Pseudotumor Cerebri Support Group
Pseudotumor cerebri (PTC) is a neurological disorder that is characterized by increased intracranial pressure, in the absence of a tumor or other diseases affecting the brain or its lining. Diagnosis requires brain scans and lumbar puncture. Characteristic symptoms are headache, transient visual obscurations or transient visual loss in one or both eyes usually lasting...
Hi Everyone..
Yesterday when I would bend over to pick something up..I would get a headache..last night everytime I would move in my sleep I would wake up with a bad headache. Its been 8 months since I had my lp shunt put in and this is the first presure headache I have had since the surgery..
My question..is it normal to get these types of headaches while having a shunt..I get the normal little pressures..but the ones that wake you up at night..or could there be something wrong with the shunt. I was going to call the doc..but I am afraid he'll want to mess with the pressure..and if it is nothing ..than he might make maters worse..
?????
debi
Yesterday when I would bend over to pick something up..I would get a headache..last night everytime I would move in my sleep I would wake up with a bad headache. Its been 8 months since I had my lp shunt put in and this is the first presure headache I have had since the surgery..
My question..is it normal to get these types of headaches while having a shunt..I get the normal little pressures..but the ones that wake you up at night..or could there be something wrong with the shunt. I was going to call the doc..but I am afraid he'll want to mess with the pressure..and if it is nothing ..than he might make maters worse..
?????
debi
If your headaches are bad enough to wake you in the night, I would check with your doctor. It may be nothing, but you always want to be safe rather than sorry. If you ignore it too long, conditions may get even worse.
Jamie
Do you sleep kind of sitting up? I sleep half way between sitting and laying down. It really helps the nighttime and morning pain.
Just piling up pillows doesn't seem to work for me. You can get a thingamajig that raises the head of your bed. It's called a mattress genie and it costs a lot less than getting a mechanical bed-raiser.
http://www.amazon.com/Mattress-Genie-Lift-System-Twin/dp/B0009MFPZY
I think its because, like Sea said, altho I sleep on 3 pillows, I slip down during the night.
I take Amitriptyline,75mgs to keep me asleep and for the most part they do help. But I am on my 10th night of having to get up and take pain killers in the middle of the night, or else, I wake with a banging hd as well.
The first thing , I have noticed, that wakes me is the nausea, then comes the pain.
I think Seas idea of that mattress sounds like a good idea. Also, not a great solution, but I know a good few who sleep in an armchair. Much less chance of slipping down.
When was the last time your shunt was checked? Maybe its time for a little visit to the NS? just to make sure?
But don't panic, it could be just a once off or a glitch.
I have learned how to live with the constant hds, as long as they continue to allow me pain relief.But for me I have never had relief from the shunt. You have so I would keep an eye on it. Good luck! Cath