Hi, I am new to the forum and don't have a diagnosis of AN. I am 48 and live in Scotland and this is my story so far; In 2007 I started to have occasional dizzy spells that only lasted less than a minute, I also had frequent ear pain that would last for a day then clear up. I made various trips to my GP who for 5 years advised me it was labyrinthitis.
By 2012 I had developed tinnitus and daily dizzy spells, I was referred to ENT in Feb 2013 who said that I did have a problem with my ears but as I didn't have hearing loss then it was nothing to worry about, he added that had I lost some hearing then he would have ordered an MRI to look for a benign tumour called an acoustic neuroma then sent me home to get on with it.
In late 2013 my dizzy spells were frequent throughout the day, especially bad if I had just got out of the car after a journey, I had tingling in my tongue and face too. I happened to be seeing a neurosurgeon for a neck disc related problem and while in his office I was dizzy and finding it difficult to understand what he was saying, ( I had such a bad day that I did not even remember him telling me I required neck surgery!!) He ordered a Brain MRI and that was carried out late December, this was done without contrast and was clear.
Prior to my neck surgery in March this year, my throat went numb. I was convinced however that all my symptoms would clear up with the neck surgery but I was so wrong.
If anything, everything had got worse. I have terrible bouts of dizziness, numbness down the left side of my face, tongue and throat, dry mouth and now dry eye. I had changed my GP and he is really supportive, I was referred to ENT again but was not due to be seen until September this year so I paid for a private consultation.
At last someone who realised I am really having these symptoms.
She has said that the symptoms indicate either a vascular or a vestibular problem and next Wed, 16th, I am due to get 5 different scans, MRI IAM, MRI, MRA, MRV and MRI IAM with gadolinium contrast. I have a follow up on Mon 21st for the result.
I saw my GP today who prescribed me Diazepam to help me sleep as my anxiety levels are increasing and I have terrible headaches when I lie down, that and the pulsatile tinnitus makes it really difficult to get to sleep. I am not normally anxious but feel really weird at the moment.
I have two adorable grandsons who I don't feel I can babysit for on my own and I will only look after them if my husband is here to support me.
I work full time but find it very difficult to function properly at the moment.
My typical day today has consisted of, getting up and feeling tired; dizzy spell before and during morning shower; choking on my coffee as my throat is numb, feeling tired before I even leave for work; dizzy spell on arrival at work; having to walk slowly or I would go off balance; drinking plenty of sips of water throughout the day to keep my mouth moist; having to write todo lists all the time; trying to get words out of my mouth that don't seem to want to come out coherently; falling asleep on the sofa after dinner ( a usual occurrence these days!)
I am at the stage where I really hope that they find something that is causing my problems but at the same time I don't want there to be anything. I strongly feel that I may have an AN but time will tell.
I have read many of your posts on the forum and there are a lot of brave and very supportive people out there and if I do have an AN, I will be back to reach out for your support and advice. I will let you know the outcome of the scans, thanks for listening, Shash.
