Ok, normally I wouldn't do a thread like this, I would just go to the doctor, but I'm away at college and I don't really trust the doctors here. Most of the time they just seem to shrug and say "I don't know" and it would be nice to have a second opinion.
1. I've had this really weird headache for two days now. It's in the right side of my face, above the eyebrow and sometimes down almost to my neck. It's not severe pain, and it's gotten a lot less severe since the first day. It's not steady, but it kind of pulses in and out like a heartbeat. I've looked on the internet for causes of headaches and face pain, and nothing seems to match up.
2. Yesterday, I fainted while sitting at a computer in the library. I was just sitting there, and suddenly I started to feel lightheaded. I couldn't hold my head up and my face felt cold and clammy. I put my head down on the desk and the next thing I knew, I was trying to wake up, I couldn't remember where I was, and I felt as if I'd been asleep for along time. When I opened my eyes, I quickly remembered what was going on. I still felt a little light-headed, but I managed to walk to the bathroom, where I sat down on the floor and put my head between my legs. When I looked in the mirror, my face was white as death. After a couple minutes, all the blood came back to my face and I felt fine. I've felt lightheaded before, but I've never actually lost consciousness like that, and usually when I feel lightheaded, it's for a reason, like I'm dehydrated or haven't eaten, or I have my period, or something. This time, I had just eaten breakfast (including a big glass of juice) and didn't have my period...Basically I felt perfectly fine up until I randomly started getting lightheaded. I did go to the health center about this, but the doctor said she couldn't find anything wrong with me (she tested my blood pressure and blood sugar and other things) and she just said that I should see what happens, and make sure to go to the real doctor when I go home for Thanksgiving. Does anyone have any ideas? Do you think I should wait until Thanksgiving to go to the doctor, or should I go earlier?
Posted by TomDavidson (Member # 124) on :
I think you should go to a "real" doctor immediately. What you're describing sounds almost exactly like the aneurism that killed my aunt.
Posted by Derrell (Member # 6062) on :
Go to the doctor.
Posted by Ron Lambert (Member # 2872) on :
Yes Tara, what Tom and Derrell said. Aneurysm is what I thought immediately when you said your face was "white as death." It would likely take an MRI, or an X-Ray with contrasting or radioactive dye, to detect the aneurysm.
You are probably lucky to still be alive. I had a friend whose wife collapsed in her doctor's office with an aneurysm. They couldn't save her.
The composer Felix Mendelssohn died at the age of 39, of what is believed to have been a brain aneurysm. It is suspected that his grandfather, the philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, died of the same thing, so there could be a hereditary factor.
One curious thing though--you mentioned feeling pain on the right side of your face. My understanding is that there are no pain nerves in the brain. So the aneurysm could be elsewhere, perhaps in your face or neck, which would explain why you survived. Perhaps the aneurysm burst, then was sealed with a clot, and an alternate route for circulation was established. (Did you note any signs of subcutaneous bleeding, of blood pooling anywhere inside the skin of your face or neck--something that looks like a bruise?) If that scenario is true, then there could still be a danger from the clot breaking off and blocking circulation elsewhere.
By all means, see a real doctor immediately. Ask for an MRI or X-ray with contrasting or radioactive dye. That health center doctor sounds like a paramedic or physician's assistant. Medical staff in a college are prone to think that all the students are young and healthy, so there couldn't be anything seriously wrong. But my friend's wife was in her 30's when she died. Mendelssohn, as I said, was 39.
I don't mean to be an alarmist. But I think you ought to be scared, and seek the proper medical help, immediately.
Please get back to us later, after you have gotten real medical help, and let us know how you are.
[ October 31, 2009, 12:24 PM: Message edited by: Ron Lambert ]
Posted by Tara (Member # 10030) on :
Alright...That does sound alarmist. I looked up symptoms of a stroke, and they don't really correlate. I also think health center doctors would at least know what a stroke is.
I AM however calling my primary care doctor -- I will talk to the doctor on Monday to see if she thinks it is a serious issue.
[ October 31, 2009, 12:58 PM: Message edited by: Tara ]
Posted by Ron Lambert (Member # 2872) on :
An aneurysm is different from a stroke. An aneurysm is a balloon-like bulging in a blood vessel. This can go on for years. When it finally bursts, a lot of blood is spilled. If it happens in the brain, it is likely to be fatal.
There are two kinds of strokes: An ischemic stroke is simply a blood vessel in the brain that becomes blocked, so a portion of the brain may be starved of blood.
A hermorrhagic stroke is caused by bleeding, which can also deprive a portion of the brain of blood. Here are some symptoms: "higher pressure in the brain, including severe headache, nausea and vomiting, neck stiffness, dizziness, seizures, irritability, confusion, and possibly unconsciousness." Link: http://www.webmd.com/stroke/guide/stroke-symptoms
Most people survive strokes, and they can occur in widely varying severity. It is important to get medical assistance as soon as possible, to limit the severity of the stroke. You need to check for any signs of impairment, mental or physical.
The second kind of stroke sounds a lot like the symptoms you described. But the fact that your face became so pale suggests a lot of blood suddenly went elsewhere for a time. That sounds like an aneurysm. Although it could just be a physiological response to intense pain.
I'm not a doctor, so I could be mistaken. I hope so, because as I understand it, an aneurysm is worse. Whichever it is, aneurysm or stroke, if it were me, I would go to an emergency room immediately. Losing consciousness is not a minor symptom. You'd better have someone else drive you.
[ October 31, 2009, 02:20 PM: Message edited by: Ron Lambert ]
Posted by Belle (Member # 2314) on :
It could be something very serious. It could be nothing. Either way, you need to know. Get to a real doctor as quickly as possible and tell them everything you have told us here.
It may be a false alarm and everything is fine, but you have to know for sure, no guess about it. And do not take a chance tha it is in fact something serious.
I felt silly going to the ER to check ou some unexplained pain in my abdomen. My husband insisted. I had cancer - good thing I listened. I pray that nothing of the sort is going on with you - but I want you to be sure.
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
More than likely not either, but make an appointment to see your MD as soon as possible. Just because it probably isn't one of those two things doesn't mean it is not serious.
Do you have high BP? Are you on any medications? Sometimes these can cause fainting.
Hope you feel better, please let us know what the MD says (IF YOU DON'T MIND).
Posted by Phanto (Member # 5897) on :
Ditto to see a doctor asap who is good.
Posted by scholarette (Member # 11540) on :
My gut instinct is to be concerned. Weird headache, I would probably ignore. Depending on situation, I would even ignore the fainting. But when the two are added together, that raises red flags to me.
Posted by Tatiana (Member # 6776) on :
Definitely the fainting is scary. Do you drive? You probably shouldn't until you know what is causing this. Can you get someone to take you to the doctor?
My great-grandmother died young of an aneurism. She felt odd a few minutes beforehand, decided to go upstairs to lie down, and collapsed on the stairs and never regained consciousness. I would not brush it off or ignore it at all.
Good luck and let us know what the doctor says.
Posted by Tara (Member # 10030) on :
I don't have a car with me here, don't drive.
I'm calling my primary care doctor from home on Monday - she didn't have office hours before then.
The doctor here did check my eyes and pulse - I had forgotten that - she was probably checking for other symptoms of an aneurysm. Maybe she did a better examination than I thought, now that I think about it. They also check my BP and blood sugar, both normal. My blood pressure is always very good.
Luckily, my headache has gone away and I feel completely back to normal now. My mom pointed out that the headache might have been from a car accident I was in about 3 weeks ago - she said the effects of whiplash could show up much after the actual accident.
I still have one question about fainting - do you usually completely collapse, i.e. lose the use of all your muscles? Because that definitely didn't happen to me. I was still sitting upright on the stool when I came to, supporting my head with my arms. Very strange.
Again, thanks for the responses - I will definitely report what the doctor says.
Posted by James Tiberius Kirk (Member # 2832) on :
quote:I still have one question about fainting - do you usually completely collapse, i.e. lose the use of all your muscles? Because that definitely didn't happen to me. I was still sitting upright on the stool when I came to, supporting my head with my arms. Very strange.
Sounds to me like you slumped over, so you did lose some muscle tone. The fact that you were sitting in a chair may have had a lot to do with it.
--j_k is glad you saw a doctor
Posted by Tara (Member # 10030) on :
I wonder if I had a seizure.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Definitely a possibility to discuss with your doctor tomorrow, although it seems unlikely to me. Then again, IANAD! Posted by Tatiana (Member # 6776) on :
What did the doc say?
Posted by Tara (Member # 10030) on :
I didn't get to talk to the actual doctor... Just her assistant, who said to make an appointment. I have an appointment for Nov. 25 (when I come home for Thanksgiving break).
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
That seems to imply that they don't think it's urgent, which is presumably a relief.
I'm glad to hear you're following up on it though!
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