Stuck in Fight or Flight 

You are the first health care provider Ive run across that has listed all my symptoms and can explain a reason for them. I am so messed up. I need help and cant get it. I live too far from Florida to come to an appt there. I also can not afford it. 😢 I have Ins but I doubt that you take it. I practically live in my bed and all activities have become a challenge. My neck is very bad. I have arthritis in several levels with stenosis. I also believe I have a CSF leak. This video describes me along with several other videos of yours. No Dr knows what to do for me. Thank you for this wonderful info, now what do I do with it? Ive been suffering for over 5 yrs.

Great video!

What happens if you cover those vertebral arteries with too much excess bone.

Awesome video. Once the waather warms I’m gonna see you!

Thank you for your videos. I'm in the uk trying to find a Dr like you

Dr Middleton. I’m going to be a complex case. I suffered a sucker punch at the end of 2021. I mean full force straight to the mouth I blacked out for three seconds. Then I started having breathing problems a months or two later. Then I had muscle tightness all around. Had some many symptoms. Tremors weakness insomnia clearing the throat constant cough sensitivity to light and sound nausea dementia like symptoms I develop all this as it has progressed and I have been tested for Als and Parkinson’s and someone led me here

Excellent, very clear, well and clearly explained. This is just for interest, but I have an issue where I am almost certain that my CPAP Mask Strap has caused C1 Atlas instability, which in turn has affected my right 10th Cranial Nerve (Vagus), causing me to end up with my Sympathetic side dominant, so dysfunctional Autonomic System permanently in Fight or Flight mode. The main complication is an elevated heart rate, which seems to be a mix of inappropriate Tachycardia, but with random normal beats thrown in, as the Parasympathetic Rest & Digest (or Rest & Recuperate) side tries to restore order, but the signal is intermittent because of, effectively, a wiring issue between my brain and heart. Long story, cut as short as possible, but after being diagnosed with very severe Sleep Apnoea, I started CPAP in mid-2020, and needed the pressure cranked right up to the maximum to stop the many Apnoeas. I eventually just set the machine to straight CPAP mode, at the maximum. The upshot being that I also had to have the CPAP Mask on quite tight, to stop Mask leaks. I stress that this was, supposedly, well within the design limits of the Mask concerned, which was also designed for use with other CPAP machines capable of higher pressures, so it should have been safely within designed operating pressures. But the Mask Strap was just too narrow, so exerted quite a considerable force upon the nape of my neck, acting right on my C1 Atlas. I slept mostly upon my right side, which may explain why the issue seems to have affected my right Vagus, and not my left side Vagus. Over 2020, I suffered increasing neck ache upon awakening, and this grew worse through 2021. The Strap left deep welt marks on the rear and sides of my neck. At the start of 2022, I had a terrible pain right in the nape of my neck, and that day my heart rate went out, going into a mixed rate of Tachycardia with normal beats, so an Arrhythmia, but not a classic Atrial Fibrillation, because I could still see T and P waves on my little ECG. Then, for 3 months, I went in and out of that heart rate, until I read that premature babies on CPAP can suffer Atrial Fibrillation if their CPAP Mask Straps are badly adjusted, that abates the moment the Strap is adjusted. So effectively, a temporary problem caused by CPAP Mask Strap pressure upon their Vagus nerves, which impacts their Autonomic System and affects heart rate control. That day I made up a Foam Pad for the rear of my CPAP Strap, and the Arrhythmia stopped that very night. Likewise, the neck ache eased, but never full went away. Unfortunately, the Foam Pad alleviated the issue, but did not stop a force continuing to act upon the rear of my neck. So, the underlying heart rate control issue started to worsen with random missed or ectopic style beats. By mid-2023, I knew I had to do something more to address this. Sadly, I started that by reverting to the original CPAP Mask Strap, as a test, and that night I suffered significant neck pain, and went into the same mixed Arrhythmia that same night. I suspect I moved my C1 Atlas even more, and have been struggling with an elevated Heart Rate ever since (average 136 bpm 24x7). I have since re-designed the CPAP Mask Strap arrangement, such that I now wear a little hat, with 4x Velcro Straps acting solely upon the side of the hat, such that there is now absolutely no CPAP Strap force acting upon the rear or sides of my neck. That has worked to completely alleviate all neck pain, and I think the heart rate is gradually starting to lower. My ECG often now goes down to 115-120 bpm, but my heart rate remains highly twitchy, and the rate escalates the moment I do any physical work. It is hard to keep it down, but I have used a Static Rowing Machine and ECG based Chest Strap to try and train it back down, by exercising gently, to keep heart rate as low as possible, which may be working. But, it is a slow business. In the UK, getting any help for this has proved very hard indeed, thus far. But I have finally been referred to what looks like a good Cardiology Team, who have started to investigate this. I also have a referral to a Neurophysiology Team who have asked the Cardiology Team to look at the heart first, to check that out before looking at neurological issues. The point of writing this, is to alert that CPAP equipment may cause other problems so, if anyone is suffering neck ache and then heart rate control issues, it could be worth making sure the CPAP Mask Strap is not the culprit.

This looks very similar to me

That's me

I have a plate in my neck and 6 screws, c4-c6, the surgery was performed back in 2016 the first one, 2017 the second. Since the surgery im only able to sleep on my right side and now starting to feel twisted and I am having seizures. Could i be of an adjustment? Right side from head to toe looks offset like your video almost exact.

Can you explain in more detail what you mean by jutting the jaw forward to relieve styloid compression? I have AAI, elongated styloids, and vagus/IVJ compression and I've never heard before that some symptoms can be relieved with jaw placement.

Jeffrey, can AO still be continued after a c1 shave in combination with styloid removal?

Is there anyone who can help me in India?