Hello everyone,
I'm completely lost and hoping to find answers to a condition that I've been suffering for 7 years. I'm a healthy 33 year old man and I don't have any other problems, and no heredity problems of any sorts.
Description:
About 7-8 years ago I spent excessive amounts of time in front of the computer, often that's all I did. I'd suffer from headaches pretty much all the time from eye strain or too much concentration. After waking up in the morning, I'd turn on the computer and turn it off just before bed. One day I when to bed with the usual pressure in the head from all the staring at the screen, but this time I felt there was something about to happen. It's difficult to explain, but it felt like a seizure coming on, a certain feeling of uncertainty or dizziness, malaise. It somewhat came in waves and just before I fell asleep a MASSIVE pain erupted from behind my left eye, my neck, jaw, face, and left arm simultaneously. I could not lie down and had to jump up. I thought I was having a stroke and could barely make it to the door. I screamed in pain as my entire left side shook, cramped and basically just exploded. It felt as if someone had taken a hook and hooked an artery behind my left eye and pulled it out, jerking the nerve right down to my left fingers with it. The pain disappeared after 30 seconds and I went to bed. It took me weeks to forget the pain.
In the first year it happened once a year. Then the next year 3-4 times. The intervals got smaller and currently I'm almost at two a week, 7 years later.
My 6 year relationship dissolved because I was avoiding life. Going out to the cinemas or where people gather is risky because I'm frightened of the attack "coming". It's gotten worse in the last 6 months, so I'm rarely going to sport these days, something I dearly miss.
I've been to many doctors, blood checks, neurological exams, head MRI w. contrast agents, angiologists, chiropracters, dentists, had extended EEGs done, ECGs, had my eyes checked etc. Everything is fine and I'm "chronically healthy". *sigh*. I do have third molars, but according to the dentists, it's highly unlikely they're causing anything. Maybe they're causing my jaw pressure, possibly the strain behind my left eye. I'm planning on having the third molars removed.
In the meantime the attacks continue to worsen. I'm at wits' end. I fear there will never be a solution, currently I'm just hoping for a cause.
Overview of the symptoms:
- sudden cramp "attack/seizure" which lasts for roughly 30 seconds
- always one side of body
- main cramp/pain starts behind left eye, left jaw, left neck/base of head, down left arm peaking inside left wrist/hand
- almost always happens at evening/night (once it happened at work during the afternoon)
- pressure often felt behind left eye and jaw during the days
- malaise and panic-like symptoms before onset, heightened blood pressure, "thumping heart"
On circulatory system is fine. Doesn't look like migraine or cluster headaches. Not medication so far as managed to delay it or stop it. Paracetamol, aspirin, valium, various cluster headache treatments have no effect. Cooling the neck and face is the closest I've come.
If anyone can point me in the right direction I'd be entirely grateful. I'm slowly seeing no solution to this :((
best regards,
Alex