[OT] Tests, tests, and more tests... NADA

I'm very sorry to hear that, Duane

my brother has a chronic pain condition that took years to diagnose, precisely because there was no physiological evidence of pain. He was forunate to eventually come across a doctor who had taken a interest in the little known condition called Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy (RSD). In fact, RSD is sometimes misdiagnosed as Migranes or TMJ. RSD pain is rated a 42 out of 50 on the McGill Pain Index, which makes it among the most painful conditions ever documented.

"According to the American RSDHope Group's national survey of RSDS patients, 40% of all patients have seen 10 or more doctors since getting RSDS. This can sometimes make the patients medical folder look like they are 'doctor shopping', that is, going from doctor to doctor until they find one who agrees with them. While in truth they are just searching for a doctor who can diagnose them and understands how to treat the disease. Many times patients are simply following their primary doctor's referral's to different specialist's."

"Essentially is a short circuit in the nervous system. The nerves misfire, leaving patients in excruciating pain."

for more information on RSD, see

The International Research Foundation for RSD/CRPS

The American RSDHope Group Neurological Associates Pain Management Center

have you been dealing with only one medical establishment (doctors affiliated with a single hospital)? you may benefit from a different perspective.

you may want to check out

The American Headache Society (AHS)

also see these articles for examples of unexpected therapies for chronic headaches

please let us know how you're doing. I and all of us here wish you the best of luck in finding the cause, and finding that it can be resolved

- iz

Sorry to hear that, Duane. That bites. I hope you can find a solution soon.

snip

Have they done a FOOD allergy blood test, to see what foods you are specifically allergic to? There lots of foods that we all are able to eat but we have reactions to and never know it. It's a simple test and doesn't cost much, most insurance will pay for it but it has to be done by a doctor that specializes in this area. A general MD isn't qualified.

Verna had one done about 5 years ago because of severe migraines. Since they pinpointed her allergies, many of which she had no idea about, she has stopped having migraines completely.

Randy

If the mainstream medical doctors can't find anything wrong, try various alternative medicine solutions. If it's truly life-threatening the regular doctors will probably find out what's going on ***if you keep pushing them*** to figure it out. If they can't find the cause, then use whatever works--if anything does--from alternative medicine.

Modern medicine is pretty tightly focused on a certain attitude about medicine. It works pretty well but still has a lot to learn. Hidden food allergies, for example, do exist.

(As a somewhat funny personal example I discovered that chamomile--sold under the brand name "Sweet Dreams" tea--helped me get to sleep but gave me TERRIBLE nightmares. True story. Doesn't do that to most folks!)

Hope you get relief even if perhaps no answers!

+McG+

My wife gets a migraine-class headache (without aura) about once or twice per year, but it generally lasts for several days. She's having her yearly one right now, actually. Pretty much knocks her flat for a few days.

A combination of muscle relaxants and Tylenol seem to help quite a bit for her.

I have been a victim of "classical migraine" since I was a teenager, although as I get older, they become much less frequent. I've found that watching my blood sugar helps a lot. That means eating healthy foods at regularly spaced intervals, and resisting the urge to reach for a chocolate bar when I can feel my blood sugar starting to fall. For some reason, when I start getting a migraine aura, I eat a banana or two, and that will often abort it, or at least significantly lessen the severity and duration of the migraine attack.

I got migraines, with auras, from the time that I was young up until I was in my 20's. I found that keeping my BP under control, avoiding foods that I was even slightly allergic to (such as chocolate) all but eliminated them. While I still get an occasional bad headache, they are sinus related now. When I was young, they were incapacitating for about 4-8 hours. After they subsided, I had an incredible adrenaline rush for a couple of hours. It was the weirdest thing.

Mark Simpson NAR 71503 Level II God Bless our peacekeepers

Mark you sound just like Verna. Hers would hit in a matter of 2-3 minutes and she found out that she was very allergic to MSG (loved Chinese) and mildly to strongly to over 30 other things she loved ( including wheat products) but had no idea they were causing her problems. The really bad ones came on days when she ate Chinese food with a combination of the others. Twice I had to go get her from work and take her home because she became almost incapacitated. After some medication and about 4 hours rest she was fine, as though nothing had happened.

That's when she took the blood test for food allergy. She goes by the test results and she hasn't had one in almost 4 years.

Randy

Didn't hear otherwise, but have you checked with a chiropractor?

My wife is an LMT. She has plied her trade on me in every possible way, to no avail... well she did alieviate the secondary muscle tension caused by the perpetual headache... that was very helpful.

Mercifully, they headache stopped three days ago. I finally went back to work. Very thankful to some kind kin who help me with the mortgage and food this month...

~ Duane Phillips.

I have not yet known of any allergies. Maybe I should give this a try. As of now, however, the headache has mercifully departed.

The scary thing was absolute !bang! sudden onset of pain unlike anything I have every in my life known, while I was exerting myself to a task... just like someone had taken a huge hard-back book and nailed me senseless with it. It was a real scare that it might have been an anerism (spelling?). Ruling that out was the first concern.

I opted to wait it out rather than do the flexeril. Yes, it was a cognitive choice on my part due to some bad memories, but I was happier that way. Besides, after having my LMT trained wife work me over every other day, I was convinced it had little to do with skeletal/muscular, as the work only relieved secondary effects of tension from pain.

What worked best was brisk walks??! I don't know why... Napping actually made the headache worse... always. OTC drugs did nothing. I wanted to be sure it was OK to exercise from the Dr. before I did so. Now I and my wife are walking (briskly) almost every day, and it seems to be doing the job... as if it had never happened.

I do appreciate and thank all of those whose thoughtfulness in my behalf helped me through.

~ Duane Phillips.

My allergies were relatively mild but may have been enough to trigger the migraines.

I've never had a migraine hit all of a sudden. Mine built to a cresendo of pain. If yours occurred while exerting, I'd get medical attention, fast. An aneurism or blood clot could be indicated.

I occasionally get bad sinus headaches that almost mimic migraines. You can usually tell the difference when you bend over at the waist. If your head pounds more leaning over, sinus headache is indicated. (My Dr told me that little trick). Laying in bed too long triggers a sinus headache in me, so I only sleep ~5-6 hours/night and I'm fine. If I try to sleep in, I run the risk of waking up with sinus problems for the day. Going outside for a walk may help in a couple of ways. If it's a true migraine, exercise changes the dialation of blood vessels. It is changes in blood vessel constriction in the brain that causes migraines in the first place. Changes in your body's blood flow may alleviate the constriction. If it's sinus/allergy related, getting out in fresh air may relieve some of the sinus issues (especially if you're allergic to something in the house). My wife and I walk daily and we both find that our sinuses start to drain after a few minutes. Mine drain internally down the back of my throat, hers externally through her nose....and cold air works even better.

Good luck. I wouldn't wish migraines on my worst enemy.

Mark Simpson NAR 71503 Level II God Bless our peacekeepers

Verna made it to 43 without having any idea that's what it was. The headache was the only symptom. The good thing is that if it is a food allergy, it is usually pretty simple to deal with.

Randy

Trying to sleep makes my headaches worse too, not that I ever have anything that could be called a migrane. But as long as we're throwing out remedies, what always works for me is a hot bath, laid back, with my head in the water as much as possible. Any headache has always been gone in 10 min. A hot tub works well too.

GC

Bananas are a good source of potassium. Also good to prevent muscle cramps. I heard a report a couple years ago the PICKLE JUICE before strenious activity also prevented cramps. I used to drink it form the jar as a kid!

I've also recently learned that what I thought all my life were sinus headaches may be migranes. And it seems my daughter has inherited them...

Bob Kaplow NAR # 18L TRA # "Impeach the TRA BoD" >>> To reply, remove the TRABoD!

kaplow snipped-for-privacy@encompasserve.org.TRABoD (Bob Kaplow) wrote in news:+ snipped-for-privacy@eisner.encompasserve.org:

Vinegar, salt and garlic... three of the 4 basic food groups!

And the fourth?

As a swimmer (1hour/day coached workout) I can tell you what my coaches tell us: water and potassium. Water is the most important (you wouldn't believe how many young swimmers become dehydrated, as funny as that seems). Low potassium is a problem with high protein diets because they avoid some of the sources of potassium: bananas, tomatoes, cantaloupe. Low potassium will make you grumpy and could also contribute to headaches. Been there, done that.

Dave Grayvis wrote in news:J6RTb.18299 $ snipped-for-privacy@newssvr16.news.prodigy.com:

The stuff inside Twinkies.

check with a chiropractor. main source of all my headaches has been neck problems. bad thing is it that i throw out my neck while I am sleeping. can't avoid doing it.

getting to the point where if I sleep more than 7 hours the pains starts. I should see the 'practor more often but I am too cheap and wait till my back and hips are out and then get teh whole spine done.

Hurts worse after the visit for about 24 hours till the muscles get into the proper places

afterwards I can lift cars, stop speeding locomotives, and catch bullets with my teeth.

sometime i can even recover my own rockets!