Expert: Jurriaan Plesman, Nutritional Psychotherapist - 10/29/2011

Question
Male 27
Ive been feeling under the weather for a good six months now but recently its got a lot worse... It started with lower back pain and tight/stiff shoulders and neck this has got a lot worse over the 6 months but now i also get a sort of tingling/buzzing in my hands and feet and often feel unbalanced ...and what panics me is that i feel kind of out of it alot like im not me anymore or like im a robot i struggle to sleep 6-8 hours unbroken and snore badly... I get pains in my chest and sometimes feel like i cant breath.... I have seen my doctor a number of times my heartrate and pulse are fine i am not diabetic and my tempreture is normal ive been for physio and recently had a full blood test done which my doctor says were normal but would like to do them again in 3 weeks i want to know whats wrong with me cos i cant go on like this im exhausted all the time and its ruining my life.... I was wondering if any doctor could answer this as to a possible reason to why i feel this way my doctor is reluctant to guess based on what ive said

Ps. I have never blacked out or collapsed... The pain in my back is 5 at its worst on a scale of 1-10 and bearable less so when im tired.. And alot has been going on in my life this past year ive moved house three times im working 40 hours a week in a job i hate with a passion my dad managed to survive open heart surgery.

I have seen a second doctor as i found work unbearable one day(i went to an out of hours surgery) he suggested anxiety as i had All the symptoms associated with anxiety/panic attacks and physically couldnt find anything wrong plus i had this attack after i self prescribed a nasal decongestant to help me breath easier through my nose and i had been taking an inhaler my doctor prescribed which the doctor said have been known to make things worse for people who experience anxiety/panic attacks he did a good job reassuring me and i felt fine after i got home he mentioned ms and lupus aswell.

My questions are does anxiety sound like a reasonable answer?

Is it difficult to be diagnosed as its not like flu or hiv?

And is anxiety cureable or something you learn to live with?

Is there any web pages or books you would recommend?

Thanks in advance

Answer
Hi stephen.

Anxiety attacks are usually caused by unstable blood sugar levels. You said that the doctors did not consider you to be diabetic, but this does not exclude te possibility thyat you are pre-diabetic, which usually show normal when tested for diabetes.. The doctor should test for pre-diabetes, which is distinct from diabtes as explained at:

Testing for Hypoglycemia
http://www.hypoglycemia.asn.au/articles/self-help_personal_growth.html#Testing

Pre-diabetes is usually characterized by unstable blood sugar levels, going up  and down, that can trigger excess releaswe of stress hormones, responsible for anxiety attacks.

Please discuss wit your doctor, otherwise get a referral to a Nutritional Doctor.

_______________________________________________
Jurriaan Plesman, Nutritional Psychotherapist.
Hon. Editor of
The Hypoglycemic Health Association of Australia.
www.hypoglycemia.asn.au
Author of "Getting off the Hook"
Freely available at Google Book Search
Skype: jurplesman