Extreme headache for 4 days. Should I be worried?

[WonderWomanIsTired]

I've had a headache for 4 days, I'm exhausted but it's so painful that I only fall asleep exhausted for an hour or two before the pain wakes me up again.

I do get migraines but my prescription triptans aren't touching it.

I've been taking regular paracetamol and ibuprofen (sometimes swapping the ibuprofen out for aspirin as I have found that this can be more helpful for migraines).

Occasionally I've taken codeine firstly for the pain just so I can get to sleep and secondly to help with my IBS symptoms that's what they are prescribed for.

I can't see well and it hurts to wear my glasses.
It's so painful it hurts to touch my face and head.

What else can I do to alleviate this?

DW started complaining of a severe headache last September. GP referred her for scans etc but two weeks away, DW was clearly deteriorating rapidly (sleeping loads, forgetful, wobbly) so I ignored GP and took her straight to A&E.

CT scan at A&E showed she had a subdural haematoma (bleed on the brain). We were blue lighted to a London hospital and she had surgery the following morning.

All fine now (we hope and pray) but please take these kinds of symptoms very seriously. If DW had not had rapid treatment that could have been the end. Haematomas are usually associated with trauma (being in a car crash, having a fall) but in her case it seems to have been spontaneous.

OP - your symptoms sound a bit different, you have been to A&E and I do not wish to alarm. However, just to say our experience taught us not to take "no" for an answer from the various gatekeepers in the system where there were things that were clearly not right!

I ended up in A and E on a drip and IV antibiotics and painkillers as my sinus headache was so bad it was making me vomit and I couldn't hold down any fluids or meds. They kept checking me for meningitis but thankfully it was just my sinuses.

Hey everyone, thank you again for your kindness and I'm so sorry to anyone who has suffered or is suffering with headaches like this.

It's still here today. I'm not sure it is a migraine, even though that's what the hospital said. I've never had a migraine before where I slur my words. Also, I normally get visual refractions with migraines, this time there are none of those... when it's at it's worst I just can't see. It's difficult to explain other than to say it's like looking through a black fog in one or both eyes.

I'm on day 9 now, which is horrible but I'm assertive that if it was going to be something very serious that would have developed by now I could be wrong about this.

DD had meningitis a few years ago so I've seen the signs first hand and I'm as confident as I can be that it's not that.

Egghead68 I checked last night and it's Evorel Sequi that I need, I couldn't find them anywhere but that doesn't mean they can't be sourced somehow!

I do have a temperature - it doesn't get very high but the lowest reading in hospital was in the 35s. It does go up to 38 and more, they aren't hot flushes it's definitely a hot and cold chill.

I'm nauseous and I've been sick.

cranbrook1966 I'm sleeping loads, forgetful, wobbly and slurring my words too.

It's possibly interesting that you said subdural haematomas can be related to trauma. I had an accident, nothing to do with my head at all but I broke a bone on 21st Jan, the headaches started on 26th. I hadn't associated the two and it's probably nothing but as I say that is interesting.

Sinuses are increasingly looking like a possibility, one for the GP when I see them later in the week I think.

In the meantime I'm having another day in bed but if I don't work then I don't get paid so I have to go back to work tomorrow if I possibly can.

Simlar story as @cranbrook1966

I have a severe headache for a few weeks then one day lost speech, went numb and tingly. Straight to a&e paramedics convinced it was bells palsy but because of the severe headache they did scan anyway. 4 hours later im being taken up to neurology ward because i have a brain hemorrhage. Had to have loads more scans to see why i hemorrhaged, i had a cortical venous thrombosis which bled out. It could of been life threatening but as it was on a 8ml bleed i was discharged after 4 days with blood thinners (which I'm now on for life).
The longterm effects are awful, loss of sight, personality change, depression, one sided weakness, more headaches, severe tinitus.
Im still seeing a neurologist 16 months later.

Don't leave this headache. Demand scan if you haven't had one. My only symptoms for first few weeks was just a headache then bang here comes a hemorrage..
Its not nice. Every one says nah won't happen to me, wont be anything serious. But theres always a chance i could be you.

Ok @Emptyspacex. I hear you, it's not that I was dismissing you cranbrook1966 it's just that -as Emptyspacex says - I've been thinking it's nothing serious and that won't happen to me.

I'll call the Drs now.
Thank you

I would look at diet and what your eating - alleviate the IBS and diarrhoea - might resolve the migraines.

Sounds truly awful. I don’t think I would wait for a later gp app. Sounds like you need a ct scan. Are you getting worse? Or staying the same ?

Dh rarely gets headaches but had this a few years ago, he was crawling around the floor in pain. A&E assessed and sent home. Dr's next morning diagnosed sinusitis, after 24, hrs on antibiotics he was loads better. He'd suffered for five days. Hope your OK op!

Any update OP?