UK Newbie!

Welcome to our forum, @BabzieAM. I’m sorry for your pain & visual symptoms. Your styloids are significantly long so definitely could be involved with causing the symptoms you have.

Internal carotid artery (ICA) compression or internal jugular vein (IJV) compression are the two types of vascular compression most commonly seen with ES. ICA compression produces stroke-like symptoms, TIAs (transient ischemic attacks i.e. mini strokes), intermittent facial paralysis, inability to speak clearly, etc. whereas IJV compression causes visual changes such as the ones you’ve described, brain fog, pulsatile tinnitus, intracranial hypertension (high blood pressure in the skull which puts excess pressure on the brain) & possibly CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) leaks in the brain or sinuses. ICA compression is the type that can cause a stroke so it’s more dangerous. IJV compression makes people terribly miserable but stroke risk is almost non-existent.

Here’s a link to a post written by @Jules that will be helpful for you:

I’m glad you have a private consultation w/ Mr. Hughes. That’s a great place to start. I’m in the US so can’t answer your question about a private pay consult followed by NHS paid surgery, but I do recall reading on here that it’s possible. You’ll just have a long wait for the surgery.

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