Anyone know what this is?

So...
this has been happening to me over the last few years... and it happened again yesterday.
Basically, I suddenly get this intense dizziness, chills run through my body, and my vision starts to go dark. It feels like swarms of ants are crawling right in front of my eyes until everything just turns black.
It’s also happened before where I end up passing out after those sensations hit.
If anyone has any idea what might be going on, please let me know 🙂
I saw my doctor about this a while back and she started with some blood work. The results showed I was a little low on iron, but I corrected that pretty quickly. I also had an EEG done, but that came back completely normal too.

Amanda Lopez43 said:So...
this has been happening to me over the last few years... and it happened again yesterday.
Basically... I get this sudden dizziness, chills run through my body, and my vision starts to fail. It’s like seeing swarms of ants dancing before my eyes until everything just goes pitch black.
It’s also been known to happen right before I pass out.
If anyone has any idea what this could be, please let me know. 🙂
I saw my doctor about this a while back and she started with blood work. They found I was slightly low on iron, but I corrected that pretty quickly. I also had an EEG, but those results came back perfectly normal.

Sometimes that happens to me when I lie down and then stand up too fast, and I have to grab onto something to stay upright... one time I actually just collapsed onto the floor... but that was probably five years ago. I haven't really paid much attention to it since.
racunan-I guess it's from standing up too suddenly... don't go scaring me now. 😁

"Could you lean forward a bit when that happens?"
It hits me out of nowhere sometimes. I have this feeling it's just my blood pressure acting up; I just bend over for a second and it passes immediately.

No, I didn't actually stand up too fast. I was actually standing the whole time, and I only sat down once I started feeling dizzy.
And it isn't just a quick thing, either. It usually lasts for about five minutes.

That's happened to me too...

Could be low blood pressure... how old are you anyway?

I’m 19 now. I went through a similar phase for a while where everything came back clean on my labs, though I did end up being a little low on iron—which I sorted out. My doctor told me that for kids up to about 18 or 19, experiencing those blackouts or vision darkening maybe two or three times is generally tolerable, mostly because of how things develop in the brain during growth spurts. I guess I don't really know the specifics of what she was referring to, but I definitely had that stage myself and it eventually passed. These days, it only happens if I stand up way too fast, maybe once every few months. So, if your tests are all coming back normal, it might just be something similar for you too.

I'm turning 17 soon, and this has been going on since I was about 12.

Amanda Lopez43 said:I’m seventeen now, and this has been going on since I was about twelve...

I suppose I am about to sound exactly like my mother, but you are far too young to be dealing with chronic issues. It is most likely just low blood pressure, a minor issue with insulin spikes, or perhaps you simply aren't staying hydrated enough...

My doctor says my blood pressure is fine and that I’m staying properly hydrated.
As for the insulin levels, I’m really not sure... but I'm actually heading back to her office right now. 🙂 It’s honestly so frustrating when you feel like you've lost control over your own body... especially when she keeps sending me for the exact same tests over and over. I'm going to insist she takes a closer look this time.
Does anyone else have any suggestions?

I suspect I might be dealing with some eye pressure, but honestly, just try leaning forward a bit next time. It might help.

So, I'm 23 now, but this stuff started hitting me when I was just 19. It pretty much happened every single time I’d be hanging out in enclosed spaces, like being in a crowded bar or something. I’ve gone through the whole gauntlet of tests—blood pressure is fine, blood sugar and iron levels are totally normal, and my brain CT scan came back clear. My heart seems okay too, I guess. The only thing is, my EEG results still aren't looking great even today. They basically told me that the blood vessels in my head aren't functioning quite right, almost like they're getting constricted, which causes me to lose oxygen and then just pass out. So yeah, that’s really where the issue lies. I tried taking some anti-anxiety meds for a while to see if it would ease the pressure in my head, but honestly, nothing really helps. It’s just one of those things where the doctors can see something is definitely off, but they can't pin down exactly what it is. Just a heads up though, you should definitely get a brain CT and an EEG done; the EEG will really show everything. But thank God, lately, things have been feeling alright.

There’s a huge difference between someone just tripping over their own feet and someone suddenly just... collapsing out of nowhere. Like, I remember the first time it happened to me, I was just standing there totally fine in a coffee shop when everything just went dark. I ended up smashing everything around me—bottles, tables, the whole works—and I even hit my head on the floor pretty hard. I was actually unconscious for a few minutes, which is scary because I guess you could actually choke if the people around you don't know how to handle it properly. Honestly, whenever something like that happens, I think you really need to get some fresh air immediately. The first time it hit me, people around me had no clue what was going on and they were just panicking and grabbing at me, which didn't help at all. I was out for a bit until I finally got some actual oxygen

If you’re standing still for too long—like waiting on a subway or something—you can get orthostatic hypotension where your blood pressure drops. But I don't know if that actually happens after just five minutes.

Something similar happened to me a few times. It turned out I had thyroid issues (hypothyroidism). Ever since I started hormone replacement therapy, it hasn't happened again. Might be worth getting checked out.

Perhaps this could even be the early onset of anxiety? I personally experienced some very similar struggles just before my anxiety and depressive disorders truly took hold of my life. 🤷

Sophia Martin41 said:It could also be the onset of anxiety—I actually dealt with similar issues right before my anxiety and depression really started taking hold. 🤷

👍

Sophia Martin41 said:It could also be the onset of anxiety. I dealt with similar issues right before my anxiety and depression really took hold. 🤷

Yeah... it's definitely possible it's purely psychological.
Especially in my case... I wouldn't be surprised one bit.
But you know how it goes... doctors tend to brush it off immediately because they think I'm too young.
I've actually been on Lexapro and Xanax... though I actually stopped taking them about a week ago. Maybe that's why... maybe all that anxiety is just rushing back at me... and honestly, it's been hitting me even harder these last few days.

It’s not a mental health issue. There's just too little oxygen. Most of us are barely breathing. I'd bet on it!

I was just outside getting some fresh air... if I sit down as soon as the dizziness kicks in and try to take deep breaths while calming myself down, will it actually help? I doubt shallow breathing would do much.

Look, do yourself a favor and read up on shallow breathing online. I stumbled upon some info recently, and it turns out most people aren't even breathing correctly. Shouldn't we consider how much that impacts our overall well-being?