One sided headache and facial pain...please help!

It started a few months ago, and they are all day everyday. I am a health-concious 23yr old women. I take an organic whole food multi vitamin daily, and eat as healthy as I can. I rarely consume caffeine or alcohol, and I never smoke.
Here are my symptons:
RIGHT SIDED ONLY mild (dull and irritating) pain in my temple, eyebrow, side of nose, cheek, all the way down to my front tooth. They start about. 30mins after waking up, and last dall day until I fall asleep. They are made worse by cold air.
I've been to a dentist, nothing wrong. I've been to an opthamologist (eye disease specialist), nothing wrong. I've been to an allergist, no allergies!
It sounds just like a sinus headache, but it's not. I've had this confirmed by an ENT after getting a CT scan of my sinuses. He thinks it could be a migraine. However, I am not sensitive to light or sound..and I am never nauseas.

It's going to take 2 months to get an appt with a neurologist. I can't wait that long :(

Anyone else experience this? Someone please help...

I do not eat a lot of chocolate or cheese...I only occasionally, maybe a few times a week have a caffeinated drink. I drink lots of water, although I will absolutely start drinking more. I sleep 8 hours/night, like I have been doing for the past few years. I actually got in to see an internal medicine/headache specialist on Tuesday....we'll see what she says.

In the meantime ...anymore advice would be appreciated! Thank you!!

arizonagirly said...
I've been to a dentist, nothing wrong. I've been to an opthamologist (eye disease specialist), nothing wrong. I've been to an allergist, no allergies!
It sounds just like a sinus headache, but it's not. I've had this confirmed by an ENT after getting a CT scan of my sinuses. He thinks it could be a migraine.

It's going to take 2 months to get an appt with a neurologist. I can't wait that long :(

Seeing also those specialists seems to have helped rule out some secondary headache disorders, but in general no opthamologist, allergist, otolaryngologist or dentist is going to be able to properly diagnose and treat chronic headache. I know two months is a long time but you really do need to see a headache specialist. In the meantime try to isolate things that make your headaches worse and adjust your lifestyle to make things as good as they can be. Also be very careful to not overuse any pain relievers, even Tylenol.

Trust me, you can get through this.

Hoping you feel better,
Ben

Hi Arizona,
I'm sorta skimming posts tonight (well 2:18am) so I apologize if I am repeating previous posts. First, lacking symptoms such as sensitivity to light and sound as well as nausea does not mean that your headache type is not migraine However, when I was reading your post some of the things made me think of trigeminal neuralgia. Take a minute to look over this and see if any of it fits (it may not..but the cold on your face made me think of this as I said before)

What are the Symptoms of Trigeminal Neuralgia?

The primary symptom of trigeminal neuralgia is the sudden onset of severe, sharp facial pain, usually without warning. The quick bursts of pain are described as "lightning bolt-like" or "machine gun-like." It can build in strength, decrease and begin again, and then abruptly end. It can be triggered by stimuli as light as a breeze or a touch on the face, or by such acts as shaving, teeth brushing, talking, chewing and swallowing. It also can disrupt sleep, awakening people from deep slumber. As a result, some sufferers may become both physically and mentally incapacitated from the pain of trigeminal neuralgia. They may be fearful of eating and avoid activities of self-care. In addition, when the pain is especially unrelenting and prolonged, they may become prone to depression and even suicidal tendencies. It is not uncommon for people to visit their dentist, believing that their jaw pain is due to a problem with their teeth, and have unnecessary extractions.

During a pain period, attacks can occur hundreds of times a day. The interval between attacks can range from minutes to months or even years, and pain is completely absent during these times. Recurrences of the pain are almost always in the same area of the face, but tend to spread.
(from stoppain.org)

I hope you are feeling better today!
Sara

Oh yes, I would love for you to start a new post with the list your doctor gave you! That will probably help some folks!

It sounds very similar to my headache - one sided, in the areas you described, starts in the morning and gets worse throughout the day (although I wouldn't call mine mild - it gets very bad). Mine started about five months ago and I've been through all of the tests and many treatments with little or no help. I'm being treated at Jeff Headache Center, and they now think that it's the diagnosis of New Daily Persistent Headache. Check that diagnosis out and see if it fits you. Unfortunately, it's the most difficult headache to treat and the meds that tend to work aren't usually the typical ones for migraine. You may want to mention it to your neuro and see if he/she can try some other meds.

Please feel free to ask any questions!
Take care,
Amanda

My doc said that it could still be one-sided, although it's less common. None of the other diagnoses fit my symptoms, so I think it's as close as we're going to get! I'd would mention it to your doc anyway, like you said. Let me know - I'm interested to find out what he says as well. Good luck!

How accurate are xrays with dental infections?
I know mine did not show up on xrays-and I have met others whos infections did not show up on xrays.

I assume your dentist told you that many infections do not show up on xray-if not I would get a new dentist