I have been dealing with this exact phenomenon you guys are describing for about 6 years. It started my junior year of high school which cause me to go to the ER when it first happened cause it was very concerning. They ran some tests and everything came back normal. I went on with my life and they went away for about a year then randomly came back and started happening a bit more frequently. They have been on and off for the past 6 years but this past year they got pretty bad, last year I decided to go to a Neurologist who almost immediately diagnosed me with temporal lobe epilepsy based off my description. I began taking Keppra for about a week before I got an EEG and MRI done - everything came back normal so they undiagnosed me and took me off the medication. I felt relief knowing it wasn’t epilepsy so I went on with my life but I was still experiencing these “auras”. This past December I went back to my doctor who suggested I try anxiety medication, I been taking it since and it hasn’t helped very much, I do feel a bit better overall but I still get this feeling multiple times pretty much everyday. It is a horrible feeling and interferes with my everyday life. Some days are worse than others and I have noticed if I am occupied on a given day, it usually will not happen but if I am laying in bed at home all day it will happen frequently. Anyone have any idea what this phenomenon is? I would love nothing more than for this burden to disappear from my life.
I am so sorry, I can't help with any information, only empathy. The word "burden" stood out to me, because you are so right. I only started experiencing this in the last few years. It is really horrible, and if you try to explain what you are feeling, people want to share their deja vu stories without realizing it is NOTHING like this, but much worse. There is no escape, and the lack of control over your mind is the worst, worst feeling. I so hope you find an answer, please keep pushing until you do. You aren't stupid or crazy, just suffering. I wait in trepadation of the next episode. I just wanted to tell you that you are not alone..... I wish I had the answer, for both of us.
I can't believe I'm not the only one!
Wow. Same here. I had no idea others also experienced this.
Your experience is the closest I've come to being able to explain or not explain about my episodes. A sense of dejavu of a dream or not a dream. I don't know. The feeling is all encompassing . It is usually followed by what I thought was a panic attack, but symptoms are not the same as such. It's a feeling of overwhelming anxiety followed by a non sweaty heat & tingle that begins in my head, like a hood , and then through my body. Any insight to this?
Thank you
Thank you
Your experience is the closest I've come to being able to explain or not explain about my episodes. A sense of dejavu of a dream or not a dream. I don't know. The feeling is all encompassing . It is usually followed by what I thought was a panic attack, but symptoms are not the same as such. It's a feeling of overwhelming anxiety followed by a non sweaty heat & tingle that begins in my head, like a hood , and then through my body. Any insight to this?
Thank you
Thank you
I am having the exact same thing!! I call them my “episodes” that started out of the blue 3 months ago. They occur anywhere from 2 weeks up to a month apart. Usually follows a stress period. I will get flashes of dreams and I can have nausea with the episode. MRI was clear. Awaiting the 3 day EEG. I have a history of anxiety, so not sure if this is happening bc of anxiety, seizure like activity or what! On days I have these episodes I’m “off” the rest of day. I am full conscious throughout episode. Never disoriented. I can talk clear it which lasts a minute or so. I think the fear of unknown makes it even worse.
I have had these dream flashbacks episodes for 6-7 years now. Early on, 1-2 per year but increasing to 10 or so this past year. About a year ago, I began to realize I was dehydrated and I chugged 16 ounces of water and the episode dissipated much more quickly.most of the episodes I’ve had were in conjunction with working out fairly intensely, so I began to focus on adequate hydration upon getting up in the morning and before intense activity. Each episode thereafter occurred when I forgot to hydrate, usually very little hydration for 12 hours prior. Zero episodes when I’ve been properly hydrated. I’ve had an MRI, EEG which were inconclusive and have been working with a neurologist for 18 months or so. She originally thought it could be a migraine aura, She thinks that dehydration is probably not the cause, but a “trigger”. Our plan is to more religiously hydrate and watch for another episode where I actually have been properly hydrated. By the way, early on in my hydration routine, I had no idea that someone my age (66) needs 64 ounces of water per day. The day I started consuming this mass quantity of water, my dry eye symptoms (I live in high desert) disappeared! Anyway, I am hoping that you folks who have flashbacks might be interested in testing this theory. Wouldn’t it be great if we discovered a minimally recognized trigger is actually just dehydration?
I have been experiencing this on and off for my entire life. It came back around 6 years ago and has stuck around. I saw a bunch of doctors, got EEGs, MRIs, etc. Diagnosis is temporal lobe seizures. My tests were inconclusive but was explained that seizures are hard to catch if for TLE and you have to actually have one while they are testing for anything to show up. My symptoms, I was told are classic TLE symptoms by two different neurologists, as well as an epileptologist. I'm trying Keppra in a few weeks and will report back how its goes.
My episodes always start suddenly with a feeling of anxiety/impending doom, a feeling of chills in my chest and back, a rollercoaster feeling in my stomach/throat. At the same time I will experience a very intense memory of a dream that I had. For me it seems to be a similar type of dream each time and has something to do with me trying to solve some kinda puzzle, im in some futuristic landscape, theres people there that I feel like I know in my dream and it feels like "WOW I WILL NEVER FORGET THIS, THIS IS SO INTENSE I REMEMBER ALL OF THIS!". After its over it fades really fast and I can barely remember any of what I was seeing in my head. Its taken me 6 years to piece that short amount of information that happens in my head, because each time its over I cannot remember it for the life of me. I'm fully conscious and can talk and move around normally while its happening, its just a very intense feeling I have to walk off until its over.
Afterwards I feel very detached from the world around me and as though the line has been blurred between my dreams and reality. Kinda like I'm stuck in a dream world or something. Things that should feel familiar to me won't anymore, and everything feels "strange". This feel usually lasts for a few hours, the rest of the day or even a few days afterwards and for me is the worst part of all. I also get small cluster ones for a few days after I have a big one. Sometimes I can even feel them coming on like a sneeze and it doesn't fully happen if I try and focus on something else.
My episodes always start suddenly with a feeling of anxiety/impending doom, a feeling of chills in my chest and back, a rollercoaster feeling in my stomach/throat. At the same time I will experience a very intense memory of a dream that I had. For me it seems to be a similar type of dream each time and has something to do with me trying to solve some kinda puzzle, im in some futuristic landscape, theres people there that I feel like I know in my dream and it feels like "WOW I WILL NEVER FORGET THIS, THIS IS SO INTENSE I REMEMBER ALL OF THIS!". After its over it fades really fast and I can barely remember any of what I was seeing in my head. Its taken me 6 years to piece that short amount of information that happens in my head, because each time its over I cannot remember it for the life of me. I'm fully conscious and can talk and move around normally while its happening, its just a very intense feeling I have to walk off until its over.
Afterwards I feel very detached from the world around me and as though the line has been blurred between my dreams and reality. Kinda like I'm stuck in a dream world or something. Things that should feel familiar to me won't anymore, and everything feels "strange". This feel usually lasts for a few hours, the rest of the day or even a few days afterwards and for me is the worst part of all. I also get small cluster ones for a few days after I have a big one. Sometimes I can even feel them coming on like a sneeze and it doesn't fully happen if I try and focus on something else.
I started getting these over a year ago
Since then I keep coming back to this thread because I find it reassuring to see that what I'm experiencing is real. I found it so difficult to explain to people, but every time I read everyone's experience here, it's at least 90% identical.
I'm lucky I've only been getting these episodes about once every 1 or 2 months. I've also gotten good at feeling it ahead and brushing it off. It still sucks when it happens but it's a lot more manageable than the first times.
The first time this happened, I was writing to a friend at work and was able to shift from what I was writing to what was currently happening in my head and I kept a screenshot of it. Every time it happens no I tell myself I should have a pen and paper ready to take notes as to remember these ''flashbacks'' but I literally never do. It either takes me by surprise or I manage to not let it overtake me too much (and then I'm just too shaken/automatically trying to brush off the feeling rather than trying to remember and take any notes)
I know I should see a specialist but seeing a general dr in the first place is incredibly difficult in my area
I'm hoping that moving in with someone may help since I feel like these might be related to anxiety. They also started about a year into living alone + working from home, so I'm basically always on my own, in my own head.
Since then I keep coming back to this thread because I find it reassuring to see that what I'm experiencing is real. I found it so difficult to explain to people, but every time I read everyone's experience here, it's at least 90% identical.
I'm lucky I've only been getting these episodes about once every 1 or 2 months. I've also gotten good at feeling it ahead and brushing it off. It still sucks when it happens but it's a lot more manageable than the first times.
The first time this happened, I was writing to a friend at work and was able to shift from what I was writing to what was currently happening in my head and I kept a screenshot of it. Every time it happens no I tell myself I should have a pen and paper ready to take notes as to remember these ''flashbacks'' but I literally never do. It either takes me by surprise or I manage to not let it overtake me too much (and then I'm just too shaken/automatically trying to brush off the feeling rather than trying to remember and take any notes)
I know I should see a specialist but seeing a general dr in the first place is incredibly difficult in my area
I'm hoping that moving in with someone may help since I feel like these might be related to anxiety. They also started about a year into living alone + working from home, so I'm basically always on my own, in my own head.
Been having the same experience over the last 12 months I am 46, and never had anything like it prior.. prone to the occasional migraine.
Feels like I’m reliving a dream but makes me feel sick..and I can’t explain what I’m remembering because I want it to go away and forget what I was reliving after it goes away
Feels like I’m reliving a dream but makes me feel sick..and I can’t explain what I’m remembering because I want it to go away and forget what I was reliving after it goes away
I experience exactly this. May I ask, did the kepra help for that week? This all started for me after a confirmed much larger temporal lobe seizure.
Pretty sure I remember every dream I’ve ever had since the first one at two. I seriously doubt there’s anything wrong, it’s just not understood.
I had my third episode of this 'dream flashback' today. The first time I experienced this was about two years ago. All of a sudden I just started remembering dreams in rapid succession. During this 'remembering' time it felt like all of these dreams were inter-related somehow. The first time this happened to me I don't know how long it lasted, but it didn't seem very long. The second occurrence was more prolonged. Today I had my third experience. It was like I kept remembering, or perhaps better stated as reliving, dreams I had. I was functioning normally on the outside, but inside my head I was having this dreamlike experience...like being sucked back into the rabbit hole. After the experience I have some difficulty remembering certain things that I should remember. This gradually goes away. I was thinking dehydration had something to do with it, but not sure.
I have the same thing with the non sweat heat sensation. The flashback happens and then I’m overcome with a tingle and heat like so hot it feels like a fever and then subsides within 5 mins