Strange feeling in head

[danmc]

Hi all,
Perhaps someone else has a similar effect to this and can put my mind at ease..

Apap was starting to work really well for me - all the usual problems of a beginner - but recently it has felt like it's started working well and I had a few good nights with a several consecutive hours of sleep and woke up feeling human.

But a few days ago it started feeling like..hard to describe, like a cross between a sinus headache and a strange tight feeling in the top of my head. I've had it for a few days continuously now, sometimes it feels more like a headache, sometimes its more of a niggling pressure. Sound familiar to anyone? Painkillers have little effect strangley, normally painkillers work well for me.

I guess I did change my pressure down a few days ago. It's apap and I had 11 minimum 18 max . The "tech" that "looks after" me complained and whinged that I had changed the clinical settings myself. I had several times indicated that I felt like I was suffocating when I masked up and no one deemed it neccessary to even look at my readings (I did ask her to and she refused), so after my morning readings indicated 12 for a week or so I figured it was reasonable to change. Anyhow after she made me feel like a naughty 4 year old I relented and changed it back slightly to 10 and that change would coincide with the feeling I have. But I discounted that change as it's apap, and I didn't consider that changing minimum from 11 to 10 would have much effect overall considering that results in the morning show consistent 12's. Apart from that, when I started the minimum was 7 - though I felt like I was suffocating when I first masked up I didnt get headaches,

Last night I slept about an hour and the headache got so bad I couldn't sleep prone and slept sans mask sitting in a chair - today the feeling has abated considerably.

I suspect the straps on the mask, or perhaps sinus. I guess I'll see a professional but I'm really struggling to find one that isnt a waste of time in my area. Any clues anyone?

[DreamStalker]

That may be your problem ... the professional you are consulting with is not professional. If they don't want to see your data, it's probably because they don't know what it means.

Put it back to the settings that worked for you and quit feeling guilty about taking control of your treatment.

... or go to the so-called professional and pay them so you won't feel guilty about the bad treatment they are providing.

[echo]

Sounds like maybe a tension headache? Are you taking any other meds?

Pressure could indeed be a problem. Or congestion, mouth leaks, the humidifer... anything that prevents you from getting the right air.

I get headaches in the morning if I was too congested the night before and couldn't get enough air. If I'm congested and the mask is pushing up against my sinuses, it makes it worse. Turning the HH down or using a FFM helps with that sometimes.

Maybe check with an ENT if you think it's congestion.
If you think it's the pressure... well it is YOUR therapy in the end and you're the one that has to suck on the end of the hose, not the tech. I'm not a doc but I would say if your 95% pressure is 12 .... well take your own conclusions .

On the other hand.. headaches can also mean stroke, tumor.. so if it does continue for a while I *would* get that checked, especially if you have a family or own history!

[-SWS]

Last night I slept about an hour and the headache got so bad I couldn't sleep prone and slept sans mask sitting in a chair - today the feeling has abated considerably.

I suspect the straps on the mask, or perhaps sinus. I guess I'll see a professional but I'm really struggling to find one that isnt a waste of time in my area. Any clues anyone?

Not a lot in the medical literature, but this could be some type of pressure based or pressure triggered neuralgia. If that happens to be what you are experiencing, then: 1) ease up on the strap and/or mask tension, 2) displace the strap tension by placing a larger surface-area pad beneath the straps, or 3) try a different interface that doesn't apply so much strap pressure.

When pressure triggered or pressure based neuralgia happens, the nerve literally gets compressed between tissue and bone triggering that pain. Certain perequisite neurological pain-signal processing characteristics seem to factor into the pathophysiology of pressure associated neuralgia as well. The only reason I happen to be familiar with pressure triggered neuralgia is because I have a facial neuralgia termed trigeminal neuralgia. For years I thought I had awful sinus and dental problems the doctors and dentists just couldn't find.

As a side note the US Navy will not issue medical waivers to pilots with trigeminal neuralgia (I discovered this little factoid during my own research). Facial nerve compression from the oxygen flight mask is too disruptive for safe flight. My neurologist now knows that little US Navy factoid.

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