I was doing SO well with my health anxiety, and then I read an article about a young woman with terminal brain cancer.

Given that I've been dealing with a new type of headache over the last 6-7 months, I'm now trying to keep from panicking.

Can anyone please tell me if they've had these symptoms, which turned out to be harmless, as in, not terminal?

My symptoms are:
- headaches on the right side of my head
- the pain is like an ache, sometimes severe (normal pain is 4/10, and 8/10 is the worst worst)
- it can last between 30 minutes and 3 hours or so
- sometimes it comes daily for a while, and then I'll have breaks for days or weeks

Also,
- nasal congestion began around the same time
- earaches on the right side began then too
- pressure problems in my right ear ever since the headaches began, with regular 'popping' as if I were changing altitude
- vision on the right side also seems minorly affected once in a while
- rarely there's a dull pain behind my right eye, but my eyes checked out clear at the optometrist

Anyone?

Hi Bulan, and welcome.

Don't let your imagination run away with you. There are many reasons for head pain that are FAR more likely than brain cancer.

Your symptoms could indicate any one of a number of headache conditions that we are all familiar with, and have lived with for many years. Fifty plus in some cases.

The first thing you MUST do is get your doctor to refer you to a good neurologist, preferably one who specialises in headache conditions. He will most likely send you for a scan because obviously a tumour is a very very small possibility that needs to be ruled out. Don't panic if your doctor suggests this scan. It's not because he thinks you've got cancer - it's because he needs to confirm that you haven't. I've had scans. We've all had them.

There are many headache conditions which all respond to different meds, so you need a firm diagnosis. The conditions are all very similar and often symptoms will "cross over" from one condition to another, so the cluster quiz is not a diagnosis. It's designed just to give you a general idea. I don't have all the symptoms in the quiz - and I have others that are not there. Diagnosis is not easy  and often the only way is by trial and error with the meds, so this can often take years unless you're lucky enough to hit on the right one early on. But once diagnosed, there are effective meds to prevent and abort attacks.

There are millions of people in this world who suffer from a headache condition which is not terminal. There are over 12,000 of us on this site alone. Think how many more there must be who have just not found this site, and all those in the world who don't have access to a computer, or even a formal education. Headache sufferers must run into zillions and very few of them will have anything sinister.

The symptoms you describe are fairly general to all of us, but no one here can diagnose you. We are not doctors. We are all just headache sufferers like you who come together here to discuss and share treatment ideas, to offer help where we can, and a listening ear when you need to rant and curse. And of course, to make friends. We are after all, the only people in the world who know what you go through.

Come back and tell us a bit more about yourself - age, gender, work etc., and where in the world you live. This could help us direct you to finding the  right doctors in your area. Most of all, stop reading scary articles. If you have health anxieties things like this will only make you panic and probably make the headaches worse. You must not live your life in fear.

So, keep coming back here for info and to talk if you want to. We're always here. And get the doctor, get the scan, and get the diagnosis. Then we'll know what were talking about. And most importantly, don't despair. Every one here has a headache condition and we live happy lives around it.

Take care and let us know how you get along.
Maz.

There is a blue tab on the left of your screen entitled "where we live". I've just had a quick look and there are at least 100 people in Ontario, probably many more as some have not put their province, and being English I don't recognise where the different cities and towns are. If you find some one very near you, maybe you could contact them. In the mean time, I'm sure someone more local to you than me, will come along here and tell you how to go about finding the right doctor in your area. Coming here is probably the best thing you could have done, as there is so much knowledge and experience on these boards.
Good luck finding a doc, and keep us posted.
Maz.

Saw the doctor today. He has a reputation for blaming almost everything on stress, and today was the same.

I asked if he was worried, and he said No. And he gave me a requisition for massage and physiotherapy for my posture.

He also ordered an MRI, "to make sure we're not missing anything in there."

This is a double-edged sword, of course. Now that I'm having the scan, I'm afraid they'll find a tumor. But if he hadn't ordered it, I'd be afraid of a tumor going undiagnosed. So I'd be afraid either way.

But right now I'm having trouble keeping a handle on my fear of what they might find.

Who else has had anxiety leading up to an MRI for headaches? And what were the results of your scan?

I was not at all worried about the scan. I was in excrutiating pain and I just wanted answers. The result was negative.

Blaming stress for everything is the same as saying "I don't know". It's an easy get-out answer., but at least he's done the right thing in ordering a scan. Is it possible to see another doctor.

Please don't worry about having a scan. It's a very necessary precaution and will probably show up exactly what mine did - nothing. In case you are worried about the scan itself, you do not feel anything. It's just very noisy, with lots of banging and clanging.

As in one of my previous posts I urge you strongly to see a neurologist. Most - in fact, almost all general practitioners don't have a clue, which is why so many of us go undiagnosed for years. Five years in my case. A neuro is the only person who can diagnose you, and then you'll be on the right road to getting help.
Maz.

maz wrote on Oct 7^th, 2014 at 5:10pm:

Well, he said he plans to send me to a neurologist, even if my MRI turns out normal. So I've got the impression I should wait to speak with him for the best diagnosis of my headaches/earaches.

maz wrote on Oct 7^th, 2014 at 5:10pm:

Thanks! I had an MRI about 10 years ago when my doctor wanted to rule out MS. (That scan came back negative too.) The MRI didn't bother me at the time, and I hope it's the same this time around!

Batch wrote on Oct 7^th, 2014 at 5:06pm:

Thanks so much! I wouldn't have thought of this without your post. I'll ask my doctor about checking this.