Double vision, diplopia, vertigo... can anyone help, please?

cheetaking243

New member
Hi all
I'm new here and I was wondering if you can help me with something. So I've been browsing Internet hoping to find some help with my symptoms and I couldn't come to any conclusion, so I stopped in fear or becoming influenced and start somatizing my condition.

About a year and a half ago I moved away to another country and spent some time sleeping on a terrible mattress, so at first I thought I might have a back problem and the cause was the poor mattress. The thing is, since I'm hardly ever ill, I do take some time telling pain from something more complicated.

Well, the thing is I work as a translator, so I spend a lot of time in front of a PC. I have bad posture, that much I know, and no matter how I try it, I never seem to be confortable. But I have been working like that for many years and I never had such serious symptoms.

I also used to have migraines, no vomiting, no aura, just strong pain to both temples. Maybe once a month, maybe not as much. But then I started getting headaches a lot more than usual, sometimes everyday during weeks. In between I had a bit of emotional stress that caused me to start having anxiety, which I didin't even know could exist. I was working and I'd just start shaking, feeling nervous, sad... Couldn't sleep, couldn't eat and I wasn't depressed or anything, but something was just wrong.

I started having shiatsu massages and insomnia was gone, so was the lack of apettite. After the cause for all this stress was gone, I felt way better emotionally, at peace, but then my body started playing tricks on me. So my symptoms now are the following:

visual auras, things get distorted with bright lights in my peripheral vision. My mother would complain about something like that before a strong migraine attack, like a visual alarm before the pain, but I never get pain. Just the bright lights and blurred vision.

Strong shoulder and arm pain - I also started waking up in the middle of the night with the pain. It lasts 10 minutes most, its like a strong cramp starting on my shoulder and it spreads to my arm, sometimes even to the back of the head.

Tinnitus - Not constantly, but usually at night the ears just start ringing. It doesn't hurt and the sound isn't as loud as to bother me at all, but it intrigues me.

Numb fingertips - Sometimes they just go numb, with a tickling feeling afterwards.

Double vision - the first time i had it I was really scared. I had never heard of something like that before and I was working as usual in front of my screen at the office and suddently i started seeing double. It really scared me and now the episodes come and go, with no apparent connection to anything. Sometimes I'm working, sometimes I'm relaxed. It lasts about 20 minutes and if i close one eye or the other I can see perfectly. Also after an episode of double vision I would get the visual auras.

Back pain - It's not excruciating pain. I'm usually very tolerant to pain, but I do feel tense. The neck cracks when I turn it and so do the shoulders. I used to play vollyball and swim, now I go to the gym about 1 or 2 times a week and do stretching exercises and swim. But nothing seems to ease it. When I'm back to daily routine the muscles get contracted again.

Vertigo: this is what really scared me. About 3 months ago I was working, relaxed, in front of my Pc, and suddently the world started turning around me and something was pulling me to the ground. I couldn't make it stop, it was so fast, I started sweating, they called an ambulance and took me to the hospital where they said it was vertigo - no tests were made, that's how health system works in old europe... They sent me home and referred me to a GP. I was resting at home for 2 days and then went to see an osteopath. I did a couple of sessions with him and I was ok for 2 months but now all the symptoms came back again, and this week I had another vertigo, this time I threw up - in the bathroom, with dignity - and I managed to control it and walk home by myself after a while. However it's as if I lose all my energy after a fit like that and I spent all weekend at home, resting and taking muscular relaxants

I've had blood tests - everything is normal, a CAT scan, normal, and I'm up for a MRI.
My GP said during my second appointment with her that I was depressed, without further testing and wanted to prescribe antidepressive drugs, which I refused. I am not depressed, I don't want to die, I don't have any problems getting up and coming for work or doing everyday tasks, I don't feel sad anymore, and it actually scares me that I haven't cried in a while - the other night I forced myslf to cry, scared that maybe it was that numbness that was causing all this tension.
Yes, I was away from my family but I have good friends here and I was in the city I love. Plus it's not the first time i was away from my family and I call them all the time and visit them every 3/4 months. I share a flat with 3 boys whom I love so I don't feel lonely.
However I do feel a lot less sociable because I am always in pain, tired, having double vision or scared that I might have vertigo and I'm tired of complaining. I try to go out to a disco or something and my head hurts. So I just avoid it, somehow. Now I don't know if it's a psychological problem of something physical, and I'm trying to lead a normal life, but it's hard when there's some pain or symptom reminding me everyday that things are not ok.

And i'm tired of being like this, I'd never even get a cold, a fever, a fungus, nothing. I have a very strong immunitary system and i'm very rational, rather than emotional. I try to explore all possibilities, but everyone tells me something different. Now I do feel that I might have some tension and that a nerve in my neck could be the cause for this, but no one finds anything and I don't know what it could be...

Did anyone have the same problem and if so, how can I stop it?

Thank you so much for your help and sorry for nagging.

Izz
 
I am not a medical professional, but it certainly sounds like migraine symptoms to me. If you research migraine symptoms......you've got them all. Perhaps you should try to seek treatment from a doctor who specializes in headaches. I wish you well.
 
Hi Izzy, basically you're screwed, I had surgery for an intermittent eye & now almost 4 years later I have double vision 24/7, the doctor crossed my eye minute, but it's been a nightmare even since, I now made a patch/glasses thing I wear all of the time...
Good luck and adapt...
Dave
 
Hmm....that was a bit of a non-sequitur....

Izzy, I am sorry that you are suffering so much and it definitely has an impact on the quality of your life. I am only able to relate to everything except for the vertigo. I had visual auras in the past without having headaches (that's common also). I also had severe shoulder pain, back pain (usually around shoulder blades areas but can spread upward or downward) and can cause tinkling funny sensations down my arms to my fingertips. The sensation was hard to explain but the worst time was I just wanted to cut my arms off and rest them somewhere, that's how aggravating they felt. I had tried different way to sleep to get comfortable, and at times I was lying at 45 degree angle to sleep. I had gone to Chiropractor many times for "adjustment" but without long lasting effects. After couple years of suffering and going to the doctors, I finally came to the conclusion that it was my bad posture during work. I tried really hard to correct myself but it wasn't easy. Coincidentally, I started taking ballroom dance classes especially the Standard dance ie Waltz etc which emphasized on proper posture. Lo and behold, my pain started to subside as months passed.

From what you had described, and you realized that you have poor ergonomics when you work and you seem to work a lot, so I thought you may want to examine and analyze from that angle as well.

As for the vertigo and purging, my sister had those episodes at least once a month and that's from her horrible migraines. When that happens, she practically lives in the bathroom, with the windows shut. She would sit by the toilet in total darkness, with her head on the seat (to keep herself from falling) and puke her guts out. It was disheartening to see.

As rudiraven suggested, you may have migraines. In my opinion, you may be one of the unlucky ones with really horrible migraines with all those symptoms under the sky or you may actually have combination of problems. Thank goodness at least your medical tests so far showed negative.

I hope you will be able to get to the bottom of this and move on. Best of luck with your MRI. Take care.

Cheers!
 
Hi izzy know how u feel . mine is asudden onset of doublevision and vertigo when undergoing anything strenuous eg cycling walking etc very frightening but been reassured by medical experts that its not serious .Was told could be form of migraine although like you iam not convinced .I never suffer from headaches but apparently it is possible to have the double vision and vertigo without the pain in migraines. We "ll see. Nearly got run down on road last week coz it come on suddenly whilst on my bike! Anyway hope its helped abit darl just to know your not on your own .Just hope we can get sorted eventually! Takecare
 
I've had similar problems with the vertigo myself. The first attack came while sitting at my computer as well. That was Aug of 08'. I'm at my wits end here. If anyone finds anything that helps, please be sure to reply to your posts. I'm desperate, I've had many things checked, MRI, ENT, Eyes, Blood Work, still going to get my back checked. It seems like the options are limited and I hope this isn't something I have to adapt to, because it's just not going to happen. It's just nice to know that we're not alone in this and just keep trying and if you find something that works, please pass it on. I'm currently trying to detox, but that isn't seeming to help very much either.
 
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