Possible Partial Seizures?

[Sele]

You guys all seem to know a lot about seizures. I've been dealing with something for the past 6 months and no one can explain it to me yet. The last thing I had done was a Sleep Deprived EEG which came back abnormal so the Doc I was seeing thinks it could be seizures. I don't feel like it is, but I will post my symptoms and see what you guys think:

Sensitivty to alcohol. 4th of July was last time able to drink.
- Sensitivity manifested as causing anxiety or it “hitting me harder” than usual.
* Used to Smoke Marijuana, now I am unable to.. causes panic-like symptoms and sometimes
it caused a burning like feeling in the top of my head.
* Took a few supplements like Magnesium and Ginkgo Biloba and was also sensitive to these.
* July 22nd, had coffee during the day. That night had what I can only describe as a panic attack.
- This lasted several hours. Had heart palpitations, chills, light headedness, skipped heartbeats
my pulse seemed to feel weak and was not fast.. maybe 70bpm. I have not been the same
since this night.
* Constant pressure in my head after this day. Felt like a grip on both sides of my head. Blood
Pressure was also higher than normal now. Things like salt seemed to make it worse. Things
like exercise seemed to make it better. Blood pressure was 140/85 where normally I am
120/65.
- Once while having blood pressure checked, I turned pale and felt faint which has never
happened before in my life.
- I walked every day for 30 minutes for about a month and a week and this pressure
eventually stopped.
- At first, this pressure was accompanied with weakness. Walking up stairs would make my
heart beat fast and the pressure would worsen for example. This weakness stayed for about
2 ½ weeks. Felt pressure in my chest well.
- This only happened twice, but had double vision I think? I would see the tail light of a car
that was in front of me when I blinked... even after that car was long gone.

Sept.

* Had an MRI done with focus on Pituitary glad as I had complained of fatigue , etc before these symptoms even occurred. MRI came back fine.
* Also had ECG done with no abnormal results.
* Head pressure continued into September and finally ended.
* Different type of head pressure started. Pressure feels like it is in sinuses. Behind the
nose and behind eyes and forehead. No nasal discharge but steam did seem to help.
* Conjunctivitis. Got prescription and it went away.
* Still sensitive to alcohol.
* Shortness of breath

Oct.

* Tried Lexapro to help with anxiety which it did, but was getting brain zaps.
- I have previously been on lexapro for years without ever experiencing this.
- Stopped taking after a couple weeks because of brain zaps.
* At this time I was able to tolerate tea with caffeine and milk but would make pressure
behind my nose and eyes worse.
* Tried to have a coffee and had a panic attack (fast heartbeat, chills, need to goto the
bathroom, panic)
* Noticed sensitivity to sound in certain ways. Singing would cause me to feel a vibration
in my head I have never had before. Certain high pitch sounds would hurt too
* Had seen an Endocrinologist and he believed TSH was high at 5.5uIU/mL. Gave Synthroid
but I did not take it. Had tested again 1 month later was down to 2.9. TSH fluctuating.


Nov.

* For about 1 ½ week I was getting sharp pains in one of my testicles but this has stopped and
never happened again.
* I was able to drink at friends wedding, even though it hit me stong, but the next day had what I can only describe as heart weakness/palpitations. It felt like my heart stopped once (obv it didn’t). I could not feel my pulse and I was terrified.
* Had a sore throat/swolen gland in my neck for 1 week and then went away.
* I started getting what can only be described as bad heart burn, or an ulcer. My stomach would
burn from the top of my abdomen. Would also cause the sinus pressure to worsen and
sometimes would get cold feeling in my throat. Sometimes felt panic-like. This often woke me
up in the middle of the night.
- This lasted about 3 weeks into December and then stopped. Was prescribed Omeprazole but never took it as this stopped on it’s own.
* Was tested for Lyme (by Qwest). Results were Equivocal by EIA and negative by Western
Blot.
* Took small amount of DHEA.. ended up in hospital 12 hours later with panic attack like
symptoms. Shaking, weakness. Was going to walk to hospital but would feel tight in
my chest and ended up calling 911.

Dec.

* I went to see an herbalist and he believed I wad filled with Mucus. He gave me tea to drink
which I drank for a week and the pressure in my sinus’s seemed to go away. I did notice
some drainage during this time and towards the end i got a cold.
- Vibration while singing has gone away.
- Pressure in sinus and behind eyes went away for a few weeks but came back.
* I had a sleep deprived EEG on 12/13 which the lab results came back as abnormal.
- This was a sleep deprived EEG.
- I was able to stay up all night the night before and was fine with a few panic like feelings here
and there where eating seemed to help.
- I felt fine as I was about to walk to the hospital. As soon as I started walking, I felt weakness,
pressure in my chest (what felt like pressure on my heart) and in turn would feel light headed.
- I made it to the hospital having to take several breaks along the way and felt very weak and
fatigued upon arrival to the hospital.
* Since this test, I have had more panic like feeling/symptoms than ever. They come and go
during the day sometimes accompanied by the sinus pressure but it is the worst at night when
trying to goto sleep. I usually have to take a hot shower to calm my system down and then I
can goto sleep. .
- Last time this feeling happened, I had the chills and a cold feeling in my throat.
* Chills come and go.
* Sinus pressure behind nose, eyes, forehead has come back.
* Sometime gets tingling sensations in my feet or body.
* Difficulty falling asleep at night.
* Having difficulty concentrating.


Let me know what you think!

 

[epileric]

Welcome Sele

It sounds like you've been through a lot. I gave you your own thread so that everyone could give their thoughts as well as welcome you here.

It seems like all the things that seem to trigger anxiety, the gingko & coffee are both things that can trigger seizures. Regarding your headache, I had a neurologist tell me that if it's a constant pressure instead of a throbbing one then it's probably neurologically related.

I used to work out as well & I remember trying DHEA once. It only took taking it for a day or 2 (1 capsule a day) before I got the same panic & anxiety you described.

I am curious though, did you use marijuana very frequently before? A lot of what you described (including the headache) sounds similar to withdrawal from the stuff.

Something that I try to remember when I do get panic/anxiety attacks is to go to my breath & breathe in deep through my nose, hold it for 3-5 seconds, then exhale long & all the way through my mouth. It's not a cure but it does help a lot after a couple minutes of breathing like that.

Also, have you been put on any medications at all? I know a lot of anti-epileptic drugs have anxiety as a side effect.

 

[Sele]

I used to take DHEA a lot in the past without anything but positive results.
I used to smoke in the past frequently but had to give it up as my doc was
experimenting with SSRIs and the like and I didn't want to interfere. I have had
anxiety in the past but things like DHEA always made it better as well as smoking.
I have never had panic attacks in my life and I am 31. This all started in July. As I noted,
I did spend sometime in NH before this started in the woods and lying in the grass and
I am kind of leaning towards Lyme but my doc doesn't want to pursue as the test
was negative but I have also read they are rarely accurate so I am at a loss.
I am not on any medicine. Thanks for the reply!

 

[Endless]

Hi, Sele,

Welcome to the forum!

You have a lot going on. It can be difficult to sort through, even for a doctor. And I am definitely not a doctor. But I can point you to some information. Are you seeing an internal medicine doctor? And also a neurologist? IMHO they may need to work together as a team to get it all figured out. I have a team of doctors working together to get all my stuff figured out.

It sounds like you have more than one kind of headache. Here's a site that explains the different headache types:
http://www.relieve-migraine-headache.com/type-of-headaches.html

Here's a place you can take an online test to see what kind of headaches you are having. (This doesn't take the place of seeing your doctor about it)
http://health.discovery.com/centers/headaches/assessment/assessment.html

Did a neurologist read your eeg? Migraines can cause abnormal brain waves on an eeg, too. It takes an expert to tell the difference.

If you continue to have problems with your sinuses, consider seeing an ENT (Ear Nose Throat) doctor. You might have something structural going on. In the meantime, if you have green stuff coming out definitely see your doctor and get some antibiotics. The sinus infection can cause a lot of what you're talking about, too (pressure, chills, weakness, heart palpitations, etc.) Infections and the immune system can do crazy stuff. I don't have a website to send you to on this - only personal experience with about 20 years worth of sinus infections.

Also, are you are taking alot of psuedephedrine (Sudafed) to unstuff your nose? It can cause some of your symptoms, too.

Pseudoephedrine may cause side effects. Tell your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away:
restlessness
nausea
vomiting
weakness
headache

Some side effects can be serious. If you experience any of the following symptoms, call your doctor immediately:
nervousness
dizziness
difficulty sleeping
stomach pain
difficulty breathing
fast, pounding, or irregular heartbeat
Pseudoephedrine may cause other side effects. Call your doctor if you have any unusual problems while you are taking this medication.

Read about the side effects of Sudafed here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000731#a682619-sideEffects

If it were me, I'd permanently give up coffee, alcohol, and marijuana. It sounds like all three are hurting your body and making you miserable. They could also cause a whole bunch of the symptoms you listed. It is complicating things and causing additional symptoms and making it harder for your doctor to diagnose and treat you.

Good luck, and I hope your doctor finds an answer for you soon.

 

[Minkels]

Wow...sorry to hear you have been through so much this year. It does sound like you have experienced some generalized anxiety and some panic attacks, at least based upon my experience with my husband (he has generalized anxiety disorder and panic attacks). Suddenly stopping drinking or using any kind of drug can leave one more prone to anxiety attacks, but they can be brought on by stress in one's life, major changes, or sometimes for no reason at all. In some cases, it's thought to be hereditary; my husband's mother suffered from anxiety and took Valium from what he remembers (she passed away at a pretty early age).

Everyone probably experiences panic differently, but my husband described it as a feeling as an impeding feeling that he was going to die, and had symptoms such as a racing heart, skipped heartbeats, dizziness/lightheadedness, chest pains, and sometimes feeling as if he were going to pass out. During his first attack, it was pretty awful--he didn't want to come out of the bedroom and I ended up staying with him the whole time. He was nervous about walking out of the house, etc. Luckily, we were able to get an emergency doctor appointment first thing that following Monday, and after tests to rule out other causes (heart, etc.), the doctor diagnosed him with panic attacks and GAD. He put him on Lexapro (which didn't agree with him too well and was discontinued) and Klonopin (clonazepam).

As Endless said, try to cut down on the caffeine gradually (suddenly stopping it will give you the headache from HELL) as it can make you more amped up, and it sounds like that is the last thing you need right now in your life.

My husband's anxiety disorder has improved over the years (it's been about 5 years now) and he manages the occasional flare-ups with Klonopin as needed. None of the SSRI's seem to agree with him for some reason.

I think that your best bet would be to see your doctor as soon as possible, since you are having so many symptoms of anxiety, and also since you are having some symptoms that might indicate you are having some kind of sinus issue going on as well. I hope that you are feeling better soon, and please keep us updated on how you are doing, okay?

 

[Sele]

Hello! Thanks very much for the reply.

A neurologist has not looked at the EEG yet. I believe a neurologist did the report? I'm not sure. If interested, I have a copy of the report which I can post. I'm sure I have access to not everything the doc gets but I have access to some things. I am getting a referral to a neurologist this week. I have not seen an internal medicine doctor. I am not familiar with what this is. Can you elaborate?

The sinus thing continues to bother me. It manifests as pressure behind my nose, behind my eyes and sometimes in the sides of my forehead. I noticed today it seems to get worse when driving on the highway. I wonder if the speed is pushing something around. I don't really have discharge and I am not blowing my nose really. I am not taking any medicine (like the sudafed you mentioned). I have given up coffee and alcohol and marijuana. I haven't touched any of them in months. Right now I feel uneasy here and there during the day and it hits most when I am trying to goto sleep. I could be fine right up until I get into bed and lie down and close my eyes. Then I feel panic-like sometimes, chills, sometimes throat feels like it's closing up, dread.. all that. Thanks again for your reply.

 

[Minkels]

It would be helpful to know what the neurologist said, and yes, the neurologist is generally the one who would be involved in interpreting EEG results.An internal medicine doctor is one who practices general medicine on the whole person and treats all the different bodily systems...he or she is more of generalist than a specialist.

 

[Sele]

The Sleep Deprived EEG report is as follows:

FINDINGS:
ABNORMALITY #1: In waking, some subtle .5-1.0 Hz slower rhythms were
seen at times from the left temporal region than from the corresponding
right temporal region with rightsided 8-9 Hz activity and rarely 10 Hz
with somewhat more disorganized 7.5-8 Hz activity seen in brief runs
from the left temporal region.
ABNORMALITY #2: In later portions of wakefulness, hyperventilation, and
stage I sleep, independent discharges were seen from the left and right
temporal regions. From the left temporal region, maximal in the
anterior sylvian to mid-temporal region, multi-second bursts of low to
moderate voltage rhythmic and, at times, incremental/decremental sharp
and slow bursts and blunted spike and slow bursts were seen occasionally
with secondary generalization and fast spike and slow discharges lasting
one to two seconds. From the right temporal region, maximal in the
posterior temporal but extending to the mid-temporal region,
incremental/decremental rhythmic sharp and slow complexes were seen
lasting out to several seconds and occasionally extending to the
contralateral temporal region. The character of the slowing from the
two temporal regions appeared to be different with the rhythmic slowing
somewhat slower by 1-1.5 Hz from the left temporal than from the right
temporal.
BACKGROUND: Moderately well-formed and well-sustained low to moderate
voltage 10 Hz activity was seen bioccipitally. The anterior-posterior
voltage gradient was preserved. The above-noted minor and subtle left
temporal abnormality was seen. No frank discharges were seen, however,
until the patient began hyperventilation or entered sleep.
HYPERVENTILATION: Exacerbation of the temporal abnormality was seen
with the independent temporal discharges, as noted previously.
INTERMITTENT PHOTIC STIMULATION: No activation of the record.
SLEEP: Stage I sleep tended to evoke the above-noted discharging
abnormalities with their different characters between the left anterior
sylvian and right posterior sylvian regions. Stage II sleep was
manifested by vertex activity and symmetric spindling with some rare and
brief transitions tentatively to stage III sleep with greater degrees of
delta. Stage III sleep was not sustained.
CARDIAC MONITOR: No arrhythmias noted.
IMPRESSION: Abnormal EEG due to independent L>R temporal discharging
abnormalities with the leftsided activity more prominent from the
anterior sylvian to mid-temporal region than that from the right more
prominent from the right posterior temporal region extending somewhat
anteriorly to the right mid-temporal. The nature and frequency of the
discharges appeared different from the two hemispheres as well as the
character of the slowing suggesting that each discharging focus operated
independently of the other.

 

[Endless]

I can only address the sinus thing. There's a lot of dust and pollen in the air systems in a car. Sometimes when you use the heat or air conditioner it just blows it all right into your face, and into your sinuses. The heater and air conditioner are also very drying - it can make your sinuses worse.

If your sinuses are really bugging you, go see an ENT. They're great and can get to the bottom of it rather quickly.

 

[Sele]

Thank you all for the replies. I will definitely keep updating as I find out more and any more feedback is definitely welcome and appreciated.

 

[Chel]

Hi Sele, and welcome.

You're going through a lot, but it's good that you have so much information to give your doctors, as they will need that to try and work out what's going on.

There's not much in there I can help with, although I did pick out a couple of things. I have tle, probably caused by temporal lobe atrophy.

*Body parts tingling - especially hands and feet - are among my simple partial seizures.
*I feel pressure around my sinuses and eyes from migraine, not from sinus problems. In fact, the false belief that I was suffering persistent sinus infections delayed my diagnosis of chronic migraine by 2 years. That diagnosis ultimately led to the scan which led to my epilepsy diagnosis. "The foot bone's connected to the leg bone..." etc. So the pain around your sinuses, could be migraine, and therefore a neurological problem, not a sinus problem.
*My blood pressure dances around like a cat on a hot tin roof, and I can't make any sense of it - but I don't think it's neurological.
*I've just suffered my first major panic attack, and I feel for you, if you're having those on a regular basis. You've had some great advice already about stimulants.

You've come to the right place. Great people here. Hopefully you also find the right doctors to help you, too.

All the best,
Chel

 

[Sele]

Does anyone ever experience sinus pressure with seizures? I know I listed a lot of symptoms.. but as of right now.. ever since the sleep deprived EEG, I have panic attacks at night right as I lie down to goto sleep. I have this weird feeling in my head, sometimes like burning, sometimes like pressure. Definitely have sinus pressure but not always. I don't feel like I have any standard seizure symptoms but I'll see a neurologist soon.

 

[Nakamova]

Hi Sele --

I agree with others who have suggested that you see an ENT (ear, nose, and throat specialist). Many of the symptoms you describe (sinus pressure, dizziness, fatigue, nausea, high stress and anxiety) could be related to an inner ear disorder such as Meniere's, or a chronic sinus infection. A CT scan would probably be useful in diagnosing this type of illness.

Some of the symptoms you describe could be secondary to a sinus disorder, or even unrelated. For instance, the fluctuating thyroid levels can be caused by many things (change of seasons, stress and illness, starting or stopping prescription meds/herbs/supplements, changing hormone levels, etc.).

You mention taking Lexapro for anxiety. How long have you had an anxiety disorder? In many cases Anxiety Disorders can cause some of the symptoms you describe, and/or also be the result of them, so the timing of the onset of your anxiety and other symptoms may help in identifying what is going on.

Eric recommended deep breathing techniques, and I do too. These can be very helpful to people prone to panic attacks and/or sinus pressure. With sinus pressure from a blocked/inflamed nasal cavity, you tend to breathe from the mouth and/or chest. This can lead to some hyperventilating. The hyperventilation often causes an an increase in anxiety, which can trigger a panic attack. In addition, because of the buildup of oxygen in the bloodstream associated with hyperventilation, you can feel dizzy, woozy and/or lightheaded (common symptoms associated with panic attacks). And these symptoms can reinforce one another, increasing anxiety even more. One of the best ways to stop this cycle is by doing deep breathing techniques that Eric describes (Breathe in deep through the nose, hold it for 3-5 seconds, then exhale long & all the way through my mouth. Do this for a few minutes.)

You neurologist should be able to explain the results of the EEG to you, and whether they point to a seizure disorder or to something else.

Let us know how it goes!

Best,
Nakamova

 

[barbara]

Pot is full of other chemicals like pesticides and ferilizers.Sometimes its laced with PCP also.