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Anyone with anxiety have these symptoms?

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Anxiety & Panic Disorders
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Posted 11/30/2015 12:08 PM (GMT 0)
I'm wondering if anxiety has caused these symptoms in anyone else. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia, but I've recently been wondering if my fibro diagnosis is correct, as I have new symptoms and some symptoms have gotten worse. I am going to talk to my doctor, but I think she is going to say it's just fibro and/or anxiety. These are the symptoms I've had over the past year and a half:

Constipation. Diagnosed with severe IBS-C.
Abdominal pain
Headaches. Had chronic daily headaches for 3 months, which then went away. They returned a few weeks ago.
Blurred vision. Went away after headaches went away, but came back about one month ago.
Waking up out of sleep with heart racing and lightheadedness.
Heart palpitations.
Insomnia.
Very poor, light, unrefreshing sleep for the past 2 months. Most nights I don't feel like I fall asleep at all.
Fatigue. Tired most of the time.
Back pain. Mostly mid and upper back.
Neck pain, usually on the front of my neck.
Chest pain. I've been diagnosed with costochondritis a few times, so I believe this is what it is usually.
Pain in my ribs and breastbone.
Cough (worse at night) and throat clearing. Probably from GERD (I was diagnosed in 2009).
Mild asthma (from GERD and probably allergies).
Bloodshot/red eyes. This has only been a problem for the past couple months (probably from lack of sleep).
Twitching. I had an eyelid twitch for one month and then random twitches all over my body.
Pain in my extremities (both arms and legs). Usually worse at night and they're dull, achy pains. Sometimes though, they feel like gnawing pains. They come and go; I can't tell if it's muscular, skeletal, or my joints.
Sciatica-type pain and numbness in right leg/hip a few times.
Heat intolerance.
Sore throat (could be from allergies or GERD).
Petechiae (tiny purple or red dots on skin). Usually develop after I get my blood pressure taken or lean against something).
Feeling out of it. I don't know how else to describe it.
Brain "fog".
Some anxiety, but only at night. Usually when trying to fall asleep and often is about falling asleep.

I also have eosinophilic esophagitis and moderate scoliosis.

Tests I've had done:

MRI of head (Results: Minimal punctate FLAIR/T2 hyperintensities are present in the subcortical & deep white matter of the cerebral hemispheres. Otherwise normal. Doctor said I had/have migraines).
CT of abdomen and pelvis. Normal.
Colonoscopy. Normal, except redundancy of my sigmoid colon.
Endoscopy. Positive for eosinophilic esophagitis.
Abdominal X-Ray. Normal.
Chest X-Rays. Normal.
Echocardiogram. Normal.
30 Day Cardiac Event Monitor. Normal, but did have one brief episode of SVT and numerous PACs noted throughout recording.
Allergy testing. Tested positive for some allergens.
Blood tests have all been normal, EXCEPT: low vitamin D level, slightly low potassium level, ferritin is on the lower side.
CRP and ESR both normal.
I have NOT had an ANA test or any tests for autoimmune diseases. Also, I have NOT had a Lyme titer test.

Some of my symptoms have improved, while others have worsened. Some have just developed a couple months ago. The pain in my extremities, sciatica-type pain, and severely poor sleep are most concerning to me and have been going on for 2 months (and headaches returned). I really don't know if this is just fibro and would appreciate any input. Thanks in advance!



*Cross posted in the Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Lupus, Lyme Disease, and Multiple Sclerosis forums.
Posted 11/30/2015 12:49 PM (GMT 0)
Well I'll start out by saying I have, or had, most of the symptoms you describe. And with all the tests you've had, I'd feel pretty safe in saying that what you're suffering from is health anxiety, something I've dealt with for many many years. Recently I've been going through an especially severe bout of anxiety/panic so all the symptoms you mentioned are creeping up on me again. I have horrible morning anxiety and wake with shaking, heart pounding and racing,intrusive thoughts. I've upped my low dose of Xanax from .25 to .5 a day and it seems to help somewhat but I frankly hate to depend on that. Trouble is, when the day starts so bad, it seems to stay with you all day. That's when the physical symptoms come into play (probably to keep our mind off the mental anxiety) but I can also tell you that I'm now 68 years old and, so far, none of these physical symptoms were based in anything real...just my mind playing nasty tricks on me. So try to talk to yourself and tell yourself that all these aches and pains and sleep issues are just anxiety rearing its ugly head. Use all the coping skills mentioned on this forum and seek the help of a therapist or group that could definitely provide you some help., we are all here for you too and understand what you are going through. Good luck!
Posted 11/30/2015 4:20 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Slee,

What do your doctors suspect is going on? Besides the fibro...have you received a dx of anxiety...

...and have you been recommended for treatment? (therapy/meds)

These symptoms certainly can be associated with anxiety, so perhaps starting treatment for such would be a wise step...as you continue to rule out other possible causes if suggested by your doctor(s)

I hope you find the answers you are seeking soon. Post with us anytime for anxiety support.

S.C.
Posted 12/1/2015 7:32 AM (GMT 0)

andwes said...
Well I'll start out by saying I have, or had, most of the symptoms you describe. And with all the tests you've had, I'd feel pretty safe in saying that what you're suffering from is health anxiety, something I've dealt with for many many years. Recently I've been going through an especially severe bout of anxiety/panic so all the symptoms you mentioned are creeping up on me again. I have horrible morning anxiety and wake with shaking, heart pounding and racing,intrusive thoughts. I've upped my low dose of Xanax from .25 to .5 a day and it seems to help somewhat but I frankly hate to depend on that. Trouble is, when the day starts so bad, it seems to stay with you all day. That's when the physical symptoms come into play (probably to keep our mind off the mental anxiety) but I can also tell you that I'm now 68 years old and, so far, none of these physical symptoms were based in anything real...just my mind playing nasty tricks on me. So try to talk to yourself and tell yourself that all these aches and pains and sleep issues are just anxiety rearing its ugly head. Use all the coping skills mentioned on this forum and seek the help of a therapist or group that could definitely provide you some help., we are all here for you too and understand what you are going through. Good luck!

Thank you for your response! I really don't feel anxious during the day, but I guess I could have some underlying anxiety that I'm not totally aware of (and it only comes out at night before sleeping). I know that anxiety can cause many physical symptoms, but it's hard for me to accept that all of my symptoms are due to anxiety. I do wonder if I might have some autoimmune disease, like lupus or MS, but it's probably more likely that I do not. I am on Zoloft (50 mg), but I've only been on it for a couple weeks. So far it hasn't done anything. I have taken Xanax before, but it was a long time ago. I do remember it making me relaxed and tired. I really hate taking medication though, so I'd rather not take it unless I really need to. I will be making an appointment with a psychologist though. Thank you again!
Posted 12/1/2015 7:38 AM (GMT 0)

Scaredy Cat said...
Hi Slee,

What do your doctors suspect is going on? Besides the fibro...have you received a dx of anxiety...

...and have you been recommended for treatment? (therapy/meds)

These symptoms certainly can be associated with anxiety, so perhaps starting treatment for such would be a wise step...as you continue to rule out other possible causes if suggested by your doctor(s)

I hope you find the answers you are seeking soon. Post with us anytime for anxiety support.

S.C.

I haven't received an official diagnosis of anxiety, but my doctor does think that I might have some underlying anxiety. I know that my symptoms can be associated with anxiety, but I am not 100% convinced that it's all due to anxiety. Perhaps I really just have fibro and some anxiety; however, one of my symptoms will improve and another will get worse. I will be talking to my doctor this week, so hopefully it will be a helpful visit. Thank you for your feedback!
Posted 12/1/2015 4:39 PM (GMT 0)
Slee,

Glad to hear of your upcoming appointment. I hope that you can have a good discussion about all that is concerning you...

...and that you can get some answers and a management plan for the issues you need to treat...be it physical, mental, or a combination of both.

Please let us know what you learn, and how we can further be of support. :)

S.C.
Posted 12/1/2015 6:50 PM (GMT 0)
I've had a lot of the symptoms you've described and my doctor chalks all of them up to anxiety. It's good that you've had all of those tests done to rule out anything serious.

Keep us updated!
Posted 12/1/2015 9:14 PM (GMT 0)
Alrighf- so I've had the GI Issues (IBS like, ironically), GERD, and fatigue. The fatigue is most likely from the anxiety- being so mentally flurried is exhausting.

I also have chest and abdomen pain (intense gas pain) that I attribute to my GI issues. I'm not certain what contributes more to the GI issus- my own anxiety, or it may be a possible side effect of the meds I'm on.

Oh! For the- 'out of it feeling'- it sounds a lot like disassociation. It's where you're just not all oresent- you're awake but not there. It's very common in people with anxiety.
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