FND can have many symptoms that can vary from person to person. Some people may have few symptoms, and some people may have many. Some examples can include:

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• Functional seizures: A functional seizure (also called a dissociative seizure) is an episode where someone loses either their awareness of, or their ability to interact with, their surroundings. It may look like an epileptic seizure or a faint. A functional seizure can appear as:

  • uncontrolled shaking

  • suddenly going motionless and unresponsive

  • staring without responding to surroundings

Some people are aware that seizures are about to happen, while others experience them without warning.

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• Functional dystonia: Functional dystonia is a type of muscle spasm. It causes a part of the body to become stuck in an unusual position. This can be for a short or a long period of time. Someone with functional dystonia will often present with curled fingers, a clenched hand, or an ankle that turns in.

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• Functional drop attacks: Functional drop attacks are when someone falls to the ground suddenly, without losing consciousness.

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• Functional sensory symptoms: A symptom of FND can be numbness, pins and needles, or a feeling that a limb isn’t part of your body.

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• Functional cognitive symptoms: Problems with your memory or concentration can be a symptom of FND. You might find that you:

  • lose track while doing things (for example being unable to remember why you went into a room)

  • go blank (for example when trying to recall your pin number)

  • lose track during conversations, misplace important things like your keys or phone

  • forget words. 

It’s normal to experience these things occasionally. For someone with functional cognitive symptoms, these things happen so often that they interfere with work and home life.

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• Dissociative symptoms: Dissociative symptoms are common in FND, although there are many other causes. 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.

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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 headache 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

Source: NHS Inform Website​