My partner hit his head full on on a scaffold pole almost 2 years ago, But is still suffering. The neurologist has now said he has migraine

[lesandjo]

The latest tablets he has been put on anti depressants. and tablets to prevent migraine and migraine tablets. But they do not help. He has a bad burning sensation on the top of his head, but to touch it is not hot .He forces himself to go to work and feels that no one believes him. He feels sick most of the time, has dizzy spells and pins and needles in his arm. Will it ever get any better?

[Hidden]

Hi, has he been diagnosed with post concussion syndrome. Prolong side effects after a concussion, (that may or may not involve a few minutes of unconsciousness).

Depression can be frustration also and anxiety are related to a head injury. The pins and needles can be related to a nerve being pinched maybe in the neck/spine. If he suffered some neck pain with the injury this may be good to have assessed. The area of impact and opposite side e.g. if it was back of head then front of head can experience aches for a long while. Though mine does not ache so much now, it can when I am over tired. It is the fatigue that can be a huge setback in my case.

I have been reading recently about fruits and vegetables that are good for oxygen to the brain. Breathing exercises will also help with lightheadedness.

Rest is the important thing. Kind regards, Gina.

[Petehat in reply to Hidden]

I'm no expert but has he tried mindfulness meditation I had a massive stroke and it has helped me anything is worth a try.

[lesandjo]

Thank you for your quick reply. He hit his head on the centre on top. He had physiotherapy last year but she stopped as she thought she might do more harm than good. This is when he was sent to see a Neurologist He has had x-rays MRI Scan and 2 CAT scans. There doesn't appear to be anything that sets it off. He is a very laid back character. But when the pain is bad he sometimes has to have a day off work. We sometimes have a few weeks when everything is ok then back to square one again. We try to live with it as best we can as he tries just to cope with it and doesn't always let on when he is in pain.

Thanks again

kind regards

Jo and Les

[at-spes-non-fracta]

Hi, just a thought regarding the anti depressants. I have been taking them for a couple of years now and clearly remember that one of the side effects, initially, was that they actually made me feel far worse than before I started them. Fortunately this is usually a two to three week acclimatisation process after which he will start to feel some benefit. Doesn't really explain the pain though I'm sorry, but if the scans are clear I can only think the anti depressants are exaggerating the migraine. Good luck, Ryan

[kellysuriol]

Anti d take some time to work... And don't always work. I have been told to help with my daily migraines mindful CBT and stress reduction thearpy ... Fron my neuropsychologist. As my head instantly gets worse of under any stress. John Kabart Zinn is the mindfulness guru. Look him up online, I have started the practices already and I can see some benefit. I have found that as much as doctors want to help with this type of injury they are unable to. Meds are not the answer, control is, if it can be archived. Good luck, I am off work right now, till I get some CBT under my belt. I know it's hard.

[Aelfwyn]

Hi, Lesandjo, sorry that your partner (and so you too) is still suffering after his accident. Ginakiwi has lots of good advice, and I just wanted to add a couple of things. The burning sensation on his head sounds very familiar to me; it's exactly how I described my head pain after an accident. My neurologist finally identified it as neuropathic pain, that is, pain caused by nerve damage in the brain. He put me on Gabapentin, which is an epilepsy drug that has also been proven to relieve neuropathic pain. It took me a couple of weeks to get used to it (initial side-effects were mainly nausea and sleepiness, but they wore off) but it does seem to help to make the pain bearable.

The other thing that struck a chord in your account was that he feels no one believes him. No wonder he needs anti-depressants! There is nothing worse than knowing there is something badly wrong with you, and not having it acknowledged or believed. It is a very lonely place to be. Thank goodness he has you standing by him, at least. For me, finding Headway was the breakthrough. Most of my friends and family still don't want to know, but at least here there is a meeting place for people who understand.

All the best to you both.

[cat3]

Could you be more specific about the above please. Have you had personal experience of this treatment ?

[TC1979 in reply to cat3]

Mmmm. What medicine company do you rep for? Circumstantial stories. Medical professionals undertake rigorous training and assessment to be able to prescribe meds, in the case of a reaction then its their heads on the blocks.

[wetconcretehead]

hi lesandjo sorry if i make mistakes as i am recovering from a fracture. I was struck by you saaying your husband forces himself to go to work. Can i say he sounds like someone who takes his responsibilites very seriously and if so i dont think it will do his recovery any favours. I cant speak for anyone else but i think recovery might be a less than useful word because i am getting better but i am different. i dont know if he had any support to return to work but Remploy have a retention programme and the government have a programme called access to work who can be contacted through jobcentreplus.

I was told that my headaches werenot migraines but the best advice was to go on the bupa website and look up the free leaflets on migraines.

hope there is something yopu can use in this. wishing you both well