headaches

[♥ms.pacman♥]

any tips on dealing with headaches while pg (since many meds are out)?

i find that every few days (at least 1x a week) i've been waking up with a headache that sticks around for the rest of the day and magically disappears around 5 or 6pm. it feels like a sinus headache, as if i'm in a stuffy room (feels difficult to breathe through my nose). the weird thing is, i don't have congestion or runny nose, but my sinuses feel completely swollen. i tried ice packs but they don't seem to do anything. tylenol doesn't seem to do much either. what sucks is that i feel tired and want to lie down but lying down makes the headache 10x worse.

[larig]

You know, I used a humidifier for most of my pregnancy, and that helped with my headaches. I just felt so dried out all the time. I also upped my water intake.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

^thanx. i do think that a lot of these headaches are related to weather changes, as hokey as that sounds. like one day after 100 degree weather it will rain and the next day i will wake up with the biggest headache.

and about upping water, i did this in my 2nd and 3rd trimesters last time and it always helped whenever i felt a headache coming on. however in the 1st trimester it's so rough for me because drinking plain water makes me soo nauseous (few times it's MADE me throw up, which makes things worse of course).

[larig]

Oh, I had a first trimester like that. How awful!! If the drinking is too hard, definitely try the humidifier--put it right on your side of the bed when you sleep.

[MoJo]

I found taking a bath helps for the same reason. . . humidity, plus if I half lay down it helps relax tension.

And the weather-change thing is NOT hokey at all.

I've heard of doctors recommending Gatorade if you're having a hard time drinking water. I tried that, and for some reason, that didn't make me as nauseous as plain water.

[rkold]

I couldn't drink plain water my first trimester and switched to very watered down lemonade or water with lemon in it and it helped.

I agree with PPs about using a humidifier. The one I have helps me so much!

[marymoo86]

i found that a small amount of caffeine helped (like 1/2 cup coffee/coke/etc)

[Edensmum]

caffiene, a cup of coffee, I needed it with both kids or I suffered with bad headaches.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

thanx, i wish i could drink coffee, but i can't tolerate it at all, even when not pregnant (it totally upsets my stomach and gives me nausea). iv'e tried soda or coke but soda often makes me sick too (in first trimester). argh.

anyway, this time my headache lasted all day and at night finally took tylenol PM, which helped and let me get a decent nights sleep. i felt better when i woke up, but now i still seem to have a "left-over" headache or whatever. argh!!

[♥ms.pacman♥]

ok now the headaches are occurring daily. the sad fact is, i think they're mostly due to allergies, so short of moving away, there's not much i can do. my sinuses feel so swollen i feel dizzy just standing up. of course the added nausea from m/s doesn't help. argh, i don't know for how much longer i can take this. for 3 out of the past 4 days, i've woken up with a headache that lasts the whole day. my throat also feels weird, almost like i'm sick with a cold. i've tried taking a shower, nasal saline rinse, tylenol....nothing. lying down makes the pain 1000x worse. i take Claritin at night but it doesn't seem to do anything (can't take zyrtec because i'm breastfeeding). i didn't try a humidifier yet but not sure that would even help, since i don't think dryness is the issue (the pollen level in my area right now is very high). plus i did try one of those Vicks personal steam things and that didn't do anything.

maybe this belongs in the bitching post. i just want to cry. this sucks. i just just want to wake up one morning where i don't have a freaking headache and walk around like a zombie for the entire day. i feel horrible that i can't take care of my son properly and give him the attention he deserves. plus i feel so bad that i can't enjoy this pregnancy at all because i just feel so insanely miserable.