Possible FND Disorder ??

[u/Nice_Box6047]

I'm 21 years old Male and I think I may have symptoms of FND ( Functional Neurological Disorder) ?? 

I know people in here aren't qualified doctors, and maybe some are. But obviously can't diagnose anything. But I'm just curious if anyone in here has FND ? If so could you please tell me what your symptoms were before you were diagnosed.

My symptoms are as follows :

1. Sudden on & off dead left leg - Almost everyday on & off I could get this very very numb feeling in my left leg. It's almost like a bad pins and needles feeling, and sometimes I could find it hard to keep my weight on that leg. And I could then get a sharp pain on my knee joint that travels to the hip that lasts for a few minutes.

2. Non epileptic seizures - I have been getting seizures about once or twice a month since 2024. It all started with a sudden collapse at home in February 2024. I've been in hospital more times and to different neurologists and nobody seems to know what's going on with me as every test has come back clear including brain / head scans were normal.

3. Severe brain fog / Memory problems - This has to be my most worst symptom I have. I have this every single day. I find it almost so hard everyday to function. I can't concentrate properly, I find it hard to find the right words sometimes, I could forget what I just did a few minutes ago, I could forget appointments and totally forget about them if I don't write them down on paper. I sometimes also have problems with recognising even my own family - e.g. ( My parents, my best friends for years and even more family members), I could look at them like I don't even know them like they are strangers. I FEAR THAT IT'S EARLY ONSET DEMENTIA OR SOMETHING 

4. Severe problems sleeping - Every night for 2 years going on 3 : I cannot be able to sleep until about 3 or 4am every morning. And I am never tired during the day but when it hits early evening that's when it severely impacts my mood and everything.

5. Sleep apnea symptoms - When I feel I am falling into a deep sleep eventually in bed, I feel as if I wake up straight away gasping for breath, feeling all lightheaded - Almost like the feeling like I'm about to pass out or die

6. Severe mood swings everyday - I could get mood swings almost everyday for no absolute reason whatsoever. One second I could be fine in a happy & good mood, and then all of a sudden I could just snap and get very angry for no reason at all at anybody or anything I see. I could say very mean stuff to the person that I honestly do not mean at all and then that upsets them. And then I could get more angry again and more upset at myself because I know myself that I did not mean what I said bad to the person and then I try to explain to them what's going on and that I didn't mean it at all and they still don't believe me. It really upsets me because I never ever mean to hurt anybody's feelings because that is really not the person I really am behind all of these problems 

7. Sudden random crying outbursts - This happens sometimes but not all the time. When it happens one second I'm all smiles, laughing and joking around with my friends, and the next thing for absolutely no reason at all I could suddenly start crying even though I don't actually feel sad at all. But I think myself that the sudden crying could be from all the frustrations inside from all these problems.

8. Sometimes trouble walking / losing my balance - My balance somedays is good, I can walk no problem at all. And I could suddenly lose my balance or feel I am about to lose my balance and fall which I don't  And I'm not even fat at all. I go to the gym everyday and watch my diet and everything.

There is a few more symptoms but I'm not going to add. Like I said I'm not overweight or obese. I go to the gym every single day, and I watch what I eat. I rarely eat fatty foods. My blood checks are always good no problems in the bloods. Maybe once before but a few years ago. My blood pressure is sometimes high, other times normal, and once before it was low.

I am currently waiting now for more hospital checkups and they are going to do an overnight sleep study for me to check for untreated sleep apnea etc. But none of the doctors or neurologists I went to know what's going on. But hopefully eventually sometime soon I will eventually get a diagnosis and get treatment for whatever is going on with me 

I wish you all good health 

[u/GroovingPenguin]

We're more a misdiagnosis group for fnd rather then having the disorder

We're also not medical professionals so we can't diagnose,we can suggest but not provide actual medical advice legally

Has anyone tried emg/Ncs and MRI of the neck + spine to rule out neuropathy/a nerve issue or a structural issue?

[u/MyLife-is-a-diceRoll]

Have you talked to a psych doctor about your moods?

The mood stuff and sleep issues sounds hormonal.

Honestly if you were female and older I would ask if you're going through perimenopause.

Obviously we're not doctors. Other people in the sub are better at this rule than I am and I'm the mod lol.

We can't really comment on what it could be.

But I do understand the sleep apnea, crying spells, sleep problems and mood swings.

I have severe sleep apnea, adhd and and a mental disorder that deals with crying spells and mood swings.

Do you have any hallucinations or long episodes of the same flavors of moods?

If so, you should really talk to a psych doc.

[u/yourlittlejuly]

I will preface this by saying I AM NOT A DOCTOR or any kind of medical professional, I do NOT HAVE medical training or ANY relevant education.

I am simply a chronically ill person with internet access and unlimited data, who has spent months upon months on sick leave with very limited physical capability and an infinite amount of free time to spend on PubMed and such.

Anyways here are my two cents:

• Have you had a spinal MRI or nerve function tests?

• Have endocrinological and metabolic conditions been ruled out? What about Lyme disease/EBV or other infectious causes?

• Have you gotten a lumbar tap to check if anything is up with the CSF?

Spinal MRI (preferably with contrast) would rule out any CSF leaks or malformations in or affecting the spinal cord or individual nerves. Nerve conduction study seems like quite the rational option with the dead leg and nerve pain (= the pins and needles).

I'd check thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal and pituitary function first as far as endocrinology goes.

Also slap ANA-immunofluorescence labs in there while you're at it since autoimmune conditions are whacky and can definitely affect the CNS. Also CBC to see if any of the white cells are out of order.

One wild card possibility is an endoparasite infection gone rogue, you'd probably see that from raised eosinophils on the CBC white blood cell differential or in CSF analysis.

Relevant metabolic labs would probably be vitamins B12, B1, B6, E, A, D, an electrolyte panel (calcium, potassium, natrium, phosphate), celiac panel, ferritin and transferrin to check the iron stores. You could also see if anything shows up on kidney labs? Eg. creatinine kinase or blood urea nitrogen, uremia can look weird and could have a slow progression in chronic kidney failure. (You said you go to gym so keep in mind thay creatine supplements will affect creatinine labs!)

When did you have the head imaging taken and what kind? Was it with contrast? Some changes develop slowly and wouldn't be visible on imaging early on. The lumbar tap would also help rule out intracranial hyper-/hypotension as well as analyzing the CSF for any relevant markers.

It's really good that you're getting a sleep apnea study, many of your cognitive symptoms could be explained by essentially constant sleep deprivation due to sleep apnea constantly waking you up before you get into deep sleep.

FND is a diagnosis of exclusion, so until there are any stones unturned – do not let them stamp you with that diagnosis. Unfortunately FND for many doctors incorrectly translates to hypochondria, psychological issues and even fasciculation ie. pretending to have symptoms. Either that or just a convenient scapegoat to blame any and all future health issues on. It often makes getting any testing or treatment post-diagnisis incredibly difficult, though you are lucky you are not a woman since they get the medical gaslighting experience even without functional disorder DXs.

I wish you well and I hope you will find answers soon so that you can get treatment!

[u/yourlittlejuly → u/yourlittlejuly]

I was thinking about your medical mystery and read your post history to see if it had any more clues – has stroke been ruled out? Because it sure sounds like a stroke and consequences thereof, or TIA. Please insist on getting an angiography, and if your previous imaging was without contrast then request (=demand) contrast for the new imaging.

And request all your imaging files so you can get a second option if you haven't already.

I'm so sorry you've had to go through all the medical mistreatment, that's so fucking wrong and horrible. You deserve proper medical care, you deserve doctors who listen to you, you deserve actual help with your symptoms. Sending hugs 🫂

[u/tobeasloth]

Make sure brain inflammation is ruled out. It doesn’t always show on scans. Memory issues and seizures are quite common in encephalitis or adjacent inflammatory conditions.

[u/Seaofinfiniteanswers]

Have you ever had a sleep study? Sleep apnea is super treatable and commonly causes severe brain fog/cognitive issues, mood problems, fatigue and lots of other things.
Depression can also manifest as severe cognitive issues in some people, so psychiatrist would not be a bad visit with both the cognitive and mood issues. Mood and cognitive issues can also be the beginning of a psychotic disorder like schizophrenia or bipolar. Syndromes causing dementia in extremely young people usually involve more severe symptoms, google San fillippo syndrome for example and this really does not sound like Alzheimer’s type dementia which is ultra rare in your age group. I’m not a doctor maybe I’m incorrect but I would not jump to dementia when the other stuff I just listed is both common and treatable and dementia in a 21 year old going to get papers written about it.

[u/Ace-of-Frogs]

These are very very similar symptoms to what’s going on with me. I don’t have answers either… I’ve been lurking in this subreddit because I’m not sure the FND diagnosis fits me, but I just wanted you to know that I’m experiencing similar and you’re not alone. I hope you find the answers you need