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Neurology Community
This forum is for questions and support regarding neurology issues such as: Alzheimer's Disease, ALS, Autism, Brain Cancer, Cerebral Palsy, Chronic Pain, Epilepsy, Fibromyalgia, Headaches, MS, Neuralgia, Neuropathy, Parkinson's Disease, RSD, Sleep Disorders, Stroke, Traumatic Brain Injury
Neck pain, Daily headache, arm numbness?
by mattnmeplus5, Feb 16, 2008 11:33AM
Hi, I'm a 41 yr old mom of five. I'm normally very healthy, on Sept. 30, 2006 I got what I thought was a horrible migraine. I'd had migraines very infrequently since 1995. The pain seemed to emanate from my shoulder and neck. I was treated at the E.R. for the migraine but nothing worked and I was sent home.
I have had a headache EVERY day since then. The pain in my shoulder is daily and increases with use of my right arm, tingling and numbness down my arm to my finger tips are apparent when I turn my head toward the right. I can increase and decrease the pain in my head by the position of my head on a pillow or will get a headache if I preform different tasks such as vacuum, rake, or drive my husbans stick shift car. Eight days a month are severe (an 8+) but there appears to be no pattern, all headaches present with increased shoulder and neck pain first. I've had several medications from Topomax to Lyrica with no relief and am currently taking Zonisamide daily (9 weeks) with Naproxin and Imatrex as needed. I graph my headaches daily and average a 5 on a 0 - 10 scale, no changes noted with Zonisamide treatment. No days are 0. I avoid taking any OTC medications and use the Naproxin and Imatrex very sparingly.
An MRI a year ago showed bulging but it was discounted as unimportant by my neurologist. A week ago my PT however suggested an exercise for correcting a bulging cervical disc that she feels I may have. She knew nothing of the MRI results. It seems to help my neck thus helping reduce the severity of my headaches. Last summer I wore a clavical support for two weeks which I purchased myself as an experimental treatment and the headaches were greatly reduced, but again my Dr.s believed it had nothing to do with my headaches and that I am suffering from common daily migraine. Very recently I have even been diagnosed with Fybromyalgia by my Neurologist although I have only pain in my neck and shoulder with no other symptoms and the Lyrica did nothing for my pain.
Can the pain in my neck and shoulder be linked to my headaches as I've suspected? I have seen a Chiropractor and PT for many months, it may help for a day but the pain soon returns. Is there something being overlooked? What can I ask my Doctors to check? What tests should I suggest?
Is there something more I can do?
I am getting desperate. My children need me to be healthy. I can't be a mommy when my head hurts day and night. I'm on my second Neurologist this one is from Dartmouth Hitchcock in Lebanon, I was told he was one of the best, but when I call he does things like tells his nurse to take me off the Lyrica then two weeks later when I call again because the severity hasn't improved he tells me to increase the Lyrica and needed to be reminded I'd been taken off of it so he increased the Zonisamide?? I'm confused, It has been 17 months of unending headache, I need some advice please.
Thank you, Karin
I have had a headache EVERY day since then. The pain in my shoulder is daily and increases with use of my right arm, tingling and numbness down my arm to my finger tips are apparent when I turn my head toward the right. I can increase and decrease the pain in my head by the position of my head on a pillow or will get a headache if I preform different tasks such as vacuum, rake, or drive my husbans stick shift car. Eight days a month are severe (an 8+) but there appears to be no pattern, all headaches present with increased shoulder and neck pain first. I've had several medications from Topomax to Lyrica with no relief and am currently taking Zonisamide daily (9 weeks) with Naproxin and Imatrex as needed. I graph my headaches daily and average a 5 on a 0 - 10 scale, no changes noted with Zonisamide treatment. No days are 0. I avoid taking any OTC medications and use the Naproxin and Imatrex very sparingly.
An MRI a year ago showed bulging but it was discounted as unimportant by my neurologist. A week ago my PT however suggested an exercise for correcting a bulging cervical disc that she feels I may have. She knew nothing of the MRI results. It seems to help my neck thus helping reduce the severity of my headaches. Last summer I wore a clavical support for two weeks which I purchased myself as an experimental treatment and the headaches were greatly reduced, but again my Dr.s believed it had nothing to do with my headaches and that I am suffering from common daily migraine. Very recently I have even been diagnosed with Fybromyalgia by my Neurologist although I have only pain in my neck and shoulder with no other symptoms and the Lyrica did nothing for my pain.
Can the pain in my neck and shoulder be linked to my headaches as I've suspected? I have seen a Chiropractor and PT for many months, it may help for a day but the pain soon returns. Is there something being overlooked? What can I ask my Doctors to check? What tests should I suggest?
Is there something more I can do?
I am getting desperate. My children need me to be healthy. I can't be a mommy when my head hurts day and night. I'm on my second Neurologist this one is from Dartmouth Hitchcock in Lebanon, I was told he was one of the best, but when I call he does things like tells his nurse to take me off the Lyrica then two weeks later when I call again because the severity hasn't improved he tells me to increase the Lyrica and needed to be reminded I'd been taken off of it so he increased the Zonisamide?? I'm confused, It has been 17 months of unending headache, I need some advice please.
Thank you, Karin
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I just read your comment and it sounds very familiar. I was injured with a "whiplash-type" injury in June and have had the same symptoms. I have been to Orthopedic, Pain Management, and 2 Neurologists. Dr. Pamela Blake in Houston who is with Memorial Hermann Northwest Hospital believes that my occipital nerve is compressed. She and a local plastic surgeon have been curing peoples headaches with this procedure. They have patients come from all over the U.S. You can google her name or The Headache Center of Northwest to find her.