Consistent Headaches

[Annie1992]

Hello my name is Annie and I'm 17 years old. I've been having headaches for 3 months now. They come and go everyday, mostly during the afternoon and at night. I'm not stressed out or anything. I have mild asthma but that's it. I'm not sure what to do or what's causing my headaches but it's really getting in the way. Most of the time I take Tylenol for temporary relief (I've taken like 9 500mg pills over the course of one day, its that serious). I just want to know if anyone knows what else I can do. Sleeping it off doesn't help because after I wake up, a few minutes later it comes back. Any suggestions?

[okeydookie]

I have suffered from migraines due to complications of belles palsy and also later a total sudden lost of all hearing on my right side of face(related to herpes same ones that causes chicken pox but also causes shingles in older people). I had a botched cochlear implant and then located a Dr at UT Southwestern that specialized in spinal column, cochlear implants, etcs. I had surgery however started having migraines-he referred me to his partner who injected several areas in and around face with botox-it really does work and is approved by FDA for migraines. You may have to pay a large co-pay for insurance! Also, do not let needles in your face scare you-I have a phobia about needles. They rubbed lanocane on my face and areas to be injected and wait about 10-15 minutes then inject-it is the tinyist needle I have ever seen. I did not really feel anything. Try it!

[okeydookie]

I am wondering as a layperson. 1) do you work via computer most of the day? If yes contact your eye Dr if special color coating on glasses would be of assistance. Also, turn the brightness of light down low!, Also, I wonder do you drink caffiene in the AM then stop around lunch time? If so could be caffiene related headaches-try caffiene a couple of times and then avoid a couple of times. This will help rule out if is related. You mentioned occuring in the PM-are you eating lunch where MSG is used such as oriental foods, etc. I get migraine types when I eat oriental for several hours, One thing I have not seen mentioned as a treatment option.Most insurance will not cover or out of pocket co-pay is steep. I suffer from Belles Palsy---started getting migraines. My doctor who worked with me and also implanted a cochlear implant as I had sudden total lost of hearing. Told his associate to inject BOTOX in several "frozen areas" and also where I could still move eyebrows, etc to numb them. Guess what it really worked and have had several rounds. When I get the returns of migraines I know it is time for updates. Botox is APPROVED for migraine use!!

[horselip]

I am sorry that you are having this pain, it sounds just awful. Pineal Cysts and tumors often do not have symptoms. However they can be symptomatic too! Headaches, vision probs, hormonal imbalances and other things can happen as a result of pineal tumors..

I am also a headache sufferer and I recommend that you gather yourself and do some research. Try to find a neuro-endocrinologist  that specializes in pineal and/or pituitary adenomas. If it is symptomatic, then having a specialist involved in your care now is important. They will be able to better assess what this bugger is up to.You might even need hormones.

Neuroendos work side by side with neurosurgeons who have the expertise to look at your MRI's and discuss surgical options if that route is even necessary. If the tumor is small and not causing too many hormone issues and the doctor might prefer to take more of a wait and watch approach.

Whatever the recommendations you deserve to know your options and have your pain under better control. A good facility with this type of doctor will most likely have a pain management center too. And there may be medications or other treatments that could lower your pain levels.

Hopefully Dr. Santos will respond too. I am just a patient like you and feel for what you are going through.
Horselip

[Jessel87]

I have been suffering with extreme migraines for over a month. I have had a CT of the brain as well as and MRI of the brain. They found a pineal cystic lesion, and I was referred to a Neurologist. When I went to the Neurologist he did not believe my headaches were related and gave me Relpax and Amitriptylin. These two have not seemed to help any. He also referred me to a Neurosurgeon. I went to the Neurosurgeon and she basically told me the same thing about the headaches, and told me to not worry about the cyst. (The Neurologist told me it was not a cyst is was a mass/tumor) Still, no one has given me any answers and I am still having consistent headaches. I feel at this time I am just getting the run around and I'm not really sure where to go from here. When I said consistent headaches, I mean they never go away. I wake up with them and fall asleep with them. They are more like migraines and some days on a scale from 1-10 they are a 15!!!! Any advice to what I should do next??

[Dr Santos]

Hi,
How are you? This can be due to tension-type headaches which present with dull, non-throbbing pain associated with tightness of scalp or neck. This can be due to stress or work-related. Try to identify the possible triggers to avoid recurrences. Rest, ice packs and pain medications may help. If it persists, you may need to have this checked by your doctor for proper evaluation. Take care and regards.

[missgreenmuffett]

I have a headache most days of my life.  I will on some days start out with no headache and then after I am at work for a while (desk job), I will start taking a nagging headache.  It does not make me sick to my stomach and usually doesn't throb... it just makes me feel extremely draggy and like my eyes want to stay only half-way open.  I'm so tired of these headaches, as they seem to be my constant companion.  Alot of times in the late evening, they will go away.  I help keep the Equate brand of excedrin in business; howeveer I was having trouble with my liver count going up, so I really need to be careful with that.  Any suggestions.  
Tired in Texas

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Welcome to the forum!
Well, if you are on any medication for asthma, then that can cause headaches. Since you have a headache almost daily, what you have is in all probability not a simple migraine but a chronic daily headache (CDH). This can be the primary type—without any cause. If the headache lasts for less than 4 hours then it could be a chronic cluster headache or a chronic paroxysmal hemicranias. If it lasts for more than 4 hours it could be chronic tension headache, chronic migraine or altered migraine or hemicranias continua.
The CDH could also be secondary to trauma, raised intracranial hypertension, high blood pressure, cervical disorders like pinched nerves, temporal arteritis etc. Refractive errors of the eye like near sightedness or far sightedness too could be the cause. If you have asthma, maybe you also have sinusitis. This can also cause a sinus headache that comes daily.
Hence apart from medicines it is important to rule out various causes of headaches. You should consult a migraine and headache specialist.
It is difficult to comment beyond this at this stage.  Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!

[dame_wilbur]

I'd seriously recommend you seeing your doctor if you haven't already. Also, I suggest you keep a food and activity journal and see if you can find any trends other than time of day.

As for the the Tylenol, be careful of taking too much, because then you can get rebound headaches where the acetaminophen can actually trigger a migraine.

good luck and keep us updated,

~dame