2.5 years since stroke and one of my main after-effects is I feel totally ‘spaced-out’ most of the time. Of the four neurosurgeons I have spoken to since, none has told me this is a very common symptom, nor offered a solution. I am to see a neuro physiotherapist in early January as someone in Canada on a stroke forum believed her symptoms were similar (by description they were not), but she thought it may help and my GP made a referral.
I’ve made many attempts to describe it:
Like being drunk, but without the involvement of alcohol.
Like watching a movie when the lips are out of sync with the audio.
Like being hit by Mike Tyson, without pain, not having yet hit the canvas.
It is alleviated when I lie down, not totally, but enough to make it bearable and to give me some respite - the trouble here is I spend an inordinate amount of time in bed which cannot be healthy, nor is it good for morale.
Thankfully it disappears when I drive (neurosurgeon says it’s because I’m doing something that comes naturally, but it is wrong to say it is alleviated by concentrating on something because it curtails my reading for any length of time.
Any other sufferers out there who’d care to share their description to see if it matches; and can offer any explanation or ways to eradicate or reduce it?
Hi @Denzil and welcome. I guess I too would describe my feelings as spaced out although I tend to use the term woozy. I feel like i’m on a boat most of the time. I get a nausea feeling with it too…not all the time though. I’ve seen ENT specialists who tell me it is down to my stroke and there is nothing they can do. I do think mine may be linked to my fatigueclevels too. Not sure if this is the case for you?
Don’t know if that’s similar to you or not but i’d be interested to hear what your neurophysio says. Really hope they can provide you some lught at tye end of the tunnel.
Thanks for responding - it’s not fatigue because I feel it ALL the time, from when I get up and also when I’d otherwise be feeling quite lively, like when I play table tennis….except it gets worse when I’m between games.
I’ve corresponded with a brain specialist, Natasha McKenzie who runs a clinic in Maidstone and has 25 years experience in stroke rehabilitation and she concentrated on fatigue, but it is sadly not the answer.
I do not get nausea, nor feel ill in any way, nothing but just dissociated from life around me.
I’m not sure ‘woozy’ fits the description as that suggests dizziness, and I don’t get dizzy or giddy (I did through low blood pressure when in hospital for 17 weeks).
is your blood pressure okay ? are you on BP meds ? What about water works, okay ? Flush your fog out by drinking plenty of distilled water ! Then reduce and balance electrolytes with premium quality coconut water. A grounding mat will help. When you drive, body is in alert mode ( and pressurizes itself ). Are you okay having a hot bath, I mean better ? Possibly your vestibular system is out of whack… but that’s not my first guess.
I feel like this all the time unless I am lying down. Annoying as it’s the one thing that is stopping me from driving as I daren’t get behind the wheel feeling this spacey. Interesting to see that it is driving that seems to improve your condition.
Thanks for your response. Your symptoms seem close, but by no means identical. I feel no pressure, nor anything like a headache. My hearing is fine.
One neurologist summarised it in a letter that my feeling disappeared ‘when I was concentrating on something’. In my thought process on reading this I disputed this summary, and still would……but in trying to explain it to a friend just now I suggest that it is a constant feeling of dissociation that is overridden by something that is of, or requires, greater concentration. So driving requires me to (subliminally) forget it. Table tennis ENABLES me to forget to be aware of it (but interestingly less so now I am more familiar with it since playing more) and being at the movies or watching tv and usually in conversation with folk……
The feeling of dissociation does not disappear, but shrinks to the background whilst I engage in these activities, but immediately resurfaces (unintentionally) immediately the activity ends (ie) during breaks in table tennis, as soon as movie concludes and I have to stand to walk out.
I’m hoping the neuro physiotherapist will give further insight into the vestibular activity that you brought up. I absolutely hate having a shower because of the discombobulation this brings me, and a bath a little less so, but my blood pressure is fine - I take take it regularly as this always seemed to me the first question any medic would ask.
a good question. it’s a mat that connects to the grounding pin of a socket. Once you step on this mat, your body’s electrical activity will change. Electrons will flood your body. This will increase your blood circulation, thin your blood (negatively charged electrons repel) and more importantly it will neutralize any inflammation in your body. All the info is out there, waiting for you.
We are disconnected from the ground / earth and disconnected from the sun - flooring and roofing have robbed us of 2 vital natural healing sources.
if you have any specific questions, please feel free to ask.
Ciao, Roland
You don’t say Roland whether this is, or has been, a condition you have yourself suffered from and managed to alleviate using any of the suggestions you have made. Denzil
Hi Denzil, pretty much same not all the time but just live with it. I use expression just been hit by shovel . Same as Clipper, want to get back to driving but the spaced out place I’m in, don’t know if I’d cope. Never done recreational drugs but imagine my world is similar. People’s faces slightly distorted at times. Overall , feeling Somethings missing. Four years on now , it may be getting better by small degrees but accepted if this is it ? the cross I have to bare. Have no physical disabilities just lost peripheral vision from both eyes on left.
Have you had your vitamin/iron levels checked recently?
For the first 6 or so months I suffered from the spacy, here but not here sensations along with balance issues and heavy legs. My doctor checked my vitimin levels and found that I was deficient in folic acid. This seemed to cure most of those symptoms once i was prescribed folic acid.
But the sort of similar symptoms can associated with several nutrient deficiencies, so its always best to ask your doctor to be sure you get the correct diagnosis.
all my recommendations come from tried and tested therapies on myself
grounding has helped my wife, myself, and many others
how else would I know all about them ? necessity !
Have you read about inflammation, ROS and about neutrophils having an abundant supply of electrons?
How would you describe your symptoms before? Exactly as I did? I have not yet read up on those things, but I have ordered a grounding mat which arrives today.
my stroke was severe 26/42 on the NIH scale of severity. I had many symptoms which I overcame / still have many, and much to overcome alas! but I use many tools to help me on my way. Right now I am studying Qigong while grounded. But you may have read I embrace a myriad of therapies ; TCM, Vitamin D, sunlight, essential oils, honey, nutrition, exercise, PBM, NIR, ECS, Myofascial release the list goes on…
My senior physio says all therapists could learn from me. Well, they haven’t had a stroke, so they cannot learn what I lived / live through. I have a presence here in case anyone wants to reach out and discover what they can do for themselves. All disease starts in the gut. If you are not your own doctor, you are a fool so said Hippocrates
ciao, Roland