Severe headaches

[gngr78us]

I have been experiencing headaches since my car accident in Nov08.  I have been through Chiropractic, Massage Physical Therapy, Pain Management and then PT again myofacial(sp) release.  Nothing seems to help.  The pain meds allow me to sleep but I wake up within two hours still with the horrible headache.  I also have been taking muscle relaxers, but for the last three months I have been on them and still get the headaches.   Xrays were normal, MRI of neck show slipped disc and spinal cord slightly rotated.  I got Facet shots, which made the neck pain go away but nothing will help the headaches.  The headaches start at the base of skull and work up to top of head they feel deep.  Most times it is so deep it feels like a worm tying to dig out of my head.  Light nor sounds bother me when I do have the headaches sneezing, bending over, and coughing make it worse.  I have been keeping a journal and the PM and GP doctors cant pinpoint anything.  I havent seen anyone else other than PT, GP and Chiro.  I see the doc tom, just wondering if you have any adive.
Thanks
Jennifer

[blackcompe]

The headaches may be psychogenic (co-occurring with an abnormal mental state). Many times pain is successfully treated with anti-depressants. Perhaps you should get a mental evaluation just to make sure you don't have other symptoms of a mood disorder. I woke up with a low grade achy headache everyday after my concussion, which left me on disability, and in the end it was mTBI induced Major Depressive Disorder. Somatic (physical) symptoms are common in depression and anxiety. If your pain isn't manageable with opioid medications, muscle relaxants, or NSAID's, you might want to take another path. Good luck with everything.

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the MedHelp forum!
There are two main possibilities for your headache.
One is ‘benign intracranial hypertension’(BIH). This happens due to impaired CSF absorption. A generalized throbbing headache worst felt in the morning and last thing at night. This headache is generally relieved on standing (consistent with raised intracranial pressure). It is aggravated by straining, coughing or a change in position. You have a similar headache. A spinal tap is both diagnostic and curative.
Since you have slipped disc and spinal curvature, possibility of compressed spinal cervical nerves cannot be ruled out totally. MRI and nerve conduction studies will help reach a diagnosis.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!

[dynamic1968]

Sadly, I will add to your headaches...since I was rear-ended at highway speed while stopped at a construction site on an highway in April 2008,  I suffer from extreme pain (headaches, neck, shoulders, spine, upper buttock, etc), bilateral numbness/tingling of legs/knees/ankles/feet and arms/shoulders/wrists/hands, sleep deprivation due to neck pain/positions.  My headaches are same as yours (base of skull expanding to top and sides of head) and I also try to "dig the pain out" without success.  I also received Chiro/Physio/Masso/ Acupuncture treatments without longterm relief.
Only last week, a spine surgeon's office acknowledged my extreme symptoms, which are associated to stenosis.

STENOSIS is when the spinal cord canal is norrowed down, by the pressure of disks/vertebras/bone debris/etc.  
The treatment would be to reinforce your neck/spine * check the "Cervical Spinal Stabilization EXERCICES" booklet written by Donald R. Murphy, D.C./Gary F. Ierna, D.C.  Otherwise, surgery is your other option at this time, and as per my researches...a lot of people complain of pain even after the surgery was performed to widen their spinal cord canal.

Living hell after being rear-ended,
Mimi