One of the upsides to being a nurse is that I can generally tell you WHY you feel a certain way. One of the downsides is that I can generally tell you WHY you feel a certain way, which is why I rarely mention my medical background to people who don't know me. After that one weird time on the train when someone wanted to show me their rash, I'm a little wary.
But you've got some weird symptoms going on, right? And maybe you're scared because you don't know what they mean and you're REALLY hoping you don't end up on an episode of House M.D. Here are some possible reasons for your your bizarre and inexplicable symptoms.
1) Your pee smells strange. There are a LOT of reasons why urine may smell different - the amount of liquid you've been drinking, the food you've ingested (coffee anyone?), or something more like a urinary tract infection. Easiest way to fix funky-smelling urine? Hydrate and see if the smell lessens. If it doesn't, check with your doctor.
2) Your legs cramp up weirdly at night. Mine do this a lot. Turns out? It's nothing serious - it's an electrolyte imbalance, meaning that you're dehydrated or lacking a certain mineral like potassium, calcium, or magnesium. Solution? Rub the cramp out, drink a big glass of water, and make sure you take a multivitamin.
3) Your body jerks you awake as you're falling asleep. This very odd symptom can really freak you out, unless you know what's going on and how harmless it is. These "sleep starts" are caused by misfiring of nerves while your body shifts from waking to sleeping. While it can scare you, these twitches are harmless, and last only a few seconds.
4) When you stand up from sitting or lying down, you feel dizzy and lightheaded. Generally, people with low blood pressure suffer from this condition, called "orthostatic hypotension," but it can also be caused by dehydration. The fix for this one is simple. Stand up slowly, and be extra careful when going from lying down to standing up. Also, to be on the safe side, drink a big ole glass of water.
5) You have white floaters in your eyes. Sometimes, when you're just minding your own business, you find that there are these tiny white specks floating through your line of vision for a couple of moments. While they're annoying, they're often just bits of tissue floating through the liquid inside of each eyeball. Luckily, the body will generally absorb them and they'll disappear on their own.
Have you experienced any of these bizarre symptoms? Do they alarm you?
Image via e-MagineArt/Flickr
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Comments 16
Go to your eye doctor if you are having weird symptoms like floaters or statics or annnnnny visual disturbance. After several doctor's appointments of just not feeling right : tired, dizzy, headache blurry vision being told it was everything from allergies to blood sugar.. my eye doctor was the one who noticed fluid was built up behind my eye... and though I had cat scans and MRIs it wasn't until my eye doctor ordered a vienigram that the collapsed blood vessels in brain were found..
the4mutts- It wouldn't hurt to get your eyes checked out. Sometimes, I get this weird think where its like a little white/gray dot. I would have never described it as staticy but the way you described it kind of makes me want to use that word because I can't think of another one. Its like a tiny little pin point sized flash and then its gone. My eye doctor said it was completely normal for it to happen once in awhile but if it was constant or my vision started going out then I should go back. Just as a general rule of thumb, I go to the eye dr once a year because they can find and diagnose things before they become major.
Also, for the breast pain, don't laugh but I think I get what you're describing sometimes. My mom calls it 'gassy boob' (I don't think its really gas, but it almost felt like something was there and gas is her explanation for almost anything). I'm sure there is some legitimate name for it, but she said it was just a stress symptom for me. I am prone to anxiety, and I really only notice it when I'm stressed. Do you notice it at any specific time?
the4mutts and p31lady- I know exactly what kind of "breast pain" you mean. It is sharp sudden and you hardly want to breathe, and try to stay still. I always put a hand on the pain thinking pressure would help. Sometimes feels like it is right behind the nipple or under the breast. I can say with absolute certainty it is an asthma attack!!! Which can also feel like a panic attack, so much so that during panic attacks I try my inhaler to see if it helps because I have trouble telling the difference (especially when it happens at bedtime). As a teenager my mom read a news article for asthma and found an explanation for the pain I was describing. Using my inhaler helps tremendously (I use albuterol once every one or two months). Sometimes the chest pain comes and that is when I know my allergies/excessive have resulted in an asthma attack. Not every doctor knows about this symptom I should add, when I had bronchitis an urgent care doctor had no idea that a sharp sudden pain was a symptom of asthma.
P31lady- yah I get my eyes checked every year, because I do wear glasses, but they've never found anything wrong with them. But I've been having some other eye problems lately, like pressure behind my eyes, and needing to wear my glasses all the time, even though they were only for night driving originally, and getting headaches if I wear them while I'm walking. I'm considering going back before my next 1yr, because its really starting to bug me.
Although, I have had a LOT more stress in my life than normal, so I wouldn't doubt if random b.p. spikes were the problem. Guess we'll see!