I've been going through a battery of tests to figure out my physical symptoms. Everything c...
I feel I could have written this easily myself in January this year.
It is good news if everything is coming back as healthy. I know right now you don't think so.
You do know that trauma, PTSD can cause psycho-somatic symptoms and chronic pain? Also, your interpretation and narrative, commentary mind on those symptoms you have will play havoc with your mind, and body chemistry and keeping you very much in an adrenalized state of pure fear and panic.
my heart does weird things all the time (just not when I show up at the doctor) and I'm having a lot of weird tingling sensations in my legs and sometimes the world disappears and I go blind for a split second or two or five.
The symptom with the heart. Is it like fluttering sensations? Or palpitating? Or even like it's thumping out of your ribcage? Or all of these? If so, I had this too and my heart checks and tests. If you have had an all clear, it's a panic symptom. Adrenaline makes the heart beat faster, flutter to get you ready to take action to fight or flee. It isn't a dangerous symptom at all. . .but so unpleasant, scary even! But, it's not dangerous, just panic and this is when you need to find ways to relax yourself.
The tingling sensations are usually caused by hyperventilating, when we breathe so fast, we are actually taking in more oxygen (this isn't dangerous, it's just uncomfortable) and all you have to do is slow down breathing and regulate it. The blood changes in our body when we have too much oxygen, hence the tingly feelings. I remember having this for 8 days solid and it freaked the f*ck out of me, until I realised it was a panic symptom.
The vision problem - the pupils will dilate massively when you are in fight/flight mode as your body is looking for potential threats, since if feels like it's under threat!
Why is this happening then? Like you said here:
I'm scared because I feel like something is really wrong
It is simply because you are scared and because you believe and have convinced yourself there is something wrong. This was my issue too in January. What might help is reading plenty on fight/flight, going to Therapy, speaking with supportive loved ones or friends or just people. . .but mainly what helped me was educating myself as much as possible about these symptoms. It's now passed 6 months and I understand every symptom that has came to me and there was many. . .almost into the hundreds, if I am honest! Mostly all psycho-somatic too! I basically went into fear of fear mode. I woke up alert and hyper-vigilent, aware of a symptom, panicked about that, the symptom would intensify, another one came alone, I would stress out about that one too as well as the other one and then more would come. . . this cycle would happen all day, every day, non-stop!
You said:
The reason the symptoms are either now gone for me, or a few are now under control is because I took the fear out of them and you can only do that when you do know what they are. Remind yourself that the doctors know what they are looking for, they have checked you over and have found nothing biologically, physiologically wrong with you, they have stated to you it's a mental issue and of course that needs to be seen to for your own sanity as these symptoms will only continue to get worse the more you become scared and terrified of each and every symptom.
The symptoms that kicked off for me, were: dizzy spells, brain fog, chest pains, headaches, racing terror/horrific thoughts, stomach cramps, like I was dying, like I was terminally ill in pain, IBS, felt like surges up and down my body, tingles up and down the arms and legs, hands and toes, not feeling with it, not feeling right and these symptoms lasted for days and days, and if they would end, another symptom came along, swollen tongue sensation, lump in the throat, that feeling you get when you are on a rollercoaster and the insides of your organs feel like they are rising upwards, impaired vision, unwanted images, unbearable images, unable to get out of bed, cramps in the back of the legs, ringing in the ears, creepy crawly feelings all over the body, heart tremors, hyperventilation, irregular breathing, shallow and laboured breathing, days on end of not feeling I am breathing right, like I can't catch my breath, yawning so much, sighing heavily, tingles around the face, mouth, lips, numb nose, cold and hot, shaky all over, feeling lethralgic and weak, crushing heart feeling, organs felt like they were twisting, ripping and tearing apart, and many more symptoms.
The fear and pain was chronic. The endless questioning - what is happening to me? Why don't the doctor's know? This surely can't be panic, it has to be something serious, it feels so physical, not in any way mental. Yet. . .it was my fear causing these symptoms, the over-thinking, analysing, the constant watching myself, watching my body, watching for symptoms to change, driving myself insane basically.
The mind and body work together and are linked, never underestimate what the power of real traumatized terror can do to the body and the effects it can have. But have faith that with some understanding you can take the fear out of these symptoms and you will start to notice a shift and change, and don't let the setbacks dishearten you!!!
