Is this a virus?

Examconfusion · 2025-01-25T14:36:53+00:00

Headache for 3 days, moderate to severe, keep falling asleep. The only thing that makes it better is lying down or sleeping. some nausea but not actually feeling sick. No fever. I can’t function with this headache and getting worried. Ibuprofen is taking the edge off but not much.

ThatUniqueKoala · 25/01/2025 14:44

Could be.

Could also be a migraine, a tumor or 100 other things.

AllThePotatoesAreSinging · 25/01/2025 14:46

The lying down helping the pain part rings alarm bells for me. Relief when lying down and painkillers not touching it turned out to be a spinal fluid leak for me. Pain going away when you lie down is a key flag for this. Docs didn’t even consider it as I had just woken up like that, and normally it’s from an injury. They think I turned over funny in my sleep and ‘nipped it’s. It’s actually very common but most people heal before they notice it. Have a really strong coffee and if that helps with the pain then I would be going to A&E to get it confirmed. It’s easier to treat if picked up quickly. If untreated there’s a risk of meningitis depending in where in the dura the leak is.

emmax1980 · 25/01/2025 14:46

It could be either phone 111 or contact your GP or pharmacy

Tarkan · 25/01/2025 14:49

Sounds very much like how I've been recently. I'm on painkillers for chronic pain day to day anyway so I never get headaches usually but I had a good few days of being really headachey and I just couldn't stop sleeping, and honestly I was sleeping around 12-14 hours a day. I had very light cold symptoms at the time, this was about 2 weeks ago and I'm only just starting to get over it. My cold symptoms were a lot worse this last week and I'm still sleeping a lot, although not as much as at first.

Original poster

Examconfusion · 25/01/2025 15:05

AllThePotatoesAreSinging · 25/01/2025 14:46

The lying down helping the pain part rings alarm bells for me. Relief when lying down and painkillers not touching it turned out to be a spinal fluid leak for me. Pain going away when you lie down is a key flag for this. Docs didn’t even consider it as I had just woken up like that, and normally it’s from an injury. They think I turned over funny in my sleep and ‘nipped it’s. It’s actually very common but most people heal before they notice it. Have a really strong coffee and if that helps with the pain then I would be going to A&E to get it confirmed. It’s easier to treat if picked up quickly. If untreated there’s a risk of meningitis depending in where in the dura the leak is.

Edited

gosh. Never heard of that.

what’s the significance of the coffee?

I also have a stiff neck and this all seems to have started with a backache on Wednesday after what I thought was sleeping in an odd position.

OP posts:

icecreamisforwintertoo · 25/01/2025 15:07

We’ve had this too the last few days - achy neck and headache, she felt slightly feverish. She’s better now, I still have it a bit. Think it must be sone kind of weird virus going around

AllThePotatoesAreSinging · 25/01/2025 15:08

Examconfusion · 25/01/2025 15:05

gosh. Never heard of that.

what’s the significance of the coffee?

I also have a stiff neck and this all seems to have started with a backache on Wednesday after what I thought was sleeping in an odd position.

Show quote history

The pain with a spinal fluid leak is caused by the pressure dropping due to less fluid. Caffeine is thought to slow the leak. It’s a short term improvement though, and doesn’t last long. Doesn’t work for everyone either.

Doc first thought ear infection for me, then thought trapped nerve. Could have been either as the symptoms are all similar, taking out the relief when lying down. when I had my c sections I turned out to know the anaesthetist and they told me if I’d called them about my headache, spinal fluid would have been the first thing they thought of - but then they see a lot of that after epidurals etc.