Headaches in Kids

[dclpluto]

Im the dont go to the Doctor guy, but headaches in kids scares me

If you don’t like going to the doctor you need to change your doctor. I use to not like going to the doctor. Now I have a beautiful female doctor now I love going.

 

[js]

I got wicked headaches as a kid. So bad that the only thing that helped was laying a quiet dark room with a cold compress on my eyes or head helped. They were assumed to be migraines caused by rapid growth. I still get migraines to this day. IF I take 3 Advil as soon as I feel it coming on I can knock it out, but laying down now only makes it worse.

My son was like you above and was diagnosed with migraines. He would vomit, lay down in his bedroom but had to be dark and have a cold compress on his head (we used the cool bands that stick on the forehead) and sleep for almost exactly three hours. It would knock him out.

OP, we made sure he was very hydrated (although hard to do when they are at school or gone playing a sport) and stayed away from nitrates and cheese and it seemed to help to a degree. My ds grew out of the migraines by the time he was a junior in HS, although he may get one a year now (he is a senior in college).

 

[PollyannaMom]

Based on the summer pattern, I'd also lean toward dehydration/overheating (and possibly certain plants blooming and affecting his sinuses.)

 

[TW22]

My 7 year old gets headaches fairly often. Our doctor wasn't super concerned. Water helps some and so does a children's multi-vitamin (the pediatrician recommended that for the magnesium). We also use Children's Motrin if needed.

 

[Jennasis]

Can I ask if the worsening when laying down is a rather recent change? I'm a lifelong migraine sufferer since I was at least six, with the worst of them being hormone induced. Within the past year or so it's been really miserable when I get them because I cannot do anything, cannot stand light -- but if I lay down the agony gets worse. I can't figure out why and my doc has no answers either.

Been like that my entire adult life.

 

[superme80]

Thank you everyone!!! He is back to his normal annoying/adorable self. It took about an hour for him to get back to normal last night. I checked on him in the night and he was still fine. I am doing "water checks" during the day so EVERYONE is staying hydrated. He recently went to the doctor for a check up, and his eyesight was fine, but I will take him again if another headache occurs this month. DH and I are both prone to migraines, so it could be he might be developing them, but I don't want to overreact. Keeping a close eye on him today. Thank you again everyone!!!!

 

[cabanafrau]

Been like that my entire adult life.

Thanks. I was hoping maybe you had some information that would explain why I'm not only in crippling pain when these hit, but now it also takes so much effort to find a way to prop myself just so to make sure I don't escalate the situation that much further by lying down. Like anybody needs anything else added to make the migraine more unbearable.

My father and aunt both suffered them when young and stopped in their twenties. My aunt had said hers stopped when she went to the doctor and he "gave her a shot". She never was able to tell me what it was. It would have been back in the 1950s, so I'm thinking she confused things over time. They always told me I would outgrow them, but I've never managed yet. Hopefully you have better success than I do on that front.

 

[bigbabyblues]

If it is mainly in the summer, I would definitely push water, water, and more water. My younger son tends to get a headache if he hasn't had enough sleep too.

 

[DietCoke18]

Thanks everyone. He is 8, so I will work with him on watching for the signs. I was out with our oldest, so I didn't see when it started, just got the worst of it. He only tends to have them about 3 or 4 times a year, so I don't worry too much. They do tend to happen usually in the summer.

Take him to a neurologist Really. It’s worth the peace of mind. My oldest gets headaches and they. Can be bad. She’s better now and thankfully it’s nothing according to her doctor but we still follow up every few months

 

[DLgal]

Severe, recurring headaches in children should always be evaluated initially by a neurologist. It's usually migraine, but can also be symptom of another disease process or something like a tumor. Always rule out anything serious before assuming it's just regular headaches or migraines.

 

[Owlpost23]

For a non medicinal remedy,use a chip clip between the thumb and forefinger.Give it a shot,it can't hurt and could very well help.Good luck!

 

[gillep]

Thank you everyone!!! He is back to his normal annoying/adorable self. It took about an hour for him to get back to normal last night. I checked on him in the night and he was still fine. I am doing "water checks" during the day so EVERYONE is staying hydrated. He recently went to the doctor for a check up, and his eyesight was fine, but I will take him again if another headache occurs this month. DH and I are both prone to migraines, so it could be he might be developing them, but I don't want to overreact. Keeping a close eye on him today. Thank you again everyone!!!!

Did he just have his eyesight checked at the regular primary doctor or did he go to a specific eye doctor? For the most part the eye charts that the regular doctor has the ability to perform may not catch all eyesight issues. My husband is right on the verge of needing correction for an astigmatism, he has no issues with regular eye charts at all, but when he does the full evaluation with an eye doctor they pick it up. He has no issues with seeing at distances until it is projected light, so presentations from a projector and some movie theaters are an issue, and prolonged exposure to the projected light causes headaches. Not to say there is anything wrong with his eyesight, but if he wasn't evaluated by an eye doctor specifically you may want to consider it.

 

[low-key]

If you don’t like going to the doctor you need to change your doctor. I use to not like going to the doctor. Now I have a beautiful female doctor now I love going.

I do have that but ts still the Dr, here is mine, lover her to death she keeps me alive

 

[Imzadi]

Thanks everyone. He is 8, so I will work with him on watching for the signs. I was out with our oldest, so I didn't see when it started, just got the worst of it. He only tends to have them about 3 or 4 times a year, so I don't worry too much. They do tend to happen usually in the summer.

If it usually happens in the summer, I wonder if a flash of extremely bright light, caused by the bright summer sun, may trigger it? The blinding sun reflecting off the chrome bumper of a car going by can be stabbing, right to the back of the head, if it flashes in the eyes just right. Some sidewalks are so light that at mid-day, they reflect light up in a blinding way.


One tip I have: I've had extreme headaches which turn to migraines, if not treated right away, since I was a child. NOTHING gets rid of the headache for me except Advil. I'd end up taking 3 aspirin as it never fully got rid of the headache. Even then, I'd still feel it lingering in the back of my head. Tylenol does nothing for me. Trying to sleep it off doesn't work. It has to be Advil (for me.)

Find what works for your DS and keep it on you and/or him ALL THE TIME. I have a little travel pill case I keep some in and have it in my handbag at all times. As, if I don't treat the headache right away, it will turn into a migraine. If DS doesn't carry a backpack, get those little portable, single dose, travel, envelope packets of the med, from 7-Eleven or the travel section of a drug store, and place them in his jacket pockets, so he knows they are always tucked in them.

I also always have some saltine crackers or bread around to eat before taking the pills, so I also don't end up with an upset stomach from the pills. If the migraine has gotten to a point where I'm nauseous, the only thing I can eat without the thought of vomiting is something bland like the crackers.

Last, tell DS to never go to bed with even a HINT of a headache. For me, if I go to bed with a slight headache, I wake up with a full blown migraine. I have to take the Advil to get rid of the headache before going to bed, even if it means dragging myself out of bed to take it.

 

[Disney_Alli]

Another thing to consider if they're more common in the summer is sunglasses. Does he have GOOD sunglasses and wear them all the time when outside? (Even if it doesn't look all that sunny sun can still damage eyes and cause headaches. I am SUPER sensitive to sunlight and wear sunglasses constantly and really struggle to find ones dark enough for me that I'm not still squinting behind them.

 

[DISNEYSQUIRRELS]

Thanks everyone! Usually the normal remedies kick it within an hour, but I was wondering if there might be anything else I might have missed. And yes water is HUGE! I asked him if he had any, and he said no, so that is probably part of it. Also my kids are super sensitive to heat, so I think the stuffiness in the house might have triggered it. If it persist for more than one day, then I will call his doctor.

My daughter gets migraines & they’re awful.
She gets a huge amount of relief from going into the shower. She literally sits in the tub & lets the water rain down on her.
The water is comforting to her & her doctor explained that it can help regulate mood, body temp, etc. It certainly helps.
It would be really good if you could find out what your son’s triggers are for the headaches. Is it allergies, stress, food (too much or too little of something), lack of sleep. If you get a handle on the triggers, it might help keep the headaches to a minimum.
Good luck

 

[superme80]

Seriously thank you so much everyone. So far so good these past couple of days. I have been making him drink more water, and he hasn't been playing outside lately due to construction. If he gets another headache this month, I will make an appointment with his doctor.

 

[eyesforstriking]

I've had headaches since probably about 8 or 9 years old. At the age of 23 I figured out it was caused by sodium nitrate, sodium nitrite, and MSG. It was in a ton of the food I was eating: lunch meat, kraft mac & cheese, rice-a-roni, salad dressings, flavored chips, bacon, etc. Once I cut it out the headaches stopped but I do find that now I'm SUPER sensitive to it. A headache before would normally last 3-4 hours and I would be able to operate OK with them but now it's a full blown 24-48 hour sit in a dark room and vomit type of headache. DEFINITELY follow what he's eating and when he gets headaches. If it's something that's common in his diet, it might not happen 100% of the time he eats it. Also, some things that might be triggers have more than one name on an ingredient label. For example, MSG is monosodium glutamate, hydrolyzed soy protein, hydrolyzed yeast extract, amongst other names. Good luck and may they stay manageable!