Headaches, go away.

June 22, 2007 12:39 AM

I am off to see the doctor first thing in the morning, but has anyone else experienced a mild week-long headache?

You are not my doctor and I am not seeking medical advice. I have an appointment with my doctor tomorrow morning to seek medical care.

What I'm looking for is to see if anyone has ever experienced similar symptoms. What could this be?

I am ever so slightly dizzy. I have a mild headache, not throbbing by any means but more of an ache originating from what seems to be directly behind my eyes. My ears feel warm but I have no fever. I am slightly disoriented, and a little nauseous from time to time. I do not have any congestion. The headache has not gotten any better or worse for about a week and is slightly miserable but not debilitating. Resting and aspirin do not seem to help much.

What the heck is going on here?

posted by |n$eCur3 to health & fitness (24 comments total)

Do you wear glasses or contacts? Other than your "ears feel warm" symptom, everything else sounds like what happens when you need a new prescription... If your doctor can't find any medical reason for your headache, make an appointment with an optometrist.
posted by amyms at 12:44 AM on June 22, 2007

At least one of your tags is useful.

Honestly speaking, turning your computer on to type out a fishing expedition post is no way to help reduce your discomfort.

There are just so many variables and while eye problems, as amyms suggests, sound a likely target, it's nothing other than chatting to try to nut this out on the internet. Do you want to hear that it could be a tumour or a slowly bleeding aneurysm or meningitis?

If I tell you that I've had a week-long headache caused by eye disturbances (true) but the underlying problem was more due to airline, country change and poor glasses, how in the world is that meant to help you?
posted by peacay at 1:59 AM on June 22, 2007

It could be anything. I'm not even going to suggest anything because all it will do is make you concerned.

Until you see the doctor, drink lots of water and don't exert yourself.
posted by humblepigeon at 2:14 AM on June 22, 2007 [1 favorite has favorites]

Nthing see your doctor, but one thing to ask her about is a migraine -- if you find yourself sensitive to light (or preferring the dark) that's another sign of migraine, and nausea is tied to migraines for a lot of people.
posted by ukdanae at 3:41 AM on June 22, 2007

On the lines of what amyms, if you do wear glasses, try giving them a good cleaning. I know it sounds simplistic but one time I had an awful headache that lasted a week or so, it was a matter of just needing my glasses cleaned (to be fair, it was about a few weeks after I started wearing glasses and I was 14 at the time).

So try cleaning your glasses, if that's the case. Still see an optometrist if it continues though (after seeing your doctor, of course).
posted by champthom at 4:05 AM on June 22, 2007

Have you stopped drinking coffee?
posted by tim_in_oz at 4:43 AM on June 22, 2007

To answer the OP...yeah...I've been experiencing very similar symptoms all week. And I rarely have headaches of any sort.
posted by Thorzdad at 5:11 AM on June 22, 2007

definitely get your eyes checked. also get your pituitary checked.
posted by thinkingwoman at 5:21 AM on June 22, 2007

2nding tim. If you have changed your caffeine consumption it could be causing symptoms similiar to what you describe due to Caffeine withdrawal. If so a week cold turkey or a month of decreasing down to nil should get you over this.

Also 2nding a change in glasses, glasses wearing or something along those lines.

Adding general rundowness resulting in a slow/low level cold or flu that is just starting. If you've been treating yourself not so good the last few weeks/months, eat some vegetables, take a multi vitamin and have a good sleep. Then see what the doc has to say.

or a combination of all three.
posted by lrobertjones at 5:23 AM on June 22, 2007

Could also be sinusitis, I get a bit dizzy and nauseous when my sinuses are particularly bad.
posted by biscotti at 5:29 AM on June 22, 2007

I had a low level headache for stretches up to a week after I moved to Boston. The move coincided with the coming of Spring and allergy season. I chalked it up to that. They've almost completely gone away, but I just got one yesterday that's still hanging around.
posted by FlamingBore at 5:57 AM on June 22, 2007

Tim in Oz and I were thinking along the same lines: caffeine withdrawal. It doesn't usually last a week, but headache is definitely part of it.
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 5:57 AM on June 22, 2007

That's how I feel pretty much 24/7. It sucks.

Could be caffine withdrawl. Could be dehydration. Are you getting plenty of water?
posted by misanthropicsarah at 6:26 AM on June 22, 2007

I get this every now and then, it almost feels like a mild hangover. A good long walk sometimes helps.
posted by tomble at 7:03 AM on June 22, 2007

I'm going with migraine too. You've got a doc appt. lined up, so you'll be fine. For now, think migraine or glasses strain and try not to worry too much about other, worse, causes, k? :)
posted by iamkimiam at 7:29 AM on June 22, 2007

I agree with biscotti, this sounds just like a case of sinusitis (Sinus Infection) I once had.

I was prescribed antibiotics, took them and everything went back to normal.
posted by toftflin at 8:01 AM on June 22, 2007

This happened to me recently. (Though my headache was higher, in my forehead.) It was diagnosed as a tension headache and went away after one hydrocodone pill (prescribed by the physician I saw) and a massage at a local spa. It seemed be originating from tension in my neck/shoulders due to stress and computer work.
posted by mingshan at 8:09 AM on June 22, 2007

mingshan said: "It was diagnosed as a tension headache..."

FWIW, I went to my doctor a while ago to ask his advice about headaches I would get occasionally. The pain could only be described someone shoving an ice pick into my temple. He diagnosed them as tension headaches.

Turns out, years later, it was actually a toothache. Go figure. (I know this because, as the decay advanced, the pain eventually migrated from the temple down to the upper jaw.)
posted by CrayDrygu at 10:04 AM on June 22, 2007

Yeah, I don't think anybody brought that one up yet. Does the OP have an icepick shoved into his temple? It might be something to check..
posted by rhizome at 10:56 AM on June 22, 2007

I rarely get headaches but I did get one that lasted a week or so last year. It went away.

If I get a headache that doesn't respond to aspirin/motrin it is always caused by back/neck tension. Finding the knot and massaging it generally helps.
posted by jockc at 10:59 AM on June 22, 2007

I get what you've described a few times a year because of allergy-related sinus congestion -- it no longer lasts more than a day because I take a decongestant (sudafed) and then antihistamine (Claritin or Zyrtec). If I take an antihistamine at the first hint of the behind-the-eyes ache, I usually don't need the decongestant. But once the headache takes hold, it can be hard to get rid of.

If the pill or capsule decongestant doesn't do the job, then try a nasal spray like Afrin. Drink plenty of water. I'm glad tomble mentioned walking; a brisk walk seems to help the decongestant work faster, but I have no idea why.

If you do have an allergy problem, you might have to re-remember it every time allergy season rolls around, because sinus congestion can occur without your noticing any unusual fluid, sneezing, or other upper-respiratory symptoms. I tend to just think "headache" and not "sinus" when it starts.
posted by wryly at 11:57 AM on June 22, 2007

This has all been really awesome advice. Seriously made my day.

My doctor is running tests to see if it is anything more serious, but it seems that it might be a combination of allergies and sinus irritation. Also, the barometric pressure around here is Seattle is ever changing so I may have some sensitivities specific to air pressure. (I don't have glasses and I'm ok on nutrition and sleep).

Hopefullly I will be on the mend shortly.
posted by |n$eCur3 at 1:33 PM on June 22, 2007

Migraine. I tend to have them in two flavors... either short and completely debilitating, or long lasting and low intensity. I'm on day 5 of one now, and it's just like you described... low pain, some nausea, occasional photophobia, disorientation, dizziness, etc. The longer they last, the less any type of painkiller works. It's just drags on, and on, and on until I'm ready to try trepanning.

It took years to get diagnosed as migraines because I rarely get them with the typical pain-on-one-side-only thing, and I almost never get any auras. Migraine can also irritate the sinuses too, so don't be surprised if you end up taking lots of stuff for your sinuses that don't really help.

Good luck.
posted by happyturtle at 4:08 PM on June 22, 2007

I get sinus headaches that can last this long and are centered behind my eyes. (Sometimes it feels like motion sickness and I feel out of balance, like I'm listing to one side, too.) I've become a big fan of saline spray up the nose before bed and upon waking as a deterrent and when I actually get one, I try Sudafed and Advil with more frequent saline sprays. Worst case, I head to my excellent acupuncturist for a sure-fire treatment. Good luck. And let us know what the doctor says/prescribes.
posted by eve harrington at 9:21 AM on June 23, 2007