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Original poster

Daughter has had headache for a week painkillers NOT working

66 replies

RoseyBumble · 02/04/2022 05:03

My daughter has had a constant ( and I mean constant) headache for over a week now. She says It’s a dull headache but sometimes it fluctuates throughout the day. She complains about it more in the night and in the morning. She seems to be normally playing throughout the day but when I ask her how is her head she says it’s hurting. The worst part is I have given her painkillers 4 times so far but it is not affecting her one bit.

We went to pediatrician he said for her to get her eyes checked first for any swelling in the back of her eyes. We went to the optometrist and she says there is no swelling. But her eyesight is bad and she has now gotten a lenses prescription.

The problem is I am worried sick. My husband is saying for us to wait until glasses come in ( he believes that her vision is the cause for it) which will take 2 weeks to come plus one more week for her eyes to get adjusted. He doesn’t read anything off the internet and I do. He is saying he doesn’t want her to get mri and ct scans unnecessarily ( he believes it’s bad for her) I’m so worried.

Why aren’t the painkillers working? Has this happened to anyone’s child here? Please someone advice!

OP posts:

purplesequins · 02/04/2022 19:26

I'm with dh.
pick up the glasses and see if they make a difference. it takes a few days to adjust to them.

MarthanotMarfa · 02/04/2022 19:28

My dd also had headaches before getting glasses so hope that helps. However I’d also take her for a dental check up urgently as a permanent headache in children can be caused by a problem in the upper teeth.

itsgettingweird · 02/04/2022 19:37

It sounds as though you are asking her throughout the day rather than her complaining? (I accept I may be misreading your meaning).

If so I'd stop asking her.

If she's playing around and you've been told she needs glasses unless you see any immediate deterioration I'd wait for that to settle first.

Also if it's worse at night and morning when she lies down have you considered it could be a blocked nose. Have you tried anti allergy pillows or something?

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Original poster

RoseyBumble · 02/04/2022 20:01

@SheWoreYellow I have had her off unnecessary screens for 3 days now. And even in school things like music and dance I have her move away from the screens. It's only for academics I have her stay on

@Pob13 No I'm not offended and no she is not because I can tell when she is lying and she is not getting anything out of it because I am having her do all her regular activities like school. In fact she might get fed up because I have taken away her screen time. I ask her why/or how can you play when she has a headache. She says when I'm focusing on other things it doesn't hurt. So it's definitely a mild ache. She does slow down after a little playing and rests up.

@purplesequins I have called and the earliest they can get it is in 5-6 business days.

@MarthanotMarfa I didn't think of this. I will get to it. Thank you. But is there a specific spot her head would hurt if it were tooth ache. Her head is usually on the right side but sometimes she says it's in the middle of her forehead and sometimes on the left.

@itsgettingweird yes you read correctly I have been asking her. And I will take this advice. I'm going to stop asking her. And just monitor her. No I have not done anything to clear her sinuses because she isn't showing any signs of block noses. Is it possible for a head ache to be the only symptom? She has no stuffy nose, no nothing. I will search up what an Allergy pillow is. Is there any other suggestions that I could try?

Thank you everyone.

P.S. Also to add her head ache is mostly in her forehead area. Sometimes it's on the right side only. Rarely just on the left side. And just yesterday she has had pain at the back of her head coming and going. But the frontal is the persistent one. The meds are not working I gave her paracetamol almost 2 hours ago. And it still has not taken any affects. This is what is worrying me. Why isn't it working to relieve her pain.

OP posts:

Kitkat151 · 02/04/2022 20:28

Could be rebound headaches ( Analgesia medication overuse )

Okeydoky · 02/04/2022 20:38

I have issues with eye stain and paracetamol doesn't touch it, so I wouldn't read too much into it. You can get glasses for far sighted prescriptions off the shelf as well as short sighted ones.

Sundayrain · 02/04/2022 21:34

My 4yo had this recently, said he had a headache that never went away, I was so worried and kept asking him, but he was playing normally and the GP did the basic neurological tests (touch your nose etc) and all seemed fine. Realised when I stopped asking him that he hardly ever mentioned it and then he stopped mentioning it altogether. I think he was picking up on my worry and enjoying the fuss! Not to say that's what's happening here but might be worth considering, as others have said maybe try not asking and see what happens!

MissMaple82 · 02/04/2022 21:40

This is going to be obvious but get her to up her water intake massively. It's probably hormone related.

MissMaple82 · 02/04/2022 21:40

Has she tried co-codemol?

bloodywhitecat · 02/04/2022 21:44

@MissMaple82

Has she tried co-codemol?

Can a 6 year old have co-codamol? I didn't think they could.

mycatthinksshesatiger · 02/04/2022 21:45

You can get constant headaches with allergies/hayfever that come back when the painkillers wear off, plus they're worse at night. You could try piriton liquid on top of painkillers to see if it shifts anything?

Kitkat151 · 02/04/2022 21:46

@MissMaple82

Has she tried co-codemol?

WTF🙄

Somuchgoo · 02/04/2022 21:52

I don't want to be a scaremonger here but headaches in children that are worse in the morning should always be referred to a hospital for a full examination and possibly scan.

In 99% cases it's nothing sinister but its not worth taking a risk over the 1%

My 2.5yo was part of the 1%, and it was a tumour. Headaches were her main symptom.

coeliacsucks · 02/04/2022 22:18

What her glasses prescription? For a child to be far sighted is slightly unusual but nothing to worry about. Most children have a near sight prescription that will reduce as they grow. Is she is far sighted with an astigmatism that will be the cause of the headaches. The new glasses will resolve this issue.

rattlemehearties · 02/04/2022 22:22

Why on earth are her glasses taking 2 weeks? My child's have always taken under a week. You've given a full explanation for the headaches, the diagnosis is she needs glasses. I assume you and DH don't wear glasses as you'd remember these headaches from your prescription adjusting too.

Original poster

RoseyBumble · 03/04/2022 00:41

@Sundayrain I am gonna try focusing on her sinuses.

@Somuchgoo I am so sorry to hear that. How is she now? And was it a benign tumour? You mentioned that it was her main symptom. We're there any other symptoms?

@coeliacsucks actually yes she is prescribed for farsighted with astigmatism.

@rattlemehearties I should mention that I live I Canada. This was the only forum I could find with mothers I could express my worries. But even the healthcare is similar to UK I believe. I don't know why it taking so long!

OP posts:

nocoolnamesleft · 03/04/2022 01:10

Hang on a sec. You say her pain is worse when she is lying down? That is a red flag. She's probably fine, but with headaches worse on lying down I'd be doing a headscan.

As the scariest option has already been mentioned, you might want a look at www.headsmart.org.uk/ which is a website dedicated to helping people not miss any chance of a brain tumour.

Squeekyturtle · 03/04/2022 01:28

This is one of the worst threads I've read on mn recently for dreadful advice and scaremongering.

SHE NEEDS GLASSES

do not get some random prescription off the shelf that could make things worse !! Children's eyesight is dramatically different from adults and her brain needs to learn what clear vision is once her eyes are in focus with the correct lenses (this can take much longer than you would expect) The length of time its taking to make up glasses suggests quite a strong or complex prescription.

Try to encourage outdoor play and less TV and closework until you get the glasses. Hopefully with the school holidays soon that will help too.

If headaches don't settle speak to the optician about a referral to the hospital eye service as not all opticians assess children regularly enough to have good experience in children's eye care.

Kitkat151 · 03/04/2022 10:30

@Squeekyturtle

This is one of the worst threads I've read on mn recently for dreadful advice and scaremongering.

SHE NEEDS GLASSES

Try to encourage outdoor play and less TV and closework until you get the glasses. Hopefully with the school holidays soon that will help too.

If headaches don't settle speak to the optician about a referral to the hospital eye service as not all opticians assess children regularly enough to have good experience in children's eye care.

🙄....How do you know she needs glasses?? Have you never heard of diagnostic overshadowing? .....maybe it is her eyes.....maybe it’s not....very wrong to assume, meanwhile a serious health condition may remain untreated

livelyliz · 03/04/2022 11:04

@Fraaahnces

She needs a scan. Any lasting headache in a small child is not normal and I would take her to A&E.

This, You know your child better than any doctor. Go by your instincts and insist on a scan. I saw a brain specialist privately in London with my adult daughter 4 years ago following a very dismissive GP who suggested Indian head massage for her ongoing extremely painful headaches which turned out to be very serious. This specialist said 'any headache for longer than a week needs to be investigate'.

Hopefully nothing serious for your child. Please do not be worried about pestering your GP. Without ill people they wouldn't have a job!

fairylightsandwaxmelts · 03/04/2022 11:12

@Kitkat151 - she needs glasses because OP has already seen an optometrist who told her that her daughters' vision is poor!

She is waiting for the glasses to be delivered as we type.

It's really unhelpful for posters (who obviously haven't read the OP properly) to talk about MRI's and brain tumours when it's highly, highly likely that the glasses are going to solve the problem.

Children who need glasses regularly suffer from headaches as their eyes and brains are struggling 24/7 to focus on the world around them. The reason it feels worse lying down is because there's nothing else to distract you/focus on and your eyes tend to relax a bit more.

Have you never heard of diagnostic overshadowing?

Yes - and by all means if the glasses don't help, then push for a referral from the GP. But when a professional has said "this girl has poor vision and needs glasses" it really doesn't make sense to undergo further tests until her eyesight has been corrected.

It's well known that people who wear the incorrect prescription end up with headaches. At least address the eyesight before getting OP into a panic about brain tumours and her DD needing MRI's and brain scans.

fairylightsandwaxmelts · 03/04/2022 11:14

This specialist said 'any headache for longer than a week needs to be investigate'.

It has been investigated and the outcome is that she needs glasses.

If the glasses don't solve the issue, that's the time to push for further tests. There's no point in spending time and money doing the other tests when correcting her vision is highly likely to solve the problem.

Squeekyturtle · 03/04/2022 12:32

Thanks fairy lights you answered that much more diplomatically than I would have lol

Somuchgoo · 03/04/2022 13:07

It's really unhelpful for posters (who obviously haven't read the OP properly) to talk about MRI's and brain tumours when it's highly, highly likely that the glasses are going to solve the problem.

Except the NICE guidelines say she should be scanned.

Except the very unlikely can happen sometimes. I read the OP (and yes it's probably eyes). I am still saying a precautionary scan is a good idea because without a precautionary scan (it was also highly highly unlikely to be anything...) my toddler might be dead now, or more likely she'd have lived but in a wheelchair for life.

So yes, it sounds quite OTT for a scan for a headache, but one that is worse in the morning is a red flag and requires a neurological examination according to the guidelines.

Feel free to write to NICE and tell them their referral guidelines are scaremongering of course.

Kitkat151 · 03/04/2022 13:14

@Squeekyturtle

Thanks fairy lights you answered that much more diplomatically than I would have lol

Another ignoramous who has never heard of NICE guidance🙄

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