Feeling like ground is soft
January 14, 2019 3:18 AM   Subscribe

Hi, From the past few months I am having this feeling which is like ground is soft under my feet. If I stand on ground and shake my legs hard I can feel ground moving sensations. I am having difficulty while walking because of this. kind of pushing, swaying etc. Anyone ever experienced this?
posted by bharath to Health & Fitness (15 answers total)
 
For me, any kind of consistent weirdness in the way my nerves transmitted touch signals, especially one which interfered with my ability to walk, would be definite grounds for a visit to the doctor. Don't panic or anything, you're probably fine, most people are fine most of the time, but this kind of symptom is associated with a few things that it would be a good idea to rule out.
posted by Acheman at 3:33 AM on January 14, 2019 [4 favorites]


After slipping on some ice I had this sensation for a while. I think it was anxiety over falling again that caused my brain to pick up on the slightest hydroplane, real or imagined. Did you recently have any falls?
posted by marimeko at 3:36 AM on January 14, 2019


Response by poster: I did not have any falls. but the day it started I was on my way to home from my office and suddenly had like I am gonna fall sensation kind of within blink of an eye so that is when it all started.
posted by bharath at 3:44 AM on January 14, 2019


Sounds like pretty classic vertigo to me (as a total layperson). That's usually a problem with your inner ear and can be a symptom associated with all manner of other things. I'm another vote for go to a doctor, get checked out, maybe get a referral to an Ear Nose and Throat specialist.
posted by Mizu at 4:05 AM on January 14, 2019 [8 favorites]


Totally sounds like vertigo to me. You might have some loose crystals: if so, a simple in-house manoeuver can fix you up.
posted by Dressed to Kill at 4:39 AM on January 14, 2019


+1 for vertigo. I had a low-level but fairly continuous sense of not quite knowing where the ground was. Lots of investigations but it eventually went away on its own or my brain just got used to it.
posted by crocomancer at 4:54 AM on January 14, 2019


I am an occasional crash-bang fainter with vertigo. The mushy ground underneath you feeling and dizziness has not, in my personal experience, been a connection for me.

When I experience vertigo my whole self is affected, not just my legs. I can't figure out/rationalize which direction is up, even with my eyes open. I may experience nausea and the spins (and sometimes passing out), but that has never turned into a mushy feeling down in the earth below me.

Does this happen every time you bend your legs, or on a particular surface, or in specific situations? Are you experiencing something stressful when you are bending your legs and the ground feels soft? It sounds like a weird sensation you're experiencing, and I hope you are able to find an explanation.
posted by mcbeth at 4:57 AM on January 14, 2019 [2 favorites]


I experience something similar after being on long flights - when I'm back on firm ground, I get the feeling like the ground is slightly moving for a day or so. Often it goes away faster when I can spend some time outdoors where I can see the horizon. Any chance you get this more often after being in enclosed, moving spaces?
posted by CompanionCube at 5:46 AM on January 14, 2019 [1 favorite]


This can be a symptom of anxiety.
posted by pinochiette at 6:30 AM on January 14, 2019 [1 favorite]


I have also experienced the soft-ground feeling before, usually in places with really bright lights or other visual overstimuli, like shopping malls or other places with fluorescent lights and high ceilings. It's a precursor to a migraine for me.

Although I will give another +1 for vertigo. I get vertigo on occasion and it makes everything feel just wrong.
posted by Gray Duck at 8:07 AM on January 14, 2019


Definitely a type of vertigo. I get it from anxiety and/or eyestrain, and when it's bad, it's like walking on clouds, or on a surface that undulates like ocean waves.

Do you wear glasses/contacts? If so, did you get new glasses or a different prescription in the months leading up to the start of this? One poorly-adjusted pair of glasses set this off for me.
posted by QuickedWeen at 8:43 AM on January 14, 2019


Sometimes neuropathy can cause strange sensations in your feet, though not usually of the type that you describe.
posted by alex1965 at 8:46 AM on January 14, 2019


Sounds like vertigo to me too. PLEASE go get your vision checked as well! Visit an ENT.

I had severe vertigo and migraines - including MRIs and balance testing that showed my left ear side was only at 85% function. Turned out I desperately needed glasses and had needed them for years. I also had vertigo after a bad cold and had to do pseudoephedrine. I'm still prone to it for many reasons. Meclizine (dramamine less drowsy) can help. As well as Ativan or other anxiety medications as they calm your inner ear (see your doctor of course.)
posted by Crystalinne at 1:58 PM on January 14, 2019


yep. turned out to be Meniere's disease. go see an ENT.
posted by evilmonk at 2:18 PM on January 14, 2019


Response by poster: @evilmonk I don't have any hearing loss. Anyway I will visit an ent.
posted by bharath at 10:06 PM on January 14, 2019


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