this was my problem and may include the greater occipital nerve. My surgical notes show the impingement and the way it was slowly trapped over a long period. Occipital Neuralgia is quite common, but less diagnosed. If ice helps you will need to see a neurosurgeon that specifically deals with nerves. They will give you an Occipital nerve block, and you will know for sure. You can find all on the net, Good Luck all.
Also I'm not 100% and may never be due to the amt of time

[ChineseChick]

I received 2 shots of occipital nerve block in early Oct... did not work for me :(

[frehley]

Hi,

I am experiencing all of the same issues as you.  These symptoms would come and go most of my life.  Because they would come and go and started at an early age I learned to handle it.  Until recently the symptoms became chronic and I learned that it is vertigo and everything else, the trembling, brain fog ect. Is because of the vertigo.  Vertigo  is a symptom of something else though.  I have recently seen a  well thought of specialist for vertigo and it could be caused from an autoimmune disease.  I know how frustrating it is to see so many different doctors and get no real answers.  I had seen several different drs. And had mri's with everything pretty much showing normal.  When I described my dizziness to a dr is when I was told is is vertigo.  A neurologist is a good person to see.  Good luck and I hope you find an answer.

Jlh

[jr991]

Hello, I also am experiencing these symptoms and have been for 8 years now.  I don't have any answers for anyone and I wish I could say it gets easier but it hasn't for me.

Up until a year and a half ago the spaced out / always drunk feeling was really my only symptom.  I was then hit with several other equally and more disturbing symptoms.

Here’s the symptoms I’ve been experiencing over the last several years:

• Feeling spaced out all the time, brain fog, mental clarity off, eyes feel unfocused/dazed
This has been the worst of my symptoms over the years and it’s there 24/7… some days are better than others, but it’s always noticeable. This is especially worse when in busy visual environments, and under fluorescent lighting.

• Unable to Concentrate
I have a hard time concentrating or focusing on things. This is especially troublesome when talking to people, I often hear what they are saying but my concentration isn’t there so I don’t comprehend or remember most of the conversation.

• Fatigue / Always yawning
• Chronic Sinus/Nasal Stuffiness/Ear Fullness
• Dizzy, wooziness, off balance feeling
• Severe Eye Floaters
• Tinnitus
• After Images / Images get burned into my eyes
• Mild Visual Snow/Static on certain backgrounds
• Near constant eye/ear/temple pain
• Headaches the start at the base of my skull
• Muscle Twitching, Weakness and Aches

If anyone has any ideas or shares similar symptoms I would like to hear from you.  Please send me a private message so we can discuss.

[Madison3108]

Hello,

I just wanted to say hi, my name is Mandy. I read your blog and I can sympathize with you. For the past two years I have had strange feelings (confusion, dizziness, feeling like I am detached from my body). A few months ago, I woke up in the middle of the night having what I was told after seeing my primary care physician  a panic attack. He said it is very common in woman my age (I am a 26 year old female). He decided to put me on xanax, this was in May 2009. I felt fine for a few weeks after taking it but then the symtoms came back. Around this same time I had pain in my right ovary area, so I went to my gyno. who put me on the pill (she said that my pain was probably from an ovarian cyst and that the pill would help. My symptoms seems to have been getting worse, extreme dizziness, confusion and to top it all of tingling and slight far sited blurriness in my right eye. I have had a bad headache for the past week and am woken up every night by these severe symtoms. I spoke to a friend who said I should go to the emergency room, the only thing is, I do not health insurance. I understand that a pricetag cannot be put on my life and I fear that there is something terribly wrong with me. It interferes with my daily life, I cannot eat, I cannot sleep on top of all these crazy symptoms. I had a follow up appointment with my doctor last Monday to see how to xanax was doing, I told him it was not helping and that I wanted to be off of it. He put me on zoloft instead. I started taking the zoloft last monday (almost two weeks ago). Right after I took the zoloft my symptoms worsened to the extreme (the tingliness, headache, blurred vision in one eye. I paniced so I stopped using it after only have been taking it for a couple of days. I also stopped taking the BCP's after reading that they can cause serious side effects as well. I am thinking this could be a number of things from ms to a brain tumor maybe even a stroke. I am terribly concerned and feel that eah day of my life could easily be the last. I am worried and  do not know what to do. It is reassuring though after reading these blogs posted that some people suffer the same way I do.

[Hamstergirl]

find out about systematic candidiasis. It seems far fetched, but you can do some adjustments on your life to see if this make a difference. It might some kind of fungal infection and is hard for someone to lisen because is too little information about this. There is a book called "The Candida Conextion"
I hope it helps

[sickstudent]

do you get anxiety? either before or after these symptoms? i feel mine is partly related to anxiety and partly something else.. maybe to do with my ears. when it acts up a lot i feel it messes with my vision too, but most of the time it just feels like swelling at the back of my head and too much pressure

[lissifleur]

If you have a facebook account, you could add me. My name is Lisa Olsen Jacobsen, from lissifleur =)

[lissifleur]

I just wanted to say Hi, my name is Lisa and for the past 3-4 years I've had the out of space feeling ever since. I also had a period in which I felt this feeling went away, but now it's back full time. I have headaces all the time, I am dizzie all the time, Because of this I'm takin an MRI. I hope everythings normal, but I don't feel normal. I am talking to a psyciatric nurse, so I hope she will help me! But the out of space feeling is there all the time, and is my biggest problem, it leaves me confused and I feel I have double vision, I wear glasses but it doesnt work for me, so I know believe I have a brain tumor. I definately don't hope so, but believe so and would be shocked if they don't find something wrong..Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that you're not alone=) And we should keep in touch=) Love from Norway!

[Northnr]

I can sympathise with you both. I have had shakiness, jitteriness, fatigue, poor sleep, a pinching feeling in my right temple, a sort of swollen sensation in the right side( only way I can describe it) my ears ring 24/7, I am spacey. Very bright overhead flourescent light s used to make me feel like I was on a psychadelic drug!( althought I do not have that much anymore). poor concentration, I also have some vision disturbance( possibly early glaucoma).  I have been on zoloft for depression then cymbalta but felt they didnt not help. I am considering going back on zoloft after reading your post. I have thought that I could have a imbalance as well. Help me how have you been??

Kathy

[hatgal]

Since all of your tests are normal, this, in fact, may be anxiety driven.  You should go sit and have a good talk with your primary care doctor and ask for a referral to a GOOD psycologist as there are so many wackos out there.  You may very much benefit from a benzo med as your symptoms could all be related to a chemical imbalance causing underlying anxiety.  Mine are and I felt alot of your symptoms before I began zoloft 10 years ago.  

It's worth a shot as you've tried everything else. But, you must give the med up to 6-8 weeks for the full effects.  Everyone is different in what chemicals are imbalanced so it may take some time to find the right one for yourself.

Hope this info helps; I can relate to most of what you feel and for me it is/was anxiety driven.

Best...........