Hello - New here and not sure if "belong" here or not :)
 

Hi everyone,
I'm new to this forum, and basically new to most of the things involved in neurology. I have been having problems with what I thought was vertigo for the last 18 mos., but what a new ENT thinks may instead be seizures.

So, here I am - researching things to do with seizures and if I look back over my life it seems like I may have had an undiagnosed head injury when I was in early grade school, along with subsequent injuries to that same part of my head over the years (the original injury most likely being 30 years ago now).

Obviously, I don't have a diagnosis at this point, and I'm in the process now of reviewing my own medical history, injuries, illnesses, accidents, sugeries, etc... in the light of this new possibility and trying to make sense of it all (not an easy task even if I didn't have a "foggy" brain, and getting stressed when I can't remember what happened when). As I said, the symptoms I have had over the course of my lifetime seem to point to either an injury worse than was suspected at the time, or something akin what happens to athletes when they get too many minor concussions over a period of years.

I am currently diagnosed as having GAD, Chronic Depression, and PTSD (due to abuse in my childhood, and an assault by a stranger 10 years ago). I deal with chronic back and neck pain as a result of some degeneration and arthritis from that original injury years back. I have suffered from migraines since the week after I turned 13. About 7 years ago the pain in my neck and my head was constant and I was having migraines a lot more than usual. I saw a D.O. at a pain clinic, was put on a bunch of meds, and eventually had a nerve ablation in my neck to alleviate the pain. Over the last couple years I have weaned myself off pain meds and now see a chiropractor to manage the muscle, nerve and joint pain (which thankfully works for me).

These "episodes" I've been having over the last 18 mos. or so are very unnerving, but I've been in denial I guess about it possibly being something more serious than another part of "migraines". I came down with a bad ear infection a few weeks back, and still felt pressure in my ear after my meds were done. That got me a referral to an ENT, but more for the spells of vertigo (or whatever) than them worrying about my ears not healing.

When these attacks happen it feels as though my brain is moving around in my head in a vertical/clockwise pattern (hard to explain). I'm usually sitting down when it happens and after a second it feels like my eyes are following where it feels like my brain is moving, but we aren't sure if my eyes are actually moving. I usually climb out of the chair I'm in and move to the ground and lie on my back with my knees up and my eyes closed trying to breathe deeply and relax until it goes away (usually within 2-3 minutes or thereabouts). Afterwards I usually feel more tired, but no pain - just feeling a little "off". Also, as soon as I feel my head "moving" I am instantly extremely nauseous and have almost vomited several times. I can't define any specific triggers, I just know it's worse when I'm sitting down. When I'm standing it seems like it might "threaten" to happen - I'll get a bit dizzy and a tiny bit nauseous, but it has never hit me hard when I'm standing and seems to go away faster. [It's definitely not feeling faint, or anything like that - it's a different "presentation" altogether than what happens before one faints.]

Sorry to write so much for my first post. I admit to being a little apprehensive right now about all of this. Thanks for taking the time to read this. I appreciate it. I'm open to answering questions, and receiving advice on things to research that might pertain to me. I figure you all here probably have read and heard about way more things than I can dream of at this point... I'm just hoping to learn and be able to help my doctors find the answers to this puzzle of mine. :)

Welcome to NT

You have come to the right place.

There's lot of info here to discover and put together.

Very knowledgable folks here.

Best of all, you're not alone. Many here have suffered as you are right now. They have left their mark here.

Well, that wasn't too long.

You write very well.

You are listening to your body. Very important.

I have had my share of bumps. They all count.

A bump here, a bump there and here you are. It is what it is.

The feeling of your brain moving in a particular pattern definitely means something about your condition. It may never be explained, but it means something. :hug:

My first thoughts are, they do standing or sitting MRIs these days. The anatomical position could be significant for dx and tx.

Sitting causes it? It's triggered by posture? ummm...

An ENT gave my father an exercise to prevent... oh, I forget... something about turning head causing dizziness. he had to lay down any pull his knee to his chest with the opposite arm. Simple fix that worked for him, for that problem. He found the right doctor who showed him what to do.

And if you've been undiagnosed for many years, just the right medications could make you whole again. Your doctor is trying to get you there, with the least harm possible.

You can use the "SEARCH" tab above to find specific subject matter. That will be a good start.

Keep asking questions...

Oh...

...and another thing to note.

I have read, here on NT, that people who suffer seizures should not look at the flashing/glittering type things that are so often posted here.

So, avoid that till you talk with your doctor or someone comes along and explains it better.

Take care. :winky:

Hi Broken Wings,

Thanks so much for the welcome, the support, and the info.! I appreciate it a lot. :hug:

As far as the Sitting vs. Standing issue - I think you're talking about BPPV (Positional Vertigo). The ENT tested me for that when I was in his office the other day, and he said my eyes show no nystagmus (jumping, twitching, etc...) and I'm actually very "steady" when moving backwards from sitting to lying down and at the same time rotating my head to one side or the other. I don't know why it seems to hit when I'm mostly sitting, but then again that's where most of my time is spent, so it may be coincidental. Maybe I've just been lucky that it hasn't hit too badly when I am standing up! LOL

I'm honestly a jumble of emotions and thoughts right now as I try to figure all of this out. I'm trying not to worry as I've got a few weeks before my neuro appointment. I wish I could find anything on the 'net where someone described feeling like I do, but the results from searches of "feels like brain is moving" or the like usually bring me to info. about concussions and the brain literally moving!

Anyway, thanks so much for the reply and the suggestions. I've been reading through various sections here and there are many things I can relate to that people are dealing with - whether it's due to my possible neuro issues or not! I need to remind myself that neuros study this stuff in depth for DECADES and still don't have all the answers so I need to be patient while I'm trying to figure this out - and I don't have the benefit of that education, and diagnostics to eliminate some stuff I read about.

I'm starting to ramble a bit now, so I'll say goodbye for now. I have some time to read through some of the other sections this afternoon, so I'm pretty sure I'll be posting stuff around the site today. ;)

Thanks again,
Redhead72

Hello Readhead72!
 

Welcome to NT!
Thanks for introducing yourself and of COURSE you belong here! :hug:
NT has so much to offer in the way of support and understanding, plus there is alot of great information at the top section of most of the forums here (called the 'Sticky's').

I know how frustrating it is not having a solid diagnosis. Rest assured, in time the answers will come. In the meantime, stick with this caring bunch of folks - you'll be amazed at how many others are facing similar issues.

It's great to have you!

Caring,
Rae
:grouphug:

Welcome Redhead
 

Welcome to Neuro Talk. Yes you found a good forum. This site will help you to find some answers. There are others who have experienced similar problems. You are doing the very best thing, by listening to your body. I would say it would be a good idea, to journal as much of your symptoms as you can. Time, location of symptoms, what positions, and anything else you can think of to describe what is happening to you. That way when you go to the proper physician, you will be able to give him that without having to remember everything on the spot. You will be refered to others to a site here for this kind of issue. I am new to greeting and I am still learning how to direct to the proper forum. I want to welcome you here, and wish you all the best. A neurologist would be a good type of physician to see. Please ask all the questions you need to here, and you will get some more information. There will be people on Neuro Talk to help you along the way. Ginnie

Thank you!
 

Thanks so much to all of you for such a warm welcome! :grouphug:

I've actually got a bit of a headache, so I'm going to stop researching for a while (due to my family's strange schedule it's more like 4pm for me, even though the clock reads 8-something where I live). I'm trying to make myself take it easy, so I'll probably reply more tomorrow.

Thanks again for everything - I'm feeling more confident in my ability to face all of these issues since this seems like a wonderfully supportive place.

Have a good night everyone! :Wave-Hello:

Hello and Welcome!
 

Hello Redhead72 and WELCOME to NeuroTalk!

I'm sorry to hear of your struggles... You have found a great place full of knowledge and understanding.

Here are a couple of forum links that may be of help to you.

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/im...allink_ltr.gifEpilepsy - For support and discussion about Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders.
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum11.html

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/im...allink_ltr.gif Headache
http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/forum32.html

Please feel free to make yourself at home, pull up a chair and stay a while. We are happy that you have found us!! :D

Feel free to roam around and join in anywhere! If you have any questions or need any assistance please do not hesitate to ask. Someone will be around shortly to help in any way that we are able.

I look forward to seeing you around the board.
:)
Abbie

Thanks! More things fitting together since reading here!
 

Thanks so much for the welcome, Abbie. Thank you also for the links.

I found my way over to posting a thread in the Epilepsy/Seizure Forum, and via the "similar posts" listing underneath the thread I put in I found a post in the Head/Brain Injury forum where someone described my symptoms exactly! However, they haven't posted in a while so, kind of a bummer. I was amazed to find her post though so I'm still happy even if she's no longer visiting the site as I know I'm not the only one in the world to have felt like this! LOL

It's one more thing falling into place (no pun intended) that is more and more pointing to some kind of damage 10 years ago, especially. I had a spell one day that my doctors thought was due to extreme stress and dehydration. This morning as I've been obsessing on all of this something clicked - I was watching a movie with my daughters. I remember that after that day while I recuperated (for about 5 weeks) I had an exaggerated/inexplicable aversion to that particular movie. It would make sense that due to the stress, insomnia, and dehydration I was more susceptible to having a seizure triggered and something in the movie was the straw that broke the camel's back...

Sorry to ramble... more things are making sense to me and fitting together pretty simply now that I have more of a solid set of symptoms to view other random problems as fitting together with it. I'm happy I found this site. :)

Thanks everyone! :grouphug:

Take care,
Michelle
(Redhead72)