Hi,
I’m sending this out to anyone who might be willing to help inform me on a peculiar problem I have. I have been to a Neurologist, who just said that it was “anxiety”, and prescribed propranolol. After a bit of online research, I saw that it does somewhat match the symptoms of head paresthesia anxiety. Unfortunately, it does not seem to be going away. In fact, the depression/anxiety part has gotten worse, while the tingly feelings in appendages have dissipated somewhat.
The issue started last September when I was under considerable stress from work and other factors. It began as a tingly feeling in certain areas of the brain and was accompanied by depression. I decided to quit coffee and alcohol, which helped. With some determination and resolve to carry on with life as usual, things returned to normal. But when I returned to drinking coffee, the problem came back. This time, when I tried to overcome it, I could feel lines or ‘threads’ starting to form. They felt and still feel like some sort of flow of information. Around Christmas, I was in a conversation with someone which required a great deal of thought and focus, and I felt a line form coming from the front right of my head, wrapping through the left side, and attaching itself at the back. At this point, a began to be agitated and much more stressed and anxious, and I began to experience numbness in my hands (I’m a musician and this was particularly alarming.) By the end of January, I ended up in the ER speaking only broken sentences. The following week was when I visited a neurologist in Nashville who mentioned anxiety and prescribed propranolol. Propranolol has not really fixed the problem. For awhile it seemed to help contain it, but not to fix it. Meditation and stretching/yoga seemed to be helping to stabilize things, but after another somewhat jarring personal life event, the problem is worsening at an accelerated rate. The ‘thread’ now keeps wrapping around my head counterclockwise and I think it’s strengthening. Nearly anything I do causes it to get worse. Driving, talking, thinking, some reading, playing an instrument (my livelihood), being around people I care about, exercise… they all strengthen this thing that’s making me agitated and anxious. My sleep has been shallow and light.
There’s a hundred other symptoms I could mention that have accompanied various stages of this. Redness in either or both eyes, upset stomach, trouble with balance (early on).
In basic terms, what I actually feel is like a feedback loop that keeps getting stronger. It’s like there’s an imbalance that just keeps growing because of where it is, and because of my need to use the corresponding part of my brain for everything I do. In short, everything feels like it is exercising the same worried synapses.
I really need to find help and answers. It’s affecting everything about my work and personal life. I’m hurting good people around me with worried and impulsive actions.
I don’t mean to sound desperate. I’m carrying on, but it’s hellish feeling this way and not being able to do the things I normally do without feeling so depressed and wrong about everything.
I assume this is a rather odd case since I can’t find much information or similar experiences in online searches. If you have any answers or advice, or if nothing else, a little bit more of a medical explanation… anything to point me towards a solution, please reply. It feels like there’s an imbalance that just keeps growing because of where it is, and because of my need to use the corresponding part of my brain for everything I do. In short, everything feels like it is exercising the same worried synapses. I am hopeful.
Thank you for your help,
Bryan