Multiple Attacks

[kellyh86]

Hello,
Please bear with me in my description. I want to be thorough so you get all the information.

Let me give you some info about me: I'm a 25 year-old female, 5'2" and weight about 115Ibs. I am currently seeing a nuerologist for really bad memory problems(sometimes I cannot remember things that were JUST said to me), and I have a lesion (9mm in diameter) in my brain, in the basal ganglia (close to the thalamus). My nuerologist (and one other I have seen) have no idea what it is, could be, or the cause of it. But the 2nd nuerologist I saw says that whatever it is, it's inactive. I had a CT scan in Novemeber of 2010 which was for the memory problems, and that's when they noticed the lesion. I've had 2 MRIs and 2 CTs since, and there has been no change in it. I have never been prone to headaches or migraines; I get headaches maybe once or twice a year and I don't recall ever having a migraine. Around February this year, I had a headache while I was working. The lights hurt my eyes and the sound of the vaccum cleaner my associate was using made my headache worse-I had to sit in the backroom of the store to escape the noise. But I took 2 200mg Ibprophen, and once those kicked in, my headache went away. Anytime I have gotten a headache, Ibprophen helps (so does Aspirin and Tylenol). I am prone to really bad toothaches, but again Ibprophen takes care of them. I usually have to take 3-4 200mg Ibprophen instead of 2, but they help. I have been on and off again with pain killers for almost a year now and I don't know if they have anything to do with this, but I figured I'd mention it just in case. Not being honest about this may not give me the right answers. Here is what I have been going through since January.


In January of this year, I woke up early one morning (it was 1am) with what I first thought was a toothache on the left side of my mouth/face/head. I got up and took 3 Ibprophen and the pain eased up after a few minutes . So I laid back down to go to sleep, but as soon as my head touched the pillow, the pain started to come back. Like it was building up. So I popped another Ibprophen and sat up for an hour. I realized it wasn't a toothache, because the pain from them is constant for me. The pain I was experiencing would just build up, build up and build up and then ease off. Anytime I tried to lay down, whether it was on my right side, my back or my left side, it would cause the pain to start. Lightly touching the left side of my face/temple/head (even the back of it) would cause the pain to flare up. Light and sound didn't bother me though and didn't cause the pain to be worse at all. Between 1a.m. and 8a.m., I took about 10 Ibprophen. The pain was so bad at its highest peak, that I would be on the floor, rocking back and forth holding my head in tears. My boyfriend took me to one of the local hospitals. They asked me if I had a history of headaches and/or migraines, I told them no and told them how Ibprophen has always helped the few headaches I have gotten in my life. They took a look in my mouth, and said I probably just have a toothache, after I had explained several times that while I am prone to them, over-the-counter medication takes care of the pain I get from them, but I had taken a lot of Ibprophen and was still in pain. I told them when I get toothaches, my temple and teeth hurt, not the entire side of my head. Nor does the slightest touch cause pain when I get them. Not to mention, that any toothache I have gotten, the pain is constant. It doesn't build up then ease off the way this pain was doing. They sent me for a CT scan (this was the 2nd CT I've had), but saw nothing that could be the cause of my face/head pain. I was diagnosed with a headache, they gave me a Toradol shot and a prescription for Tramadol and told me to follow-up with my doctor. Two days later I went to my family doctor, and she told me they noted a sinus abnormality on the left side, so she said I probably had sinusitis. She prescribed me ammoxicillin and ambien to help me sleep. After about a week and a half, the pain was gone. I want to note that 3-4 days after my doctor's visit, I would get a throbbing pain in a front tooth that, quite frankly, is a "monster tooth". It looks like a T with the top of the T being the front of it and thick. I don't know if it has anything to do with it, but I figured I'd mention it since there was pain.

My second attack of this was in April while I was visiting my dad and stepmom, who live in another state. It was about 1am when I woke up with pain again, but it was on the right side of my head/face this time. Of course, I at first thought it was a toothache and I took some Aleve. Same thing happened as the first time; I got no relief from the Aleve. Now at that time I had some vicodin, so I took a couple of them and I was able to go back to sleep for about 4 hours. Woke up again and took a couple more vicodin (which was the last I had) and slept for 3 hours. After that, I tried some more Aleve to no avail. I called my stepmom around 1pm to see if she could leave work early to take me to the hospital and she told me to see if my doctor could call in anything for me at the local CVS. I made the call and left a message for the nurse and an hour later she called back, only to inform me that I was no longer a patient of that doctor and that if it was an emergency to call 911. I called my stepmom back to let her know that I might have to go to the hospital and she told me to sit tight and she would be home soon to take me some where else (a walk-in emergency center). When we got there, the doctor I saw listened to my explanation of my previous attack and symptoms I was having now. I did have a new symptom, breathing in through my nose-the air going through my right nostril would cause pain on the right side of my face and touching that side of my nose would cause the pain to flair up as well. He said it sounded like it was sinusitis as well, and wrote me a prescription for everything I was given last time, and also suggested that I take some Clairitin-D as well. The first two days after the visit, my pain was under control with the Tramadol, but on the 3rd day it wasn't helping and the pain had begun to radiate into my forehead. So we went back and I saw a different doctor, who suggested I might have TMJ as well as sinusitis. Told me to stop taking the Tramadol, and wrote me a prescription for 600mg Ibprophen and Tylenol 3 w/ Codine. Now, later that evening I was having a tightening pain on the LEFT side of my jaw, where the hinge is I guess. I had already taken a Tylenol 3 for my head/face pain, and that was under control. So, for the pain I was having on the left side-which wasn't affecting my head at all just that one area of my jaw, I took one of the Ibprophens and the pain went away for that. So, I'm fairly certain he was wrong in his diagnosis for TMJ on the right side of my jaw, but I may have it on the left. Still have to get myself to a dentist to be certain. Either way, a week and a half later, the pain was gone.

Now, I've just recently had my 3rd attack (on the left side again) of this. Monday the 20th about 6pm is when it started. I didn't end up going to the hospital until about 12am on the 22nd. It wasn't from lack of trying to get there, but I had gotten so tired at several intervals that I took some heavy sleeping pills and managed to sleep through the pain a couple of times. But it was getting so bad Tuesday night and now I was having pain in my left tonsil and left side of my throat that would cause pain when I turned my neck, that I had to go. I was in so much pain, my boyfriend was so worried he stopped at the firehouse and asked the EMTs that were there if they could take me by ambulance, which they did. We went to a different hospital than the one I went to the first time. And they did listen to everything I told them, and everything my boyfriend added. They gave me a shot of Toradol and sent me for a CT of my sinuses since I told them that the other two times I was diagnosed with sinusitis. While we waited for the results to come back, they ended up giving me some morphine through an IV so they didn't have to keep stabbing me. And of course, my on and off again pill usage was probably to blame for why the morphine they gave me only helped for a little bit. I should have been honest with them about it, but I wasn't unfortunately. The doctor came back and said that my CT was clear, meaning my sinuses were fine. He did suggest that I could have one type of a neuropathic disorder. I don't want to say what it is because I don't want to fog up any ideas or suggestions anyone has by naming it right now, if you guys can understand what I mean. But he suggested that I see a nuerospecialist, told me to follow up with my family doctor (even though I told them I don't have one right now) and they gave me 4 percocets (directions were to take 600mg of motrin, and if that didn't work to pop one of those with it) My boyfriend did ask if there was any way they could prescribe me something for the pain since I don't have a family doctor and that Ibprophen hasn't helped me the past 2 times, the nurse asked and came back and said that "he says he can't, but to go to your family doctor".....whatever.
I already have an appointment with my nuerologist next month and I have managed to land an appointment with a doctor this upcoming Monday. I was hoping to get some suggestions to what this could possibly be so I can discuss it with both the doctor I am about to see and my nuerologist. To recap on the pain and symptoms:

-pain is on one side of my head/face.
-pain is pressure like, with sharp pains as well, that comes and goes, builds up and builds up then eases off, pain lasting 3 to 5 minutes in length
-pain is strong enough to have me rocking on the floor in tears
-lasts for about a week and a half all together
-lightly touching (no pressure is needed) can trigger an attack of pain
-laying down causes the pain to flair up
-sound and light does not have an effect
-air going through the nostril on the side that is in pain, causes pain through the nostril and cheek area
-3rd time, had pain in my left tonsil and left side of my neck

I appreciate any ideas/suggestions that anyone has to offer, especially if it's as soon as possible so I can take the info to the doctor I'm seeing on Monday. I'm sorry for the lengthy description of everything, but it's as short as I could make it and cover all points.

Thank you.

Kelly