Contrary to what my dad would say if he was still with us, I am not nor have I ever been a know-it-all.
But when it comes to the headaches I've had over the years, I do know that typically if I took a couple of Tylenol or Advil to combat them, even the severe ones would usually go away after the first dose and I could go on about my business.
Back in my early 20s, I was diagnosed as having borderline migraines, and it was recommended to me at the time to be careful with certain foods and drinks like anything spicy, anything with caffeine, and things like processed cheese and meats.
That was a long time ago (how long, I won't say!). But I have in general over the years tried to take care not to have a whole lot of things that potentially could give me a headache, especially not back to back (like, for example, I'd be begging for a headache if I had Doritos, a hot dog, and a caffeinated soda for a meal).
My diet has been far from perfect, and there have been times that no matter what, I'd still get a headache, sometimes brought on by the stresses of the day, not eating in a timely matter or at the start of my getting sick with a cold, COVID, etc. Though obviously, I'm not a doctor, I have typically been able to pinpoint the likely reasons my head is hurting.
But over the past week and a half or so, I've had on-and-off headaches that have persisted despite the usual rounds of Tylenol or Advil, and they have pretty much made me non-functional in comparison to my normal days.
At first, I figured it might be the possibility that I was getting sick, because early on I also had watery eyes and an occasional stuffy nose and just in general felt sluggish for a few days.
That part, however, thankfully has mostly gone away, but the headaches are still lingering. I've tried my best to come up with what was not just causing them but causing them to persist, the latter of which is very unusual for me.
Here were the possibilities that I came up with in no particular order:
1) I need to get glasses. I have been wearing readers here and there (usually no more than an hour or so at a time) but need to advance to something with more strength and more specific to my situation.
2) Neck pain. Years of looking up and down at a computer screen (despite trying my best to keep the chair and monitor aligned properly so I'm looking straight ahead) and a cell phone have caused me to have periodic neck pain, which I understand can sometimes cause headaches. Should I get that checked out in the new year? Yep.
3) Dry air. It's closing in on wintertime but already cold and we also have a dehumidifier in the crawlspace that is getting ready to go through its first winter. The air being too dry can cause the sinusy, watery-eye-type symptoms and headaches as well. I've got my crawlspace contractor coming in within a few days (hopefully) to talk to me about possibly changing the settings on the dehumidifier in case that's the issue.
4) Stress/food. It's possible, but I don't think this is what's causing the problem. I actually was more stressed out a year ago at this time but didn't get much if any headaches. And I've been more careful with food precisely because we're at holiday time and I haven't wanted to chance getting headaches.
5) An unknown health issue. This is of course the scariest possibility. The good news is I have an appointment with my PCP at the end of the month, where I'll talk about the concerns I have and get her thoughts. Praying it's not anything to worry about, though.
It could be none of the above, one of the above, or a combination of some of the above.
But, as I learned from a random tweet in my Twitter/X stream, it could be something else: High and low pressure changes in the weather.
Check this out:
Low pressure moving in tomorrow increased some discomfort for joints. Then high pressure might cause a few headaches for those sensitive to higher pressure, but most will be fine. #cltwx #ncwx #scwx #wcnc pic.twitter.com/3aCSHVHTRv
— Brad Panovich (@wxbrad) December 11, 2024
Now, I've always been aware of how the weather can impact you if you have arthritis or an area you injured years ago but which never fully healed. I've been feeling some of that with the changes in temperature.
But I never knew that changes in pressure could potentially cause a headache. It would make sense, considering that the days with the highest pressure over the past week and a half have been the days my headaches were their most persistent.
While I don't know for sure this is it, it's another thing I'll bring up with the doctor later this month to ask if she thinks that could be the main factor.
The more you know, right?
