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October 2, 2002
By Dr. Richard L. Bruno
At least once a week I get a sharp pain on one side of my head, sometimes
the left, most often on the right. I sometimes I wake up with a headache, but
also get one at the end of the day when I am tired. My neck also hurts on the
side where my head hurts and I often feel nauseated. One doctor says I have fibromyalgia. Another says migraines. But I don't have flashes in front of my eyes and I don't throw up. Is my headache a migraine?
Is it due to fibromyalgia?
Probably neither. Patients tell me they have migraine headaches because
there is pain on one side of the head plus nausea. But despite nausea, most
people with headaches don't have migraines. Headaches are most often the
result of muscle spasms in the neck, upper back and shoulder muscles. When a
muscle on one side of the neck goes into spasm it causes not only a one-sided
headache but also pushes on the vagus nerve in the neck -- the nerve that
makes the stomach "turn on" -- and causes nausea.
Such single-sided headaches sound like migraines, but aren't. What's more,
we see many people with headaches, back and neck pain who are diagnosed
with fibromyalgia but whose pain is actually due to muscle spasms.
What causes muscle spasms? Spasms are triggered by physical and
emotional stress. Physical stress can be doing too much and becoming
fatigued or having "painful" posture. Painful posture is sitting or standing
with your back looking like a C: your head falling forward, upper back
curled over, shoulders elevated, being bent forward at the waist or tilting to one side (by the way, sitting at the computer may be the #1 cause of
painful posture.) Emotional stress can be anything from the slings and
arrows of living in the 21st century to the hard-driving, pressured,
overachieving, work-till-you-drop Type A lifestyles that many CFS/ME patients
have.
How do you treat headaches and other muscle spasm pain? First you need to
make sure that the pain is indeed caused by a spasm. A morning headache can
be a symptom of a sleep disorder like sleep apnea. A
daytime headache can be a sign of high blood pressure or hypoglycemia.
Having a breakfast with 16 grams of protein and an 8 gram protein snack at
10:00 am and 3:00 pm can significantly decrease spasms and pain.
If spasms are causing pain you need to take the stress off yourself and your
muscles. You need to slow down, pace activities and rest during the day, even
lie down to take the load off your muscle for 15-minute rest breaks, one in
the morning and one in the afternoon. You also need to balance your body --
front to back and side to side, while sitting, standing and walking -- so
that muscles don't have to fight gravity to keep you upright.
A physical therapist (PT) with lots of experience treating chronic pain can help you turn off long-standing spasms. PTs can teach proper posture and suggest assistive devices to balance your body while standing and walking. Using a lumbar cushion while sitting, and a contoured, fiber-filled cervical pillow while sleeping on your back, insure good posture and turn off back and neck spasms day and night. Since heat is usually more helpful for spasms than is ice, PTs can do ultrasound (the deep heating of muscle using sound waves) and you can warm your muscles at home by taking a hot bath or shower and by using a heating pad.
Actually, you always need to keep your painful muscles warm, especially those
in your neck and shoulders, since cold also triggers muscle spasms. The
change of seasons -- especially the transition from summer to fall -- is very
troublesome for those with spasms since your body isn't sure just what the
temperature is. Dress in layers and bring along a sweater to keep your
cold-sensitive muscles warm wherever you are, inside or out.
And be careful if you go to a physical therapist. Too many PTs use the "shake
and bake" method: gentle massage after your muscles have been heated by a hot
pack. Although massage and heat can relax muscle spasms and make you feel
better for a few hours, if you don't take the stress off your muscles and
change your posture all day long the spasms and pain will return.
Once your spasms start to relax a home stretching program is indispensable.
With help from your PT you can find a few stretches for the specific muscles
in spasm. Stretch just before bed, first thing in the morning, every half
hour during the day and whenever you feel muscles tightening. A handful of
stretches combined with reduced physical and emotional stress, proper posture
and staying warm will keep muscles relaxed day and night and stop muscle
spasm pain, including those nasty headaches.
About the author: Dr. Richard Bruno is Director of Fatigue Management Programs and The Post-Polio Institute at Englewood (NJ) Hospital and Medical Center. His new book, The Polio Paradox: Understanding and Treating "Post-Polio Syndrome" and Chronic Fatigue , is published by Warner Books.) E-mail questions to Dr. Bruno at PolioParadox@aol.com.
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muscle spasms and water weight
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Posted by: drscareme
Nov 9, 2007 |
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check out:
http://www.usdoctor.com/NewPage/imigraine.html
look under muscle contraction...
could explain a little of our issues.
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Reply 
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Treating Headaches & Muscle Spasms in Fibromyalgia
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Posted by: GlassGoddess
Nov 6, 2007 |
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I have never been diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, my sister was years ago. Speaking with my doctor about it recently, I simply got that many docs in the area, rheumetologists, still do believe the disease exists.
OK- this article fits me to a T. I was diagnosed as having migraines in 2000. One of the better neurologists in town did the diagnosis. A few years later, I came to believe it was not migraine but muscle tension that starts in my left shoulder.
I just spent the past 3 days with the most painful spasms occurring on the left side of my head.
Here is how it applies to me though, and I wonder if anyone can explain as my docs cannot. This happens almost once a month and is absolutely connected with when my monthly cyle occurs. I have no idea what to do for this. I do some PT stretches and it will not subside. Tylenol, Advil, Excedrin Tension do not help this. Vicodin has not touched the pain....It hurts more to lay down.
Can anyone give me info on this or what it is they do for the spasms?
Thanks
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Reply
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muscle spasm headaches
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Posted by: drscareme
Nov 9, 2007 |
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I have very similar problems for about 5 years now. Used to get headaches with just pain in one temple or the other...always related to my cycle. One dr. says sinus migraine, one says migraines, etc...Used Imitrex for years. Stopped after reading scary stuff about it.
Hot water bottle on that side seems to help a bit..usually helps me to sleep anyway. Occasionally ice will work, but hard to tolerate.
Then started getting these horrible pains in my neck and shoulders before (usually) or during a one-sided headache...same side as the spasm.
I have also tried exercise, stretching, etc. If I take 4 motrin is sometimes cuts the pain, other times nothing. Same thing with execedrin. But if I take too late in the day I can't sleep.
I have read a few articles saying that long term Imitrex (or similar) drugs can not only cause rebound headaches, but damage bones in the neck and spine. Also lots report tingling in the face and sinuses so I have to wonder if these have been damaged due to my long term use of this "wonder drug".??
I have started seeing a massage therapist and it seems to have helped a little. Kind of too soon to tell. I also went to a GOOD chiropractor and have had neck adjustments.
I don't think this is fibromyalgia. I don't have the other symptoms of it. I am in peri-menopause so hard to tell what my cycles are doing..all over the place. But have still seen some of these headaches/spasms around the time a cycle has started or when I would of been ovalating.
Also, my neck gets very "cracky" when I have these...don't understand why..But it will feel like a need to "pop" it into place.around the base of the head. Also pain there too. And last strange thing that started around the same time...cheek pain. Do you have that?
I broke my nose almost 5 years ago and that is when the cheek pain started. Used to be only on the right, now I get it on the left too if that is the side of the trouble. Also sometimes my eyes feel painful..like pressure behind them. They will water sometimes.
Are we nuts. I did read an article some years ago about water weight during cycle causing pressure on the muscles in and around the neck and down towards the breasts. Fluid retention in that area presses on these muslces and causes spasms. Interesting. I'll see if I can find it again. I think the condition even had some technical name. When I asked my Dr. she looked at me like some kind of a nut.
I am hoping more will reply to our posts now. I did find another site talking about face and cheek pain. Will post that link too if I can dig it up.
Good luck.
Feel free to contact me if you want to share notes.
J :)
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Spasm-headache w/ menstrual period
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Posted by: rem99
Feb 10, 2008 |
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GlassGoddess, Except for the migraine diagnosis you have described MY symptoms to a T! About 1.5 yr ago I started having headaches w/ my periods. Sometimes they come just before or just after, but usually during. I spoke to my doctor about tehm 6 months ago and neither of us thought they were migraines. She prescribed Fioricet for me. Since then the severity has worsened and the one I had yesterday has been the worst so far. It started like a sudden tension headache, but they usually come on gradually. I thought it might be a migraine this time because of the pulsing on the left side of my head and nasua, but now I think the pulsing was a muscle spasm and the nasua may have been because of the pain (or as the article suggests, something to do with the nerve connections). I could not tolerate laying down but just sat in my darkened bedroom trying not to move. Today there is a dull pain, no spasm, but my neck and shoulder are in worse knots than usual and my head (or the muscle in my head) is actually sore to the touch. I took a muscle relaxer (old prescription for an injury) today and it gave me some relief but with dopey/drugged side effects. I don't know that I'd recommend it (I'm sure doctors don't recommend pulling old stuff out of the medicine cabinet!), but I would consider taking it during the next spasm headache if I haven't seen my doctor yet. It was the worst headache I have ever had.
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headache and muscle spasms
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Posted by: bluerocket
Oct 28, 2008 |
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I have fibromyalgia and suffer from headaches. Stretching and chiropractors bring temporary relief but the problem according to Dr Paul St Amand is that Fibro is a kidney problem that can be treated. The spasms are caused by too much Phosphate/calcium being stuffed into ligaments, muscle etc because the kidneys are not removing phosphates from the body. His book is on Amazon.
I've been a patient for 2 years and finally I'm back to hiking.
Anyway I'm not a doctor but hope this helps, if it's a placebo it's a good one.
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