If I Only had a Brain...

[BoomerD]

so...back story...24 years ago, I was driving a construction forklift...in a hurry on the jobsite, I hit a rut in our little road that the cat skinner (dozer operator) had made then gently backfilled...the tires hit that soft fill dirt and dropped over a foot. Bounced me so hard the seat belt let go and I hit my head on the ROPS so hard it broke the suspension in my hard hat.
A few days later, I started having weird pains in my arm...chalked it up to a muscle strain...but it kept getting worse. By this time, I had completely forgotten the forklift episode.
Saw my chiropractor who suspected a pinched nerve in the neck. Da Fuq? I filed a work comp report...but because there was a week delay, they fought me on it. (CA work comp law)
Went to my GP since the chiro suspected an actual injury...he sent me for an MRI...showed a bulging disk at C6-C7. Sent me to the neurosurgeon...who sent me for an epidural. <shudder> Worst one I've ever had. About two weeks later, while on vacation in Maui, I started getting screaming bad headaches. Talked to the neuro in case it was related to the epidural. (he didn't think so...keep taking the Excedrin)

Fast forward to now...I've endured these fucking headaches for 24 years. Usually 3-4 times per week. Almost always when I wake up in the morning...but sometimes they hit me while I'm sleeping...or just at random during the day. Opioids don't do a thing for them, muscle relaxers do nothing...the ONLY thing that's ever helped is 3-4 Excedrin, sometimes followed by a second round 5-6 hours later.
Finally, I've had enough. Talked to my new GP a week or so ago...explained the history, kind of concerned him...this morning, I was at the local hospital radiology clinic for a pair of MRIs. One of the cervical spine, one of the brain. (ha-ha...jokes on them, I don't have one...I know nothing and can prove it) I won't get the results for about a week...no local radiologist to read the MRI...so, we'll see. HOPEFULLY, I will finally get some answers...and MAYBE a resolution.

 

[lxskllr]

Good luck! Hope they find a solution to your problem.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

As do I. At first I thought the OP was reliving a role in The Wizard Of Oz.

If there have only been the headaches for the last couple decades, I suppose it's not a tumor. They've got to figure this out for you.

In my father's case, he had a frontal lobe tumor -- probably from a head injury about ten years before he married my Moms. This was around 1956. They must've told him about the certainties of the life he would have after surgery, so he chose to be a hero to his family and punched his own ticket, leaving several good insurance policies he'd written such that they paid off. The Catholic church gave him a full burial in their cemetery -- I couldn't explain it.

And remember -- that was in the late '50s and there was no long-term care insurance, even for a Prudential insurance salesman.

The OP's headaches can't be anything so serious. They've got to find the cause. Surely . . .

 

[BoomerD]

As do I. At first I thought the OP was reliving a role in The Wizard Of Oz.

If there have only been the headaches for the last couple decades, I suppose it's not a tumor. They've got to figure this out for you.

In my father's case, he had a frontal lobe tumor -- probably from a head injury about ten years before he married my Moms. This was around 1956. They must've told him about the certainties of the life he would have after surgery, so he chose to be a hero to his family and punched his own ticket, leaving several good insurance policies he'd written such that they paid off. The Catholic church gave him a full burial in their cemetery -- I couldn't explain it.

And remember -- that was in the late '50s and there was no long-term care insurance, even for a Prudential insurance salesman.

The OP's headaches can't be anything so serious. They've got to find the cause. Surely . . .

A TOOMAH?

Nah, I'm fairly certain it's due to /related to the neck injury. At the "atlanto/occipital joint"

 

[BonzaiDuck]

A TOOMAH?

Nah, I'm fairly certain it's due to /related to the neck injury. At the "atlanto/occipital joint"

Certainly any injury to the spine and neck might have some lasting pain or recurring pain. I've just been lucky. Which, at my age, is another cause for worry of luck running out.

 

[igor_kavinski]

Have you ever had chamomile tea? If so, how did it make you feel?

 

[igor_kavinski]

Which, at my age, is another cause for worry of luck running out.

You've made it this far. Hope for the best! Prepare for the worst!

 

[BoomerD]

Well...dammit. That was a waste of time and money.

MRI Brain:
Brain: No intracranial hemorrhage, cerebral edema, or mass lesion. No
restricted diffusion or evidence of acute infarct.

MRI Cervical Spine:
Mild-to-moderate C5-C6 and C6-C7 degenerative disc disease. Mild C3-C4
degenerative disc disease with minimal grade 1 anterolisthesis. There
is straightening of the cervical spine with mild loss of cervical
lordosis. Cervical vertebral bodies otherwise unremarkable in height,
alignment marrow signal intensity. Cervical spinal cord is without
evidence of signal abnormality, compression or mass. Visualized
posterior fossa contents are unremarkable.

C2-C3: Mild disc bulge with severe left and mild-to-moderate right
degenerative facet arthropathy. No significant canal stenosis or cord
compression. Moderate left foraminal stenosis with probable mild
impingement of the exiting left C3 nerve root.

C3-C4: Mild disc bulge/osteophyte complex with severe bilateral
degenerative facet arthropathy. Mild relative canal narrowing without
significant stenosis or cord compression. Severe left and moderate to
severe right foraminal stenosis with impingement of the exiting
left-greater-than-right C4 nerve roots.

C4-C5: Mild disc bulge/osteophyte complex with severe left
left-greater-than-right degenerative facet arthropathy and moderate
ligamentum flavum buckling and hypertrophy. Mild relative canal
stenosis without cord compression. Severe left and moderate to severe
right foraminal stenosis with impingement of the exiting
left-greater-than-right C5 nerve roots.

C5-C6: Mild disc bulge/osteophyte complex with moderate degenerative
facet arthropathy and mild posterior ligamentous buckling and
hypertrophy results in mild-to-moderate canal stenosis without cord
compression. Moderate to severe left left-greater-than-right foraminal
stenosis with impingement of the exiting left-greater-than-right C6
nerve roots.

C6-C7: Moderate disc bulge/osteophyte complex with mild-to-moderate
degenerative facet arthropathy. Mild canal stenosis without cord
compression. Severe left and moderate to severe right foraminal
stenosis with impingement of the exiting left-greater-than-right C7
nerve roots. There is a small focal left foraminal disc protrusion.

C7-T1: Mild disc bulge with moderate degenerative facet arthropathy.
No focal disc protrusion or canal stenosis. Neural foramina are patent.

Nothing new in any of that. Basically, the same MRI report I got 24 years ago. (sure, some things have gotten a bit worse with age, but otherwise, nothing that explains the headaches...and NO mention of the atlanto-occipital joint. I'm going to message my doc and ask for that part to be looked at more carefully since that's the cause of much of the problems.

 

[igor_kavinski]

Have you ever had chamomile tea? If so, how did it make you feel?

I wasn't joking here. Can you PM me please so I can relate my friend's anecdote to you? I wouldn't ask for the PM if it wasn't important.

 

[BoomerD]

I wasn't joking here. Can you PM me please so I can relate my friend's anecdote to you? I wouldn't ask for the PM if it wasn't important.

Why the hell would I drink chamomile tea? Do I strike you as some kind of herbal tea hippie?

 

[lxskllr]

Chamomile tea kind of sucks. Celestial Seasonings SleepyTime is chamomile heavy, but tastes good cause of the extra ingredients.

 

[mindless1]

the ONLY thing that's ever helped is 3-4 Excedrin, sometimes followed by a second round 5-6 hours later.

One thing I would investigate, is which of the 3 ingredients, aspirin, acetaminophen, or caffeine, seems to be making the difference. Mix and match the individual ingredients and that might at least narrow the possibilities a little bit, by which med effect brings relief.

Do you consume much caffeine during the day, besides when these headaches come on and you take the excedrin?

Have you noticed any blood pressure differences, leading up to the headaches, not necessarily during them which could skew BP due to the event itself.

You've been chasing spinal issues and rightly so considering the precipitant accident, but have you had bloodwork done recently?

Have you tracked diet, including electrolyte levels to see if there's a trend leading up to onset of a headache?

Is it more likely to happen after physical activity, especially something that strains your spine? I always have more neck/back issues after mowing a very bumpy lawn with roots and ruts and 1/2 reclaimed wilderness in the back 40.

Is it possible that russian spys are directing microwaves at your brain and now you have Havana Syndrome ? Have you ever woken up to the sound of a microwave door shutting? Spouses can be devious.

Kidding aside, have you tried hookers and blow? Or a bouquet of helium balloons tied around your head? I hear that both are very uplifting.

Although you may have a permanent injury, something seems to be precipitating the events to have them only happen 3-4 times a week or the flip side of that is that something might be helping to not be having them every day. Stress, diet, exercise, Trump, hydration, stimulants, sleep patterns, or Trump?

There has to be some pattern, maybe... Unless it's just that after you take the nsaid (aspirin in excedrin) then it goes away till that gets out of your system and inflammation returns, but that's a pattern too.

While vacationing in Maui, where you drinking a lot of alcohol? Are you taking any kind of PPI or acid reducer/antacid? That can detrimentally decrease certain nutrient intake, especially minerals.

... just throwing spitballs against the wall to see what sticks.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

Actually, Boomer has been around for a duration. By his handle used in the forums, I'm guessing he's part of my generation, and he referred disparagingly to "herbal tea hippies".

So I wondered if he'd ever done a tour in Southeast Asia, or had PTSD symptoms. I had a friend from New York who was unmistakable in a documentary film clip as the GI who was passing thick cannabis smoke to a buddy through the barrel of a gun -- I think many here may have seen that clip. You could come out of that enlisted experience with sentiments either way, or one could mistake the meaning of how an expression is presented.

I don't know about headaches, but my friend was waking up at 3AM in puddles of sweat and screaming at the top of his lungs in the mid-1980s. So -- headaches? I wouldn't know, but something like that would drive a spouse crazy and make your own sleep experiences less than wonderful.

I just thought I'd explain these things, because Boomer doesn't deserve our jokes -- with or without the combat experience.

 

[BoomerD]

One thing I would investigate, is which of the 3 ingredients, aspirin, acetaminophen, or caffeine, seems to be making the difference. Mix and match the individual ingredients and that might at least narrow the possibilities a little bit, by which med effect brings relief. At night, I'll often take 3 aspirin and two acetaminophen (tylenol) extra strength, which is about equal to 3 1/2 excedrin without the caffiene.

Do you consume much caffeine during the day, besides when these headaches come on and you take the excedrin? 2-3 cups of coffee in the morning.

Have you noticed any blood pressure differences, leading up to the headaches, not necessarily during them which could skew BP due to the event itself. No, but I DO need to start tracking the BP for this.

You've been chasing spinal issues and rightly so considering the precipitant accident, but have you had bloodwork done recently? Yes, on a semi-regular basis...at least every 6 months.

Have you tracked diet, including electrolyte levels to see if there's a trend leading up to onset of a headache? No.

Is it more likely to happen after physical activity, especially something that strains your spine? I always have more neck/back issues after mowing a very bumpy lawn with roots and ruts and 1/2 reclaimed wilderness in the back 40. Nope

Is it possible that russian spys are directing microwaves at your brain and now you have Havana Syndrome ? Have you ever woken up to the sound of a microwave door shutting? Spouses can be devious. Gosh...why didn't I think of that?

Kidding aside, have you tried hookers and blow? Or a bouquet of helium balloons tied around your head? I hear that both are very uplifting.

Although you may have a permanent injury, something seems to be precipitating the events to have them only happen 3-4 times a week or the flip side of that is that something might be helping to not be having them every day. Stress, diet, exercise, Trump, hydration, stimulants, sleep patterns, or Trump?

There has to be some pattern, maybe... Unless it's just that after you take the nsaid (aspirin in excedrin) then it goes away till that gets out of your system and inflammation returns, but that's a pattern too.

While vacationing in Maui, where you drinking a lot of alcohol? Are you taking any kind of PPI or acid reducer/antacid? That can detrimentally decrease certain nutrient intake, especially minerals. Yes. I had been to a luau where they plied me with copious amounts of alcohol. Nowadays, even two beers will trigger the headaches. (not hangover)

... just throwing spitballs against the wall to see what sticks.

Actually, Boomer has been around for a duration. By his handle used in the forums, I'm guessing he's part of my generation, and he referred disparagingly to "herbal tea hippies".

So I wondered if he'd ever done a tour in Southeast Asia, or had PTSD symptoms. I had a friend from New York who was unmistakable in a documentary film clip as the GI who was passing thick cannabis smoke to a buddy through the barrel of a gun -- I think many here may have seen that clip. You could come out of that enlisted experience with sentiments either way, or one could mistake the meaning of how an expression is presented. Yes...and maybe. I've had my share of PTSD issues, particularly in the 70s.

I don't know about headaches, but my friend was waking up at 3AM in puddles of sweat and screaming at the top of his lungs in the mid-1980s. So -- headaches? I wouldn't know, but something like that would drive a spouse crazy and make your own sleep experiences less than wonderful. I went through some of that. It's very rare nowadays.

I just thought I'd explain these things, because Boomer doesn't deserve our jokes -- with or without the combat experience. Ah, come on...if you can't laugh at yourself...make fun of other people!

 

[igor_kavinski]

Why the hell would I drink chamomile tea? Do I strike you as some kind of herbal tea hippie? View attachment 127042

The stubborn type I guess. I see no PM from you so I guess you are not interested. Good day, Sir.

 

[igor_kavinski]

Chamomile tea kind of sucks.

I'm taking something related to that (an ingredient, one of the many that makes up the composition of the tea). Usually, I get a horrible headache from lack of sleep and feel like just dropping dead in the middle of the day. Few days ago, I had had hardly 2 or 3 hours of sleep and I was surprised to see that I survived the entire day without sleepiness or massive headaches and even at night when I was walking home, I wasn't walking like a zombie. I think that ingredient helps to detoxify the brain (which only happens usually during normal sleep). That's my theory since I haven't seen this in any studies in my usual brief searches and I have no plan to search extensively to find a needle in a haystack. All i know is that it works for me and I'm grateful to God for it.

Regarding the anecdote, since Mr. Stubborn did you all a favor by not PM'ing me, so I can relate it here then. My friend has serious sleep deprivation issues. When I got those capsules for myself, I gave five of them to him to try. One day in the afternoon, he goes, hey, what the hell did you give me, man??? I was like, oh no. Did I cause some serious damage??? Turns out, he was having a massively bad headache and couldn't find aspirin or anything so he took the capsule I gave him and within 20 minutes, his headache went away miraculously and I could see how happy he was because he had never had such a quick relief from a remedy before.

 

[BoomerD]

I think we have some chamomile tea bags someplace. They might only be 15-20 years old…still good, ya think?

 

[igor_kavinski]

I think we have some chamomile tea bags someplace. They might only be 15-20 years old…still good, ya think?

Nah. You are not getting me to endorse THOSE

And it's not the tea that may do the trick. Rather the concentrated one ingredient.

I think I had chamomile tea just once too. Tasted weird.

 

[mindless1]

Yes. I had been to a luau where they plied me with copious amounts of alcohol. Nowadays, even two beers will trigger the headaches. (not hangover)

So following your replies, not just what's quoted above, likely a case of vasodilation causing headaches, due to spinal inflammation causing histamine and prostaglandins, or substances causing vasodilation like alcohol, and to a lesser extent, coffee. You may have both working against you.

I am not a doctor but have you tried antihistamines? I'd do that, keep taking an NSAID as long as gastrointestinal issues don't develop, and limit caffeine as much as you can manage - wean yourself towards a lower daily dose. I assume you have reviewed potential side effects of any other medications you might be taking, and yes, see if there's a trend with blood pressure.

What you really need is the perspective of different doctors till someone comes up with a better treatment.

 

[igor_kavinski]

What you really need is the perspective of different doctors till someone comes up with a better treatment.

Yup. Keep shopping for doctors.

Or do bloodletting on the 17th Lunar date three months in a row, at a certified practitioner focusing on the problem areas. You feel so relaxed afterwards.

 

[Jimminy]

Nah. You are not getting me to endorse THOSE

And it's not the tea that may do the trick. Rather the concentrated one ingredient.

I think I had chamomile tea just once too. Tasted weird.

So, exactly what it is this ingredient? I'd like to buy some and try it.

 

[igor_kavinski]

So, exactly what it is this ingredient? I'd like to buy some and try it.

Chamomile: A Review of Its Traditional Uses, Chemical Constituents, Pharmacological Activities and Quality Control Studies - PMC

Matricaria chamomilla L. (MC) and Chamaemelum nobile (L.) All. (CN) are two varieties of Chamomile. These herbs have been used for thousands of years in Greece, Rome and ancient Egypt. Chamomile has been used for the treatment of stomach problems, ...

pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

First one in the flavonoid table.

Don't blame me though. I can't guarantee whatever brand you try is the purest.

Get your doc to check off on it to be safe.

 

[Jimminy]

First one in the flavonoid table.

Just to verify, this would be: Apigenin (C15H10O5) Correct?

 

[BoomerD]

Yup. Keep shopping for doctors.

Or do bloodletting on the 17th Lunar date three months in a row, at a certified practitioner focusing on the problem areas. You feel so relaxed afterwards.

I'm already doing my 4th round of leeches tomorrow.

 

[BoomerD]

So following your replies, not just what's quoted above, likely a case of vasodilation causing headaches, due to spinal inflammation causing histamine and prostaglandins, or substances causing vasodilation like alcohol, and to a lesser extent, coffee. You may have both working against you.

I am not a doctor but have you tried antihistamines? I'd do that, keep taking an NSAID as long as gastrointestinal issues don't develop, and limit caffeine as much as you can manage - wean yourself towards a lower daily dose. I assume you have reviewed potential side effects of any other medications you might be taking, and yes, see if there's a trend with blood pressure.

What you really need is the perspective of different doctors till someone comes up with a better treatment.

Nah, alcohol isn't the cause...but it might trigger something. I rarely ever drink. MAYBE 1-2 beers in a month...but never more than one at a time. I've dealt with headaches most of my life...even as a kid. No doctor, no test could ever pinpoint the cause. I've had EEGs, (those were fun) CT scans, (first one...some kind of track-mounted device with radioactive contrast-capsule...was ~50 years ago) and now MRI.
These headaches are completely different than any I've ever had. They always start at the same point. The atlanto-occipital joint in the neck. (where the skull mounts to the cervical spine) I've tried chiropractic when medical treatment failed...didn't help, occasionally made it worse.
Honestly, I don't expect to find a cause...but it would sure be nice to find, not only the cause, but a fix.