Right Side Migraines or Headaches, Odd symptoms

[RezShad85]

Hello, I am posting this not for my sake but for my gf. I am trying to find some answers for her about whats going on with her head.

So about a month ago, my gf started having really bad headaches/migraines to the point where she was having to go to the emergency room.

A little background info first about my gf. Her name is Brittany, she is 20 years old, doesnt have a job at the moment and does not go to school. She was in the midst of doing some work to get into the police academy but since these headaches came along, it has put everything on hold. She does not have health insurance and her family is having severe money problems. She has been denied Medi-Cal because she owns a car I guess and as time grows on these headaches and or migraines get worse and worse.

So to cut to the chase. She has really bad headaches. She has symptoms of nausea, dizziness, hearing reduced on the right side of her head, vomitting, vision problems, black and purple circles around her eyes as if she was wearing some sort of makeup, she says she is having some sort of issue with her memory, and she faints occaisionally.

She has been to the emergency room a few times, seeking help or treatment. All 5 times she has been told she has a cluster headache or just migraines. She has had 2 ct scans done with both turning out normal and a lumbar puncture done that turned out normal as well. Doctors have prescribed a few drugs to her such as vikodin, immitrex, norco, and benedryl. Nothing seems to work or make an impact on her pain. She is also exhibiting neck pain as well.

My mom thinks it could be hormonal or some sort of phase shes going through. Her mom thinks it has something to do with her vision and her needing glasses and her dad seems to think its something chemical. She is having an MRI done today as we speak and I am awaiting the results of that as well.

Anywho, I came onto this forum hoping to find an answer to my quesiton, I hate seeing her in pain and I have no idea what the hell could be causing this much pain. I am really worried about her and I don't know how much longer I can be left in the dark with all of this. Please help.

[mbnad]

I'm not an MD...  I'm a long time migraine sufferer.  The type of migraines I have are of the complicated variety,  Basilar Type as far as we can tell from my strange symptoms - they mimic MS and Stroke.  I've had a brain MRI, full spinal MRI, evoked potential testing, and more blood work than on person ever should to rule other possibilities.  

Your girl friends symptoms sound so close to what I was going through daily.  I had these things under control until about two years ago when I fell and injured my back just a bit.  I started taking Ibuprofen daily for the back irritation as prescribed by my doctor.  
Because I hadn't had a migraine in over three years at that time I didn't feel the need to bring the history up.  My daily Ibuprofen regimen caused me to go into a sort of migraine spiral, causing the nerve receptors all over my body to become over sensitive.
After a year of testing and going from one specialist to another this is what we finally came up with... Migraines... When I was finally sent to a Neurologist she took me off the Ibuprofen and put me on a neurological medication that's used for seizures and for treating migraines - it's working like a charm.  Who would have known Ibuprofen was the one ingredient that was making my life hell...

This may or may not help in your girl friends case.  I just see so many similarities between her symptoms and mine.  I would like to point out that I did have all of those big tests to rule out more serious diseases and my journey ended with a neurologist.  They are the specialists of the brain and if she hasn't seen one yet she might want to find one.  It's been a long drawn out process for me and I wish you luck with your journey.

[Dr Santos]

Hi,
How is Brittany? I hope she is feeling better. It is good that the 2 CT scans and lumbar puncture were both fine. What other tests were done? Basing from your post, her symptoms started just one month ago. Can you tell what could have triggered this? This could be environmental, food or even work-related exposure. We may not give the exact diagnosis or answer all your questions due to limitations of  internet but we are here to give differentials along the way. Your girl friend is  indeed lucky to have you. Hang on and please do keep us posted with the MRI results. Take care and best regards.

[RezShad85]

Oh and btw, she does not smoke, drink, and she eats healthy. Takes a one a day energy vitamin as well. She is having a hard time keeping down food too. : /