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Left side head pressure, tender spot, neck issues

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kg81
kg81

Hello, I am new here but I am a little concerned. I am a healthy 35yr old male however I have been dealing with left side head pressure for the last 5 weeks. I don't get a real bad headache but its mostly just pressure and its pretty much with me 24/7. I have noticed when I lay down or go to the gym with my headphones on it is not as bad but always there, I seem to feel it more when standing but again its always there even when sitting at my desk at work. I will list a few of my symptoms below in a moment but I did want to mention the last 2 years have been rough after going through a tough separation with my fiancée and only seeing my son a couple days a week instead of daily so my stress and anxiety was really bad for a while however I am dealing with that better now so I have a hard time believing this is stress related. I am a very anxious person and do not do well at the doctors, my blood pressure and heart rate go through the roof even just at a check up.

The last few months I have not felt like myself, I have had a bad stomach my whole life but it got worse around November 2015 and I was having chest pains and tightness, long story short I saw my doctor multiple times and was diagnosed with GERD and I also had an EKG and Stress Test Echo on my heart which all came out fine thank god. Now a couple months later I was finally feeling a little better, chest issues and stomach still kind of there but no where near as bad and then randomly get hit with this head pressure one Sunday night after just laying on my couch. I went to the doctor after 2 weeks of the head pressure and he tried 2 weeks of muscle relaxers thinking it was my neck, my neck is super tight especially left side where the head pressure is and he told me to stop going to the chiropractor. I was going to the chiropractor for just a couple months before all this happened because my neck and left shoulder always hurt (I work out in the gym and think part of it is from that, I used to lift very heavy but I don't as much anymore). The funny thing is a week before this head pressure started my chiropractor did his usual neck crack on both sides and I remember it almost hurting, feeling different then normal and sent pain through my head. I honestly wonder if he did something to me and if this is from my neck however almost 6 weeks and still feel the same? Advil doesn't do much, muscle relaxers didn't work. I am doing neck stretches and just bought a hand held massager this past week for my neck and head. My doctor did not think brain tumor at my visit based of my symptoms and said my reflexes were good.  Sorry for the long post but hoping for some help, my doctor is now referring me to a neurologist but I am trying to hard to push it off a little more hoping it gets better, I have enough medical bills and I am trying to tell myself this has to be from my neck or something that will heal eventually. I know brain tumors are pretty rare but of course I am having anxiety over that.

Symptoms:

-left side head pressure 24/7.

-some pressure in left eye and ear but not terrible.

-neck issues, especially left side, recently got a massage and the massage therapist said my upper back and neck were extremely tight. Chiropractor although I haven't been in a few weeks doctors orders said my C-1 or 2 joint cant remember which one was out of place. I have been doing neck stretches and using a tennis ball.

-some lightheadedness and fatigue, nothing crazy and could be stress since I think about this and worry all day.

-just noticed this week I have a tender spot on the bone top left back side of head.

-no weight loss, no fever, appetite ok for the most part, stomach ache some days but no vomiting.

 I do get a little bit of facial tingles in the left side of my cheek and especially my chin, it is not constant and comes and goes. This did start a couple months before this and I went to the dentist because I still have 3 of my wisdom teeth. He did say they could come out and my bottom right one was coming in a little crooked and could be causing some pressure. He did I could hold off for a bit and it wasnt an emergency and that could be causing some of my chin numbness and tingles. Also I am constantly popping my ears because they feel a little blocked and my nose feels a little congested but this has been going on for a while and is not something new, maybe allergies

Hopefully some suggestions and feedback will help, I will see neurologist if this doesn't improve but again I am trying to wait just a little longer on that.

7 likes, 265 replies

265 Replies

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  • thzlmn
    thzlmn kg81

    Posted

    I just told my husband that I've found my peeps!

    For what it's worth, the only relief that I have had was spinal steroid injections. My first two worked. Unfortunately, the one I got in June helped my neck pain, but my other symptoms have only worsened. I have arthritis inbetween c2,c3 and c4, left side facial swelling, "clogged" ear, some tingling down my arm and just a sense of heaviness on the left side of my head. I've been to TMJ specialist, chiropractor, PT, ENT, pain management and I'm heading back to a neurologist. I've been thru CTs, MRIs. 

    Just finished prednisone and my swelling is the worst it has ever been. 

    Maybe the congnitive behavior therapy that someone mentioned? Or massage therapy? I'm up for ideas. 

  • emily45331
    emily45331 kg81

    Posted

    Can you please tell if theres been any update. Youre identical to me on the symptoms. Its on my right vs left, but ecactly the same. We had done same testing as well.
  • darren20868
    darren20868 kg81

    Posted

    Hi

    Ì am from the UK and I don't understand the American health service but I am shocked when I read posts and people put off going to specialist fearing MRI/CT scans. That's terrible.

    Ì don't wish to frighten anybody but I have come across many many patients suffering severe headaches or pain in local area of the head. I am a veteran of Iraq and I'm paralysed waist down. Sorry that's irrelevant but my point is I spent over 2years in a superb neurological hospital in Liverpool England (Walton neurological hospital) and actually spent time on the brain ward and made a lot of friends over the years sharing worries fears tears and hugs. Well I met dozens that had been admitted for investigation for severe pains of the head that turned out to be tumours. But I was amazed at the speed of the surgery and the recovery and with my hand on my heart I only ever met one that had "bad news". My friend Dave a big tough guy dreaded hospitals but after years of headache he came in whilst I was there and had a massive tumour removed. He was up and home in 3 days.

    So I urge anyone to seek help and try not to worry. It's likely to be a trapped nerve if it's the neck area. I actually get them myself from an incident in the 1st Gulf War. I find it terrible you cannot get a scan and treatment plus medication if you don't have money. Surely there's a way to get help? Anyhow I wish you all well and try not to worry. I always worried and you find in the end it was for nothing.

    PS. Never Google your illness/symptoms. I assure you from experience that even if it's just an ingrowing toenail you'll diagnose yourself everytime with cancer after just several pages.

    Good Luck everyone.

  • sagnik75290
    sagnik75290 kg81

    Posted

    I am also facing the same problem since last 4 days. Exact same problems you face. Idk what to do. Are you a heavy smoker?
  • brandij2000
    brandij2000 kg81

    Posted

    Have any of y’all having these problems gotten look at for chiari malformation ? Not saying it’s that but slot of ppl don’t know what that is. As well as Iv meet sit of doctors don’t much about it either. Iv had a lot of the problems going on as well. Which I am getting look at soon to see if I have chiari. My mother has it. 
  • a110817
    a110817 kg81

    Posted

    Mine started with ear pressure then got so frustrated having that feeling for almost 4 months, I started using nasal wash which cure my ear pressure. Now, I have this pain behind my eye, behind my ear down to the neck... the symptoms look like occipital nerve. I’ve been going to acupuncture to relieve stress and anxiety which really helped me to cope up with this. 
    • jessica96909
      jessica96909 a110817

      Posted

      I just started using sinus wash thinking it might help, because I'm kind of desperate for relief.  It does seem to help some.  I have had the ear pressure just here lately and even right now I'm having some kind of odd pressure, pain around my eyes.  I have used a chiropractor for neck issues this year and I might look into the acupuncture.  I have had several sinus infections this year.  Do you have severe sinus issues?  Also I was told I had TMJ like 15 years ago, so I'm thinking some of my symptoms could be TMJ related.  I've made an appointment with a TMJ specialist next week.  It seems to never end sad

    • terrie27149
      terrie27149 a110817

      Posted

      I also have the ear pressure, along with Tinnitis, neck issues, and alot of days. I get the achy pain behind my eye, sometimes one and then the other. Do u have any info? Some days I dnt have the eye pain. It comes and gies. But aches in my temple as well..ahhhh so fed up with strange symptoms
    • terrie27149
      terrie27149 jessica96909

      Posted

      Will you please let us know wht the specialist says. My eye pain has somewhat subsided but it's done that b4 an returned. I still get the aches in my temples..occassionally..

    • jessica96909
      jessica96909 terrie27149

      Posted

      I will let you know what I found out.  I honestly have little aches all over my head sometimes...  it does fall in line with what a tension headache would be, but never had these issues till this year.  The only thing that has changed in past few years for me is I was in a car accident that really only affected my lower half of body, so not sure if any of this is associated with that.  After the accident my anxiety levels did seem to go up.  I had never been a worrier until after the accident.  It pretty changed my whole system it seemed. 
    • terrie27149
      terrie27149 jessica96909

      Posted

      Yes, I get the headaches all ovr my head as well and iv never had this until a little ovr a year ago when I found like a knot in my neck which ended up being a muscle ovr a bone . But the dr. I went to scared the beepers out of me and I was stressing out horribly until after my Catscan which day after that awoke to this horrid Tinnitis. Haven't been right in my head since but just seems to be gettin more symptoms as I go..thus the neck aches, ears full, glibus, acid reflux, weird feelings in my head and sounds and lightheaded Ness and the lust foes on an on..smile

    • a110817
      a110817 jessica96909

      Posted

      My MRi result shows I have a sinus problem, so I start doing the wash with my ENT approval which helped. Now that the ear pressure was gone, I’m now experiencing the pain behind my eye (Also diagnosed  with eye infection 😫wink tenderness on the scalp all the way down to the muscle below my skull-all on my left side. I saw something in youtube to relieve the pain which also helped. I continously go weekly for acupuncture for my sinus and anxiety and still doing the occipital neuralgia exercise and hopefully this will make me better. Hope we all get better🙏🏻

    • a110817
      a110817 terrie27149

      Posted

      Maybe you also have an eye infection or dryness, the optometrist who checked my eyes said that because of my sinus problem, my eyes got affected too. 
    • terrie27149
      terrie27149 a110817

      Posted

      Can you share the occipital neuralgia excercises? Maybe Tha will help me as well with eye and temple pressure..
    • terrie27149
      terrie27149 a110817

      Posted

      Mmmmm possibiluty. I know they don't hurt all the time. Just occassionally..

    • a110817
      a110817 jessica96909

      Posted

      I didn’t had any severe sinus problem but I had a bad flu before I started having these issues😞

    • a110817
      a110817 terrie27149

      Posted

      I just went to youtube and search for it. Check with your Doctor first and see if it’s safe for you to try those exercise.
    • terrie27149
      terrie27149 a110817

      Posted

      Thank you..hope you are continuing to improve..I have good and not so good times..not saying days cuz it's not all day..

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