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In caveman days, all disease was attributed to evil spirits. As we gained medical knowledge, the list of evil spirit disease got shorter and the list of scientifically proven causes got longer. Today there are very few on the evil spirit list, but there still are a few (although now we we say they're due to viruses ) It's always possible (but very unlikely) those "can't make a dx" situations are due to unknown causes.
Let's say 5% of all complaining pts have psychosomatic illness-- purely imagined symptoms. That means the other 95% have somato-psychic problems-- they do have a disease and that makes them feel something about it-- anxiety, depression, denial etc etc. Those psychological factors can alter or add to the symptoms, sometimes making the dx more difficult to nail down.
CT & MRI scans only tell you about anatomical problems-- tumors, stroke, scar tissue etc for the brain. They don't tell you about physiology. A kid with cerebral palsy would have a normal CT, for instance.
The OP's first symptom had to do with vague visual complaints. That sure sounds like the visual aura of migraine. Not all migraine results in headache. Further symptoms sound more like "psychological over-lay" from being worried about the situation- neck tension relieved by message; tunnel vision- classic for anxiety but also can be caused by vascular spam (the cause of migraine.)
Meanwhile, it's not just patients. I know an 30 year experienced ER doctor who has had GI problems for 16 years they can't figure out. But I think he's refusing to get a scope, too.
My problem has been that the first doctor I see states an opinion, and later doctors just assume he was right.
For instance, I developed a bad cough. Told doc#1 I thought it was post nasal drip (I have a history), but Sudafed wasn't working. He said, "No, it's acid reflux, take Prilosec." That made no difference in the 2-week recommended period, so I went to my regular doctor. She said to keep taking it long term. Couple more weeks, no results, she said to take TWICE AS MUCH every day. Got results that time, my stomach started cramping from lack of digestive acid. The cough was unaffected. I tried several alternative acid-reflux treatments, including HCl and parsley tea, no improvement.
Meanwhile, my cancer markers were rising steadily. My oncologist, apparently, was convinced I had a tumor in my liver and kept ordering abdominal CT scans. I read about PET scans on google, and got one. I had a tumor in my lung! (which would have been spotted if the oncologist had ordered a cheap chest xray, and I could have saved $5000 on the PET scan.)
So lung surgery (you can still breathe with only 1-1/2 lungs!), and I'm still coughing.
After 10 months of coughing, I finally got a doctor to listen to me about the PND. He ordered Flonase (Rx then, now it's OTC). Cough cleared up in 6 weeks. I later found out that there are now 2 levels of Sudafed, and I was getting the weak one so it didn't help. If doc #1 had mentioned that, I could have stopped coughing months sooner. But I would still have found the tumor because of rising cancer markers.
Stupid doctors complain about patients using "Doctor Google." If they did their jobs, we wouldn't have to figure stuff out for ourselves.
Check out Lyme Disease. It can present with all of the symptoms you described. And the tests are horribly inaccurate. So just because you test negative, doesn't mean you don't have it. You may have to find a doctor who specializes in Lyme and pay out of pocket for a test through a different lab, like Igenex.
Most people with Lyme are misdiagnosed (or undiagnosed) for years.
You can find Lyme doctors at ILADS.org. There's a link for physician referral there.
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I would highly recommend figuring out which specialist would be best to see for your particular problem...then go see one with a clear list of all your problems.
I have had TERRIBLE success getting a diagnosis for my various medical-issues via a
General-Practitioner. Specialists have nailed what ails me.
My two cents,have complained to cardiologist and primary care doctor for couple of years to no avail and lo and behold a newspaper article publishes exactly my symptons,"Myasthenia Gravis".words Greek to Me.
Symptons 100 percent.I will present article to my primary doctor on my 8/28 appointment.
In short statement,trouble I have is no stamina period,and article spelled out the many problems I have in detail,I am 84.
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The left side of my nose constantly itches. There's a little bump under the skin where it itches. I had a biopsy done and there was no sign of cancer. Then went to a dermatologist and told me it was wart lesion. A bit of the skin was burned off. That didn't work either.
For over two years now I have suffered from an issue Doctors haven't been able to figure out. I feel very numb all over my body, and my vision is really messed up. When I say look into the sky, I see what looks like snow falling to the ground, I have completely lost peripheral vision, as in if I look at something splitscreen it bothers me and I can only view one side or the other. Seeing in the dark is much harder now. One very weird oddity is that if I am watching a video on my TV or computer if there is any kind of flashing on the screen I feel a strange throbbing in my head, it doesn't hurt at all and as soon as the flashing stops the throbbing feeling immediately stops.[snip]
A migraine that involves visual disturbance is called an ocular migraine. Ocular migraines can develop with or without the accompanying pain of a classic migraine.
Some people refer to migraines with auras as ocular migraines. Some people experience an aura approximately 10 to 30 minutes before a migraine sets in. Aura symptoms can include:
numbness or tingling in the hands or face
feeling mentally foggy or fuzzy
disrupted sense of touch, taste, or smell
seeing blind spots, shimmering spots, flashing lights, or zig-zag lines
Last edited by texan2yankee; 09-11-2017 at 06:27 AM..
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) It's always possible (but very unlikely) those "can't make a dx" situations are due to unknown causes. 
