Mostly I mean physical, not emotional. I am not on any anticonvulsant or antidepressant. I’ve had this symptom pretty much after the first couple months of onset. It almost feels like stories I’ve heard about extreme trauma (which kind of makes sense, it was trumatic). The head definitely feels numb, like I can’t feel blood / oxygen moving in my brain. Also, I can feel my adrenaline, but its not as sharp as it used to be. It sort of feels like i’m on a beta blocker, but I’m not. Same with pain, it doesn’t feel as sharp as it used to be. Things are rather dull feeling.
Does anyone else feel this way? Is there any theories why this occurs? Like maybe the nervous system volume is turned down or something? I really dislike it because I am unable to really feel like my true self. This is the main source of anxiety when I get stressed because I cant feel my sympathetic or parasympathetic systems. All the tips for reducing anxiety revolve around feeling the breath, well what the hell can I do if I don’t feel it?!
I find that gentle yoga can help me feel a bit more, but overall its an uphill battle that I’m trying to solve. Has anyone taken an antidepressant that helps with numbness? I’m afraid that they will all make me feel even more numb…
Hi
Are you on any medications at all that could be causing you to feel like this? Just thats the way i feel starting new meds…like my nervous system is all mixed uo
Jo x
I’m on Verapamil, but I actually feel less numb since I’ve been on it. I can feel more blood / oxygen in the head than before.
I do remember the numbness getting more prominent when I was put on Paxil, but I’ve been off it for like 10 months. I’ve definitely had a lot of head pressure / aches most days for the last 1.5 years.
Me too…ive posted here on numerous occasions i feel like my ears head and nose will burst with pressure and the sensation of too much blood pumping into my nose…its horrendous. Im starting Duloxetine tomorrow…not looking forward to this…4 years of endless meds…here we go again
Jo x
Yeah, that is exactly what I have. It’s rarely painful for me, just incredibly incapacitating. Hard to talk and get on with the day. I’ve been super tentative on meds, hoping that everything can heal if I manage stress and take the right supplements. But after having quite a bit relief on Verapamil, I"m rethinking the drugs. Might try Nort or Topomax, I’m already scared of them though…
I hope the Duloxetine gives you some relief. What all meds have you tried? Anything that you stuck with that helps?
Ive taken
Propanolol
Gabapentin ( still take 400mg a night)
Topiramate
Candersatan
Nortriptyline
Flunazirine
Pizotifen
Botox…1 treatment which has helped ALOT with neck issues and daily headache…
Its fair to say i never gave the majority of these drugs a fair trial as i couldnt stand the side effects and i had to go to work taking them.
I may take time off though to give Duloxetine a fair shot
Why do we feel like our heads ears and nose will burst??? What is going on?? Is it nerves or blood vessels or both??
Jo x
I don’t think anybody knows. It’s all ‘just’ symptoms of the condition and the preventative that works for you should take away all the symptoms. To me personally it seems like inflammation/swelling. It feels tight. Too much something trying to occupy too small an area to accommodate it, Maybe constriction somewhere.
Interesting you had a lot of relief with Botox. I will consider that. Were you super scared to try it?
Yeah, I imagine the head pressure is a migraine thing where the nerves (trigeminal probably) are super-inflamed and overactive. And probably the Vagus in my case is causing weird shortness of breath and pressure on the chest. But honestly I don’t know and don’t think I’ll ever find out. I also have a lot of muscles around the bridge of my noise that twitch. Often feels like someone is standing on my face or chest.
I am taking time off work now to try different medications. I agree that trying drugs while having to get into work is awful. When you have the option to lay around like a vegetable, its a lot easier to try things.
Yes!!! Muscle twitching and pulsating…a huge thing for me…bridge of nose and eyelids.
I wasnt worried of the Botox treatment whatsover…it was nothing compared to this illness…im getting another round 24th August.
I always had some sort of ongoing headache in the background and terrible neck pain…that has gone now i just need to crush the dizzies/ disorientation and balance issues
Jo x
Interesting, we are at similar spots in recovery it seems! I have mostly resolved the head pressure with verapamil (except when I get stressed). Its still there, but pretty mild. Now its just mostly numbness, dizziness / slight rocking / floaty feeling.
OK so yr Verapamil is doing its stuff. I know what you might need now to compliment it. A bit - and maybe a good bit -of time and patience. Has little known side effects and is well worth a try. From my own experience it’s what I am trialling currently and it seems to be going very well generally.
The only time i get a headache is when im stessed same as yourself. Early days smells loud noises etc used to kill me off now without stress im just dizzy off balance and brain fog.
Oh! and computers, travelling and office environment are still major triggers
Jo x
thanks for that suggestions, I agree. I’ll be lounging now for the next couple months in Seattle summer weather. I tried some yard work and hiking but both ended in headaches. I think just mild yoga / tai chi and lounging around watching nature/science shows is what I’ll do for awhile. I feel lazy and guilty about it (my personality is type A, very productive and energetic), but if I do anything like I used to it just gets triggered again. I’m teaching my 3 year old son the alphabet though, so I guess that’s important and productive!
@Jojo65 yes, my same exact triggers at this point. Computers aren’t so bad anymore, but yeah an 8-10 hour work day is definitely too much. I can do 4 hours without much impact. Scrolling no longer bothers me much. Travel is rough for sure. Road trips aren’t too bad, but flying is awfully difficult.
I get facial numbness in my cheeks, mostly left side, but also my top lip and tip of my nose. The toes on my left foot also go numb and then from my elbow to my fingers on the left side goes numb. Lasts about an hour then goes away on its own but it’s a weird symptom.
Oh, tongue would be freaky. First time I had this, thought I was having a stroke or about to have a seizure. Had a huge anxiety attack and felt awful for the next two days. What a nightmare.
It is pretty scary at first. Now I see it as an early warning signal to go to ground before the visual stuff kicks in. I think of it as an aura symptom. I get brain stem auras. No two aura incidents are exactly the same but most feature common elements - numbness is one of them. In particular if my right hand starts slipping away I use it as a sign to slow down at the gym.
That is a good indicator. I feel mine and know I’m either going to get dizzy and anxiety-ridden, or the depersonalization sensation. I know to sit and kind of slow down my breathing and whatever. Had a bit today and actually thankfully didn’t last longer than an hour all together. I’m learning to deal with my stress better.
Any interference with nerves can cause numbness. Nerves cut during operations can remain numb for years and can tingle incessantly (personal experience prominent here). Facial numbness with migraine is probably linked to Trigmenial Nerve. But numbness is common migrainey type symptom. Like @flutters in some way numbness in the righthand side, upper part of my right index finger (yep, it’s that specific with me) is Nature’s way of telling me ‘There now follows a migraine, stand by’. And it’s a guarantee every time.