Help! What Is Happening to Me?

Thyroid. Low B-12. Heart issues.

My friends daughter was diagnosed with panic attacks but the xanax didn't help. Then they strapped some machine to her to monitor her heart and found it wasn't psychological but related to her heart racing which caused her to panic and feel really weird.

I hope you find out what's causing it soon. Not knowing can be so frustrating.

Some of these reactions can be due to low thyroid (anxiety is a very common symptom) and adrenal issues (both together are very, very common). The last thing is what's referred to as orthostatic hypotension. I have that problem alot. What helps me the most is keeping hydrated and drinking water with electrolytes and even water with sea salt (which is good for the adrenals). Dehydration is the number one cause of this problem - some of us tend not to drink as much water in this cooler weather, but you really need to (I'm having a similar problem right now myself). Look up orthostatic hypotension in Wikipedia and it sounds just like what you're experiencing and notice that they mention Addison's which is an extreme case of adrenal problems. Borderline adrenal problems, which effect kidney function, which effects the ability of your body to maintain good hydration.

Both my sons have had that problem, as well, and they've just been diagnosed as hypothyroid. Low thyroid function will also impact your heart and really just about every system in your body as the enzymes necessary for all these functions are not working properly. What's happening with the hypotension is that when you stand up, the blood pools in your feet, so your body will do everything it can to keep the heart going, including shutting down blood flow to the extremeties.

The tingling etc. could also be due to low vitamin B12 or Raynaud's which is very common in this colder weather and it also goes along with thyroid problems.

Your reaction in stores may also be an allergic reaction due to all the chemicals found in new products - all the plastics emit lots of VOCs, as do any products made from pressed wood. Almost all new clothes are treated with things like formaldehyde. And, you may have chemical sensitivies (again - very, very common with low thyroid function and adrenal stress).

I used to have all these problems until I got adequate treatment for my low thyroid function and take supplements to support my adrenals.

While it can sometimes be a good idea to go to the emergency room, normal tests that they will run won't find a thing wrong - they've got to catch you while the attack is still fully active.

And, overall, only a good functional medicine doctor will be able to put all this together.

Update: I highly doubt it's MS - MS is often misdiagnosed and is frequently due to toxin exposure (which can be environmental or caused by chronic infections - any living organism in your body will produce toxins, just as humans output toxins daily in their stool). Check out:
www.biotoxins.info

And, MS can often mimic Lyme disease or a root autoimmune disorder - celiac disease. We were just discussing the correlation of CD with anxiety (and nutritional deficiencies like B12.

I will definitely pray for you, but if you do have thyroid and adrenal problems, stress is your worst enemy, so please relax and leave this in God's hands !

I don't want to panic you, but if your doctor can't get you in immediately, you might want to take a trip to the ER. What you're having does sound heart/blood pressure related and you don't want to take chances with episodes like that.

They (the ER) can run a multitude of tests much faster than your regular MD can, so you're much likely to find out what the problem is rather than waiting until February.

Do this for your children.... I'm currently pregnant and have a 6yo (both girls)....you don't want to put something like that off or the results could be devastating. Best of luck and please update us.

Okay, girlfriend. You are not alone. I started going through that years ago, I'm 30 right now, so I was about 24. I kept saying your exact words about it being physical first, then you get scared. I was diagnosed with panic attack disorder and put on a downer to take for the rest of my life. I didn't really agree with that diagnosis, either, but it took care of the problem until about 3 years ago. The anxiety of having another attack is worse than the actual attack. Well, I had to move home after leaving my ex of 7 years. I slowly got worse day-by-day. I felt like a walking permanent panic attack. I thought someone was drugging me, because that was the only way I could feel that bizarre. I went to the doctor after my xanax made it worse instead of better. I had an overactive thyroid and had radiation done a.s.a.p. after she put me on a beta blocker (reduces heart rate). It has taken a while to get me on the right dose of thyroid replacement, but I have discovered during this process is that thyroid is no joke. You can literally lose your mind because of how strange you feel. I still get the weakness and tingling. But, usually I just need to eat something and I waited too long. I also still get anxiety if I don't keep taking my medication that my first doctor put me on. I found out that it is a narcotic, and my body will go through withdrawls if I stop taking it. Found that out the hard way!
It's hard to act like everything is fine when you feel like it is all going to end at any moment. It's also hard to explain to people that haven't a clue what you are talking about. Wouldn't it be great never to have that feeling? I'd give anything...

I'm a triathlete and this type of thing used to happen to me several yrs ago, while I was training for running. I'm not a runner and this is my weak sport, so I'd get to the 5 mile mark and start to shake, felt like I was having an asthma attack (no asthma in my history), racing pulse, body aches, had to stop and sit down because there was no way I could push through it. I too thought it was a panic attack.

I started working with a trainer because of this and found out that I was "bonking" (glycogen levels had depleted in blood and my body had no more sugars to pull from). I'm not a medical person, but if you are doing any form of "low carb", this can happen to you. I changed my diet, increased the carbs, especially right before workouts, and it never happened again. (Now, I can run 10-12 mile distances in a workout.)

Just because this happened to me during workouts, doesn't mean it couldn't happen to someone else just going about their day. Take a hard look at your diet and water intake. I've had days (those rare instances where I may have had more than 2 glasses of wine the night before), where the same thing happened to a lesser degree, just from carrying in the groceries.

Carbohydrates are your body's fuel and you need them to operate. I hope this helps you!!!

C.

S.,

I have something to suggest, however, your symptoms sound more complex than what I'm thinking of. My son was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome when (description below) he was an infant. You might mention that to your doctor, just in case he/she wanted to test for it. My son never had any symptoms, and has recently gotten "cleared". (No symptoms of it, by echocardiogram and electrocardiogram.) I recently spoke to a woman who did have episodes and didn't find out the cause until she was an adult. (She's in the medical field, also.) A cardiologist can cauterize the extra conduction pathway or use medication to prevent episodes.

Here is a description: In a normal heart, electrical signals use only one path when they move through the heart. This is the atrio-ventricular or A-V node. As the electrical signal moves from the heart's upper chambers (the atria) to the lower chambers (the ventricles), it causes the heart to beat. For the heart to beat properly, the timing of the electrical signal is important.
If there's an extra conduction pathway, the electrical signal may arrive at the ventricles too soon. This condition is called Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome (WPW). It's in a category of electrical abnormalities called "pre-excitation syndromes."

It's recognized by certain changes on the electrocardiogram, which is a graphical record of the heart's electrical activity. The ECG will show that an extra pathway or shortcut exists from the atria to the ventricles.

Many people with this syndrome who have symptoms or episodes of tachycardia (rapid heart rhythm) may have dizziness, chest palpitations, fainting or, rarely, cardiac arrest. Other people with WPW never have tachycardia or other symptoms. About 80 percent of people with symptoms first have them between the ages of 11 and 50.

http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4785

I pray that you find your answer!

L.

I think you should see a cardiologist to rule out atrial fib or a heart arrhythmia, since there is a family history. There are GREAT treatment options for people with arrhythmias these days that can be as simple as an outpatient procedure. The cardiology unit at Baylor Irving now has a cardiac lab that no other hospital in the area has that cures people of arrhythmias and atrial fib who previously couldn't be treated because of the location of the arrhythmia in the heart. I highly recommend any of the doctors at CSANT in Irving, especially Dr. Michael Rothkopf, Dr. John Overbeck, and Dr. Ali Kizilbash.

I'm running down every thing that comes to mind

Cardiovascular -
Afib, Long QT syndrome - doesn't explain the tingly legs

Screening - EKG, they have machines that can travel with you for cardiac studies if necessary.

Neurological -
MS, brain tumor (Not hardly likely)
Screening - MRI to check for nerve demylenation, tumor formation

Auto Immune -
Lupus, MS
Ultimately, especially if your low thyroid is hashimotos, auto immune is probably most likely... which would suck, because the treatment can be as bad as the disease until things get straight, but is ultimately less fatal than heart problems.

I'm leaning toward MS.

I'm not a doctor. You need to see one.

*hugs*
S.

I might be wrong, and it may be something more major ( I pray that it's not), but it sounds like a panic attack. I get them sometimes and they can be diblitating. Talk to your doctor and look up the symptoms of panic or anxiety attacks. You may need some xanax or something to help you through these times.

S., first I want to tell you that I am so sorry you are going through this, it sounds terrifying. I have panic attacks and they are similar to what you are describing BUT, here's the key-it's really helpful to be seen WHILE you are experiencing these symptoms so they can check your organs/etc. I will also say that I have experienced physical discomfort that segues into these big psychological panic attacks, but I have certain techniques that I have been using the moment I start to feel physical symptoms that seem to have helped me head my attacks off.

I would definitely try to see a cardiologist asap, especially considering the family history. They know enough to know if you need a different type of specialist. Call Friday and try to get an appointment with one. But in the meantime, if you start feeling these symptoms again, GO TO THE ER so they will be able to take a look at what's happening in your body while all of this is going on.

I wish you all the best, try to relax and enjoy your Christmas. I am lifting up a prayer for you dear!