Headache after eating

[captainheadache]

I get intense, throbbing headaches 2 hours after eating food.  The more sugar content, the more intense the headache, and the longer the headache lasts.  If I eat something like a snickers bar or a piece of cake, the intensity is debilitating and the pain can last for days.  Just about anything with more than a few grams of sugar gives me a headache.  I've dealt with this since I can remember, and I've been physically and mentally drained for most of my life (ie, if I can go 2 or 3 days a month without having some kind of head pain, I'd be ecstatic).  

Here's some extra information:
I'm very underweight.  I am about 5' 10" and I weigh 120 ~ 125lbs.  The most I've ever weighed was 135, and I had to work very hard lifting weights at the gym for months to reach that weight.  I have about 5% body fat.

My mom is diabetic (type II) and her parents were diabetic (needed insulin shots, so type I?)

My half-sister has Grave's Disease.

I've been to the emergency room a few times because of headaches, but my blood sugar is always "normal".  MRI's have shown nothing abnormal.

I yawn incessantly after eating - especially during the afternoon.  I can yawn 20+ times a minute for over an hour depending on how much I eat.  After the yawning stops, the headache usually starts to kick in.

I wake up and have to go pee at least 1 to 3 times a night.

I've wasted lots of time and money seeing internists and specialists.  No doctor has ever run a test outside of standard "blood work", which shows my blood sugar as being "normal".  Every doctor is eager to treat the symptom, but the best "cause" I've heard is that "headaches just happen to some people".  The diagnosis is always given about 5 minutes after I say that I have headaches, and then I'm sent off to the pharmacy to pick up the latest prescription migraine medication.  I'm very frustrated by this.

Any recommendations?

[mutsu]

In relation to the lowering of blood pressure after eating.

Here is a link to post-prandial hypotension.
http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/eating-can-cause-low-blood-pressure

Came here because of a headache a  larger than normal lunch.
I know most of the headache's the I have are related to tension & poor posture while at work (tension from event outside of work and also a programming, can't seem to bring myself to sit up straight in the chair, so I pay the consequences...)

But this was a bit different. I could feel my shoulders tensing up as I drove back to the office.

Hope everything is going well for you.

[lisajlou]

I found this site today by, yes, Googling "headache after eating"  Read your posts and happy to see a recent one as I started with the 2009.  This is to you and all others it will help here. I am 45. I have had severe headaches for several years with no doctor being able to tell me why. I have been diagnosed with TMJ; fibromyalgia; tension and migraine headaches.  I have a tall, willowy build and thus told my headaches are also due to poor posture. I knew that was not true. I know by how I feel and when they come on that it was not this. I also wake up in the wee hours with them constantly. My husband is currently studying to be a nurse. To make a long story short, we both figured out that I may be hypoglycemic. I have cut out almost all sugar which is helping a lot. He also suggested I eat a shortbread cookie when I wake up in the early morning about 1:30 am prior to a headache. I normally have to go to the bathroom. He said this should be the right amount of carbs/sugar to get me through the night with no headache.  Since August 1, this has been working like a gem almost all nights. A couple of nights, however, it has not and I have wondered why. When I found this site today, I realized I have more trigger foods. I had potatoes for supper last night and BAM headache!  Now I know I need to also watch for more trigger foods.  I am also a very tired person/low energy and always have been. By chance how many on here have had Mono?  Just curious.  I have blood tested for it twice in my life.  The first time I was five. I'm not sure that means anything, but I was just wondering. For my headaches I take 100 mg of Topamax a day but I'd like to get off that because I don't really think it helps. And I also take generic Imitrex when I get a headache that gets extremely severe.  I have cut down having to take those by a lot since I cut out sugar.  I wish all the best. I know how horrible it is living with headaches and trying to function. Thank you all for sharing.

[captainheadache]

Here I am again with another update.  

I saw a cardiologist, and my heart is in good health.  So, no PFO or abnormal rhythm detected in a 24 hour period of time.  He also checked my thyroid hormones, and everything looked normal.

My doctor noticed that my heart beat was hypo-dynamic, which is normally caused by an adrenaline response.  Prior to a headache, this hypo-dynamic beat increases dramatically.  My palms also become oily/sweaty, my vision a little blurry, and of course, I get head pain.

I have to wait until November to see an endocrinologist, but in the mean time, my doctor suggested I try an anti-anxiety med since anxiety can cause headaches.  I was prescribed Effexor and took it for about a week, but that just made me tired, nauseated, and unusually depressed about my situation.

I also tried over the counter GABA and L-Theanine.  In large quantities, these two seem to limit my symptoms.  I'm having to take about 2000mg of GABA and 800mg of L-Theanine for any kind of effect.  I get a fiery sensation in the back of my head and spine when I take these supplements.  I'd like to understand what's going on there.

During my doctor visit, the nurse measured my vitals, and I was 100/60.  This was about 20 minutes after I ate lunch  Over the next hour, I started getting a headache, as per usual.  The doctor came in and measured my vitals again, and this time I was 120/90.  He thought maybe the nurse measured when I was in a valley, but I think it was because my head pain started to kick in.

Also, I've lost about 6 lbs because I can hardly eat anything, and so I'm now 119lbs standing at 5' 9".  

[jessbpeck]

I and my husband had similiar syptoms always yawning and intense headaches and getting  up to urinate  several times a night.  We both have sleep apnea, and I have thyroid problems (hypothyroidism but with your weight being light you are probably hyperthyroidism).  do a sleep test. I did not realize how much your body suffers if you think you are going to sleep every night but you are really not reaching REM.  With sleep apnea you stop breathing several times at night which cuts off oxygen to the brain causing you to wake with sevier headaches.  Any doctor can do a thryroid test, but you have to go to sleep center for a sleep test.  Hope this helps

[captainheadache]

Wow, kind of neat how this became one of the top google search results for "headache after eating".  Anyway, I can give an update.

My diet is now extremely restricted.  Here is a great list for the glycemic effect of certain foods: http://www.montignac.com/en/ig_tableau.php

I have to eat 30 or below, and in small quantities.  I can't seem to eat rice though, which this chart suggests I should be able to.

Over time, the condition seems to be getting worse.  I'm having to eat less and less, and lower on the glycemic scale.  In fact, I'm only posting this because I had a bad headache yesterday and had to miss work this morning.  I can't do my job with the kind of head pain I experience.  Taking 6 advil after every meal is not an option.

Any amount of eggs, steak, or high protein content in general will trigger a bad headache.  The only meats I seem to be able to eat are pork, chicken, and turkey.

I've been thinking lately that the yawning might indicate something.  I feel like I'm not getting enough oxygen even after a really big yawn.  I'm not exaggerating when I say I yawn non-stop for almost 2 hours sometimes.  This only ever happens after lunch time.  What could cause a sudden drop in blood pressure after eating?  Sometimes the end of a headache corresponds with a series of heart palpitations or a slight burning (like an adrenaline rush) in the chest.  However, most of the time my head stops hurting while I'm asleep.  On a related note, I've been woken up by extreme rushes of adrenaline in the middle of the night on occasion.  I wasn't having a nightmare or anything - but I just would get what felt like a huge surge of adrenaline.

One other thing; doing yoga or exercising regularly seems to help.  DO NOT attempt to do yoga with a headache.  You will get extremely nauseated.  Think of it as a preventative.

[CarboHeadache]

Any updates in the last year?