Eyeglass-related ear headaches?
January 9, 2024 6:34 AM   Subscribe

Both I and a close relative get mysterious above-the-ear headaches with certain pairs of cheap eyeglasses... even when they're not obviously pressing on our head or even touching the site of the pain. Is this a known thing? How can we pick glasses that won't do this?

Again, the problematic glasses don't seem to be pinching at all in the location of the pain: they appear pretty loose, and loosening them further doesn't help.

The pain starts with a weird cold, deep ache above both ears and progresses to shooting pains with longer wear (similar quality of pain to a "brain freeze" headache, but in a different location). Looking through the lenses without earpieces on fixes it, so it's not an issue with the optics.

It would be nice to be able to take advantage of the various cheap mail-order glasses vendors out there, so I'm hoping I can figure this out. Is there an above-ear trigger point or weird neural connection? Anyone else experience this issue?
posted by Bardolph to Health & Fitness (12 answers total) 2 users marked this as a favorite
 
When I get that pain it's because a migraine is on its way. It reduces in that spot when I take my glasses off, but sooner or later the migraine's gonna get me.
For you, if your glasses are the cause, stop wearing the cheap ones. Get properly measured by a good optometrist, and ask for advice. The ones you have may not fit you properly. And just because you can see through the lenses doesn't mean they're right for you, so get an eye exam while you're there.
Good luck.
posted by Enid Lareg at 6:53 AM on January 9, 2024


I too have this problem, but with many glasses and I ended up having migraines, I know it’s because the glasses are smaller and I think the cheaper ones tend to be smaller and/or stiffer, also maybe heavier. But I have a slightly larger head for a woman and I couldn’t work this out for a very long time.
posted by catspajammies at 9:05 AM on January 9, 2024


Best answer: My household’s theory is that some head-things give us headaches because we’re holding scalp muscles funny to keep them on. No reason to believe that the muscle action really helps, we think it’s the constant subconscious worry wrinkling us up.
posted by clew at 9:34 AM on January 9, 2024 [9 favorites]


Could it be the cheap inferior plastic used on cheap import glasses...like a skin reaction or such?
posted by Czjewel at 10:03 AM on January 9, 2024


Best answer: My experience is closest to clew's - I have a pair of glasses that some days are fine and some days will give me a sharp ache above my ears within 5 minutes, and it goes away just as fast when I take them off. They're definitely not tight - if anything they tend to slide a bit.
posted by brilliantine at 10:07 AM on January 9, 2024 [1 favorite]


Best answer: Seconding clew. If they're too loose or fit poorly, you might be compensating by unconsciously tensing muscles to hold them in place.
posted by carrioncomfort at 10:33 AM on January 9, 2024 [1 favorite]


Best answer: I used to hate wearing glasses because I have the same issue, and also because they would slide down my nose. You can find some things called "ear grips" or "ear hooks" on Amazon which slide on to your glasses and keep them on by hooking to year ears instead of pinching your temples, and that resolved both problems for me.
posted by zixyer at 10:42 AM on January 9, 2024 [3 favorites]


Best answer: Thirding the tensing of weird muscles theory--I don't get lasting headaches but do get a pain in that area from glasses that are loose fitting and kind of heavy. I think it's from unconsciously trying to keep the glasses up on my nose through magical ear muscle flexing.
posted by purple_bird at 12:46 PM on January 9, 2024 [1 favorite]


Best answer: I think clew might have it? I haven't had ear pain in a while, but if I get sweaty and my glasses slip down my nose for more than about thirty seconds, I am hit with a whammy of a headache immediately. I suspect this is because I'm doing weird things with my face to keep them from sliding off altogether.
posted by PussKillian at 12:48 PM on January 9, 2024


Best answer: Clew's got it right. When I had that happen, it was because I was tensing muscles I never even knew existed to keep my glasses from sliding down my nose. I bought some inexpensive silicone anti-slip thingies that slide onto the tips of the earpieces and help prevent the sliding, and it solved the problem. I just ordered them from Amazon.
posted by maryellenreads at 12:54 PM on January 9, 2024


Best answer: Another follower of Clew, here. I have that problem with brimmed hats; most of them give me headaches, I think because I'm attempting to hold them on to my head with my scalp or eyebrows.
posted by The corpse in the library at 5:35 PM on January 9, 2024


Response by poster: Thanks clew et al, "tension cramp from straining invisible scalp muscles" exactly describes the sensation, so I figure I learned a new bizarre thing about bodies today. I'll try anti-slip earpieces.
posted by Bardolph at 6:14 PM on January 9, 2024 [1 favorite]


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