A FIB AND HEADACHES

[Ailsablue]

Hello folks, I just read a post on the BH site about Ocular Migraines (from Yumz) and it’s prompted me into asking if anyone gets bother with headaches on this forum? I started getting headaches summer of 2021 and this was before I ended up in A&E in Feb 2022 getting diagnosed with advancement of Atrial Fibrillation ( I was told back in 2006 I had Atrial Tacchycardia, I hadn’t appreciated any connection to Afib having never heard of it). Anyway, at a hospital follow up in July last year I asked the consultant if the headaches could be a symptom of the Afib which he said ‘No’ to and there was no more discussion on it. I do get occasional aura and the headaches are always on the left side of my head and I will get a left sided tingly face too. I can get them a couple of days in a row or weekly and paracetamol sorts them out. I should also add that the GP sent me for a CT scan all of which seems fine but with everything that’s gone on recently (the ct scan happened by chance to pick up on a face lump) I haven’t been back to the doc about them. I’m just interested to see if anyone with A fib gets bother with headaches? Apologies for the waffle! 🤗

[WildIris]

I started getting them when I was 17. (50 years ago), along with tinnitus which I still have. I was scared at 17, sure I was dying but nothing was visible or audible to doctors. I still have both these conditions. I have learned to ignore the flashing colorful patterns and be glad I don't have migraine pain with it. (3 or 4 times a day, for about 15 minutes an episode plus my visual field tends to be slightly vibratory, with floaters.) The tinnitus is constant and still annoying but I still love music and I still hear fine. I never knew any one else with ocular migraines or anyone other than my oculist who even knew what they were.

[pusillanimous in reply to WildIris]

I have them - zigzags in my case, and I know several people who suffer, but I find if I close my eyes and keep still for about 15 minutes it normalises. When I had my cataracts pulverised I asked the surgeon if anything can be done about ocular migraines, and he said there is nothing, except to do exactly what I do until they go away. Fortunately mine seldom develop into a full blown migraine and I am very careful to always wear dark glasses in the sunlight.

[Ailsablue in reply to pusillanimous]

yes I get the flashing zig-zags in my line of vision and I also get a tingly face on the same side as the headache. I can shift it by hiding my face behind a cushion (darkness) from anything between 10mins to half an hour. They’re not always there though - sometimes it’s just the headache/tingle. I even wonder what the trigger is with it being so often and that’s why I thot it could be related to the Afib bit the consultant said No! I nearly said to him - I don’t believe you lol! So I guess it’s back to the drawing board and a stocking up on the paracetamol - which I don’t just reach for as I do try and wait as long as I can to see if it will go away. Thank you for your advice on the sunglasses I’ll make sure I have them to hand.

[Ailsablue in reply to WildIris]

it makes you think all sorts doesn’t it. My headaches aren’t the horrendous ones some migraine sufferers get but still bother me due to the frequency. Yours is very frequent and tbh I never knew migraines could come so often I only found out because I’ve been constantly meeting with Mr (or Mrs) Google to try and find out if mine are related to the Afib or if it even is indeed migraine. I guess it’ll be a trip back to the doc. Thank you for replying and enjoy your music.

[GrampaBill]

I first experienced migraine aura about 12 years ago ( I am 71 now). No headache, just the visual, colored zigzags, that resolve spontaneously after 30 minutes. Then I started having afib episodes 6 years ago and have recently noted that both events almost always occur within 24 hours of each other and typically, 1-2 times a month, even though I’ve been taking rivaroxaban faithfully. I also observed that, for awhile last summer, both conditions disappeared completely for about 4 months, then both returned with a vengeance (1-2x/week)until the cardiologist increased my medication, at which time they both nearly stopped again.

My point is that I’m convinced that the two are tied together in some way, either one causing the other or both caused by a common trigger. The MD's don’t have a clue and don’t seem to care but, to me, it’s not a coincidence that I have them together.