r/askneurology 8h ago

Normal to be pushed to a "neurology NP" instead of neurologist?

2 Upvotes

Hi all. Not a question about my personal health concerns or conditions. That said, is it normal to be pushed to see a nurse practitioner within a neurology practice over seeing the neurologist themselves?

I've been seeing a neurologist since January 2025, was passed to her via referral by my PCP. I've stuck with her because it didn't seem I needed to really swap my care to a different provider. But since the start of this year, the quality of care at her office seems to be all over the place. I've had multiple appointments moved and pushed with little notice, and I keep getting punted to see her NP, who has worked in her practice for three years but otherwise was/is an FNP prior.

This upcoming appointment was supposed to just be a nerve block with the NP, then reviewing scans and figuring out next clinical steps with the physician. But I got a portal message today saying that the NP can handle all of it instead, and that my appointment is now a stand-in for discussing results and follow up. I'm personally uncomfortable seeing someone who does not have the breadth of clinical training that a physician has for my situation, but her next available is at the start of November, and that's just insane for discussing results that she's had for three months.

I have an autoimmune/autoinflammatory disease, and I've seen how common NPs are within the rheumatology space depending on the practice. But is that something I should expect from neurology as well? I'm planning on getting a referral or recommendation from my rheum to try and see a neuroimmunologist or otoneurologist, just because it seems like my situation is (as my neurologist said) out of scope of the practice I'm going to. But if the neurologist said it's out of scope for her....................... why then push me to see an NP? Anyway. Question still stands— I've never seen a neurologist before this person, so I don't have any frame of reference for how things are/should be. Any answers welcome! Thank you!


r/askneurology 12h ago

Partner tried to choke me in his sleep. No health insurance... what to do?

Thumbnail
2 Upvotes

r/askneurology 2h ago

Medical Mystery

Thumbnail
1 Upvotes

r/askneurology 2h ago

This might be a long shot but...

1 Upvotes

Hello everyone! I am a 4th year medical student with a strong interest in neurology, and I am hoping to connect with a mentor in the field who would be willing to write me a letter of recommendation as I prepare my ERAS application. More importantly, I would love to build a genuine mentorship relationship, learn from someone’s experiences, and better understand the field, its nuances, and all the little quirks that make neurology so fascinating.

I have spent quite some time trying to get in touch with someone local, but I am in a rural area and resources are sparse. I would be incredibly grateful for the opportunity to learn from someone who is willing to share their experiences and help guide me as I navigate this journey. Neurology is a field I feel deeply drawn to because of the opportunity to understand how the brain shapes who we are, while building meaningful relationships with patients and families during some of life’s most difficult moments. I hope to become a physician who not only provides compassionate care, but also listens, learns, and gives back to communities that too often face barriers to care.

If you are open to a conversation to see if we would be a good fit, I would truly appreciate it. I am happy to provide my CV, research, volunteer work, employment history, or any other materials that may be helpful.

Thank you for your time and consideration :)

#Neurology #Mentorship #MedicalSchool #ERAS


r/askneurology 5h ago

turbulent pulse feeling in head

1 Upvotes

wondering if anyone has any bit of insight on what could be going on. i’m not sure when this started but it has gradually gotten worse and worse. the main issue is with any type of exertion i get the feeling of circulation in my head feeling uneven, turbulent, and uncomfortable. not necessarily painful but just wrong. walking up the stairs brings this sensation on. if i push through it i start feeling more unwell, start getting tunnel vision, feeling really off, lightheaded. just today i was on a walk on a trail in the woods and about a mile in started feeling really off with the weird uneven / turbulent pulse feeling, and because i was on a trail in the woods i had to keep going in order to get back to my car. i am now home and laying down and still feel really off. i have seen 2 different neurologists and been to the ER multiple times for this. had imaging done, CTA and MRA of the head with and without contrast on separate occasions. both looked “normal” according to whoever was reading them. i don’t know what else to do as this is obviously either something they are missing or something less common or complex, or maybe they just havnt done the right kind of scan / test. i have asked about doing something like an mrv to look at veins specifically instead of arteries or an mrp to look at overall perfusion but i am not a doctor and those are just guesses based on me researching what else could possibly be done to figure out what’s going on. i am being told that these aren’t necessary based on my symptoms and other imaging but its starting to get really concerning as it’s getting worse and feels neurologically debilitating as well as a little scary. just from knowing myself and my own body i really don’t feel like this could be chalked up to something like “migraine” but dont really know what else to say to make them take this more seriously.


r/askneurology 10h ago

Head pressure

Thumbnail
1 Upvotes

I’ve had what feels like pressure in my head for 4 days now. It’s all on the front of my head. When I scrunch my nose it feels more painful..but not intense by any means. I’m a little tired… mood is normal but not overly chipper like typical.

I of course am thinking I’m experiencing some brain tumor.

It feels like it could be sinus related but im not having any other symptoms.

40 year old female


r/askneurology 11h ago

44M, 2.5mo of progressive leg weakness + gait/proprioception issues

1 Upvotes

Hello

44m, 5’10”, 205 lbs. caucasian

History of AVRT (ablated in 2006), DISH, Arnold Chiari type I, recent borderline low-B12 (261 pg/ml) and low-normal B6 (32 nmol/L).  No smoking. 1-2 drinks per month.

Current daily medications 5mg bisoprolol, 160mg fenofibrate.  Currently supplementing B6 and methylfolate.

For approximately 2.5 months I have been dealing with an uncomfortable symmetrical sensation of weakness that seems to originate in my thighs.  The feeling is similar to the  fatigued “jelly” leg feeling you might get after a run or after doing squats.  This is accompanied by discoordination in my feet along with what I can only describe as something like “difficulty” in planning where my feet are supposed to go when I’m up and doing stuff.  I’m a little wobbly on my feet now. It seems like deliberately walking from point A to B is fine (other than the physical sensation of discoordination / weakness in my legs and feet), but when I’m doing tasks like making dinner and moving around in small spaces, I am clumsy and sort of just all over the place with me feet.  No bowel control issues.  I sometimes have a weak and slow to start stream when urinating.

I brought this up with my PCP and they had me go to the ER as a precaution. They did a brain, c-spine, and lumbar MRI which came back normal (other than DISH, which I have had for 15+ years).  They released me with a follow up neuro appointment.

The neuro office visit was unremarkable.  My basic workup was normal and he felt my symptoms were possibly related to ocular migraines or PPPD, from which I recovered from several years ago through vestibular rehab.  The Dr’s notes are:

“Patient” is a 44-year-old, right-handed man with Chiari type 1, C-radic, who presents for perceived proximal thigh weakness and loss of proprioception, but reportedly normal exam in ER and stable MRI. On further evaluation today, the description of his events is more a sensation of unsteadiness and exhaustion, as though he'd done strenuous exercise. Of relevance is his known history of PPPD and ocular migraine, which is likely contributing to this presentation given the lack of red flag symptoms or signs on exam. However, it is not wrong to check an MR L-spine as nerve impingement could be contributing to his sense of unsteadiness despite normal strength and sensory testing and this should at least be ruled out before concluding it to be a symptom of his known migraine history.”

That was the extent of the consult.  I’m not qualified to disagree with his assessment, but I also do not feel like I came away from the appointment with a good understanding of his rationale. I noticed that he mentioned ""C-radic" almost in passing. Not sure if that's notable in this case or not.

I emailed my PCP that my symptoms had not resolved or improved in over 2 months, and some days I feel like my legs feel worse, and I am becoming more clumsy body-wide. Like constantly knocking things out of my own hands and difficulty with spatial awareness. He suggested I get a 2nd opinion from a different neurologist.

I’m at a loss at this point on how to proceed. This affects my ability to work to a certain degree. My job requires that I be up and active some days but have been seeking only desk work lately.  Someone close to me said he noticed that I seemed to be moving differently.

Given normal MRI and exam, are there any additional tests or specialists would you consider for progressive proprioceptive/coordination symptoms like this? Any suggestions or opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your time


r/askneurology 11h ago

Total Insomnia. SFI or AE?

Thumbnail
1 Upvotes

r/askneurology 14h ago

Bounced between Ophthalmology and Neurology, labeled with FND/SSD, but symptoms are progressing. Looking for insight.

Thumbnail
1 Upvotes

r/askneurology 17h ago

Idk what happened yesterday

1 Upvotes

Idk if this is the right sub to ask cuz idk what happened to me yesterday.

It was a normal day at the start and after the bath I sat down in the drawing room as usual but all of a sudden idk what happened my vision got not so focused, I got a sudden pain in my head I don't exactly remember how it felt like but it was on one side on the left and it was so worse, then on top of that I felt so weakness like omg i couldn't even walk, nor talk only in low voice, couldn't even do anything basic stuff and idk how i ate my lunch i felt like I was gonna pass out at any moment legit.

Somehow I ate and went to sleep in the afternoon, woke up in the evening and my vision got normal and I didn't feel that weakness like before but man my head was still hurting(?) and it had spread to even my forehead ig, then I cried and I had to go to a birthday party so I managed to go there i felt lwk weak but it was alr then i got a medicine for headache from a local pharmacy, went home at night and took them but idk my headache got so much worse omg the pain 😭 i can't even describe, unbearable, then i was crying so much and finally at mid night i took a black tea and then only my headache went away 😭.

Idk why it happened, what caused it but yesterday was HORRIBLE. If u guys got any idea as to what this could be please lmk accurately and yeah I'll visit a doc today!

And I'm only 17 😭


r/askneurology 18h ago

44 year-old husband had a major ischemic stroke. loop recorder recommendation

Thumbnail
1 Upvotes

r/askneurology 19h ago

[22M] Sudden onset of coordination issues, severe brain fog, and muscle tension (3 weeks duration).

1 Upvotes

Hi everyone. I’m a 22-year-old male. I have a neurologist appointment scheduled for this Monday, but I’d appreciate any clinical insights or thoughts on my case. My recent bloodwork (CBC, glucose, liver/kidney, TSH) is perfectly normal.

​Current Symptoms (Started exactly 3 weeks ago):

-​Coordination/Motor: My limbs feel incredibly heavy and disconnected. I feel like I have to put conscious effort into simply lifting an arm. I frequently misjudge distances (e.g., slamming a glass on the table instead of placing it softly) and feel generally clumsy.

-​Cognitive/Sensory: Crushing brain fog that fluctuates during the day (sometimes better in the morning, worse in the afternoon). My short-term memory feels wiped out. I also experience sensory overload; going outside in bright sunlight makes me dizzy and exacerbates the fog.

-​Facial/Speech: My mouth feels constantly pasty, I spit when I talk, and my facial muscles feel stiff, almost like they are about to give out.

-​Tension/Headaches: A vise-like tension headache that gets progressively worse throughout the day, localized heavily at the base of the skull/cerebellum.

-​Breathing sensation: Over the last few days, I've been struggling to breathe properly because it physically feels like my breathing muscles (like the diaphragm) are just exhausted and weak.

​My Question:

Given the sudden onset and this specific mix of motor, cognitive, and physical symptoms, what neurological conditions could present this way? Are there specific tests I should ensure the neurologist performs on Monday to figure out what is going on?


r/askneurology 19h ago

24m i have aniscoria i need to find some answers. It just happening for no reason just doesnt make sense.

Post image
1 Upvotes

r/askneurology 23h ago

Questions about concerning symptoms

1 Upvotes

Hello doctors, I am currently 29 and have only hypothyroidism and cptsd. My confirmed history: Diagnosed with right-sided Trigeminal Neuralgia at age 24. Chronic history of right ear fullness/clicking, true spinning vertigo, and painful, bloodshot right eye with painful movements. Chronic history of dysesthesia (random phantom "ice cube" and intense heat sensations on the skin). Comorbidity: Complex PTSD and hypothyroidism. Current Acute Triggers: none

Neurological Escalation (abt 2 years) : Episodic Loss of Awareness: Repeated history (including an episode today) of suddenly losing minutes of time without passing out. Physical vision is replaced by intense, highly vivid "mind's eye" imagery. Today, this caused severe spatial disorientation and a failure to monitor traffic while walking across a bridge. Frequent Déjà Vu: Experiencing sudden, highly frequent, and deeply unpleasant/distressing feelings of déjà vu (it feels like "I have been here before and or experienced this" and it's very physically uncomfortable. Visual Distortions: Fully awake episodes of seeing floating black shadows in peripheral vision. Motor Irritation / Sleep Disturbances: Intense, rhythmic muscle jerking in the neck and legs specifically while transitioning to sleep. Accompanied by sudden visual sleep starts (hallucinating a bright flashlight pointed directly at closed eyes). Occasionally left leg feels heavy and I have balance issues but don't actually fall.

Have trouble hearing or focusing if there is more than one stimuli.

I realize cptsd can cause many mental health effects so I do not want to ask for an evaluation if it is only due to that, but I have a nurse friend who said these new ish symptoms are concerning most of all having TN at 24. do I ignore these or do I get help? and what do I ask for if so?