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Migraine? Tension? Vertigo? What is going on with me?

Hello. I'm new to the forum, and just wanted to see if anyone could help or give me any comfort as to what is going on with me lately. Fro the past month, I've been getting these headaches. They aren't severe or constant, but they won't go away fully. I suffer from anxiety and vertigo as well. I've gotten headaches in the past, but this time, it felt different. I got them after I worked out too. So that's when I really got scared. I just had this fuzzy, unbalanced, lightheaded, out of it feeling all day. At times, my face would feel numb too. I went to my doctor, who told me if was just a migraine and/or tension headache, and that I was letting my anxiety get the best of me. She did however order an MRI since I got a headache after working out. The MRI came back normal. Thank goodness. However, the headache/vertigo feeling never went away. So I went to see a neurologist. He said it was Migraine associated vertigo (MAV). He gave me a stronger migraine medicine, but again, still couldn't knock it out completely. So now I have a CTA scan on Wednesday.
I'm freaking out about it all. How likely is it if my MRI came back normal that something will be found in a CTA scan of my brain?

I feel so nauseous and dizzy all the time. Like a fog over me. It's been extremely emotional and frustrating for me, not knowing. If anyone has any advice, or suggestions. Or could help me figure it out, I would be so grateful.

Thanks!

  1. Hi jhchicago,

    Thank you for reaching out to us and being part of the Migraine.com discussion forum - we're glad you're here!

    First let me say anxiety or any other condition does NOT cause migraine disease. Migraine is a primary headache disorder meaning it's not cause by any other disorder/condition. I think it may be time to see a doctor who is better educated in migraine and headache disorders/.

    General neurologists may be good doctors, but have a hard time being experts in one area because they treat so many conditions such as multiple sclerosis, stroke, epilepsy, Parkinson's and others. A migraine/headache disorder expert many not even be a neurologist, but is certified in headache medicine, which is different than being certified in neurology. Take a look at these articles when you get a chance;
    http://migraine.com/blog/how-are-migraine-specialists-different/ and https://migraine.com/blog/really-find-headache-specialist.

    People with long term migraine disease may have white matter lesions, upon brain scans. Let me share this article about migraine and white matter lesions. https://migraine.com/blog/migraine-white-matter-lesions/.

    Please let me know how you make out,
    Nancy

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