Functional Neurological Disorder Compensation Solicitors

Functional neurological disorder (FND) is a complex medical condition where there is a problem with the functioning of the nervous system and how the brain and body send and receive signals. The symptoms often appear suddenly and progress rapidly and can include limb weakness, paralysis, seizures, walking difficulties, spasms, twitching, sensory issues and more.

FND is a real condition which causes debilitating symptoms. The symptoms of FND may fluctuate, or be there constantly, and specialist recognise the following clinical features as typical of FND:

• Functional limb weakness – this can often be confused with a stroke or MS and can cause problems walking, heaviness down one side, dropping things and even feeling like a limb isn’t part of you.
• Functional seizures – patients experience uncontrolled shaking, suddenly going motionless and unresponsive, staring without responding to surroundings, and the seizures may look like an epileptic seizure or a faint.
• Functional tremor – uncontrollable shaking of part of the body, commonly found in the arms and legs. A functional tremor can come and go throughout the day and can change in speed and strength.
• Functional dystonia – muscle spasms that cause a part of the body to become stuck in an unusual position. Someone with functional dystonia will often present with curled fingers, a clenched hand, or an ankle that turns in.
• Functional gait disorder – a dragging leg, feeling unsteady when walking, or that you make excessive movements when walking.
• Functional facial spasm – muscle spasms in the face can lead to problems like a narrowing of the eye or the pulling of the mouth or jaw upwards, downwards or to the side.
• Functional tics – commonly associated with Tourette’s Syndrome, a tic is a fast repetitive movement or sound that happens suddenly.
• Functional jerks and twitches – frequent sudden movements like when you jolt awake as you’re falling asleep.
• Functional drop attacks – this is when someone falls to the ground suddenly, and without losing consciousness.
• Functional sensory symptoms – this could be numbness, pins and needles, or a feeling that a limb isn’t part of your body.
• Functional cognitive symptoms – problems with your memory or concentration can be a symptom of FND, such as losing track while doing things, being unable to remember why you went into a room, forgetting important numbers or dates, losing track during conversations, forgetting words, and misplacing important things like your keys or phone.
• Functional speech and swallowing difficulty – slurred speech, a stutter, difficulties finding the right word, unintentionally mixing words up, whispering or hoarse speech (dysphonia), difficulty swallowing, including feeling like there’s something stuck in your throat.
• Persistent postural perceptual dizziness (PPPD) – the dizziness in PPPD is typically experienced constantly and gets worse while walking or in crowded environments.
• Functional visual symptoms – changes to your vision such as blurred vision, double vision, sensitivity to light and reduced vision.
• Dissociative symptoms – These symptoms can be hard to describe, but are often described as feeling
  • that your body is disconnected from you
  • that your body doesn’t belong to you
  • disconnected from the world around you
  • spaced out
  • that you are floating
  • that you are having an out-of-body experience
  • there but not there
  • you may also be able to hear what’s going on around you, but not be able to respond.

There are other symptoms or conditions that are commonly associated with FND. These include:

• chronic pain, including fibromyalgia, back and neck pain, and complex regional pain syndrome
• persistent fatigue
• sleep problems including insomnia (not sleeping enough) and hypersomnia (sleeping too much)
• migraines and other types of headaches and facial pain
• irritable bowel syndrome and other problems with the function of your stomach and bowel
• anxiety and panic attacks
• depression
• post-traumatic stress disorder
• chronic urinary retention despite all tests being normal (which may be diagnosed as Fowlers syndrome)
• dysfunctional breathing

When it comes to neurological disorders, Brian Barr are experts. FND can be a debilitating illness caused by psychological trauma and / or physical trauma and affects people differently. If you have FND as a result of someone else’s negligence, then you are entitled to claim for compensation to help you on your road to recovery.