5 yr old 6 wks post op getting headaches again?

[samsam5mom]

I have a 5 yr old who had decompression surgery 6 weeks ago. We found out about chiari because he was having terrible headaches. He also has several syrinxs. He has been doing great after operation but in the last week he has gotten 2 headaches (he says same as before) and is always really tired! 4 out of last 7 days he hasnt been his normal self? My question is...is there anyone out there who's child had gone through this? Did they get headaches back? I talked to nurse today she just told me to watch him. They want to wait until 3 months after surgery to do mri's......

[selmaS]

  Surgery is done to restore CSF flow and progression of a syrinx if one is present and help one form if one is not....

And then there are hopes to limit pain and symptoms....but not ALL symptoms and pain go away...and some take time b4 we notice we no longer have them...it can take time b4 you know just what all the benefits were from his surgery....

In the 5.5 yrs since my surgery I can look back and see benefits with each yr that passed....

[samsam5mom]

He is doing pretty good....other then headaches being back and being tired. His headaches are a little better then they were before surgery but I thought the point of it all was to stop headaches? Am I wrong? Will he have them forever??

[Elisaandbucky]

Hello again. I remember you thread about your son's surgery back at the end of December (29th?). Christmas week must have been difficult. Did your son get to see any other children in your family after he came home, or had they all returned to school. You were wondering if he would be the same happy kid that he was prior to the surgery. I know 6 weeks is not a lot of time to heal, but I hope he is able to have some fun without being too physical. You had also mentioned that his one shoulder was up higher than the other and that he was tilting his head to one side. Has that still been the case? I wonder if holding his body that way was to try to alleviate some of his pain soon after the surgery. I hope you are seeing a progressive recovery in terms of his everyday mood,  even if he is still having headaches. Be well.

[selmaS]

  Hi...I am sorry he is not feeling well , but much of this is to be expected....HA's will return but usually around 3 months post op, if they come b4, it could be due to what he has been doing.....and he will tire a lot faster as he is still healing....

  You said the HA's are like b4, do they last as long? Have they been worse?

Mos times they do not last as long, and again, it is a sign of healing...as the nerves heal they tend to be over stimulated and end up causing many symptoms to return....but this should be short lived....

As the nurse said keep an eye on him, his activities, and let him rest when he is tired...this also allows him to heal....<3