Aa
I've never lived a second where the pain hasn't gone away in my life.
I have this pain that I experience all day every day accompanying the other 10 problems the I experience every moment of every day of my life. I'm experiencing a pain in the top-back of my head, it is just a pain I can feel every time I breath or don't breath for more then 2 seconds. It seems to get worse the longer I wait to inhale. I've gone to around 20 doctors and no one really knows what the **** is wrong with me. I'm currently on Azelastine that seems to do nothing. I was also on ibuprofen and that does nothing as well. The doctors all say it's allergies but I don't think it's. I went to a local hospital and got a cat scan and that essentially told me nothing again. Although the doctor did mention that I have some "Pressure build up in my sinuses and a polyp that is attached to my sinuses". I also notice that when I pat the top of my head it is quite painful. I also have this horrible pain when I try to sleep with my head facing to the right. It is a gradual build up but it gets to the point where it's unbearable. I honestly want to kill myself sometimes these problems I'm experiencing are so painful, and they never go away.
Another problem I have had since I woke up one morning when I was 11 (Currently 15) is every time I inhale I notice a cold feeling in the back of my throat. Although I've been to over 30 doctors since I've been experiencing this problem and no one has any answers.
Another problem I have had since I woke up one morning when I was 11 (Currently 15) is every time I inhale I notice a cold feeling in the back of my throat. Although I've been to over 30 doctors since I've been experiencing this problem and no one has any answers.
I am sorry but I have no idea how your insurance system works because I live in Europe myself, so I can not guide you.
Hopefully some other people will respond here who might be able to give you a good recommendation.
But you should definitely check up if your parents insurance covers you too or if you can get a good insurance elsewhere. A visit to a good neurologist can be very expensive otherwise.
A ct scan of your neck should cost around 300 USD I guess. The drug amitriptyline I talked about before is very cheap and effective but you are so young that you should first try to get better without drugs I think. Physiotherapy for your neck can also be quite expensive I guess.
Bottom line: get a good insurance that covers your treatment.
Maybe you can ask somebody smart that you trust: a teacher, family member etc, and maybe they can help you choose the right way.
I don't think it needs to get super expensive in the end if you just choose smartly.
Keep us updated on how it goes!
Hopefully some other people will respond here who might be able to give you a good recommendation.
But you should definitely check up if your parents insurance covers you too or if you can get a good insurance elsewhere. A visit to a good neurologist can be very expensive otherwise.
A ct scan of your neck should cost around 300 USD I guess. The drug amitriptyline I talked about before is very cheap and effective but you are so young that you should first try to get better without drugs I think. Physiotherapy for your neck can also be quite expensive I guess.
Bottom line: get a good insurance that covers your treatment.
Maybe you can ask somebody smart that you trust: a teacher, family member etc, and maybe they can help you choose the right way.
I don't think it needs to get super expensive in the end if you just choose smartly.
Keep us updated on how it goes!
The pain is something that is always there, I'd say a 4/10 just painful enough to always notify me of its existence but just lenient enough to keep me semi calm always. I will pursue seeing a doctor that specializes in the field, I have to add, my parents are incredibly poor at the moment and cannot afford their own bills anymore. They usually take me to a pharmaceutical location with under-trained "Doctors" that appear to be fresh to the topics I'm explaining to them. When I mentioned I was starting to experience head pains around a half a year ago they just brought me to the other said of the facility, the childrens side where they appear to be slightly more adept in neurology.
Would my parents insurance cover a visit to a veteran Neurologist?
I also wanted to mention some more symptoms I've begun experiencing or at least noticing a correlation between. I turn my head from side to side to "crack the joint" quite often. Immediately after doing that the pain becomes worse for a few moments. This leads me to believe I may have some sort of Arthritis possibly.
Would my parents insurance cover a visit to a veteran Neurologist?
I also wanted to mention some more symptoms I've begun experiencing or at least noticing a correlation between. I turn my head from side to side to "crack the joint" quite often. Immediately after doing that the pain becomes worse for a few moments. This leads me to believe I may have some sort of Arthritis possibly.
Well, first you need to get a diagnosis. If it is occipital neuralgia for example the common treatment is to block the affected nerves in the neck by injecting a drug right near the nerve. If it is migraines or tension type headache good medicine would be for example amitriptyline or propranolol. Also neurontin, which is a drug that helps against nerve pain could be worth trying. Botox injections could be worth trying as well. If it is believed to be one of the "other" primary headaches besides migraines or tension type then indomethacin is a drug that usually takes away the headache completely.
Lifestyle factors and physio therapy might be equally important as finding the right drugs.
So there are a number of options and almost certainly one of them will help you. But the key is to meet a good doctor who can diagnose you and who won't give up on you.
Another thing I would want to ask you is how painful is it? Can you live with it or not? 90% of all headaches are categorized as either migraine or tension type (which are perhaps even the same thing actually, nobody knows) and nobody knows exactly how they work and how to cure them. There are things to help, sure. But in the end, you will not be cured and you will not have any answer and that is something that we must learn to accept. You just get a treatment that works well enough for you to get on with your life. Do you get me? For some people it can be enough just to know that all the dangerous stuff have been ruled out, like brain tumor etc, and they are happy with that. I think it was really good that your ct scan came back normal because that excludes a lot of dangerous things, brain tumor included.
Try to find a good neurologist who is interested in headaches, then you don't have to think anymore, he/she will do the job for you:).
But as a start he/she will ask you questions about your symptoms and the medicine you take, measure your blood pressure, test your nerve functions (that you can smile, lift both arms etc), feel your head and neck, listen to your heart and take some basic blood tests and maybe order a neck x-ray if you have not had one already.
Really, they must examine your neck.
Also tell them about your other symptoms because they might be connected and give a hint about what is going on.
Do you get good support from your family? You may need help to focus on your school work despite all this going on. In your age that is kind of important, as you know.
Lifestyle factors and physio therapy might be equally important as finding the right drugs.
So there are a number of options and almost certainly one of them will help you. But the key is to meet a good doctor who can diagnose you and who won't give up on you.
Another thing I would want to ask you is how painful is it? Can you live with it or not? 90% of all headaches are categorized as either migraine or tension type (which are perhaps even the same thing actually, nobody knows) and nobody knows exactly how they work and how to cure them. There are things to help, sure. But in the end, you will not be cured and you will not have any answer and that is something that we must learn to accept. You just get a treatment that works well enough for you to get on with your life. Do you get me? For some people it can be enough just to know that all the dangerous stuff have been ruled out, like brain tumor etc, and they are happy with that. I think it was really good that your ct scan came back normal because that excludes a lot of dangerous things, brain tumor included.
Try to find a good neurologist who is interested in headaches, then you don't have to think anymore, he/she will do the job for you:).
But as a start he/she will ask you questions about your symptoms and the medicine you take, measure your blood pressure, test your nerve functions (that you can smile, lift both arms etc), feel your head and neck, listen to your heart and take some basic blood tests and maybe order a neck x-ray if you have not had one already.
Really, they must examine your neck.
Also tell them about your other symptoms because they might be connected and give a hint about what is going on.
Do you get good support from your family? You may need help to focus on your school work despite all this going on. In your age that is kind of important, as you know.
What other medicines would you recommend? I was told what I was taking was the real deal when it comes to my problems I'm experiencing. I'm willing to try anything, so please don't hesitate to recommend a medicine that may be difficult to acquire or otherwise too expensive.
I've considered getting it removed, I don't even know if it's the problem but if there's a chance that it could do something I'm willing to put down money for it myself. The doctor said it was the size of a pea and said that it COULD cause minor pain. Do you think it's worth taking the leap?
The medicine you are taking is for the polyp and the sinuses. It is not sure this will help anything with the headaches, although it might; sometimes the body has weird connections. Ibuprofen is for the headaches I assume but it is a very weak drug. Have you tried any "real" headache medicine? I mean any stronger stuff?
Chronic pain in the back of the head can be occipital neuralgia for example. That the pain level shifts with breathing and head posture makes me suspect some nerve issues in the neck area. Have you seen a neurologist? You say you have seen 30 doctors, sometimes (as you are aware) it is a matter of seeing the "right" doctors too.
It is hard to give you any more feedback than this. You need to see a good neurologist who is specialized in headaches and who will diagnose you. It might take a while. Usually more than just one visit. In the meantime you should try to live your life as well as you can with as little focus on the illness as you can (easier said than done). A healthy lifestyle and good emotional life is also important to help the body and mind cope with illness.
If I were you I would still have some hope. There are good doctors out there and good medicines too. Chances are big that you will find help in the end.
Good luck!
Chronic pain in the back of the head can be occipital neuralgia for example. That the pain level shifts with breathing and head posture makes me suspect some nerve issues in the neck area. Have you seen a neurologist? You say you have seen 30 doctors, sometimes (as you are aware) it is a matter of seeing the "right" doctors too.
It is hard to give you any more feedback than this. You need to see a good neurologist who is specialized in headaches and who will diagnose you. It might take a while. Usually more than just one visit. In the meantime you should try to live your life as well as you can with as little focus on the illness as you can (easier said than done). A healthy lifestyle and good emotional life is also important to help the body and mind cope with illness.
If I were you I would still have some hope. There are good doctors out there and good medicines too. Chances are big that you will find help in the end.
Good luck!
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