Can tingling in my lower legs, ataxia, and elevated inflammatory markers cause a sensation of feeling disconnected or as if I'm in a bubble?

Can Tingling, Ataxia, and Inflammation Cause a "Bubble" Sensation?

Yes, the combination of lower leg tingling (peripheral sensory symptoms), ataxia, and elevated inflammatory markers can absolutely cause a sensation of feeling disconnected or "in a bubble"—this represents a sensory ataxia syndrome where loss of proprioception creates profound spatial disorientation and depersonalization.

Understanding the Mechanism

Your symptoms suggest sensory ataxia rather than cerebellar ataxia, which is a critical distinction:

• Sensory ataxia results from damage to dorsal root ganglia, dorsal columns of the spinal cord, or peripheral sensory nerves—not the cerebellum 1, 2
• The "bubble" or disconnection sensation occurs because your brain is losing normal position sense (proprioception) from your lower extremities, creating a profound feeling of spatial disorientation 3
• This disconnection worsens dramatically when you close your eyes or are in dim lighting, as you lose visual compensation for the proprioceptive deficit 1, 4, 2

Key Distinguishing Feature: The Romberg Test

If your unsteadiness significantly worsens with eyes closed, this confirms sensory ataxia (positive Romberg sign) rather than cerebellar pathology 1, 4, 2:

• Cerebellar ataxia causes unsteadiness that persists equally whether eyes are open or closed 1, 4
• Sensory ataxia dramatically worsens with eye closure because you rely heavily on vision to compensate for lost proprioception 4, 2
• The Romberg test evaluates dorsal column function responsible for proprioception 4

Urgent Diagnostic Workup Required

Given your inflammatory markers are elevated, you need immediate MRI of the cervical and thoracic spine WITH IV contrast to evaluate for treatable inflammatory causes 2:

Potentially Treatable Causes to Rule Out:

• Chronic immune sensory polyradiculopathy (CISP): inflammatory condition affecting sensory nerve roots that responds dramatically to immunotherapy 5
• Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyradiculoneuropathy (CIDP): can present as ataxic neuropathy and responds to steroids 6
• Vitamin B12 or copper deficiency: causes dorsal column dysfunction and is easily treatable with supplementation 2
• Neurosyphilis (tabes dorsalis): affects dorsal columns and requires antibiotic therapy 2
• Compressive myelopathy: may require surgical decompression 2

Why Contrast is Essential:

• Add IV contrast specifically because your inflammatory markers are elevated—this detects inflammatory, infectious, or neoplastic causes 2
• Non-contrast MRI alone may miss active inflammation 7, 2

Expected Imaging Findings

• Enlargement of lumbar/thoracic nerve roots with enhancement suggests inflammatory polyradiculopathy 5
• Spinal cord atrophy may indicate degenerative ataxia 7, 2
• Signal changes in dorsal columns suggest B12/copper deficiency or neurosyphilis 2

Additional Testing Beyond Imaging

• Electrodiagnostic testing (nerve conduction studies and EMG) to document large fiber sensory neuropathy or dorsal root ganglion involvement 2
• Somatosensory evoked potentials (SSEP) to identify sensory nerve root involvement proximal to dorsal root ganglia 5
• CSF analysis: elevated protein supports inflammatory polyradiculopathy (median 526 mg/dL in CIDP cases) 6, 5
• Serum testing: B12, copper, methylmalonic acid, anti-ganglioside antibodies (anti-GM1, anti-GM2, anti-GA1) 6

Critical Pitfall to Avoid

Do not accept a diagnosis of "cerebellar ataxia" without proper testing—this would be a catastrophic error if you actually have sensory ataxia from an inflammatory cause 2:

• Inflammatory sensory polyradiculopathies can cause patients to require walking aids, but six of six patients treated with immunotherapy had marked improvement, with four returning to normal ambulation 5
• Missing this diagnosis means missing a potentially curative treatment 2, 5

Why You Feel "In a Bubble"

The disconnection sensation is your brain's response to profound proprioceptive loss:

• Your brain cannot accurately sense where your legs are in space 3
• This creates spatial disorientation and a feeling of being detached from your body 3
• Visual compensation becomes your primary balance mechanism, which is exhausting and incomplete 2, 3
• The inflammatory process may also be affecting multiple sensory modalities simultaneously, amplifying the disconnection 6, 5

Immediate Next Steps

1. Obtain MRI cervical and thoracic spine WITH IV contrast urgently 2
2. Request electrodiagnostic testing and SSEP 2, 5
3. Check inflammatory markers, B12, copper, and CSF protein 2, 6, 5
4. Perform Romberg testing in a safe environment with someone ready to catch you—significant worsening with eyes closed confirms sensory ataxia 4, 2

The combination of tingling, ataxia, elevated inflammatory markers, and a "bubble" sensation strongly suggests an inflammatory sensory polyradiculopathy that may be highly treatable with immunotherapy or steroids 6, 5. Do not delay this workup.