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Deja vu
Tue, 04/05/2005 - 08:00Hi, my name is Lisa and this is my first time posting. I am 39 years and a mother of two daughters. About 18 months ago, I had two experiences of deja vu. After the deju vu feeling passed, I had a strange feeling in my stomach (like being on a rollercoaster). These deja vu experiences were about a week apart and I believe only lasted a second or two. About two weeks after these deja vu experiences and had a "doom" feeling. I was in the bathroom and this intense feeling of dread happenned followed by that strange feeling in my stomach. After these incidents I feel very "foggy" and tired. I called my family practioner and he ordered an MRI which was "normal" and showed no lesions. He asked if I wanted to see a neurologist but I declined because I thought it would never happen again. Well it did--last Friday I had two more episodes of Deja Vu, once when I was laying in bed and again about an hour later. I know they were deja vu and at the time intense, however I cannot remember what the particular dream sequence was. I called my family practioner and he has referred me to a neurolgist that specializes in seizure disorders. I cannot get into the neurologist until late May? Am I on the right track here? should I request certain tests? does an EEG only show irregularities while having a seizure? Also, I am afraid to drive in case one of these episodes occur. Thanks!
Comments
Re: Deja vu
Submitted by jacquie10730 on Wed, 2008-07-30 - 16:07
AshleyB,
Thank you so much for putting into words what I have experienced for the past ~30 years EXACTLY !! I can so relate to your comment about trying to "cling to the sequence in your mind" when having the experience and ultimately remembering only phrases that mean nothing. My most recent was "corn flakes !!"
Like others that have written, in my late 20's I went through some preliminary tests.... MRI and EEG... and nothing abnormal was found. Although I REALLY dislike these "events," since a serious cause has been ruled out, I just try to handle them as well as possible. which sometimes mean having some down time and taking a good long nap. I do think that stress plays a role. I have had periods as long as a year without having any and then may have a couple in a month when life has become stressful.
Anyway, it is good to see that I am not alone !!
Good luck,
jacquie10730
AshleyB,
Thank you so much for putting into words what I have experienced for the past ~30 years EXACTLY !! I can so relate to your comment about trying to "cling to the sequence in your mind" when having the experience and ultimately remembering only phrases that mean nothing. My most recent was "corn flakes !!"
Like others that have written, in my late 20's I went through some preliminary tests.... MRI and EEG... and nothing abnormal was found. Although I REALLY dislike these "events," since a serious cause has been ruled out, I just try to handle them as well as possible. which sometimes mean having some down time and taking a good long nap. I do think that stress plays a role. I have had periods as long as a year without having any and then may have a couple in a month when life has become stressful.
Anyway, it is good to see that I am not alone !!
Good luck,
jacquie10730
Re: Deja vu
Submitted by KristaMcB on Thu, 2008-08-21 - 23:31
I have been reading through all of the comments related to deja vu and seizures, and feel the same way you do, that AshleyB described how I feel exactly. I had my first bout of intense deja vu experiences about 18 months ago. After each one, I felt as if I was waking up from a seizure. After the 3rd one, I went to the emergency room. Lucky for me, I had a 4th one in the ER while hooked up to a heart monitor and they were able to determine that my heart stopped for 20 seconds, which they believed was causing the seizures. However, after 2 weeks of numerous neurological and cardiological testing, no abnormalities were found. The doctors implanted a pace maker and sent me home.
One month after being released from the hospital, my left leg went numb, then my right leg, then my arms, and finally my face. A year and a half later and I still do not have a diagnosis, and I am still numb. I still have the deja vu experiences, but they have not resulted in a seizure again. I started doing some research again tonight because the deju vu experiences have been coming over and over. I found your reply especially interesting because you mentioned that you think stress plays a role. I am currently going through an extremely stressful time, and was also going through similar stress during my 1st bout for which I ended up in the hospital.
It is extremely comforting to know that I am not the only one with these symptoms. I often feel like I'm crazy and find it hard to explain how I feel when these episodes happen. Thank you all for sharing.
I have been reading through all of the comments related to deja vu and seizures, and feel the same way you do, that AshleyB described how I feel exactly. I had my first bout of intense deja vu experiences about 18 months ago. After each one, I felt as if I was waking up from a seizure. After the 3rd one, I went to the emergency room. Lucky for me, I had a 4th one in the ER while hooked up to a heart monitor and they were able to determine that my heart stopped for 20 seconds, which they believed was causing the seizures. However, after 2 weeks of numerous neurological and cardiological testing, no abnormalities were found. The doctors implanted a pace maker and sent me home.
One month after being released from the hospital, my left leg went numb, then my right leg, then my arms, and finally my face. A year and a half later and I still do not have a diagnosis, and I am still numb. I still have the deja vu experiences, but they have not resulted in a seizure again. I started doing some research again tonight because the deju vu experiences have been coming over and over. I found your reply especially interesting because you mentioned that you think stress plays a role. I am currently going through an extremely stressful time, and was also going through similar stress during my 1st bout for which I ended up in the hospital.
It is extremely comforting to know that I am not the only one with these symptoms. I often feel like I'm crazy and find it hard to explain how I feel when these episodes happen. Thank you all for sharing.
Re: Deja vu
Submitted by AshleyB on Tue, 2008-06-10 - 07:08
Hello, this is my first time posting. Since January 2 of 2008 I have had 15 of these "spells." My most recent one was this morning as I am currently getting ready to go to the doctor for a referral to a neurologist. Mine are like this: I am going about normal business, and suddenly an image comes into my mind, or a series of images. It feels like a dream I've had almost. I think "oh no," and then my stomach is rising and falling like a roller coaster. A couple times I have wretched, but it is mostly like butterflies or flips in there. I TRY to cling to the sequence in my mind, b/c at the time it feels important or monumental. But as fast as I cling, it fades. If I try to articulate it, stupid things come out of my mouth, like "shopping bag" or "t shirt circle." Things that make NO SENSE. A few times I have cried right after. Everything is weird for awhile after this spell. I feel frustrated, dreamlike, foggy and sad, and there is this strange feeling about everything. The way I have tried to explain it, is that as a child when you came back to school from a long summer vacation, everything looked familiar but also felt unfamilar and changed, if that makes sense. I have had two spells in front of my friend, and she said that I get very, very still, but my lips move like I am talking. I am not losing consciousness, but I feel too "far away" to respond to my name being called. The other strange thing that has happened since these spells is a heightened sense of memory. In fact, it seems like for a couple days I can be really drenched with detailed memories (the chips of paint on a post that my father and I rode bikes by when I was 6 yrs old on vacation) and then I will have one of these seizure things. The first time it happened it was terrifying. I am sort of glad I had one today, right before the doctor, but I am worried as to what they are? This website made me cry when I first came to it, because all of you describe such similar things. It is a relief to not be alone with that! I hope everyone is doing well. Thank you for reading this.