Severe left temple pain waking me up

Hey all,

My first post here, hopefully this wonderful & helpful community will be able to shed a little insight...

Firstly, here's an overview of my symptoms and timeline:

- about 20 days ago, I woke at 4am with an intense headache in my left temple. I took 2 x paracetamol but I was in too much pain to go back to sleep for over an hour.
- The entire next day, I had a dull ache in the same place (not *quite* enough to warrant more painkillers)
- Nothing for 10 days.
- 10 days ago, I was woken by the exact same intense pain in the same specific place at 9am - took 2 x paracetamol and got relief (to some extent) about an hour later. Dull ache the entire next day.
- 9 days ago, I work at 4am by the exact same intense pain in the same specific place at 9am - took 2 x paracetamol and got relief (to some extent) about an hour later.
- Dull ache every day for the past 10 days.
- Last night I woke at 2.30am with the most intense pain yet, I took 2 x paracetamol and 1 x ibuprofen but they did nothing and I was awake sighing with the pain for 2 hours before I passed out basically due to exhaustion.

A few notable points:
- A couple of the intense 'attacks' have been severe enough for me to contemplate an A&E visit but I don't want to get there and have had the symptoms subsided already and I also don't want to be a hypochondriac.
- When I wake up with the intense headaches, I cannot have any pressure on my head or it hurts a lot more, so I can't rest my head on my pillow / wall etc, I have to sit upright and just kinda suffer.
- I experience no nausea, no sensitivity to noise or light, I have exercised whilst having the dull ache and experienced no difference.
- I'm in my mid 20's, I don't smoke, I drink rarely and lightly, I eat well, sleep well, am hydrated and exercise.
- I visited my GP last wednesday who took note of my symptoms and said he thinks it's nothing serious e.g. tumour/aneurysm and that it's probably muscular and he recommended I take paracetamol/ibuprofen. He was kinda dismissive which relieved me a little at the time but having had another weeks worth of continual symptoms, I'm now feeling a little under-cared for.
- I have been stressed with work & life lately and am on average, a little depressive with my moods.
- I just had my first ever massage this evening as an attempt to help relieve things. The masseuse said that she could feel a lot of tension in me and in my neck muscles. It felt great during and afterwards and temporarily relieved the dull ache but now, 3 hours on, I can feel it again and I'm worried about tonights sleep and about my condition in general.

I know it's a broad term but I wonder if I've got Episodic Tension-Type Headaches. I also wonder why I've never had them before and - I guess the big one - I wonder how I can get them out of my life!

Does anybody have any tips, additional help with diagnosis etc? I feel like this is the place, if any, that I might get some good suggestions...

Thanks all,
Tops

Hi Topsy turvy,

Welcome to Healing Well. Sorry to hear about this awful pain you have been experiencing.

Just a few questions for you -

Does this pain make you feel restless?
Do you get any other symptoms such as blocked nose on the affected side, droopy, puffy, red eye or watery eye?
Do you feel hot?
Do you have any facial sweating?

take care

Ann

Hi Topsy turvy,

Have you ever ridden out an attack? Just wondering how long these attacks last without treatment?

I think the best thing you can do is to get yourself to a Neurologist who is a Headache Specialist (HS). The reason I suggest a HS is that the general Neuros do not know as much as they think they do about headache!!!

One thought has occurred to me, I know this sounds crackers to do if you wake up in the night but maybe a cup of tea may help. There is a particular type of headache usually found in older women that wakes you in the night but it responds to caffeine. Some sufferers have a cup of tea before bed and that helps!

Your best solution here though is to see a Neuro who is a HS.

Let me know how you get on, take care

Ann

hi there,

I was searching online to find some answers to my 'migraine' situation and I came across your post.

It seem to me I am going through the same problem as you were.

Did you ever figure out what was the cause of your severe headaches? If not how did you deal with them, manage the pain?

I have gone to my doctor several times and have only prescribed me amitriptyline and propranolol and told me to go to a massage therapist. Which so far none seemed to work. I have been fighting this battle for approx. 10 months now and don't know what else to do.

Please if you can give me any advice at all I will be at most grateful.  

Thanks

I have the exact same pain in the left temple. What i do is lay in bath tub full so the water just about covers my face.I take 2 tylenol 1 with codine and 2 advil extra strenght. lay there and keep the water hot. i recomend this to anyone i find great relief from doing this.i can even get some sleep in there.i have these headaches for about 25 years on and off.but lately they have been waking me up about 2 hrs after i go to sleep. i hope this works for you.