Afternoon folks,

I have been symptom free for almost 21 years. In December '06 I started to develope balance problems. Seen my DR who said I had an ear infection. This did not improve and I was referred to an ENT specialist who was puzzled. I then was sent for an MRI scan which showed I have a large left front arachnoid cyst. At the time they did not want to do anything and wanted to see if the pressure settled. Unfortunately I then developed severe vomiting and headaches. The national health service seemed to take forever and almost a year and a half has passed so I decided to go private. I found a neurosurgeon and I visited him 2 weeks ago. He done another scan. He believes although my cyst is at the front the pressure being put on my brain is causing symptoms like vomiting, headaches and balance problems. Everytime I have flown my balance symptoms have deteoriated and he said this is due to the cabin pressure adding to the existing pressure from the cyst. I am now awaiting my letter and I am going to have a shunt placed inside the cyst and a tube running under the skin from my brain to my stomach to constantly drain the fluid. Hopefully this should relieve the pressure and improve or eradicated my symptoms given some time. Reading the postings these cysts seem to vary in symptoms from person to person depending on the individual, size and location of the cyst. I am just praying my shunt is a success and I can gain some normality back to my life. I wish you all luck in your own cases as I understand how frustrating this can be. I agree, any of you who seem to be having no luck with your GP keep pushing and pushing until you find someone who is willing to take the time to thoroughly look at your case and try and help. PLease respond to this post to give me your input and let me know what you think. All the best.