I'm putting my last cigarette down right now

[Kalmah]

I can't take this anymore. I've had a headache for almost 2 years, and have been unemployed and too broke to do anything about it except carry a bottle of excedrin with me everywhere I go.

Everything that I read about headaches points to tobacco as a possible cause. I also may be overdosing on exedrin. I make sure to limit myself to no more than 3 in a day.. but it clearly says do not take for more than 10 days. Well, what's 356 days x 2?

These headaches aren't normal. I'm dizzy, I start stuttering, blurred vision. I almost blacked out twice while driving home today.

Tomorrow I'm done.

Does anybody know of any pain reliever that doesn't contain acetaminophen or aspirin? Excedrin has both. I'm going to get something different in the morning I just don't know what yet.

My plan is to cut smoking and cut those drugs to see what happens. Once I get a job secured I'm going straight to a doctor.

The thing is, I can't remember if the dizzyness and all of that other stuff I mentioned accompanied the start of these headaches.. so I'm not sure if the excedrin is causing it. From what I've read, acetaminophen and aspirin can both start to cause headaches themselves after prolonged use.

So anyhow, Cliffs-

-I need medicine for headaches without acetaminophen or aspirin
-I'm quiting smoking now

damn I hope I pull this through tomorrow.

 

[sandorski]

I'd get that checked out. That's likely from the Excedrin or something worse. Smoking can cause headaches, but only if you're smoking a lot.

 

[duragezic]

I would have seen a doctor long before it got that long.

While I'm not sure it's the cause, smoking isn't going to help anything so that's ought to help with your overall health.

Quitting Execedrin after taking it that long is likely to lead to more headaches. Execedrin contains a NSAID and caffeine. Taking caffeine for a long time then quitting usually leads to headaches.

While long term use of NSAIDs like acetaminophen is usually concerned with liver or stomach damage, I suppose it's possible it could cause other problems, though I've not heard of dizziness and such from it.

 

[TecHNooB]

good luck sir.

 

[Colt45]

A two year headache sounds like a brain tumor, not cigs.

 

[Cyco]

Pain killers can cause rebound headaches, so your treatment may have been your downfall. Regardless, quitting smoking is a GREAT thing, so even if you still have headaches, don't pick it up again. It's not worth it. I've been a non-smoker for about 5 years after having smoked for over a decade. I miss it, but I don't regret stopping. Every time I look into one of my children's eyes reminds me of why I quit and why I won't pick it back up. Good luck!

 

[RoloMather]

Uhh. . . .

Better go to a doctor and have your liver/kidneys checked out.

Prolonged excedrin use can cause liver and kidney damage.

Your headaches doesn't sound like normal headaches.

 

[nerp]

Making a big dramatic event out of your last butt is one of the thigns I've tried and found only makes it harder to quit. Just quietly quit.

 

[JohnCU]

tylenol = bad for liver
NSAIDS/aspirin = bad for stomach

 

[BUTCH1]

Pain killers can cause rebound headaches, so your treatment may have been your downfall. Regardless, quitting smoking is a GREAT thing, so even if you still have headaches, don't pick it up again. It's not worth it. I've been a non-smoker for about 5 years after having smoked for over a decade. I miss it, but I don't regret stopping. Every time I look into one of my children's eyes reminds me of why I quit and why I won't pick it back up. Good luck!

I believe rebound headaches are when opiate-based pain meds wear off, not from NSAID's.

 

[lxskllr]

Sounds like some kind of migraine. I've never had one, but that description matches what I've heard from others.

 

[bobdole369]

Good for you buddy. It's gonna be rough. In fact right about ::now:: its gonna be the absolute worst. I'm guessing you wrote that just before bed.

Don't think about it. You really have to man up and be like RAAHHH@!@ I'm not smoking you SOB!!! You gotta take it minute by minute. The craving WILL go away, but its gonna be hard as shit. Really hard. Don't give in, just remember that you WILL NOT DIE and that you CAN live without smoking.

-I need medicine for headaches without acetaminophen or aspirin

Ibuprofen - aka Advil.
Naproxen Sodium - aka Aleve

Acetaminophen is actually a fever reducer and is not very good for headaches. In fact its not very good for you at all. Your liver goes through backflips digesting the stuff. Aspirin isn't that great and pain relieving either. I think its primary mode of operation is to thin the blood.

Ibuprofen gives you stomach problems like ulcers, but the good news is that it isn't as bad as either of the 2 that you've been taking in the long term. Naproxen is weird. I'm no doctor - But I know tylenol is horrible for you body. Not as bad as smoking, but taken all at once will definitely fucking kill you. And not in the wrist slitting easy death reversible way. More of a doctor looks at you orders a morphine drip and shakes his head because there is nothing he can do for the 3 days of horror you are about to go through that is irreversible.

 

[Kalmah]

Ahhh, this is going to be a fun day indeed. I have survived 1 hour of it and I need my @#$@#$#@ morning cigarette! Headache is slowly creeping on as normal. It will be full force in about another hour.

Man, stareing at my computer monitor every day for the first couple hours could be causing these headaches as well. It is another variable that has stayed constant for the last couple years. I need to go do something to see if I an negate this headache and forget my smokes which I am going to leave here. Shit, I might as well live in a god damn bubble. Screw that, I'm not giving up my morning atot routine.

This sucks.

 

[MotF Bane]

Do you exercise? If no, then start.

Also, see a doctor. Those headaches don't sound normal.

 

[ebaycj]

Ahhh, this is going to be a fun day indeed. I have survived 1 hour of it and I need my @#$@#$#@ morning cigarette! Headache is slowly creeping on as normal. It will be full force in about another hour.

Man, stareing at my computer monitor every day for the first couple hours could be causing these headaches as well. It is another variable that has stayed constant for the last couple years. I need to go do something to see if I an negate this headache and forget my smokes which I am going to leave here. Shit, I might as well live in a god damn bubble. Screw that, I'm not giving up my morning atot routine.

This sucks.

Get yourself some prescription Chantix, stat !

It works. I went from a pack and a half a day to zero, in one week. What chantix does is changes the "i'm starving and haven't eaten in two days and i need some food now" feeling that you get, when you are addicted to nicotine and attempt to deprive yourself of it.

It tones that feeling down to something more like "well, i missed lunch. I guess i could go for a bigger than normal dinner, but it doesn't really matter either way."

Seriously, try it. I'm glad I did.

 

[Azraele]

Get that headache checked asap. It could be something like food allergies (yes, they can cause headaches) or something serious like a brain tumor. Two years is wayyyy too long to wait to find out.

 

[GodlessAstronomer]

2 year headache? Go and see a doctor you moron.

 

[*kjm]

Get yourself some prescription Chantix, stat !

It works. I went from a pack and a half a day to zero, in one week. What chantix does is changes the "i'm starving and haven't eaten in two days and i need some food now" feeling that you get, when you are addicted to nicotine and attempt to deprive yourself of it.

It tones that feeling down to something more like "well, i missed lunch. I guess i could go for a bigger than normal dinner, but it doesn't really matter either way."

Seriously, try it. I'm glad I did.

Yep best thing I ever did! And when you are in for that HAVE THEM CHECK OUT YOUR HEADACHES! A two year headache is not normal and it best be checked out quick.

 

[Kalmah]

I did actually see a doctor about 9 months ago. He was a complete douche. He told me what he would have to know to be able to diagnose me(sleeping patterns, diet, exercise pattens....) but NEVER ASKED about them. Just told me what he would need to know then sent me on my way. He took my blood pressure and suggested I go somewhere else. Oh, and took about $250 from me. The doctor was a quack.

I can't be throwing $250-bills around right now.

My headache hasn't escalated so far which is not normal. It's just a slight pressure in my forhead that makes me want to rip my head off and burry it in the dirt. I can live with that! At this point I hope it is cigarettes that are causing them to get so bad. I'll have the rest of the day to find that out.

I've gotten quite use to headaches since I've had them almost daily since I was 12 due to an accident that left me with a head injury. It was about 2 years ago that they started getting worse and has driven me to the point of barely being able to function. So as long as it doesn't get any worse than right now I'm great.

You guys don't mind if I ramble on for a few hours here to keep my mind off of having a smoke? D:

 

[bobdole369]

<--- hoping you still haven't smoked.

forget my smokes which I am going to leave here.

Throw them away. Throw away your lighters, your ashtrays, anything that you could conceivably smoke too.

Every time you think of smoking just do something else. Your mind will tell you some fucked up things to get you back in the nico-habit.

Your body is going apeshit right now begging for nicotine. One little bit of it will reset this withdrawal and you have to go through it all over again. So do whatever it takes to not smoke!

 

[Kalmah]

Not a single cigarette yet. I need to go to the store and get some gum though.. I'm shaky and need something to put in my mouth.. lmoa. Not nicotine gum. Regular gum.

I havn't taken any medicine for my headache either. I still have that dizzyness even without the medicine. It's not really a dizzyness.. it's more like I feel that I'm chemically imbalanced.

ahhh I need a smoke. I wish it wasn't raining so that I could go on a bike ride.

 

[Azraele]

Ramble away. You can kick the habit, we're here to help.

 

[Mike Gayner]

2 year headache? Go and see a doctor you moron.

He can't - he's unemployed and in the USA, which means no one gives a fuck about him, and unless he's willing to sell an internal organ, a doctor is out of the question.

 

[Kyle]

Congrats! Just a heads up- one of the most common signs of nicotine withdrawl is....headaches....
Hopefully it doesn't make your daily headaches any worse- any yeah, find a better doctor. It sounds like there's something going on in your head, and I kind of doubt it was just the cigs...

 

[Kalmah]

He can't - he's unemployed and in the USA, which means no one gives a fuck about him, and unless he's willing to sell an internal organ, a doctor is out of the question.

Exactly.

A regular doctor is going to refer me to a neurologist and probably a handful of other doctors. M.R.I.'s and Catscans and x-rays and about $30,000 later they might but probably won't have an answer for me.

I've seen stories of people going to doctors for like 14 years and never finding a solution for their headaches. If you actually read deeply into headaches you'll find quickly that doctors really don't even know what to do with headaches most of the time other than throw pain relievers at it.

Check webmd and look at the 'causes of headaches' article.. the very first paragraph starts out with this line: "While we still don't have a fucking clue what causes headaches, we have some general ideas.... bla bla"

It's hopeless right now until I can get some fvcking medical insurance... oh and this might qualify for a pre-existing condition so insurance might not cover it anyways. I had mri's and catscans done when I was a kid after my accident.. they knew about the headaches and never did anything about them. They have just gotten worse recently to a point where they are controlling my life. I have to choose which days I can leave my house based on how bad my headache is. I'll get a call from a friend wanting to go somewhere and have to explain that I have to stay home because I'm driftng in and out of consiousness due to a pounding fvcking headache.