I am going crazy here please help.

[pizovic]

Hi guys i am 28 years old and after loosing my job 6 months back, i started getting twitching all over my body, thumb and pinky finger only my left side which i don't have any more maybe occasionally i have seen my doc about it they took blood and they could not find anything abnormal. Well i been hawing head pain i believe its called ice pick headache for about 6 years now it starts in Dec and ends in around April, well i seen my neurologist about this and he diagnosed me with tension headache with no scans of the head. Well after i was told that i have to see nuro i been worrying so much where it is affecting my life and work. I started to fell light headed or dizzy it comes out of the blue this felling would just come out of no where,in my chest and head it fells like its a wave. It would be worse if i think about or if i over work or sleep late, it would be so bad that i would have to leave the room or go out side to calm down i just fell scared when it comes. I don't fell like i will faint or fall i don't, get spinning room or loose of balance just weird felling. Well now i have developed new symptoms where i fell like some body is poking me with a pin or cold sensation not all over body at once just in spots specially legs, i would also fell a needle prick in my leg toe and the my leg would jump same with hand finger i would fell the needle prick but without the jump. And i would fell the pin prick on top of my finger for about 30 min and some time it would go down my finger some times i would fell this pin and deedles in my right leg but just little bit and only ocesionaly and only when i go to bed.

Some facts to easily understand me.

1) cold sensation all over body, but in spots like some body touches me with ice cube not as cold as ice cube. I fell it through the day specially when i am resting.

2) needle prick in my left leg big toe and then my leg will jump this only happens occasionally but it happens often in my hands fingers middle and thumb but with no jump but pain would be there just slightly and it would go down my finger occasionally.

3) dizziness or light headed without room spinning or loose of balance. When it comes it comes i fell weird with upset stomach some time and it lasts for about 10 seconds or less, i fell like i have to leave the room and i don't fell like talking or i would just walk away form conversation. After i seen my Nuro i was fine for 5 days and it all come back.

4) i worry so much that it affecting my life, it comes to the point where i don't fell like doing anything, like i am dying and whats the point. This felling that is something wrong with me and my head its with me 24/7 i thing about it constantly surfe the web looking for answers and every felling in my body is like a kick in the head that makes me think.

5) i was at the party i don't drink at all, well i took a sip and i did get dizzy, strange felling every time i would turn my head i head to actually lay down on the bed to calm down my stomach was upset. Few n=min latter i was fine.

6) i am planing to see my nuro again with this problem i just don't know how to approach him, i fell like i need full nuro exam with brain scan and all, i fell like if i get them that i will stop worrying and felling weird. I just don't know what wrong here i never fell like this before its affecting my life big, if any of you can give me some advice what to it would be thankful .

Thanks you so much for your time and help
E pizovic

[clinicalguru3]

Thanks for your question.

Well, although I cannot know whether there is anything abnormal on your neurological examination, I can say that many of your symptoms can be explained by hyperventilation which does cause real, physical symptoms which can be very frightening, although not dangerous.

Hyperventilation (breathing too fast) is often related to anxiety.

The problem is not actually the increased oxygen taken in, rather the main problem is the extra carbon dioxide (CO2) removed from the body with each breath.

The amount of CO2 in our blood is a major factor in determining the acidity or alkalinity (pH) of our blood.
We normally breath at the right speed to keep the pH constant.

When we do exercise, we make more acid in our muscles which triggers our brain to force us to breath faster, thus getting rid of the acid.

In fact, we prepare for "exercise" by breathing faster even before we start, for instance before a race or if we suspect we will soon need to run away from danger.

Many of the "dangers" that we face as humans do not actually require a physical response...but we sometimes respond the same way by breathing faster. As we are not making any extra acid, but still getting rid of it (through breathing-out CO2) our acid levels drop and this can cause a number of problems:-

1) Our brain works less well (may cause light headedness, confusion etc)
2) Our nerves work less well (may cause tingling & numbness in fingers, toes and around mouth).

In fact, the hyperventilation is often part of a "panic attack" which is actually very common in otherwise "normal" individuals without overt psychiatric disease.

Luckily we have many new drugs to treat this issue (e.g. SSRI's SNRI's)...are you on any meds?

You may be interested (re the twitching) in this page which includes the account of a doctor who was scared about twitching sensations similar to yours..

Do you have the transcript from the neuro exam?
Do you have any past medical history?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

[pizovic]

Thanks you for your answer.

I don’t get hyperventilation at all i don’t breathe heard or fast, when i get my attack. When i went to my neurologist I only told him about my head pain and muscle twitching (which is gone now occasionally I would get it in my lip, leg, stomach area only when i am about to sleep). Neurologist give me standard office exam with no machines at all, just me and him he was checking my nerves he was checking my vision, my muscle strength touching me around my head and mouth area, and then he told me that its muscle tension around the head that is causing my head pain, which I don’t have any more maybe small burst of pain once in a while which I don’t even fell. He told me all is fine and to stop worrying and to do some yoga he did not give me anything he just wrote some staff on the paper that he filed and I left the office.

I did have lung operation as a child when I was 5 they found something on my lung but now its all fine i don’t have problems with that a all. And no i am not on any medication. The only thing that worries me is this burst of cold felling on my skin that is in spots all over body and some time needle pricking, I would get this cold felling all over my body mostly around my face area and some time it would stay there for some time. Today I was sitting in my friends truck and I could fell the cold felling just going up my legs like small explosions and it stops in my tights, Its just wont go away some times is there some times its not and it wary scary for me I over think everything that might be wrong with my body like ALS or other Neurological diseases. It like 1 thing after another with no end. First it was muscle twitching all over body with finger pinky, thumb and some time tongue which is gone now. It’s this cold felling and needle pricking with occasional ants in my leg or where one spot of my leg would slightly vibrate, under the skin. I called my nuro today to make new appointment but its 2 months away I fell like I will go crazy by then. I don’t have any loose of strings I work as a laborer in a granite shop lifting and installing granite counter tops that can weight up to 500kg not alone but its hard work that is my current job.

All this started after I lost my dream job in October last year that I have looked and applied for 3 years, I been slacking off and when it finally comes and I lost it thanks to cutbacks and I was on my own for the first time and it just was down the hill from there. Which started with twitching. I just don’t know if this is something serious or start of something serious that is what scares me

Thanks again for your time and sorry for spelling and grammar. And would you know any good Neurologists that I can see regarding my problem here in Canada Ontario I my nuro last time was so quick to diagnose me. I thought he would give me MRI or something but nothing.

[MG (Admin)]

A colleague of mine has recommended Dr. (Prof) Morris Freedman , MD, FRCP(C)

I am told you can find-out how to see him with the following contact details:-

General Inquiries
Phone: 416-785-2500 ext. 3550
Fax: (416) 785-2862
E-mail: sng@rotman-baycrest.on.ca
Address
The Rotman Research Institute
Baycrest
3560 Bathurst Street
Toronto, Ontario, M6A 2E1