What IS this new set of symptoms about???

Nurses General Nursing

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question to all you nurses out there. the other morning on the way home from work, i was seized, and i do mean seized, by a severe searing, stabbing unrelentless pain that started somewhere around my left hip and shot down the middle of my thigh. it was so severe, that i, who have undergone a 24 hour labor on pitocin and delivered a 9 plus pound child without benefit either of epidural or analgesia, immediately put on my blinker to pull over, passed out briefly, was disoriented ,diaphoretic and nauseated. i would have preferred th elabor pain.once i recovered i wondered if it was an isolated event, gas or some sort of weird sciatica....happened again yesterday and last night, always when i am seated and last night i fell over to my side in mid chew of whatever i had for dinner. brief disorientation and then recovery....had this sensation been in my chest, i might have thought i was having an mi. now i am scared because i have no warning signs and just the thought that it might happen when i am driving my kids around makes me weak with worry. i know sciatica is a possibility, but in the past few months the only thing physically that has changed is that my normally regular periods are spacing out. i apparently also have a bulky uterus. does anyone know of an occasion where the bulky uterus might be pressing on something to give such a sensation? i feel like a fool but i don't want it chalked up to an overweight getting older nurse. i am not one to complain and pain doesn't usually get to me. this is really very frightening to me and i was wondering if anyone has any ideas as to what is going on and /or why? thanks in advance to any of you who might offer some advice, experience or ideas.....

Specializes in cardiac, diabetes, OB/GYN.

I promise....hugs back to all of you....

Specializes in CV-ICU.

Mother/babyRN, I have sciatica, trochanter bursitis, and S/I joint disfunction- all in the right hip. None of these cause the neuro (mental) changes you mention; although the pain from any one of these can cause sudden, severe shooting pain in the leg (sciatica down the back thigh and side of the calf in the lower leg; the bursitis in the hip and down the side of the thigh; and the S/I joint in the anterior groin and about halfway down the front thigh). What agravates my pain is being on my leg too much, stepping sideways while twisting to the right, or doing stairs.

Have you been able to connect the pain to something you have done differently shortly before the pain occurs? With that one major episode occuring while you were lying down, the sitting doesn't seem to be the cause of the pain.

I have also heard of large fibroids causing impingement on nerves and blood vessels; but once again, the mental changes are not part of those problems. How high would you rate this pain on a scale of 1-10?

Please take care of yourself and keep us posted. I'll keep you in my prayers.

Have you ruled out another pregnancy? Perhaps the scarring is causing the pain,but fainting often occurs in pregnancy.Again,get yourself to a doc right away. Good luck.

Specializes in cardiac, diabetes, OB/GYN.

Well, as far as the pain scale goes, to a stoic person (with regard to pain) I would have to say 10 plus. Mercifully, it is usually brief lasting less or at least not longer than 30 seconds...Nothing new going on other than period changes over the past few months as I approach (gulp) age 45...Thinking back, the only other thing I did differently, was run down the hall getting ready for a stat c/s but there is no back pain involved and I do not recall lifting anyone. Just feels like some sort of short circuit, and I suspect some form of secondary sciatica...I wonder if the momentary disorientation is due to my bodys attempt to react to the severity of the pain...Can't be seen by any neuro person until July, but my husband swears we are going to the er if it happens again in his presence even if he has to call an ambulance himself. I just HATE worrying people but WILL get some one to figure it out.....No back pain, by the way....

Specializes in cardiac, diabetes, OB/GYN.

Forgot to mention that I hadn't thought of pregnancy but if I AM pregnant WILL think about shooting myself as dh had a vasectomy.....(at LEAST it would be a nice outcome for whatever is going on...):)

THat is so strange. I "passed out" after an intense episode of pain one night and lost consciousness too. The pain was so severe from a leg cramp I couldn't get out of, that, I swear, I think I had a seizure. I woke up several minutes later and all I remember is that at first, my vision, my hearing, and my pain stopped. I woke up on the floor with my top off and sweating like a horse. My extremities were cold. The sink was running and I think I was trying to splash my face before going into my coma, or whatever. My pupils were normal. I remember laying on the floor thinking to myself, I am dying.

You cannot wait until July to see a neurologist! Find another one. Get your primary MD to put a call in to have you seen immediately. You want a minimum of the following tests: MRI and MRA of that hip area and your brain, EEG preferrably within a week of the last episode, US of pelvic area to r/o gyn causes. This is serious if you are losing consciousness and you cannot wait any longer to get it checked out. Go to the ER if you can't get an appt. for this week. DO NOT LET THEM BLOW YOU OFF. I was told for years I was having panic attacks when what I was really having were weird seizures consisting of vertigo episodes. Key to that is if you are tired after these episodes-that is a hallmark sign of seizure activity. Was finally dx'd back in '88 and put on anti-convulsants for a few years and haven't had any episodes since. I know how frustrating the medical blow off is. It is one of the reasons I became a nurse.

Bets of luck to you and please keep us posted. Please don't drive anywhere!!!!

Oh, I HATE hearing stories like this...how women are blown off and told it's 'nerves' or panic attacks... :(:(:( GRRRRR!

How about a diagnostician (any good Internal Med docs in the area who will squeeze you in?) A call from your GP should expedite matters....

Presyncope/altered level of consciousness is a viable reason to admit...so don't worry about having hubby take you in to get to the bottom of this fast... I sure would! Take care...nurses need help sometimes too!

Specializes in surgical, neuro, education.

Get thee to the ER right now--after reading this post. Being a neuro and GU nurse--this is not normal to have episodes of any blackouts. If you can't find someone to watch kiddies--call daddy to watch.

This does not sound like GU problem--more neuro related. You could be having petit mal seizures. Sit in that ER until you are throughly evaluated.

Take care.

Love Cheryl:kiss

Add a 24 hr holter monitor to my last list of suggestions. You could be having a vagal response from the pain. I see it alot with post cath pts. when we put c clamps on. Get all sweaty and pale. Don't usually lose consciousness though.

Good luck!

Specializes in cardiac, diabetes, OB/GYN.

hi everyone, just wanted to let you all know that i ran my symptomology by a n internist and a nurse practitioner, and they, without seeing or examining me yet, think that this set of symptoms are related to a severe case of sciatica, and that the brief disorientation i experience, which is not actually confusion, might be a reaction to the severity of pain. i have had a couple of more episodes, but since starting on naprosyn, they are not as severe and the disorientation afterwards wasn't present. i will be seeing someone within the next couple of weeks (hopefullu) and if things worsen in the meantime, i will definitely be in the er to expedite things. should it occur at work, the er is just downstairs. i am feeling better and less frightened, and promise to keep you all informed. i should consider this, as i do many other experiences, not only as a signal to better my health, but how to empathize with patients in severe pain. i thought i had a good iidea of how they felt before, but i think i really didn't have a clue. you all have been wonderful to me and i value your input, concern and friendship...thankyou so very much! martha

Specializes in cardiac, diabetes, OB/GYN.

Hi everyone! Just wanted to let you know that symptom wise, things have calmed down quite a bit with anti inflammatory meds and I have 2 appointments coming up starting Monday! Will keep you posted....

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