Something strange happened with my mom (pain, blood pressure, diabetic, arm)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
As I started eating my supper, I looked up at her and she appeared to be asleep with her mouth open. I went over to her and rubbed her arm but she didn’t respond. I freaked out and shook her and she finally gained consciousness. She was confused at first and didn’t know where she was. Then she got nauseous, threw up and had to be helped to the bathroom as she couldn’t walk on her own. She sat on the toilet a long time because she was nauseous and dizzy. After an hour she decided she wanted to go to the hospital emergency room. So I drove her here. When we got to the hospital, she started shivering but had no fever. Nurse took her blood and did cat scan of her brain. Heart rate is fine.
Mom said last thing she remembered before me shaking her awake was a sharp pain in her chest. She had a blood work done back in June that showed her blood sugar is borderline diabetic. She had had a chicken sandwich for lunch and some chips and artichoke dip for snack around 3 but nothing to eat other than that.
We’re still in the hospital room now still waiting to hear results. She said she feels better than at home earlier so that’s good hopefully. Just hope everything is okay and that it’s nothing serious. She’s only 62.
It is good that you got her to the emergency room. The fact that she was able to walk on her own, can communicate and has been able to remember what preceded the event seems like a good sign.
She is exactly where she needs to be. Hopefully, you will get some answers soon, I know that this is scary.
36 hrs after the fact, we should have some test results available. A follow-up post would be nice.
Given only the history in the OP, all we can do is form a differential diagnosis-- a list of the things it could likely be.
High on the list would be TIA ("partial stroke"). By definition, a TIA looks like a stroke, but clears up completely within 24 hrs. It's actually more predictive of future heart attack than of future stroke. A brief episode of hypotension (not uncommon in diabetic autonomic neuropathy) also accounts for the picture....Remember Senator McConnel's recent episodes of disorientation/standing blackouts?
The nausea suggests angina or acute MI (inferior wall), but with dizziness, it points to inner ear or cerebellar circulation compromise....Diabetics all should be considered to have CAD until proven otherwise.
The episode also sounds like an absence attack ("petite mal"), but that is unlikely in an adult. Tonic-clonic siezures ("grand mal") can be caused by brain masses or strokes. but in this case there doesn't seems to be the musclar symptoms.
Hypoglycemia can account for it all-- more likely in the "borderline" T2 diabetic, not to mention those on certain diabetes treatments.
Mom is fine and back to normal now. Tests and blood work show everything is fine and no signs of a stroke. Hospital did tell her to go to a cardiologist.
We got to the hospital just before 9 and she was put into a room around 11. The nurse hooked up an iv to her around 1 am and mom said she started feeling a lot better after that. We left the hospital a little before 3 am and got home around 320. She took the next day off work.
Mom also said this was the 4th time something like this has happened to her. Last time was at a boat race with friends out in the heat 20 years ago. She said 2 other times it happened because she was anemic. Once as a little girl and another time in her 20s before she had me. However blood work she had other night didn’t show that. She thinks the other night was from hydration but is bewildered about the chest pain.
She said before she blacked out that she was thinking she should let me know she wasn't feeling well but blacked out before she could. Next thing she remembers was me shaking her awake. I guess she was out for 15 seconds before I saw her because we’d just been talking while I was in the kitchen and she was surfing the internet in the living room.
Last edited by floridarebel; 10-20-2023 at 07:50 PM..
Dehydration causes the heart to work a lot harder which could cause the chest pains, it can also cause low blood pressure which could cause a person to lose consciousness.
Glad to hear she's doing better. You may want to ask medical professionals or do research on electrolytes.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
