Headache + eye pain

Hi OP been a couple of months but did they eventually subside? I can't believe no one has mentioned hormones!

That’s good news. Now you can go back to the GP and ask to try some headache medication knowing you don’t have red flags.

Cold turkey takes a few weeks at least to take effect. You might need to be patient.

You say you're taking painkillers - are you sure your headaches aren't medication induced?

What happens if you just stop taking painkillers for a period of time?

Are you drinking enough. I get pain behind one eye when I'm dehydrated.

Could it be medication overuse headache? Are you taking painkillers often/at all for it? Do any painkillers help more than others e.g. if paracetamol doesn't help, does aspirin?

Go back to the GP and stress that it is affecting your quality of life. Ask for a referral to a headache specialist neurologist (they exist, apparently - I'm yet to see one, but I'm told they exist 🤣). You will be waiting a loooong time, so see if they're willing to refer you for a few of the standard tests in the meantime - CT, possibly MRI etc - to cut down the extra waits once you're through to the neurologist (my GP did this).

My cluster headaches sound like that. Does one tear eye tear up and droop a bit during it? That’s classic cluster headache.

How often are you taking painkillers?

There was an episode of an Irish show called "Doctor in the House" where a man had persistent, crippling headaches - it turns out that they were caused by his reliance on taking painkillers pretty much every single day.

Taking too many painkillers isn't good for you and can cause all kinds of problems.

I'd also have a think about your diet, water and caffeine intake.

I am a tension headache sufferer. Loads of things can cause it, including:

• eye strain, especially if you tend to squint and frown to see things and especially if you are often looking at a bright screen or into sunlight
• prolonged concentration
• general stress and tiredness
• tensing your jaw
• tense neck and shoulder muscles
• grinding your teeth at night

Paracetamol didn't help for me either - but I found it more helpful to take paracetamol and ibuprofen together, either both at the same time or alternating at two-hourly intervals. A cold pack held against your forehead or gently against your eye socket might also be soothing - my go-to is (weirdly) to hold a can of Diet Coke straight from the fridge against my eye and roll it across my forehead, but that's just me! An ice-pack, a cold gel pack or one of those Migraleve soothing pad things is nice too.

You should DEFINITELY get your eyes tested. If you have poor eyesight and you were last tested two years ago, and you're getting lots of headaches, you need your eyes looked at and you need to tell the optometrist about your headaches.

You should also see a dentist and ask for advice on jaw-clenching/tooth-grinding - I have a mouth guard now that I wear at night and it's really helped. Also, I don't know if you've ever had wisdom teeth removed, but sometimes a wisdom tooth that hasn't come through can cause a bit of pressure in your face and trigger headaches.

At one stage, my GP prescribed me amitriptyline to see if that would break the cycle of constant headaches, and it did keep me headache-free for a good while, but for me it was a last resort as I did have some side effects and it made me quite drowsy (and couldn't be combined with alcohol). I would take it again if I got to the point of desperation, though, definitely.

I agree can you call the optician. Everyone told you to do this 2 days ago. They have an NHS minor eye care service too they might be able to see you. It’s important to be seen by an optician urgently because they have such specialist equipment they can take a thorough look

I have intracranial hypertension and it started like this.

Go to the optician today and ask them to fit you in to have someone look at your optic discs, tell them you have had a consistent headache for X days and you have eye pain. Use the words intracranial hypertension. Someone will get excited and come and look (I had every optician in the place come and marvel at mine).

Does it feel worse if you lay down? If you start to get a stiff neck or a lot of tinnitus, go to a&e. They should do a neuro exam and a lumbar puncture (if they think it's IH).

GP’s can’t do much more than a neurological exam though can they? They don’t have any optical equipment and having a headache of classic tension symptoms and not having your eyes tested is not enough to get referred somewhere else. I’m not sure it would get accepted for an MRI or CT or hospital referral for short period of possible tension headaches

For those of us who live with chronic headaches sometimes there just isn’t a specific answer or cure but there is a lot of self care you can do and visiting the optician is the first place to start

Same.
It doesn’t sound like a thorough check at all.

I wouldn't be happy with that as an answer and would be booking an eye appointment ASAP.

When was your last eye exam? If you wear glasses you really should be going once a year to have your eyes etc. looked at.

Thanks I’ll look that one up.

I get clusters of weird migraines nowadays I used to get a traditional migraine with aura but now I just feel sick, dizzy and off balance for a few days and an eyeball headache that won’t go away but the ibuprofen Lysene is so good it works really fast, or Anadin extra

My DD gets hemiplegic migraines and the reason I was incredulous about A&E was that the first time she had one we took her there because it has all the symptoms of a stroke and they just sent her home. They really do not do anything. She had a numb face and hand and was vomiting profusely. We know now how to manage them but first time was pretty scary

However I did have to go to A&E myself once (sent by 111, had seen an out of hours GP) many years ago as I had a migraine for 3 solid days with profuse vomiting and I explained I could not crack the migraine as I couldn’t keep tablets down painkillers or anti nausea so they gave me a paracetamol drip, anti nausea injection and IV fluids and it cured the entire thing within 20 mins.

A&E will just treat you in that moment - ie help you stop being sick or rehydrate you but they will not do anything else. They will not investigate anything

OP I've had tension headaches for years, they're not often severe in terms of the pain (eg compared to a migraine which is very different) but they can last for days so can be quite debilitating. I've tried many things!

I'd suggest you start keeping a diary to notice any triggers - for me, it's

• sleeping awkwardly; I now use an orthopedic pillow that fully supports my neck)
• working at a desk; I have several stretches I do sat at my chair
• going too long without eating, or eating sugary foods on an empty stomach
• hormones; I've adjusted how I take my contraceptive pill too reduce this

The best way to manage them for me is to avoid them with the steps above, but if they do appear then hot water bottle/wheat bags on the affected areas, light exercise (eg going for a walk) and ibuprofen are the main successes. I've also invested in a massage gun and using that regularly on my neck and shoulders has really helped.

Definitely get the extra scan done at the opticians, it'll help them rule things out.

Fair warning, the NHS moves incredibly slowly when it comes to headaches (not their fault, just giving you a warning from someone further down the road!).

Ooh me too with the chronic migraines! It’s so nice to ‘meet’ someone with the same thing. Shit innit? 😂

Indomethacin taken daily help with some chronic headache conditions.

@user666555

These are worth trying. They are the most reliable for me for tension headaches, although they also work for other types of headache and migraines too…

Ibuprofen Lysine (aka Nurofen Migraine). Take it every 4 hours as painkillers have a cumulative effect, it’s not the ‘one and done’ situation many people think. Don’t take them for more than three days in a week though.

Tiger Balm White - rub it in wherever it hurts. I am evangelical about this and have converted so many headache and migraine sufferers! It’s menthol so I use this when out and about and the patches below when I’m at home.

Kool N Soothe gel patch on your forehead. The menthol really helps relax the muscles. You can feel them loosening under the patch.

Hot water bottle if your neck/back is tight

Also worth regularly checking if your tongue is pressed to the roof of your mouth. If it is just peel it off. This will loosen your jaw and help relieve the tension.