Undiagnosed Head Symptoms (Still Help!)

Posted by tess0831 @tess0831, Apr 22, 2020

A few times over the last couple years, I've had this strange head feeling that comes on suddenly, sticks around for 2-3 weeks, then goes away (most recently, it came back today). It's extremely hard to explain, but it's like I'll suddenly start to feel like I'm not fully "in my head"-- I'd almost want to call it brain fog, but my cognitive function is still completely there. It's almost a mild "head high" feeling, and while I don't feel any pain or pressure, it's extremely distracting/annoying and makes me feel like I don't have mental clarity. The first time it happened I actually was so worried at one point that I went to the ER. They did a blood test and EKG, nothing abnormal, and basically sent me home and told me to try allergy meds. It coincided with tooth pain/me finding out I needed my wisdom teeth removed, and then it kind of went away on its own, so I didn't think too much of it. The second time was several months ago, where it came on suddenly one evening as the sun was going down (at first I thought I was just reacting weird to the change in light, but it stuck around for a couple weeks after that). That time I was having some neck pain from a recent fall and had seen a chiropractor, so they thought it could have to do with the neck pain....but again, it seemed to just go away on its own after a couple weeks. This morning I felt completely fine, but I was working outside (I work with horses) and it started to get really hot which made me hot/tired, and I sat down because that feeling started to come back.
When it happens, I tend to have sensitivity to light, and very vivid dreams/I'll tend to sleep deeper and be more tired.
Given that it's happened 3 times now under different circumstances, I'm having a difficult time figuring out what it could be, and it's not exactly the best time to go to a hospital and have tests run. I plan on having a call with my doctor, but I would love any suggestions in the meantime for things I could try or get over-the-counter that could possibly help (or just any ideas of what it could be).
Thank you in advance!

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Hi @tess0831, I noticed that you posted a similar discussion a few days ago in the Women's Health group called:
- Strange Chest Symptoms for a Month https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/strange-chest-symptoms-for-a-month/

Do you see any relationship between the symptoms? Have you been keeping a journal of when these various symptoms happen and what you're doing at the time?

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@tess0831 I reading your experience, it rings a few bells. I have experienced and read about a lot of spinal alignment issues with the cervical spine and I am a spine surgery patient as a result of a whiplash that happened years ago. If you have slight alteration of proper alignment of the vertebrae and the way your skull sits on top of our spine, it causes issues like you describe. Migraines can be caused by physical alignment issues too. I would caution against a chiropractor. No one should manipulate your spine (including a physical therapist) if you do not know if you have spinal instability or slipping of one vertebrae over another. These issues can also affect the jaw alignment and cause jaw or facial pain. I have experienced vertigo from my vertebrae being twisted and staying that way. Here are some technical things to read. If you are cleared for physical therapy with imaging to rule out instability, that can probably help. It has helped me a lot.

There are a lot of articles to read on this website that explain. https://mskneurology.com/category/jaw-head-neck/

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You are not alone. It is like you are looking through a helmit with dazed eyes. This is for me only. I was negative on a brain scan bot now I am working with an endocronologist. Brain barrier retenion, glands Vi C, ferrin etc. Make sure you write this down and also concerns for symptoms and referral to your Physician and other specialist including Ear, Eye and Throat. Be pro active for your self but also use proven Medical Specialist.

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6 days ago, I had just eaten lunch and started walking outside, when I very suddenly had a strange feeling come on in my head-- as I was walking, I felt like I was moving slowly...I almost felt "high"...and was somewhat sensitive to the bright sunlight. I came back inside and proceeded to have what I thought was a panic attack-- along with the head feeling, my heart was racing/beating out of my chest, I got a dry mouth, nausea, and extreme anxiety/a nervous stomach feeling. I thought I was going to be sick at certain points, but this eventually went away. The rest of the day, and the next 2 days, the head feeling stuck around-- it's very hard to explain, but almost feels like I'm high. Cognitively I'm functional, and I'm not faint or dizzy. But I feel like I'm not "in my head", it's terribly uncomfortable. I already am prone to anxiety, and it's just awful while this is happening. I've had a loss of appetite, constant anxiety pretty much, and the head feeling has not gone away. I've also been having very vivid bad dreams and waking up feeling heavy in my head, along with some pressure in my ears and temples every so often. One night I had a fairly bad headache (back of my head), but otherwise no actual pain. This is Day 6 since it initially came on, and while yesterday and the day before I thought it was overall getting better (but not gone), today it seems worse again. I still don't have much of an appetite but I'm not sure if that's due to the anxiety about how I'm feeling or not (it's a vicious cycle really).
The only pills I take regularly are birth control (and the occasional acid reflux med or allergy meds), and the only thing I took differently that day was a CBD oil-- I've had CBD oils before and not had this reaction...though I realize even with a tiny amount of THC in it (and myself being sensitive to THC) that could have caused it. However, it seems extremely strange to me that it would go on for 6+ days if so. In addition, I've had this strange head feeling before (not the attack with the panic/dry mouth etc., but the same exact head feeling that's come on suddenly in the past and lasted days or even a week).
I had an over-the-phone appointment with a doctor a couple days ago and he essentially said it sounded like it could be the CBD (though he'd expect me to feel better by now) otherwise anxiety, but it's hard to tell without testing etc. So I'm waiting on a callback from my primary care dr. for an office visit as soon as possible. In the meantime, this feels almost debilitating, and I'm finding it hard to work or have a normal day-- if anyone has any similar experiences or even suggestions as to what this could be, I'd be extremely grateful!

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@tess0831

6 days ago, I had just eaten lunch and started walking outside, when I very suddenly had a strange feeling come on in my head-- as I was walking, I felt like I was moving slowly...I almost felt "high"...and was somewhat sensitive to the bright sunlight. I came back inside and proceeded to have what I thought was a panic attack-- along with the head feeling, my heart was racing/beating out of my chest, I got a dry mouth, nausea, and extreme anxiety/a nervous stomach feeling. I thought I was going to be sick at certain points, but this eventually went away. The rest of the day, and the next 2 days, the head feeling stuck around-- it's very hard to explain, but almost feels like I'm high. Cognitively I'm functional, and I'm not faint or dizzy. But I feel like I'm not "in my head", it's terribly uncomfortable. I already am prone to anxiety, and it's just awful while this is happening. I've had a loss of appetite, constant anxiety pretty much, and the head feeling has not gone away. I've also been having very vivid bad dreams and waking up feeling heavy in my head, along with some pressure in my ears and temples every so often. One night I had a fairly bad headache (back of my head), but otherwise no actual pain. This is Day 6 since it initially came on, and while yesterday and the day before I thought it was overall getting better (but not gone), today it seems worse again. I still don't have much of an appetite but I'm not sure if that's due to the anxiety about how I'm feeling or not (it's a vicious cycle really).
The only pills I take regularly are birth control (and the occasional acid reflux med or allergy meds), and the only thing I took differently that day was a CBD oil-- I've had CBD oils before and not had this reaction...though I realize even with a tiny amount of THC in it (and myself being sensitive to THC) that could have caused it. However, it seems extremely strange to me that it would go on for 6+ days if so. In addition, I've had this strange head feeling before (not the attack with the panic/dry mouth etc., but the same exact head feeling that's come on suddenly in the past and lasted days or even a week).
I had an over-the-phone appointment with a doctor a couple days ago and he essentially said it sounded like it could be the CBD (though he'd expect me to feel better by now) otherwise anxiety, but it's hard to tell without testing etc. So I'm waiting on a callback from my primary care dr. for an office visit as soon as possible. In the meantime, this feels almost debilitating, and I'm finding it hard to work or have a normal day-- if anyone has any similar experiences or even suggestions as to what this could be, I'd be extremely grateful!

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Hi @tess0831, I moved your update to the discussion you previously started so that people can read the background of you situation and the progress you've made (or lack thereof). Did you see the previous responses to your post from @jenniferhunter and @bill54321? I'd also like to bring @gailb into this discussion for her thoughts. I'm glad that you are pursuing an appointment with your primary care physician. I suggest keeping a journal of your symptoms until you get to see him or her.

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Could you be having vestibular migraines? This happens to me too. I feel "hollow" inside my head, no pain, just very lightheaded and weak momentarily.

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I feel this also when sitting erect or standing. It is like being inside s helmet looking out. I believe some of mine my be from numbness from cervical areas. But, I also think of Brain barrier chemicals. Any one else. Only we can solve this. The Docs don't have a clue. I have tried.

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Another thing that happens to me is that I get really shaky, and hot. Sometimes it feels like a cloud is passing in front of me. I don't have any pain like a prodrome to a migraine. This whole sensation lasts less than a couple of minutes.

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Throughout my life I have had something that my ENT and my neurologist called Benign Positional Vertigo. It would come and go and when it came it might be accompanied by many other symptoms such as nausea, fatigue, migraines and brain fog just to mention a few. I decided sometime ago that one of the primary things that correlated with its onset was a high mold count which we have where I live a good deal of the time. The first time I had it was my first year of graduate school and now I am 65 years old so as you can see, it must not be life threatening. But I will tell you that there were times when I was still working that it would cause extreme anxiety which made it much much worse. I taught at a large university for almost 30 years and when this would happen it would be very difficult to lecture. I would turn my head to write on the board and get a waive of dizziness that would almost cause me to black out. Once it happened during a lecture, I would get sweaty, have palpitations, get progressively more dizzy and sometimes be so distracted that I would lose my focus. I would on many occasions have to grab hold of the podium or something else in order to get my balance.The bigger that the classroom was the worse it was due to the visual aspects of a very large vast space. This happened dozens of times and I don't think any students or anyone else ever noticed but I know that it caused me a great deal of worry over many, many years.

The other day I posted something in the Women's Health Group that sounds very similar to what you describe. It is something similar to what I described above having all my life but it is not exactly the same and is a new thing for me. It comes on usually just as I finish a meal and is characterized by dizziness and profuse sweating. I believe my post from the other day was in a discussion that @gailb had also posted in and my recent symptoms were similar to hers following her gastric surgery although I have not ever had this surgery. My post was on May 24th in this group where I described my recent symptoms focussing on sweating and extreme hot flashes after eating along with nausea and dizziness. I do not think anyone has responded to it yet but @gailb if you have anything to add please let me know. Interestingly lately I have been also having a number of vivid dreams which @tess0831 has mentioned here.

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Benign Positional Vertigo. New Phrase. Keep up the good work. Some of us have so many things wrong at 90 yrs old that you would not believe. Some one mentioned brain fog and being inside you looking out. How true these are. The question is why. Da! Every Doctor has an answer they learned in basic med but nothing showing any real new research. I whiched we had a specialty in Neuro brain Barrier chemistry. Stanford U Mental Studies say they have identified 20 new brain Proteins!!S0??

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