Central Sensitivity Syndrome | A Survivor's Guide

Symptoms

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For the Central Sensitization Inventory, Click Here. In languages other than English, Click Here.

I have around 100 of these symptoms, ranging from mild to severe and at various stages of exposure. This is how CSS becomes debilitating, not just from one severe symptom, but from MANY symptoms occurring at the same time, or in the same day, with multiple levels of severity.

For ease in printing, this form is available PDF format.

Please indicate on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most severe, the severity of each symptom you experience (using the past month as a general guide). If you do not have the symptom, leave the space blank.

GENERAL
____ Fatigue, made worse by physical exertion or stress
____ Activity level decreased to less than 50% of pre-illness activity level
____ Recurrent flu-like illness
____ Sore throat
____ Hoarseness
____ Tender or swollen lymph nodes (glands), especially in neck and underarms
____ Shortness of breath (air hunger) with little or no exertion
____ Frequent sighing
____ Tremor or trembling
____ Severe nasal allergies (new allergies or worsening of previous allergies)
____ Cough
____ Night sweats
____ Low-grade fevers
____ Feeling cold often
____ Feeling hot often
____ Cold extremities (hands and feet)
____ Low body temperature (below 97.6)
____ Low blood pressure (below 110/70)
____ Heart palpitations
____ Dryness of eyes and/or mouth
____ Increased thirst
____ Symptoms worsened by temperature changes
____ Symptoms worsened by air travel
____ Symptoms worsened by stress

PAIN
____ HeadacheKiller Headaches
____ Tender points or trigger points
____ Muscle pain
____ Muscle twitching
____ Muscle weakness
____ Paralysis or severe weakness of an arm or leg
____ Joint pain
____ TMJ syndrome
____ Chest pain
____ Nerve pain

GENERAL NEUROLOGICAL
____ Lightheadedness; feeling “spaced out”
____ Inability to think clearly (“brain fog”)
____ Seizures
____ Seizure-like episodes
____ Syncope (fainting) or blackouts
____ Sensation that you might faint
____ Vertigo or dizziness
____ Numbness or tingling sensations
____ Tinnitus (ringing in one or both ears), Ringing in one ear
____ Photophobia (sensitivity to light)
____ Noise intolerance

EQUILIBRIUM/PERCEPTION
____ Feeling spatially disoriented
____ Dysequilibrium (balance difficulty)
____ Staggering gait (clumsy walking; bumping into things)
____ Dropping things frequently
____ Difficulty judging distances (e.g. when driving; placing objects on surfaces)
____ “Not quite seeing” what you are looking at

SLEEP
____ Hypersomnia (excessive sleeping)
____ Sleep disturbance: unrefreshing or non-restorative sleep
____ Sleep disturbance: difficulty falling asleep
____ Sleep disturbance: difficulty staying asleep (frequent awakenings)
____ Sleep disturbance: vivid or disturbing dreams or nightmares
____ Altered sleep/wake schedule (alertness/energy best late at night)

MOOD/EMOTIONS
____ Depressed mood
____ Suicidal thoughts
____ Suicide attempts
____ Feeling worthless
____ Frequent crying
____ Feeling helpless and/or hopeless
____ Inability to enjoy previously enjoyed activities
____ Increased appetite
____ Decreased appetite
____ Anxiety or fear when there is no obvious cause
____ Panic attacks
____ Irritability; overreaction
____ Rage attacks: anger outbursts with little or no cause
____ Abrupt, unpredictable mood swings
____ Phobias (irrational fears)
____ Personality changes

EYES AND VISION
____ Eye pain
____ Changes in visual acuity (frequent changes in ability to see well)
____ Difficulty with accommodation (switching focus from one thing to another)
____ Blind spots in vision

SENSITIVITIES
____ Sensitivities to medications (unable to tolerate “normal” dosage)
____ Sensitivities to odors – smells
____ Sensitivities to foods
____ Alcohol intolerance
____ Auditory sensitivity (sound)
____ Alteration of taste, smell, and/or hearing
____ Light Sensitivity In general – Drug induced
____ Electrical sensitivities

UROGENITAL
____ Frequent urination
____ Painful urination or bladder pain
____ Prostate pain
____ Impotence
____ Endometriosis
____ Worsening of premenstrual syndrome (PMS)
____ Decreased libido (sex drive)

GASTROINTESTINAL
____ Stomach ache; abdominal cramps
____ Nausea
____ Vomiting
____ Esophageal reflux (heartburn)
____ Frequent diarrhea
____ Chronic constipation
____ Bloating; intestinal gas
____ Decreased appetite
____ Increased appetite
____ Food cravings
____ Weight gain (____ lbs)
____ Weight loss (____ lbs)

SKIN

____ Rashes or sores
____ Eczema or psoriasis
____ Acne

OTHER
____ Hair loss
____ Mitral valve prolapse
____ Cancer
____ Dental problems
____ Periodontal (gum) disease
____ Aphthous ulcers (canker sores)

COGNITIVE
____ Difficulty with simple calculations (e.g., balancing checkbook)
____ Word-finding difficulty
____ Using the wrong word
____ Difficulty expressing ideas in words
____ Difficulty moving your mouth to speak
____ Slowed speech
____ Stuttering; stammering
____ Impaired ability to concentrate
____ Easily distracted during a task
____ Difficulty paying attention
____ Difficulty following a conversation when background noise is present
____ Losing your train of thought in the middle of a sentence
____ Difficulty putting tasks or things in proper sequence
____ Losing track in the middle of a task (remembering what to do next)
____ Difficulty with short-term memory
____ Difficulty with long-term memory
____ Forgetting how to do routine things
____ Difficulty understanding what you read
____ Switching left and right
____ Transposition (reversal) of numbers, words and/or letters when you speak
____ Transposition (reversal) of numbers, words and/or letters when you write
____ Difficulty remembering names of objects
____ Difficulty remembering names of people
____ Difficulty recognizing faces
____ Difficulty following simple written instructions
____ Difficulty following complicated written instructions
____ Difficulty following simple oral (spoken) instructions
____ Difficulty following complicated oral (spoken) instructions
____ Poor judgment
____ Difficulty making decisions
____ Difficulty integrating information (putting ideas together to form a complete picture or concept)
____ Difficulty following directions while driving
____ Becoming lost in familiar locations when driving
____ Feeling too disoriented to drive