Do I have anxiety?

[johtno]

Hi there,

Over a year ago I was playing football and felt like I was going to faint, it was weird.. the same thing had happened after I'd been taking ecstacy a week before. After that I was really unwell for about a month and kept getting dizzy spells. I am 100% sure this wasnt to do with anxiety and it was drugs.

I stopped taking any drugs but kept feeling weird. The initial symptoms wore off but I started getting new symptoms and this is what I think could be anxiety. Everytime I feel something weird I really notice it, like my ear ringing or a pain in my chest.... something that I wouldnt even have taken notice of previously.

My main symptoms are muscle twitching constantly, dizzyness, my head feels weird, like stuffy, and it gets worse when im reading something or focusing on stuff, my eyes are sensitive to light , if ive been in a darker place theyll take much longer to get used to the light and are quite sore.

The stuffy feeling in my head was quite bad at the start of the year, but it started getting lesser, but was always there. About 2 months ago I was out running and when I got home I got a migrane (couldnt see properly, hand tingling, headache). I'd never had a migrane before and immedietly thought it was my "illness" again. I went into an extreme panic and the next few days after that the feeling in my head was back and very intense I also got a metallic taste inmy mouth which I hasnt had for about 8 months. I've also recently started university and noticed myself going nearly into a panic in class, but I can always hold it back.

Im not sure if this is something mixed with anxiety or it is totally anxiety causing the symptoms. I've got a hospital appointment due so I'lkl hopefully get a bit more feedback

I was wondering if any of you have physical symptoms like this due to anixety!

Thanks guys

[Richard77]

Hi there

Sorry to hear about what your going through, you say you have a stuffy head, do you mean kind of dream like, a little bit like what it feels like when you haven't had anything to eat.
I used to feel like that quite a bit, the stuffy head things sound very similiar to a milder form of de realization where you feel as if your in a complete dream not very nice. When you feel stuffy does your heart rate increase.

Anyway going to the docs is the best option hopefully if it is anxiety they should be able to sort it out for you

Rich

[johtno]

Hey, I don't think stuffy is the best way to describe it, it's kinda like dizzy. Basically I know that its my eyes giving me the feeling in my head. Ive been to the opticians but they said I dont really need glasses.. weird. All the symptoms I have appear on the anxiety list though on this site.

[karny123]

Do you feel guilty for taking ecstacy? I know whenever I am about try a new drug, I always research the effects, and short/long term side effects. After taking ecstacy a few times, I thought that I had completely unbalanced the seretonin in my brain and thought I was going through some form of mild depression.

[JoeyLowtown]

Ive done that with amphetmines. Basically I reckon stay off the drugs! There's no need for them wotsoever! It ahs not been worth the fear its given me!

[johtno]

I dont take anything ever now. Obviously I wish i never if it was that that caused it.

But my question is, have any of you had problems with your sight because of anxiety? It's constant for me, sore head which feels like eye strain.. but ive been to the opticians

[Foxfire]

Hey guys, basically all the symptoms that you're talking about are classic anxiety. The dizzy spells that seem to occur randomly in the most inappropriate or unexpected places are what precipitated my major spill into the icky world of panic disorder. The sore eyes/head and tricks of vision are because the muscles around the eye are actually very delicate. Because of the anxiety you're carrying lots of tension in all the muscles of your body but probably don't realise that you are. The weakest muscles are the first to feel the strain, hence eyes, neck and shoulders, temples often feel sore or just strange. Muscle twitches are also a by product of this and basically just electrical discharge which is caused by your nervous system telling your muscles to stay ready to run away, likewise if any of you are getting palpitations, it's a similar thing, just electricity working on the heart muscle rather than your legs or eyelids etc.

It's all totally normal for this kind of problem, not dangerous or life-threatening at all (despite feeling like the worst thing in the world) and will go away once you cease to be afraid of the symptoms and the disorder and let your body heal itself.

Hope this helps a bit!
Cheers,
Foxfire

[ptncud]

Great info Foxfire and i couldn't agree with you more. Just as you said "It's all totally normal for this kind of problem, not dangerous or life-threatening at all". The problem of course is believeing this, which inevitably takes time and much effort. You need to reprogram your brain so when in a thought occurs you reaction isn't omg anxiety but so what. To do this i have used cbt. I am offering the course that has cured me under "free cbt course" thread if your interested. Otherwise please do some searches as theres some great information out there or try and find a good psychologist if you can afford it.
Take care, John

[johtno]

Hey guys, basically all the symptoms that you're talking about are classic anxiety. The dizzy spells that seem to occur randomly in the most inappropriate or unexpected places are what precipitated my major spill into the icky world of panic disorder. The sore eyes/head and tricks of vision are because the muscles around the eye are actually very delicate. Because of the anxiety you're carrying lots of tension in all the muscles of your body but probably don't realise that you are. The weakest muscles are the first to feel the strain, hence eyes, neck and shoulders, temples often feel sore or just strange. Muscle twitches are also a by product of this and basically just electrical discharge which is caused by your nervous system telling your muscles to stay ready to run away, likewise if any of you are getting palpitations, it's a similar thing, just electricity working on the heart muscle rather than your legs or eyelids etc.

It's all totally normal for this kind of problem, not dangerous or life-threatening at all (despite feeling like the worst thing in the world) and will go away once you cease to be afraid of the symptoms and the disorder and let your body heal itself.

Hope this helps a bit!
Cheers,
Foxfire

Thanks for the reply, its very reassuring.

I've got one more question, in relation to my eyes it feels like eye strain and it get worse if im sitting at the computer for a while or trying to changing focus quickly such as looking at something far away then close up. I'ver been tothe opticians and he said my eyesight is good enough not to need any visual aid.

It's really a bad feeling and I know it gets worse if im trying to read or whatever, I try not to panic when i feel something weird.

I constantly feeling like I have eye strain though, like it doesnt come in episodes, its there from when i wake up and then goto bed.. I was wondering if axiety could be contributing to this!

Thanks

[Foxfire]

I constantly feeling like I have eye strain though, like it doesnt come in episodes, its there from when i wake up and then goto bed.. I was wondering if axiety could be contributing to this!

Absolutely it could be! The way this works is that some symptoms like dizzy spells, rapid heart rate and palpitations you may only have episodically but your body is in a state of constant tension at the moment so there will be other symptoms that stay with you all the time and these are often the sore eyes, tricks of vision, muscle twitches etc. Again, it's all totally normal, nothing to be concerned about you just need to find a way to not be afraid of your symptoms and everything will start to take care of itself.
Cheers,
Foxfire

[johtno]

I constantly feeling like I have eye strain though, like it doesnt come in episodes, its there from when i wake up and then goto bed.. I was wondering if axiety could be contributing to this!

Absolutely it could be! The way this works is that some symptoms like dizzy spells, rapid heart rate and palpitations you may only have episodically but your body is in a state of constant tension at the moment so there will be other symptoms that stay with you all the time and these are often the sore eyes, tricks of vision, muscle twitches etc. Again, it's all totally normal, nothing to be concerned about you just need to find a way to not be afraid of your symptoms and everything will start to take care of itself.
Cheers,
Foxfire

Thanks man, thats really reassuring. I've got the date for my hospital appointment which is at the end of november, so i'll keep you updated!