On the Rebound

I've had MRIs before. No big deal. No jewelry, no underwire bra or pants with zippers, wear long sleeves so the fan inside doesn't freeze your arms. Close your eyes, count clicks and beeps, and distract yourself by trying to find a pattern in all the noises. Thirty minutes later, you are good to go.

But put the word "brain" in front of "MRI" and it gets a little freaky.

I rarely get headaches. And the occasional ones I get typically pass without need for medication. So when a really intense headache came on pretty suddenly and stuck around for a week, I finally went to the doctor consumed with pain and fear.

The onset was so weird. I had purchased some liquid flavoring to liven up bottled water and had given the Strawberry Lemonade flavor a try. Two bottles of water later, I was pleased with my increased water consumption but was surprised I had what I call an "MSG headache" -- that stuffed head, constant pressure headache I get from cheap Chinese food and Italian dressing in salad bars.

I woke up the next morning headache-free, but I wanted to test my theory before ditching the liquid flavoring. So I squirted some Pomtini in a bottle of water. Before I even drank past the top of the bottle's label, I had a headache. It was worse than the Strawberry Lemonade one, too. I told Rob it felt like plastic was growing in my head. What a strange description. That was on April 11. I fully expected the headache to be gone the next morning if not by dinner time. Two weeks later, it still lingers.

For the first week, I popped the aspirin I've been taking for some foot pain and figured it could do double-duty for my headache. It wasn't quite hitting the mark, so I dug around in the medicine cabinet and found a bottle of Excedrin that expired in 2007. I took one and it helped, so the next day I got a fresh bottle and added it to my arsenal. It helped a lot, but I could tell the instant that the medication wore off. The headache came back bigger and stronger each time.

After a week I decided to see my doctor. When I described my symptoms on the phone, I was scheduled very quickly. That was a bit disturbing.

The doctor asked all sorts of questions, tested my vision, made me walk a straight line, and had me touch my chin to my chest. Apparently that last one ruled out meningitis. He had a theory but recommended a brain MRI just to rule out the possibility of a tumor. That was a whole lot disturbing.

It took several days longer than I wanted, but I officially do not have a brain tumor. In fact, my brain was described as "normal." Perhaps a tiny shot to the ego ("highly developed" would have been nice) but a relief nonetheless.

So it looks like the tentative diagnosis of a "rebound headache" is correct. I had never heard of a rebound headache but when I Googled it, I was surprised the descriptions didn't include a picture of me looking miserable holding a cold washcloth on my forehead. It was a very good fit.

A rebound headache is basically a withdrawal headache from taking too much over-the-counter pain medications. With over 14 years of using Tylenol, Advil, and Aleve to help manage my back pain without ill effects, it seemed an odd diagnosis. But then I realized I started taking aspirin on a mostly daily basis back in December for my plantar fasciitis. I had had to buy a new bottle of that, too, due to expiration date issues. And you thought that only happened in my pantry. (See December 16, 2011 post.)

And so it seems that as my foot started to feel better, my aspirin intake decreased, and my body was mad. Really mad. Screaming, pounding, eye-crossingly mad. I've had a spinal headache before, from fluid leaking out of my spinal canal after a steroid shot in my back. That was the worst headache of my life. This rebound thing was a close second. If migraines are anything like this, I have new sympathy and respect for a number of people in my life who endure those with some regularity. What the headache had to do with the Strawberry Lemonade and Pomtini, it's not clear. But I can tell you those items have left the house forever.

The cure for a rebound headache is to stop using the medication. I was given some options as to how to manage the pain during the withdrawal and was not given a time frame. Google suggested it could take several weeks.

Being an over-achiever and figuring the faster I got everything out of my system, the faster my headache would go away, I decided the best course of action was to go cold turkey. On all pain medications. One thing I know about myself is that I have very strong willpower when I want it. The key is to truly want it.

I really wanted the damn headache to go away. I really wanted to be able to see straight again and think clearly and laugh and drive and eat and brush my teeth without insane head pain. And so it has been a week without any pills. My back is not happy and my foot is miffed. I am thrilled. It means that the headache has finally subsided enough that the rebound pain isn't overshadowing everything else.

I'm not entirely sure when I will reintroduce pain medication to my system. I can tell it will need to be soon based on today's creaky and achy walk in the park. I am certain it won't include aspirin, though. The Wonder Drug indeed.