Talk sense to me - 7yo DS headaches and tiredness

[Prodol]

Hi all,

Posting in AIBU partly for traffic but also because I think I need a stern talking to.

I wouldn’t say I suffer with anxiety or health anxiety more than the next person so catastrophising (as I am now) is not something I usually do.

My DS is 7. He came home from school last Wednesday looking pale and complaining of a headache. He fell asleep on the sofa and later on vomited in bed during the night. He had a slightly raised temp, which he continued to have on and off until yesterday.

Since then, he’s been pretty constantly complaining of a headache. He’s been waking 2-3 times a night and crying because his head hurts so much. It seems a bit better from mid morning until mid afternoon and he plays with his sister, has something to eat etc. Then, he’s very pale again, in pain and, once given Calpol or Nurofen, has been sleeping for a couple of hours every afternoon and then back off to sleep as normal at bedtime.

I’m really trying to limit how much Calpol/ Nurofen he’s taking but every day so far has had the maximum 4 doses suggested on the bottle. At times, the headaches seem to make him very panicky. Before I’d got home on Friday, he’d got himself into a bit of a state when my parents were here and was almost hyperventilating when I got in.

He isn’t a child that easily cries but is clearly in a lot of pain and crying two or three times a day because his head hurts to much. I called 111 yesterday and took him, at their recommendation, to an out of hours GP. He checked DS over and said there is nothing obviously wrong.

I can’t send him to school tomorrow feeling like he is and after an afternoon of googling, I’m terrified that he’s got a brain tumour. The tiredness, the headache that is worse at night and in the early hours of the morning. He has no other symptoms so it’s so unlikely, isn’t it?

I don’t know what to do next. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

TIA.

My DD suffers with migraines, which started when she was 7 and main symptoms are similar to your DS: v bad headache that fluctuates for 2-4 days, fatigue, looking pale/grey, being emotional and weepy.

Our Gp referred us to paediatrics who did "tests" (muscle strength, coordination and balance etc) and diagnosed as migraines on the basis of that. I completely sympathise with the fear of it being something more serious (though migraines are no joke and my poor DD gets at least 1 a month :-( )

Step away from Dr Google and hope for a more proactive or engaged gp tomorrow than you got at OOH

@thatone not that I am aware of. He did tell the doctor yesterday that he’d bumped his head on the climbing frame at school but, given his lack of head bump wristband, I’m unsure of whether that would have been sufficient to cause a headache. School are usually pretty good at contacting home in the case of a decent bump.

Take him to an opticians for an eye check. Headaches so frequent can be a manner of things and so much can be seen through the eyes. They can rule lots out for you too. Boots opticians are amazing with kids eye checks x

We are always told to look out for nausea, vomiting in case of concussion after head bumps ( I work in a school).

@TheListThatNeverEnds thanks. I’m sorry for your daughter. My migraines began as Cyclical Vomiting Syndrome and so I had myriad tests as a child to rule out anything else.

They morphed into migraine over the years and were always so unpleasant. I stopped having them at 33, after falling pregnant with my second child. Hopefully your daughter will grow out of them too.

I hope he feels better soon - and do take him back to the GP or A and E if he still seems unwell to you.

@Luminiiii I’m definitely going to do this. I’ve had glasses since I was 6 so I’m annoyed at myself for not thinking of this!

@thatone Thank you

Op migraines are often hereditary so definitely bare that in mind.

That fact that he had a fever points towards an infection but I'd get him checked again even if just for your piece of mind

I really feel for you OP my daughters 11 and has suffered headaches since this age. Now at 11 she's had a few migraines. Doctors are almost certain it's hormones too. I took her to opticians 2 years ago and was shocked at how bad her eyesight was. She now gets yearly tests as each time it's worse and now she has astigmatism. She had a migraine last month followed by the flu thing going about and honestly jr was about a week before she started too feel better. She had sore sinuses too so maybe he's suffering the same. Keep up with the rest fluids and painkillers. If you pinch his arm opposite side of the wrist just above the hand and it goes yellow and back down to normal colour quick he is not dehydrated. If it take s while to go down and back to normal colour he may need more fluids a nurse taught me that trick. Honestly you know your kids if you feel somethings wrong get him checked by GP xxx

Thank you, I'm really hoping she grows out of them too! I had a lot as a teen but they were all hormone related. I had no idea kids could even get them, and as I am a rather anxious person I did initially worry it was something more sinister. It's still hard not to worry when she gets them now tbh. I hope your son is feeling better this morning and that you get some answers and reassurance from the doctor x

Sorry that your son is unwell. Hopefully he just has a virus and you have had good advice on here. I would also continue to monitor if he has a temp/other symptoms but also keep a record of when headache starts etc. as its very useful to have all of that information and can help with diagnosis. The optician is always really good for this sort of thing too as they can see other problems as well as general eye sight issues. All the best.

See if his headache is worse if he puts his head down between his knees. This will tell you if it's related to the tubes in his sinuses/ears/nose. Kids say headache for anything loosely relating to the head, so don't assume it feels like an adult headache.

He clearly has a virus, so I don't think you need to worry about other things until he's over the virus, except perhaps ear infections.

Hi everyone, thanks for your replies. I wanted to update: we took DS to the GP this morning, who was brilliant, and did a number of checks before sending us to the local paediatric assessment unit.

They were also fantastic and tested things like balance and coordination, as well as a thorough check over from top to toe. Based on the severity of the headaches, they sent us over to the emergency eye clinic and he had a full eye test, which returned perfect vision, and a test to measure the pressure at the back of the eye. This also came back within normal ranges. They have a couple of other tests that they want to do, including one to dilate the eye so they can have a proper look at the back but they have asked that we return tomorrow to do that as DS was beginning to look paler and paler. His headache was extremely severe by the end of our time there and the lights in the hospital were really hurting his eyes, plus, he’d not been able to have the long afternoon nap that he’s been having over the past few days.

So, not quite at the stage of knowing what is causing the headaches but at the very least we have started to rule out anything sinister.

Curious if you found out what was causing your wee one’s headaches and fatigue, as having a similar issue with my 8 year old. I hope he is better now and nothing serious was found.

@HJBeans yes, he was concussed. He is now a few days headache free and seems on the mend but is still very tired and pale.

The paediatric consultant who ruled everything else out thinks it was caused by the fall off the climbing frame at school, although he didn’t hit his head particularly hard.

I hope you get to the bottom of what’s causing the issues with your little one.

Just saw this thread and wanted to say that we had exactly the same problem along with several families we know. Our closest theory was that it could have been Flu A in children who had the nasal spray vaccine. They didn't present with typical symptoms like fever, aches, coughs but just had recurring headaches that lasted for weeks.

Flu was rampant this year and seems to have hit everyone. I've never had flu in my life before this but was almost certain I came down with in early Jan. DD's symptoms started around the same time I recovered. We've had plenty of nursery bugs for the past 3 years so we typically know how viruses present in her. This one was different and genuinely had us very worried. We ended up doing the same thing with pediatrician appts, neuro exam, eye exam and all of that turned up nothing. Then the symptoms faded by themselves and she's been feeling well for over a week.

That’s really interesting. My younger son’s constant headache with fatigue started at exactly the same time my older son had a mild stomach flu which triggered full-blown post viral fatigue. Six weeks on today was the first day they were both in for a full day of school. My older boy definitely improving. My younger one has just adjusted to living life with a constant headache and fatigue. I’m still worried we’re missing something as it’s constant and in just one place on his head, right over his frontal sinus. You’re right, though, that there’s been lots of odd long-lasting flu in our school since the new year, and the timing of both boys being down at the same time is suggestive of a viral illness.

Can I ask how long it was before your child’s headache went?