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Sinking feeling inside the skull - like the brain dropped

Wed, 06/30/2010 - 20:24

Okay, it's been a long time since I was here. So long in fact, I forgot my password, had it emailed to a dead email account and so I've opened a new one.

I was driving home from work and had this sudden twitch in my neck (reminiscent of something I would experience repeatedly for several seconds while in the throws of a seizure). The twitch was just one and it jerked my head suddenly and then I felt this weird kind of 'sinking' feeling in my head - like my brain was sinking a little inside my skull. Impossible of course. 

But when this occurred, I realized I had experienced this sinking feeling before - a couple of times. One time more extreme and the other pretty mild. I did not have any twitches to accompany it. But being that I was driving, I was about ready to pull over and stop to see what happened  - if anything eventuated. My seizures are controlled as long as I'm on medication, so am wondering if this is just a random firing (like a full-body jolt some people get just as they're about to doze off to sleep and they're not epileptic), a nerve getting stuck or if this is epilepsy-related. 

If anyone is familiar with this sensation, I'd love to read your insights and what you experience - whether a seizure occurs or not. I have been toying with the idea of increasing my medication for about a year, since I've been on the same dose since I was 16, with an 18 month hiatus when I was about 26-28. Clonazepam is the medication and I know that over time, the tolerance level goes up - I'm sure mine has, but over all my seizure control is 99.99 % effective. 

I also get strange shooting pains in my head, which I assume to be neuralgia (sp?) - pain for no real reason. My brain is normal (well my father would disagree). The pains are more frequent now, and sometimes come as stabbing pains that repeat several times and then disappear. I also have had a lot of headaches for the past year - I put it down to stress of moving from one country to another and being in a job I hate (because I'm bored, not because I'm overworked), but too scared to jump ship in case the next job is worse - it's not a good economy right now - especially not in the US.

Comments

Re: Sinking feeling inside the skull - like the brain dropped

Submitted by Eternal_Howl on Thu, 2010-07-22 - 03:06

Today about 40 minutes before I left work, I noticed I was experiencing mild vertigo. It would come and go and worsen and ease. I thought of the possibility it was a seizure warning or even migraine warning, but the vertigo was strong and if I was going to lose consciousness, with how strong it was, I already would have.

I got home and told my husband that I was a bit of a space cadet. The room was spinning a bit and while it settled down for a while, I found it caused problems for me finding some of my words. No, this was not a seizure I was experiencing. 

Anyway, I decided to look up vertigo and came across cervical vertigo (not as in women's reproductive systems). I have a very stiff neck and I did a lot of headbanging in my youth - to the point I would have trouble holding my neck up the next day. 

While it appears that some are loathe to interpret cervical vertigo as a real condition, I wonder if this is what is responsible for that sinking feeling I have experienced a couple of times in my head. I have had vertigo a few times and always put it down to an inner ear infection (when there appears to be nothing actually wrong with my inner ear - how would I know?). 

I think the cause of my vertigo being set off this evening was that while I was at work and thinking about a project and trying to come up with a strategy, I began running my fingers through my hair (trying to separate out the knots) and I may have forced my neck into an awkward position - perhaps I've got a touch of platinum in there after all :)

Some of these symptoms kind of mimic migraine, but there is no migraine and it's not a pain-free migraine either. Since nobody was able to answer my initial question, I thought that perhaps if someone else experiences the "sinking feeling in the skull" syndrome and have vertigo and a stiff neck that this post might help them. 

About half an hour ago, I pulled my head in (lol - with one hand pushed my chin against my neck - it's a physical therapy exercise) to see if that would help and I simply heard a crunching in my head (a spinal crunch I guess). It's a sound of something getting mashed against something else and while I know the sound, I can't quite describe it. My vertigo has gone now.

I do have epilepsy, I do get migraines (once in a blue moon) and I do experience random bouts of vertigo (but they're not frequent). I hardly ever headbang anymore (getting old).

Today about 40 minutes before I left work, I noticed I was experiencing mild vertigo. It would come and go and worsen and ease. I thought of the possibility it was a seizure warning or even migraine warning, but the vertigo was strong and if I was going to lose consciousness, with how strong it was, I already would have.

I got home and told my husband that I was a bit of a space cadet. The room was spinning a bit and while it settled down for a while, I found it caused problems for me finding some of my words. No, this was not a seizure I was experiencing. 

Anyway, I decided to look up vertigo and came across cervical vertigo (not as in women's reproductive systems). I have a very stiff neck and I did a lot of headbanging in my youth - to the point I would have trouble holding my neck up the next day. 

While it appears that some are loathe to interpret cervical vertigo as a real condition, I wonder if this is what is responsible for that sinking feeling I have experienced a couple of times in my head. I have had vertigo a few times and always put it down to an inner ear infection (when there appears to be nothing actually wrong with my inner ear - how would I know?). 

I think the cause of my vertigo being set off this evening was that while I was at work and thinking about a project and trying to come up with a strategy, I began running my fingers through my hair (trying to separate out the knots) and I may have forced my neck into an awkward position - perhaps I've got a touch of platinum in there after all :)

Some of these symptoms kind of mimic migraine, but there is no migraine and it's not a pain-free migraine either. Since nobody was able to answer my initial question, I thought that perhaps if someone else experiences the "sinking feeling in the skull" syndrome and have vertigo and a stiff neck that this post might help them. 

About half an hour ago, I pulled my head in (lol - with one hand pushed my chin against my neck - it's a physical therapy exercise) to see if that would help and I simply heard a crunching in my head (a spinal crunch I guess). It's a sound of something getting mashed against something else and while I know the sound, I can't quite describe it. My vertigo has gone now.

I do have epilepsy, I do get migraines (once in a blue moon) and I do experience random bouts of vertigo (but they're not frequent). I hardly ever headbang anymore (getting old).

Re: Sinking feeling inside the skull - like the brain dropped

Submitted by Sammishakes on Thu, 2010-07-22 - 11:47
I do get that sensation- I call it "Brain Dent" and it's sometimes an aura for me, or maybe that's just a coincidence. I am not sure, but I know what you are talking about. It kinda feels gross.

Re: Sinking feeling inside the skull - like the brain dropped

Submitted by Eternal_Howl on Sat, 2010-07-24 - 02:23

"Brain dent" - that's like me telling my neurologist a few years ago that my little mini seizures (fully conscious, but a brief eak in the continuity of my consciousness) were 'brain farts'. He laughed.

Sammishakes: you say your experience is sometimes an aura. When you have that "brain dent", do you feel your heart beat slightly faster and begin to feel panicked because you wonder if it is an aura, or if you are over-thinking it? 

"Brain dent" - that's like me telling my neurologist a few years ago that my little mini seizures (fully conscious, but a brief eak in the continuity of my consciousness) were 'brain farts'. He laughed.

Sammishakes: you say your experience is sometimes an aura. When you have that "brain dent", do you feel your heart beat slightly faster and begin to feel panicked because you wonder if it is an aura, or if you are over-thinking it? 

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