Dizziness, Headaches & Migraines in Teens
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Dizziness, Headaches & Migraines in Teens
Dec 2007
I'm looking for help for a 13 year old boy who has migraine headaches. He's willing to
try bio-feedback, but we haven't been able to find anyone nearby to work with him.
Albany or El Cerrito area is most convenient, but really we'll go anywhere in the East
bay for good results.
hoping for relief
i just read a study recently about the use of CoQ10 supplements to
treat migraines in children. Can't remember where I read it - but it
was evidently very effective. good luck!
peggy
I don't have a referral for biofeedback, but I do have a friend who
suffered from migraines for years as a teen and had amazing results
through working with a chiropractor that practiced Network Spinal
Analysis. For that I recommend Dr. Eileen Karpfinger & Dr. Aaron
Rosselle at Upaya Center for Wellbeing (510) 444-4443.
anon
this isn't exactly what you asked about, but I have had chronic
headaches, including migraines, all my life and have recently tried
cutting out all dairy products - it has helped a great deal.
anon
go to www.eegdirectory.com and you can pull up all the providers in
your area. We have used Carolyn Robertson in Walnut Creek and she is
very good. I do not have experience with the others.
jh
April 2007
My 14-yr. old has been in and out of school for a year with
migraines and dizziness. Topomax got rid of the headaches
but she still has dizziness most of the time, but it varies
in intensity. We've been to an allergist, neurologist, and
ENT, and done scans and tests, and no one had a clear
diagnosis. I would appreciate any suggestions. Has anyone
gone to an inner ear specialist?
Thanks
Hi to the parent of the teen with dizziness and migraines. A friend of
mine is the parent of a 14 year old daughter who has experienced something
similar and has been out of school for 6 months. She would love to talk to you
and share some information and hear what has worked for you. Her most
successful therapies so far have included biofeedback, nutritional therapy and
craniosacral osteopathic manipulation. They, too, have seen similar practitioners and had
similar tests.
Best of luck with your daughter.
Suzanna
My son had what sounds like the same symptoms, at the same
age. Amazing. We went through many local specialists and
ended up with two terrific ones who are not close.
First, Dr. Steven Dear specializes in dizziness
conditions. He's at the California Ear Institute. You
can find him at www.calear.com. Here is some of what they
say about him: ''Dr. Dear currently provides care in
medical otology and neurotology. His interests include
vertigo, dizziness and balance disorders as well as
tinnitus and hearing disorders. He is associated with the
CEI Balance Center and the vestibular rehabilitation and
balance retraining program.'' His office is just off the
freeway in East Palo Alto. It is well worth the trip. My
son was so relieved to find someone who totally understood
what he was going through. Call 650-494-1000 right away.
It is hard to get an appointment.
Second, Dr. Dear sent us to Dr. Susan Hansen in Mountain
View, a neurologist who specializes in migraines. Her
number is 650-691-1171. She trained my son on his
triggers and how to prevent problems. She took lots of
time to truly understand his particular case. He rarely
gets migraines now. (She is very expensive and does not
bill insurance.)
Finally, what I believe totally saved him, and still saves
him now when he gets a recurrence, was and is vestibular
therapy with a physical therapist who specializes in
vestibular therapy. He got an amazing exercise program
like I had never seen before. The exercises are directed
at retraining the inner ears and brain. It took several
weeks of therapy. Now, if he gets a bad congestion and
starts spinning, I cue him to do the exercises and it
clears up quickly. You probably want the therapist to be
close to home since it involves weekly visits.
If you want to communicate further, I'll include my e-mail
address. Good luck!
sunhopes
My neighbor dealt with this exact problem successfully by going to three different people.
One was Dr. Leslie Prins, a neurological chairopractor in Alameda, 769-6066, I think. It
could be something in the body, a hidden virus or something leftover from a vaccine. He
knows all this interesting stuff. He helped me figure out why I had fatigue for 30 years.
Cleared of it not. Anyway, my neighbor also came to me for Jin Shin help, energetic work
that can deal with dizziness. And she also went to a cranial sacral person I think. She is
cleared now. I would start with Dr. Prins and go deeper if that is not enough.
PLEASE take your teen to a chiropractor. She/He (sorry, I
don't remember if you said son or daughter)could have a
misalignment of the top cervical vertebrae which could
cause dizziness, headaches, nausea, etc.
This could possibly be cleared up in a few sessions if that
is the problem...and if the MD's are not finding anything,
it's a good bet that it's structural, which the MD's may
not be able to detect, or be looking for.
I can recommend Dr. Elon Bartlett,(I'm a massage therapist.
I work wtih Elon). Elon also uses some massage and
Craneo/Sacral thearapy. He's very good and a sweet guy.
Office number is 843-1234. We're at 2509 Milvia St. Bkly.
I can also recommend Dr. Charlie Prins on Solano Avenue.
His number is 526-6243. Charlie is also really great and
also addresses nutrition issues as possible factors.
Good luck.
June
2001
My 15 year old daughter suffers from Migraines. We have tried several drugs including
Imatrex with limited success. I took her to see a neurologist at Children's. This was several
years ago and medicines have changed since then. Can anyone recommend an adult neurologist
who either specializes in Migraine or is very knowledgeable about them? Thanks. Toby
I don't have a neurologist to recommend, but would suggest you also look
into accupuncture. my sister, mother, aunt, and husband all suffer from
migraines, and i've watched them all take immitrex, beta-blockers (atenolol,
etc.), codeinte, etc... my husband has found relief through accupuncture
(a few sessions a few weeks apart, and now only sporadic visits). I'm not
saying it works for everyone--my aunt's migraines are impervious to all
drugs and accupuncture so far--but it's worth a try! My husband's
accupuncturist is Richard Liao, with offices in Albany (510)-524-8148 and
Walnut Creek (925) 942-0128. Jessica
Regarding your 15 year old daughter who suffers from
migraines: I cannot recommend a neurologist in the
area, but I can help you understand possible causes
and triggers if you are interested. I am a 45 year old
woman who has had migraines since I was 12 and I have
done enough research to have a graduate degree in
migraines! Feel free to email me and we can talk.There
is a lot to know, and each person is different.
Amy
I don't know of a neurologist, but there is a group called ACHE
that has specialists in migraine. I heard a talk by their founder
on KNBR recently that was pretty informative. I think they're in
the Palo Alto area. Also, have you tried Advil Cold & Sinus? My
husband suffered for years and tried all the meds without much relief,
but for some reason the Cold & Sinus over-the-counter formula works
wonders if he takes it early enough (in the prodromal period).
There was a piece on migraines on Fresh Air on 4/06. The interview is
archived at:
http://freshair.npr.org/dayFA.cfm?todayDate=archive
It has an interview with the Cofounder of the New England Center for
Headache DR FRED SHEFTELL. He had some interesting things to say about
triggers. Myriam
In response to Toby's concern about his teenager with
migranes: I recall that you asked for a neurologist; however I had
migranes as a teenager and learned a technique from one small article on
how to get rid of it. Perhaps b/c I was young and open minded, the
technique worked well, and to this day I seldom ever get
headaches/migranes. If I ever do, I'm able use this "focusing"
technique to alleviate the pain usually within 10 minutes. Toby, feel
free to call me if you'd like to talk about it more.
Susan
You requested information regarding a neurologist, and I second
your attempts to find one. It's a very good idea to check with a
specialist before deciding a course of action.
However, as a long time migraine sufferer, I would like to recommend
that you and your daughter look into prevention as well as treatment.
For me, nothing has worked so well as preventing the onset of a migraine,
or learning how to nip it in the bud at first sign.
For me, the most effective prevention has been changing my diet--I've
had to give up MSG and it's derivatives and aspartame (which is harder
than you might think--just start reading lables--oh, and note that MSG
comes under many names), as well as a few foods like chocolate. The key
is to find what triggers them for your daughter. Your doctor should be able
to give you a list of common trigger foods and how to check your diet.
Other common triggers for many people are too much or too little sleep,
sleeping too hot, very smoggy air, strong changes in barometric pressure,
hormonal changes. If you can learn to notice what causes the migraines,
I've found you can go a long way towards preventing them in the future.
I've also found some relaxation techniques to be effective in prevention
or warding one off if it threatens--try yoga or tai chi, or biofeedback,
even regular exercise can manke a difference.
Good luck! I hope your daughter can find some relief.
Carolyn
I recommend Dr. Michael Stein, MD in Walnut Creek te.
925-938-5252. He helped me find relief with some of
the newer pills. You might also consider
acupuncture/chinese herbology - I've seen Brain Barlay
for this with some results in that I've gotten
improved sleep and lowered stress which has reduced
the number of headaches...he's in Berkeley at
510-843-5753.
Hope this helps.
Susan
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