u/Conscious_Habit6820

I’m 33 years old, male, and I was recently diagnosed with apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy after an echocardiogram. I’m still waiting to get a cardiac MRI to understand more clearly how serious it is and what it means for me long term.

I’m trying to understand whether anyone here has experienced symptoms similar to mine.
My dizziness actually started back in 2024. Around that time, I began having dizziness, headaches, brain fog, and a strange “off” feeling that lasted for about two months. Little by little, I improved, but I honestly never felt like I fully recovered. Since then, I’ve often felt kind of dizzy or unsteady, especially when walking or standing. Driving and running usually felt better than walking, which made everything more confusing.

I was also diagnosed with BPPV in 2024, and later I was evaluated for vision-related dizziness/binocular vision dysfunction. I ended up getting prism glasses. I’ve also had symptoms that doctors have considered possibly related to vestibular migraine or PPPD, because busy visual environments, floor patterns, stores, hallways, and head/eye movement can trigger symptoms.

For most of 2025 and early 2026, I was still dealing with symptoms, but I was able to function better. I kept running and training. In May 2026, I completed an ultra marathon, about 31 miles / 50K. At the time, I didn’t realize there could be a heart issue. I thought most of my dizziness was vestibular or vision-related, so I kept training.

After that race, things got much worse. A few days later, I had a major dizziness episode while walking downtown. It felt like spinning and it triggered a panic attack. Since then, I haven’t really felt the same.
Since the ultra, I have not really trained because of my doctor’s recommendation. I’ve only tried a 1-mile jog, and even after that I felt very off afterward. It’s hard to describe, but after running I can feel dizzy, lightheaded, anxious, disconnected, or just not like myself. That has been scary because running used to be one of the few things that made me feel normal.

Now I’m experiencing dizziness more often again, especially when walking. I also get facial pressure, headaches, eye/facial soreness, brain fog, and random waves of dizziness during the day. The symptoms come and go, and sometimes they feel very random. I’ve also had palpitations and moments where I feel more aware of my heartbeat.

To be honest, I didn’t realize how serious apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy could be until recently. I know the MRI will give more information, and I’m waiting for that, but I’m feeling scared and trying to understand what symptoms other people with HCM, especially apical HCM, have experienced.
Did any of you have dizziness, brain fog, headaches, facial pressure, or symptoms that felt vestibular before or after your diagnosis? Did exercise make things worse for anyone? Did anyone feel very off after even short runs or light jogging? How did your symptoms present, and did the cardiac MRI change your treatment plan?
I’m not asking for a diagnosis, just trying to hear from people with similar experiences while I wait for more testing.