Worried about headaches

[Reasonswhy]

Fully disclose I have health anxiety, but sadly been in the minority % too often to be rational with health issues.

9 year old DD has been having daily headaches for
the last 3 months, they tend to happen in late afternoon, and mainly in the car or watching kindle. They pass without need for calpol but are sore when they happen and often coincide with her feeling sick (never vomits).

eye tests up to date and all fine, she eats and drinks and sleeps well.

Have seen 2 gp’s who were very dismissed and sniffy, I think my past health anxiety tends to cloud their judgement😢I was open when they askee
me what I was worried about (worse case scenario a brain tumour) and said in a bored way that the headaches would
happen first thing and be accompanied by vomiting and balance issues
and they won’t refer for a scan.

I’m worried that asking for a 3rd gp is going to have A neurotic mum star
stocker by my name for good, but every day she says her head hurts my heart sinks and I feel anxious. I lost my dad to brain cancer so it’s just triggering 😢

@banabak Im glad it's stable for now. Im so sorry, its just not fair that a child should have to go through this. You're right, just go one step at a time. Feel free to message me anytime if you want a chat. All the best, I'll be thinking of you guys ❤️

@Reasonswhy you seem a lovely person and are responding to every post you get. Good luck to you and your girl...she's got a great mum to look after her and fight her corner! Xxx

@ReasonswhyI know exactly what you mean about women being labelled neurotic when raising legitimate concerns about their children. I can’t think of one child I know with a brain tumour who was diagnosed via GP referral to hospital - in all cases it’s been private MRI scan or A&E.

Patronising BS.

My son had a brain tumour (diagnosed age 3) and his unusual symptoms (headshake, no headaches until after diagnosis) were fobbed off... if his diagnosis had been delayed another 6 months he would be blind.

But the UK has a dire record for brain tumour diagnosis times. No wonder with attitudes like this. "Heavens we wouldn't want you worrying about that harmless growth in your brain."

We had consultants say totally nonsensical things like "Common things happen commonly. There's a lot of fine print stuff it could be, but you never see them in healthy kids like him." So unscientific.

Subscribe to Empathy Bliss on YouTube. They have health anxiety hypnosis video. It's really nice. It has helped me a lot. I have listened to it three times a day

I completely agree with you. You know your son the best at the end of the day and I do think moms have an instinct when something is wrong with their child. There may be a very simple explanation for it and could be easily treated but that doesn't mean the problem isn't there. So figuring out how to cure it is definitely the way to go. In my experience, start with the simplest explanations and work your way up from there but if nothing else is working, you're completely within your right to request a scan, even for peace of mind

If it's a problem for you and your son and is affecting your everyday lives, then it is a problem, simple as

You say she eats well. But what is she eating? I found (I've grown out of it) that one of my triggers was cheese

I know you said they mainly pass without calpol, but are you using calpol regularly? Analgesia induced headaches could be another possibility if calpol use has crept up, and it doesn't need to be everyday use to be contributing to the issue.

This is disgusting - placing bets on a potentially devastating diagnosis? I’d write more but you’re not worth the effort. Reporting.

This is helpful - I’ve not but only because she refuses any and all meds 😔another day of a 2 hour headache at 3pm with nausea. I’ve started the headache diary.

i would book her in with a private optician that is used to children. Specsavers got my 4yo prescription so wrong they referred to the hospital they thought she was over +5 in each eye. We got to the hospital and she is actually +2 and +3 in her eyes but had spec savers prescribed they would have done more damage according to the hospital. I asked the hospital if they had any recommendation of where would be good for glasses and we know have a wonderful family optician who I trust. Try somewhere else for eyes first and go from there.

Another mum of a kid with a BT here. Her symptoms were headaches and balance issues (which we just thought was an awkward toddler phase) and then vomiting. Headaches were at random times, including, but not limited to mornings.

Here are some screenshots of head smart red flag criteria. If they are persistent and opticians haven't given an answer I would press for a scan. Looking at the criteria, she might meet the criteria for to the combination of headache and nausea, though in reality migraines are much more likely.

And the rest.

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply. How is your child doing now?
My concern is that they all happen with nausea which feels
a red flag 😔her balance seems ok for now but I don’t want to lose time if it was bad.

I used to get terrible migraine as a child. Dizziness, vomiting, temperature, exhaustion. It's very unpleasant but not life threatening. I hope the GP can help. Go back and see a different doctor. Don't be fobbed off.

There are quite a lot of "could mean something, could probably mean nothing but now we have to scan you periodically" abnormalities detected on brains scans (as with any type of scan). Often this can be quite harmful for patients and their families.

This seems like a good plain English summary:

https://www.auntminnie.com/clinical-news/mri/article/15628033/incidental-findings-common-but-rarely-serious-on-pediatric-brain-mri

Having lost two close family members to brain tumours I know first hand that many GPs don’t have a clue about the reality of the symptoms in young people. My closest family member was turned away 6 times by the gp and only diagnosed when in desperation she was taken to a&e by which time it was too late. So like you, I would not for one second trust a gp to spot a brain tumour.

I would look to get a second opinion or a private scan if you can afford it. Head aches with nausea and eye problems are red flags. Yes there can be other red flags but not always. I would want this thoroughly checked out.

While tumour is probably the least likely you need your mind out at rest and you need answers. Headaches with nausea at 9 are not something to put up with. There could be other treatable causes.

Don’t let this gp fob you off. Mention your family history, your concerns and say you want answers. Keep a diary for a week and include anything related (foods or drink consumed in the hour before, situations causing unusual head position, light sensitivity, motion etc). Then go back to gp armed with evidence and able to answer any questions about triggers.

I’m sorry you haven’t been listened to or taken seriously by your gp. Some need serious training when it comes to BT symptoms in children and young adults.

She's ok. It's low grade and the outlook is good, but it's also got some lifelong complications and we live scan to scan, like someone said.

The worst tumours tend to grow very quickly, which is reassuring given she's had headaches for 3 months. However slow growing can be devastating too, so it's important to be proactive, which you are being.

I think I saw a PP mention hormonal - I had awful migraines & related vision problems when I hit puberty. Started age 10, though I didn't get my cycle for another 3 years. It settled age 17 when my growing was done & the stress of school was over too.

I am so so glad she is doing well. It must be so hard to live scan to scan, I can only imagine the anxiety that climbs as you approach the next one. Thank you so much. I’m going to keep a diary for a week and go back and just say this has been ongoing for months and it’s snowing no signs of improvement and remind them of my dad, and If they think I am being over anxious then I’ll weather that storm as I can’t keep feeling panic when she says her head hurts that she feels sick. Even if it’s not structural something is causing it that I’d like help with for her to be more comfortable

That’s interesting, she’s recently developed breast buds so maybe that’s been a factor? I’m sorry to hear how hard it was for you 😔

An MRI is not harmful to anyone. Playing the odds doesn't achieve a diagnosis.

Sometimes a repeat MRI is exactly what's needed.

My son actually had an MRI at 2.5years and was given the all clear. His symptoms (no headache or nausea mind you) continued and worsened.

I took him (privately) to 3 different neurologists after the original MRI over the course of the following year and was given the brush off given the MRI was reported clear.

But when the last neurologist (one year later) showed the MRI to her radiologist they said actually the MRI did not look normal & ordered a new one. Hey presto, the small tumour which had been missed was now bigger.

Then he had surgery and proton radiation.

Don't discount the merits of actual testing and mother's instinct.