Chronic tension headache diagnosis and long term management

[Lost_Girl]

Hi I suffer from chronic pain. I have a bone shard impacting a nerve root at c8 being treated with cortisone. I have pain at c5 and c6 that is manageable without anything. However I have a constant headache and pressure in my ears that I have had for pretty much every waking moment for the last 7 months. As a result I have become depressed and I have insomnia.

After a trip to a neurologist I have been advised to cease sleeping medication and strong pain killers. I am now only on antidepressants.

A visit to my psychologist today has alerted me that depression does not cause headaches.   

Has anyone been treated for chronic pain with ONLY antidepressants and did it work?

I havr a referral now to a psychiatrist to check but it not until May. While I see if I can find something earlier I sm keen to hear if this has worked for anyone.

Thanks,

Carol

[Lost_Girl]

Hi Sherie,

Please don't feel sorry for those things that happened. It was a long time ago and I have never suffered from them. I was able to process it and move on. In fact I saw both of them when I went back to care for my Mum. I had been nervous of running into them but in fact it was a good thing. The first had gotten the help he needed and is now in a long term happy relationship.

The second has had a number of wives and will never learn. He had the cheek to tell me he never understood why I left him so I took great pleasure in recounting to him how horrid he was. He looked shocked and apologised profusely then shortly after he proceeded to suggest that he and I should get back together even with me being married and knowing I was pregnant. I just feel sorry for him for being so pathetic.

I've never had a problem from these issues and there were other unsavoury occurences too but all in the past. I think this is why it surprised me so much that I became depression due to the pain when I had been fine with so many other things that went wrong. Perhaps this helps you understand how sad I feel for your situation sometimes.

I will check in on your thread lovely. Please don't lose sleep for me, I am fine, except for the pain of course.

Yes my son is off to daycare tomorrow. You wouldn't even know he had been unwell now.

[Clues_Of_Blue]

I'm sorry to hear you went through the things you did, Carol, but on another level I am glad to know of your experience, because it partially parallels my own.

I have seen plenty about abusive relationships on these forums, but in most of what I have seen there has been submission and depression and feelings of worthlessness or hopelessness. Not that I judge, of course, but I don't identify. When faced with abuse, you fought back, like I did. On walking away, you weren't deeply traumatised and nor was I. You have a healthy self-esteem, as I do. Depression has been a rude surprise for us both, and I feel a certain kinship with you in sharing those aspects (along with the supreme nerdiness). I want to thank you for sharing your story, because it's good to know someone understands my perspective.

Now if only we could beat up your pain and send it on its way.

Blue.

[Emmy.]

Oh Carol I just read your post I'm so sorry for what you've had to experience 😞 and here am I down on life when it's nothing like that x

[Guest_5218]

Hi Carol. I'm glad that you were able to recover from that as well as you did, as I'm sure many would have struggled immensely. I was interested to hear of what became of those two fellows, and I often wonder what became of the so-called person who attacked me. Although I dont think I could ever willingly face him. I am happy for you that you are able to leave the past in the past, where it belongs.

Ahh the littlies are so resilient arent they? I hope that today you are able to have a well earned break and that you start to get some reduced pain levels at last. Was there a GP appointment planned for this week, sorry if you've said before, I have forgotten?

Thanks for being available last night too, I appreciate it. Didnt feel much like talking about myself last night though. (-:

I will be thinking of you .......

Sherie xx

[Guest_5218]

Blue - I appreciate hearing your perspective on the matter of abuse, trauma, etc. And I am ever so happy that you were not badly affected as a result of your traumatic experiences in the past.

I assure you though, that none of us choose to be affected by trauma. None of us put our hand up to say 'pick me' for a solid dose of ptsd or general anxiety. Fighting it just doesnt seem to make any difference. Gee I wish it were that easy! It is true that I have often considered myself to be weak because I couldnt just get over something that was highly traumatic for me, where as many others in the same situation are relatively unaffected. I guess it comes down to the fact that we all have our individual strengths and weaknesses, and this one just happens to be mine.

I am lucky though that the bouts of depression I get (usually related to pain issues), I'm generally able to fight my way through fairly well once I've identified that I'm in that place. It just goes to show that we are all so different, and we are all adversely affected by different things.

Anxiety from ptsd is not an easy thing to contend with, which is why I have been trying so hard over the past 18 months to try to reduce its impact on me and my life in general. Regarding the abusive relationship issues I have, well that is something I am just not prepared to do anything about for the time being. One thing at a time.

I also know from my relatively minor experience with it that depression can be just as hard, and obviously I feel for you in that regard. Especially since you have always been such a strong and resilient person. The realisation that suddenly we have something that we are unable to fight (as we've always done in the past) then it comes as a shock. I too have always been a fighter, but both anxiety and depression sometimes has the uncanny knack of taking the fight right out of us.

I want you to know Blue that I do understand your perspective, and I so wish that I could be more like you and Carol in that regard. But unfortunately I'm not and cant. But it doesnt mean that I lack fight, its still there, just hidden for the time being. (-:

Sherie xx

[Moonstruck]

I feel I know you a little better now Oh Carol. -

It certainly has been a helluva ride for you through life....couple of things in common with me actually, although not the ghastly experiences with the men in your life.

I think mine were just as controlling and "violent" but in a passive-agressive way - which can be very cruel as it's not as visibly apparent, and outwardly the passive/agressive appears together, calm and poised while quietly and silently abusing you emotionally.

What we have/had in common was a desire to act, although I did carry through with mine - but also as the years progressed, journalism has also reared its head and taken over - bit of a coincidence there? (You never had the urge to play lawn bowls by any chance?..ha ha)

I reckon the atmosphere/vibe/energy in a theatre full of actors is very similar to the energy in a news-room - a teamwork camaraderie that's hard to explain to "the ordinary man in the street"....(who actually is this "man in the street" so often mentioned in conversation?)

I have a feeling that life still holds some exciting and satisfying twists and turns for you Oh Carol.....creativity usually finds a way to express itself. ..... here's a hug sweetheart....x

[Clues_Of_Blue]

Don't worry Sherie, as I said in my post, there was no judgement in my observations, for you or anyone else. They were more to point out that my responses to my situation, in both thought and deed, were very much against the norm. As such I am glad to know someone thinks a bit like me.

I know too that anxiety and PTSD will go where they please, and what you're dealing with is not weakness or choice, simply the hand you were dealt, as depression is for me. There are plenty of people who have been through what tipped me over the edge and were fine. Wish it worked that way for me too, but nope. That was not my area of strength. You're quite right that having something I can't fight is a shock to the system, when fighting is what I do (I fight anyway of course, for all the good it does).

You don't need to be more like Carol and I, Sherie, you have a different kind of strength and courage. Even I would resist something like EMDR if I had an experience like yours to work through, and that's coming from someone without anxiety to contend with, so don't think I underestimate you or think you weak. I am concerned for you, being with a partner who makes you feel bad and unsafe, but considering I stuck it out for five miserable years before I ditched the abusive ex, I'm hardly in a position to judge. I think the line between making your best effort toward a relationship and bashing your head against a brick wall is a lot hazier when you're in the middle of it, never mind the numerous other reasons and circumstances that could be at play at any given time.​ It just isn't as simple as people think when they haven't been there.

Blue.

[Wednesday]

Hi Carol,

Hugs to celebrate your strength. I'm glad you could get through those icky experiences without being harmed and equally sorry that you had to go through them.

You're an amazing woman and deserve an awesome husband, lucky children.

Love and hugs, xx

[Wednesday]

Hi,

I just thought I'd chime in on this conversation.

My understanding is that we are born with a DNA profile governed by switches (for want of a better word) that points us in certain direction, short sightedness, back issues etc. For some it's easy to see family health traits such as anxiety, depression etc. Sometimes these switches are turned on through an event in our lives, it is not something we have a lot of control over.

I think the more we find out about how our body and brain works the less options we have. So it's about making the best of the hand we have been dealt and giving ourselves a break when its all a bit too hard and we are being tough on ourselves.

Love and hugs to you all, I know we are all doing the best we can and working at managing and even changing the things that don't work for us. xx

[Lost_Girl]

You are all so wonderful. I am however very sick with I suspect the same lurgy that dear son had. I will respond in due course but will be away until I get rid of this bug. Sleeping all the time. Take care all.