Anxiety or Stress??

Updated on April 03, 2013
D.C. asks from Jamaica, NY
10 answers

Hi ladies! I'm not feeling very well lately (for the last 3 months actualy). I have dizziness,sometimes nausea, and I am very tired most of the time. I have done a lot of medical tests and went to see a lot of doctors, and I haven't found a real cause to my symptoms so far. I have a very little myopia and the doctor has recommended to wear glasses- I will buy some glsses in the near future. I am working on the computer 8-9 hours/day and my eyes get very tired in the evening. I also hear some noises in my left ear (like 1-2 times a day and for a couple of seconds only). The ENT specialist told me it's only some fluid gathered somewhere in the ear and gave me some pills. But the feeling of dizziness (rather more like lightheaded) didn't go away. I noticed that when I am really tired, when I haven't slept for several nights, then the symptoms are worse. Maybe it's just stress related? I am very busy, working for 8-9 hours, cleaning the house, cooking and taking care of my toddler...but that's something we all do, right? I gave it a lot of thinking of why I'm feeling like this and the more I think, the more anxious I become... In december I cought I very nasty flu/cold from my son which I treated myself (or at least I tried to...) but after 2 months of caughing and running nose I experinced some very sharp pain in the left side of my head (the left upper side). The pain was strong, it came and went all day for a couple of days (like 6-7 days). I went to see a neurologist and said that it is maybe a neuralgia. My head does no longer hurt at all, so I hope all these symptoms have nothing to do with it. I have also checked the tyroid, which is also ok. So, I don't see what else can I possibly do to feel better again. I would appreciate your advise. We all know that in any family, when mummy is not feeling ok, everyone has to suffer..

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E.R.

answers from New York on

I have been experiencing the same as you. All bloodworm says I'm fine. And then the dizziness hit me all of a sudden, I was using all my strength not to pass out. It was scary, my DH called 911. The Dr. said it was probably vaso vagal syncope. Then after reading about it, I realized that even though I'm trying to have a positive outlook in life, my body is still reacting to a lot of stressful things in my life. Synchronisticly, my sister had just read about someone experiencing the same symptoms and healed by taking high doses of vitamin B. My mom, who I call the vitamin queen, suggested taking 100mg of B complex supplement. Apparently stress depletes vit B from the body.

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M.P.

answers from Portland on

Stress causes anxiety. If the doctor hasn't focused on the dizziness I suggest that you see an ENT and be tested for causes of dizziness. I had similar symptoms and went thru a battery of tests with an ENT and learned that I have debris that sometimes floats in my ear. I went to physical therapy where they helped me do maneuvers to settle the debris down to the bottom of my ear and the dizziness, nausea, etc. went away.

Here's a web site that discusses dizziness and possible causes.

http://www.webmd.com/brain/tc/dizziness-lightheadedness-a...

On the second page, highlighted in blue, is what my condition is called; benign paroxysmal positional vertigo. When I'm feeling some dizziness I also feel more anxious. I was so anxious during the first treatment that I nearly stopped the treatment. I did cry. But I stuck with it and the dizziness etc. went away.

I've learned to keep my head above my knees when I bend over so that I don't stir up the debris.

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S.B.

answers from Redding on

I agree with Marda.
Stress leads to anxiety.

Stress isn't good for you. It makes it hard for your body to fight things off.
I take anxiety medication because after having shingles, if I get the slightest twinge in my back, I'm scared to death that I'll have another outbreak. As a single mom, I'm under a lot of stress that I can't really control, such as the stress related to my job. I've just had to learn to manage it. Worrying excessively is very stressful and leads to anxiety.

Talk to your primary care physician about the possibility of combo depression/anxiety.

In the meantime, try to think of it this way....everything that's been ruled out is one less thing to worry about. I know as well as anyone else that it's very frustrating to go to the doctor and not readily receive a diagnosis so we can just handle it. But, as things get checked off, see those things as a good sign.

Give yourself time each day to really, really relax. Don't make excuses for not doing it. Take a nice bubble bath with epsom salts or just lay down in a quiet room with your eyes closed and envision positivity. Envision all the things you have to be thankful for. Stay in a hot shower until the water runs out.

Exercise is also great if you aren't too dizzy. Take a walk BEFORE dinner. It gets your metabolism going and it releases endorphines. Gentle yoga and some stretching may help.

Talk to your doctor. Ask him to sum up all the results for you and mention the possibility of anxiety/depression.

Hang in there and best wishes.

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F.B.

answers from New York on

I think its time for a couple of sick days. Real sick days, ones in which you take off and do little or nothing more than sit on the sofa and sip tea and eat cheese and crackers and crudite, maybe a walk in the afternoon, then more sitting on the sofa with tea and cheese and crackers and crudite.

If you can't get child care coverage during the weekend, do it during the work week when your little one is already slotted into day care.

Don't give into the temptation to deep clean your fridge, or take care of some correspondence, bake cookies, make phone calls etc. You are taking sick days to re-charge your batteries and give yourself a chance to fully recouperate.

If you are still ailing after three such sick days, schedule a well visit with an internist and go equipped with a list of your symptoms, tests, and possible diagnoses. They should be able to direct you to the right specialist.

Good luck to you and yours,
F. B.

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M.M.

answers from Chicago on

Have you considered seeing a chiropractor?

Headaches, exhaustion, hearing issues, etc... all of that can be affected by being out of alignment in various places.

Doctors will treat you with pills, as you've experienced. But when they can't find the source of the issue with multiple tests, I'm wondering if you're not physically misaligned somewhere that might be causing this. Including the nausea and dizziness.
Ex: your flu with coughing and sniffling..those actions cause your muscles in your upper back and neck to tense repeatedly. Ultimately, causing the vertebrae to clamp down on nerve tissue. Thus...headaches, vision issues, and a light headedness. This would also result in nausea due to lack of blood flow.

I'm no doctor, of course. But I've learned a LOT from my chiro, who's educated me on how everything connects, and the various impacts that things being out of whack can have.
Just a thought.

I hope you feel better.

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E.B.

answers from Beaumont on

Have you considered acupuncture? It is been a miracle in our home for various conditions. Seek out the best your area offers and give it a try. Hope you're better soon...

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L.H.

answers from New York on

"dizziness,sometimes nausea, and I am very tired " Make sure your doc orders a full blood work count. Sometimes they only do the blood work on what they think it can be and things go unchecked like sugar. These symptoms can be anything from simple to serious. It can be the on set of diabetis, hybertension, anemia, low-carbs, vitamin B deficiency, low-iron, inner ear problems, dehydration, lack of sleep, pregnancy, etc. You really need to be insistant on finding out what's going on. In the mean time make sure you get plenty of sleep, eat your complex carbs, eat lots of fruit including oranges and OJ, and drink more water.

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Y.G.

answers from Miami on

There is a test that the ENT can do to check the crystals in your middle ear. You wear these dark goggles. They have you sit up, lay back, etc. It checks your eye dilation. It can tell if the crystal in your ears are out of line ( from a cold, flu the crystals can get out of whack and need to be placed back)...

Reason I know this? I've had LOTS of dizziness issues (along with extreme fatigue, VERY foggy feeling, numbness issues at times, headaches, etc) for the past 3 years :(
It all started after having bronchitis for 6 weeks. Unfortunately, I've never been the same since! I've had EVERY test in the world done... All come back normal.....

I hope you feel better soon! Let us know. Maybe there's something my doctors are missing, ugh.

Ps If you look back at my questions from Nov. 2010, I've asked similar questions..

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S.S.

answers from Binghamton on

Double check your thyroid numbers. A TSH above 3 is an indication of hypothroidism, though not all doctors will agree. Many still use an upper value of 5 before prescribing treatment.

Perhaps the dizziness could also be caused by otoliths? If so, there are very simple exercises your doctor can show you to solve the problem.

J.M.

answers from New York on

you may be suffering from vertigo due to an inner ear problem and doctors have easy solutions to fix that......

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