Headache and Migraines Forum - Tension Headaches?

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Q: Tension Headaches?

asked by: Jmathena on February 10th, 2004

New User

Hello, i'm a 24 year old male from richmond virginia, u.S.A
i'm a smoker and occasional drinker. I'm wondering if my problems are chronic tension headaches. I've been having a headache everyday for the last year roughly. A quick run down of the list year is -

moved from richmond to a friends place in va.Beach, headaches started then. I would try to fall asleep and i'd be awaken by sharp pains. Try again, wake up again,etc till basically I was so exhausted I would pass out. This would always occur during am hours. My sleep pattern is really messed up. Around 4-5am to 2-3pm. No matter how hard I try to goto sleep at a decent hour I have constant pressure and pinching on the tempals. I've read a lot of information about tension headaches and I seem to have those symptons, bi-lateral, constant pressure, insomnia, mental issues like - apathy, insomnia, fear of death, stuff like that. I have very poor posture, my neck and back are constantly sore and acheing. I've been using the computer for about 10 years now. And the passed 4-5 years of my life i'd estime I spent 3 years on a machine. I use to do a lot of computer work from home. So I guess being in the same slouched position kind of hurt me. I'm always fearing what can happen. I've visited emergency room many times, seen ear nose throat doctor, even a neurologist. They all told me I was perfectly healthy. The neurologist said I have tension headaches. I'm a hypocondriac (sp) I always think something is the matter or something is going to happen to me. Although, I believe 50% of the problem is me dwelling on it and thinking about it so often. The other part would most likely be stress or the actuall physical ailment having tense muscles,etc. I'm writing this to see if anyone else has experienced,or is experiencing the same issues right now.

More info - currently unemployed for the last year.
Not many people to talk to about the problem.

I never consider'd myself a stressed-out person. Like I said, up to a year ago I had never - ever - been sick before, not even a cold or a simple virus. I read over some of the forum posts and see a lot of people I can relate to, any repsonse would be nice. It would most likely ease my mind.

Thanks

- justin

Replies(5)

jneau

replied on March 13th, 2004

New User

Sounds Like Me...

Hi justin, your symptoms sound familiar. Here's my story.

Last may, I started working from home a lot more (on my laptop).

In july, I came down with a cold and stopped exercising for a while to make sure I got better. The work days got pretty long since I wasn't breaking them up. After a while, I began to develop a pressure sensation in my left temple. Doc assumed sinus infection and put me on meds.

Symptoms got better, then worse. Pressure started to develop around left eye also. More meds. Cycle continued.

In october, it seemed to get even worse...Pain behind each eye, occasional light-headedness/dizziness, fatigued, no motiviation. Starting to worry.

By december, I had been to a neurologist, had mris and cts of everything above my waist, checked my lymph nodes, full blood work. They could find absolutely nothing wrong with me.

In late december, I started to feel better. In fact, I felt great until about mid-february when the symptoms started to return. Dizzy when standing, achey neck, discomfort around eyes.

Looking at it now, it all fits. Working from home began a cycle of long days sitting in the same position at my laptop with my shoulders hunched staring down at my screen. I got "better" in december because I was forced to break the cycle...Got the flu, christmas break, week in vegas. I got back into my workout cycle and felt awesome. In feb, I got a cold again and went back to the long days in the same position...The symptoms returned.

I still need to fix what's causing the problem, but knowing what it probably is has me very relieved. My posture sucks, I sleep on my stomach with my neck in a bad position, my eyes strain to see my monitor...Everything on the bad list.

Jmathena

replied on March 14th, 2004

New User

Ahh

Ahh thanks for the reply. Well with me

i visited a chiropractor, it showed that I had about 8 vertibrae that were all miss-aligned,etc. Scholesosis in the lower lumbar region, and the top wo vertibrae which I guess are the "hub" for nerves that deal with head issues, headaches, insomnia, eyes,cncentration,dizzyness,etc. So i've been going for 3-4 days now getting alignments and what not. I get electric therapy on my back which is like a ghetto massage I guess :p but yea .. I think im gonna give this a try ... I asked the doc if he thinks this is the problem and he told me no, he knows this is the problem. A friend of mine went to this one, said she got results after about 3 weeks of treatment. So I pray that I can begin to feel better after 2-3 weeks. I'd defintely be a changed person and I got a year of my life to makeup Smile

so its gonna be fun :p

allan_mc

replied on February 11th, 2005

New User

Started As Forehead Pressure And Progressed....

And im a similar but different case yet again....

- family bought a computer when I was in year 11, 1998

- started spending alot of time on it

- first year out of school in 1999 I spent my entire year trying to get an internet business up and running from home

- at the computer I was using a chair that forsed a gap between myself and the computer real bad posture it was

- february, 2000 I smoked some strong pot (only ever had the stuff 3 times before)

- felt a massive pressure in my forehead that night

- was in a state of confussion the next day and had a whole heap of symptoms in the weeks to follow

- the major complaint from that day was a forehead pressure. I didn't identify it at the time, but looking back I know that other elements such as my nervous system and thought processing were also affected

- the pressure got worse and worse until it no longer remained in my forehead. It crept around the sides and top of my head

- this thing has destroyed my life, before I was such a happy go-lucky type, now im seen as a big stress-head / hypocondriac. I have to restrict the amount of talking I do and eye contact I make as I have proven these to be aggrivators.

- I have tried around 30 - 40 treatments. Last april I begun work at a cranial chiropractors. Finally improvements began to show, but progress was so slow that it was very hard to say for certain.

- it is now 11 months since I begun chiropractic work. Things are still improving but ever so slowly. The improvements are more or less coming from the base up. Ie. Sensation and motor function begun to improve in the legs, back, neck and the last thing to improve will be the pressure in the head (you must wonder how I know things are improving, considering the pressure is why I went to see the chiropractor. Its a hard one to explain)

- please feel free to contact me, i'd love to hear from anyone else seeking assistance or with improvements and success stories.

allan

beachtrader

replied on February 5th, 2006

New User

Headaches Everyday, Esp Mornings And Back of the Heads....

After reading through these forums and seeing that lots of people are having similar experiences, i've decided to describe mine - and hopefully the cause of the headches! I have to figure this out - worries of brain tumors, operations, and cancer scare me!

I've been experiencing headaches everyday for the past few weeks, sometimes mild sometimes bad. They seem to always start in the back of the head, and it makes my head feel like pressure is building up inside - as I could poke a needle in the back of my head and whoosh - the pain would go away. Also, I can sometimes "taste" mucous or sinuses in my head. Lots of people out there seem to have headache problems, and i'm just trying to find a common thread. Here is some info on my situation:

-very good shape, excellent health.

-american expat. Lived in japan for 10 years, and moved to shanghai about one year ago.

-a little red wine in the evenings before dinner (usually just a glass or 2).

-work is very busy, but I don't think it's that stressful - esp because I enjoy it!

-(this one seems similar to the others...). I spend at least 6 hours/day on a laptop (ibm).

Ok. I absolutely hate doctors and hospitals and almost always figure out what's wrong with me on my own. I'm a big believer in pm (preventative medicine), and try to stay as healthy as possible to avoid illnesses (instead of focusing on "cures"). But I just can't figure this one out. But ti may be close. I visited this chinese medicine shop around the corner (i live in shanghai). I told the "doctor" my symptoms, and the friendly old lady just laughed at me! And told me, that lots of people have the same thing. It's just the climate and air quality in shanghai, and the pain is just caused my mucous buildup in my head! She gave me some tcm (traditional chinese medicine) and some "cold tylenol". Anyway, before this turns into a book... The combo seems to be working. The headaches have gotten much better, but they're not completely gone yet. So i'm still a little worried that I haven't pinpointed the actual cause.... If anyone has any ideas, please help!

Thanks
mike p

Jamesab

replied on February 5th, 2006

Experienced User

Hey,
your docs mentioned anything to you about anxiety? The thoughts about dying, the insomnia etc and the fact that it all happened when you moved location leads me to think that part of the problem is down to anxiety and stress.

James

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