Patient’s questions require answers

December 6, 2012 By

Q: I have a problem that started around 2008 and can’t seem to find anyone to help me with the symptoms I am having. Off and on I have chest burning, abdominal pain, severe headaches, flushing, nausea, tingling in the face/arms/legs, neck pain, lower back and shoulder pain.

I have been to the emergency room no less than four times with chest burning and the doctors there can’t seem to give me an answer. Being a veteran, I have been to VA doctors several times to no avail. I’ve been to a gastroenterologist, physical therapist and a back doctor. Each one I see refers me to someone else. The tests I have had done should have revealed something by now. I have had a stress test, MRI, CT scan, several EKGs, X-rays, a colonoscopy, upper endoscopy and they even sent me to a mental doctor at the VA. I had seven sessions of blood work.
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Man with CO poisoning still has symptoms 27 years later

August 8, 2012 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: My son, now 51, had serious CO poisoning in 1985. His problems with major headaches and difficulty in running his business have grown worse over the years. He has several headaches, about 10 times a month, that often last two or three days. He cannot read over one page without getting dizzy and then a headache. A MRI showed brain damage. Is there anything that can help him? He is highly intelligent and this really frustrates his desire to be successful and comfortable.
Thank you.

DEAR READER: CO (carbon monoxide) is a colorless, odorless gas that is produced whenever a fossil fuel is burned. Those of us that heat our homes by propane, kerosene, oil or coal-burning appliances (which is just about everyone), start the car in an enclosed garage, warm up a house with a gas oven, or use a generator indoors, are at risk for exposure. CO is even found in the combustion [Read more...]

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Another remedy for cluster headaches

October 31, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I saw your column about cluster headaches and wanted to tell you about my husband’s experience. He suffered with these for many years. He was on medication, hospitalized, and even had sinus surgery, but nothing worked. I began researching and found that he was most likely suffering from cluster headaches, something his doctors hadn’t told us. I also found that ginseng might help. He now takes ginseng tablets daily and has not had a headache since. The only kind that doesn’t seem to work is American ginseng, and the brand doesn’t seem to matter, either. I hope this helps some of your readers.

DEAR READER: Thank you for writing. I have printed your letter in the hopes that it will in fact reach those readers who need it most. [Read more...]

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Cluster-headache sufferer offers advice

September 12, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I am 80 years old and have spent some 40 years in radiology as an X-ray technologist. Now that I’m retired, living in Pennsylvania, I write adult and children’s books.

When I was 19 years old, I developed cluster headaches that, at times, became unbearable. I presented all the classic symptoms. Our radiology office was located in a professional building, along with 40 other specialists. At the time, I became a guinea pig. I had everything from Novocain injections into my cervical nerve to histamine injections in my arm, all to no avail. I tried all the known remedies available at the time.
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Reader offers help to other readers

August 8, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I enjoy reading your columns and have comments on two of them. The first one is concerning the writer who felt dizzy constantly. I had a similar situation a couple of years ago. I went to a chiropractor (for the first time), where I was adjusted several times over a two-week period. The dizziness disappeared.

The second article was from a mother about her son’s cluster headaches. I have been using essential oils for years now. Peppermint oil on the temples has been effective for migraines and cluster headaches, and also helps to relieve nasal congestion. Anyone who uses this remedy must be careful when using full-strength oils. Many people choose to dilute the oil in half with pure vegetable oil. Petroleum-based oils shouldn’t be used to dilute the essential oils because they can inhibit the effectiveness.
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Mold causes headaches for sister

June 6, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: My sister suffered from headaches for several years. When my brother visited her, he checked around her home and found mold underneath the house. She moved, and the cluster headaches have disappeared. I just thought you would like to let your readers know about this as it may help others who suffer from these awful headaches.

DEAR READER: Mold growth in homes can cause a plethora of symptoms, depending on the type of mold. Most often it is associated with cold-like or allergy-like respiratory symptoms, but headaches are definitely possible.
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Migraines controlled by smoking?

May 23, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: I am a 44-year-old female with migraines. I am otherwise healthy with no other medical problems, but I’m about 30 pounds overweight. I was diagnosed with migraines at age 12 and was put on medication, but because of the side effects, my parents chose to take me off it, and until recently, I haven’t had any trouble.

After smoking for 15 years, I finally quit when my mother passed away from lung cancer. Almost immediately after quitting smoking, my migraines came back and were so bad that I couldn’t function. With three active children, this was not an option for me, so I started smoking again, and the headaches went away.
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Cluster headaches debilitating

April 27, 2010 By

DEAR DR. GOTT: My 43-year-old son has cluster headaches that began about five years ago. The first series was twice daily at about the same time each day. The bout lasted between six and eight weeks, and then stopped.

Two years later, they returned once daily. His doctor did an MRI that was normal and diagnosed him with cluster headaches. He was put on heavy doses of steroids that weren’t successful.

He recently began another series. They now occur once daily between 9 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. He went to a neurologist and tried several different medications that were unsuccessful. This time frame and duration fluctuates more, and he skipped two days twice. Pain medications don’t work.
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Head Pain Needs Diagnosis

February 19, 2009 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
I hope you can help me. I am an 80-year-old widow, living alone, not overweight and active. I still mow my own lawn and have a garden and orchard. I grow veggies, berries, grapes, several types of tree fruits and walnuts. I have many other hobbies that keep me busy during the winter months. My faith is also very important to me. My only medication is thyroid hormone replacement which I have been taking for more than 60 years.

My problem is that for the past 40 years, when I go to bed, I awaken between 2 am and 4 am because of a pounding pulse and pain on the right side of my head that extends down through the back of my neck. The pain is very intense. A few years ago I found that taking an aspirin with caffeine stops the pain within a half an hour. [Read more...]

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Words Of Wisdom From A 14-Year-Old

December 24, 2008 By

DEAR DR. GOTT:
I am a 14-year-old boy with both parents affected by two different and very rare illnesses. First, my 39-year-old father has had tingling and numbness in his legs for a year. This month he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis or MS. He can barely walk now.

Then my mother had two weeks of non-stop agonizing migraines. She had an MRI that showed an unknown type of growth in her brain causing double vision and the smelling of things that weren’t there. The growth is twice the size of a golf ball and doomed to kill her without surgery. She’s scheduled for an operation in two days.

The point of this letter is not for your help or anyone’s sympathy. It is to tell people that things aren’t always what they seem. Those readers with constant migraines should see a doctor. [Read more...]

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