Migraine question - Inner Ear Disorders Message Board

headrush · 01-08-2008, 09:54 AM

I have recently undergone surgery for a mass in the mastiod area after years of problems with balance, ie tipping to the right, headaches, disturbed vision, floaters, dizzyness, constant clogged feeling on right side in ear and nose, neck pain. I also lost practically all hearing in the right ear and suffered constant ringing or pounding noises.
My nasal passages seem clear at present. Not sure about my ear as it is still packed. All other symtoms are still present. On reading other posts I feel I may also suffer from Migraine issues. On top of all other symtoms I get a headache behind the eye monthly. I think its related to my cycle as before I had a hysterectomy it would start just before I started bleeding.
What I wanted to ask anyway people who have been diagnosed with migraine is, Are migraines usually behind your eyes and do they not usually respond to painkillers.

studyin · 01-08-2008, 02:48 PM

Hi Headrush,

Certainly sounds like migraine to me. Some points to consider:

1) So-called "sinus" headaches, are not due to allergy, or infection, or anatomical blockage, but instead result from migraine. People who have what they think are sinus headaches are really suffering from migraine. Migraine produces painful blood vessel swelling in the linings of the sinuses, which are chock full of blood vessels. When that happens, you feel fullness, pressure, congestion and pain behind your face.

Most ENTs have no clue about the the above unfortunately and would prefer to go on a mining expedition in the sinuses.

2) In your brain is a control centre for migraine that receives input from the many triggers contributing to headaches. These triggers stack up ... if this total trigger level rises above your personal limit of tolerance -- your individual migraine threshold -- migraine is set into motion, generating painful swelling and inflammation of blood vessels somewhere around your head, face and/or neck, to some degree. The degree of headache (or facial pressure and congestion, or neck stiffness) depends on how high above your threshold your trigger level has climbed.

3) Women carry the extra burden of cyclical estrogen throughout much of their lives. The drop in estrogen shortly before a period is a potent trigger for many women. The tendency for women to be headache-prone with menstrual periods is natural, but menstrual headaches can be avoided. Sometimes hormonal contraceptives are prescribed in an attempt to relieve menstrual headaches by smoothing out cyclical hormonal fluctuations. This may flatten menstrual headache spikes, but it tends to give rise to increased headaches overall, and so the prescription backfires. A better approach is using diet, sleep and exercise as preventive headache measures, and the degree of required dietary restriction can be adjusted according to where the person is in the cycle.

Migraine pain can certainly occur behind the eyes. If the intensity of the migraine is bad enough, regular pain killers hardly make a dent in it I find.

Best ... Scott

headrush · 01-09-2008, 09:40 AM

Thanks for all the information Scotsman. It is difficult to self diagnose as I have often been made to feel like a whinger with a headache. I suspected migraine as my grandmother and two aunts suffered. I also feel nauseous and the menstrual headaches lasts approx three and a half days. A cocktail of paracetamol and ibuprofen allow me to work but I feel miserable and ill. After the pain eases I am left with a spacey, not with it feeling for another day. Sometimes I throw up. I will definately go down the road of self help to see if anything makes a difference.