My 2 cents. I have a similar story. One day in October 4 years ago I got a headache. It has never gone away. One thing similar to this post. The headache began 1 day after flying. Now maybe it's a coincidence. But here are 2 possibilities. 1. The pressure changes with flying resulted in a spinal fluid leak. 2. There was some neurotoxin exposure on the plane. I have read about an organophosphate used as a lubricant on planes that is toxic. I still have no answer.
Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum.
And thank you for sharing ur experience with chiari.We r always happy to have a new member, but not happy for the reasons that bring u.
I hope u continue to share ur chiari journey with us.
"selma"
I have had a surgery to correct Chiari I Malformation and have done a lot of research - before and after surgery...
From some things I have read in the past, and reading your question, I think it could be possible that your wife could have a slight spinal leak, possibly as a result of the epidural (assuming that she had one with child birth). Then with the onset of the hard coughing, it's possible that it could have made the leak worse, which can cause intense headaches -- and if she had a spinal leak it is possible that it could also cause an "apparent Chiari Malformation". If this she did indeed have a spinal leak, it is a pretty simple procedure to fix --- It is called a blood patch. They take some of her blood from her arm, and then inject it just outside the area of the spinal column (below the area where she had her epidural), and the blood amazingly travels up outside of the spinal column, and if it gets to an area where there is a spinal leak, the blood stops, and clots the leak right then & there. And she would probably know within hours if this were the cause & solution.
I had this procedure. Fortunately I didn't have a spinal leak, but unfortunately it didn't help to explain my continued headaches after surgery.
It is possible that she does just have Chiari Malformation though, and may need to see a neurologist/neurosurgeon to discuss treatment options. I am by no means an expert in this area by any means, just saw your post and thought I'd share results of my own personal research, in case it might benefit your wife. I hope that you get some answers soon.
U r right that many times after a natural birth the strain will have an affect on a dormant chiari....
Thanks cozybee for sending him this way : )
"selma"
Hey Selma, I saw this post under the Neuro forum and suggested that he might want to repost here. I saw the host of symptoms that she had that sounds all to familiar for a lot of us. I hope he can draw from our knowledge and learn what questions to ask to rule chiari in or out. Pushing out a baby would cause lots of strain on the neck and head.
Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum.
For those of us that have chiari, this is not a diff post to reply to, but an all to common one.Too often u r seen by a dr that has no experience with chiari and since u posted in the chiari forum I am going to assume ur wife did get a chiari dx?Many chiarians have been mis dx'd with mineire's, anxiety, migraines....get copies of the MRI'S and the reports and get a second opinion.
Chiari as a dx is often overlooked even when the dx is made the drs refuse to accept it as the reason for the symptoms....
U deff want a dr that is well informed on chiari to review the MRI and let u know if this may indeed be ur wifes issue...plus there r related conditions that will need to be looked for and ruled out.
I understand how frustrating this is and sorry will continue to be, but once u have th eright drs u will see a difference.
Glad to have u join us, sorry for the reasons that brought u.
"selma"
This is a difficult post to tackle. Oh my! I can relate to a lot of these symptoms. And I can understand why different doctors have different diagnoses. That head and neck area, with all of the vertebrae, muscles, and blood supply to the brain can wreak havoc and cause all of the above symptoms. From the progression of symptoms, it almost sounds more mechanical than hormonal, especially since her symptoms are relieved when lying down. But hormones are a big part also. But the mechanical problems (tense muscles, pinching nerves, etc) can reduce blood supply to the brain,and effect (possibly) intracranial pressure? and produce many of her symptoms. And I assume she's still breastfeeding. And she has to continuously hold the baby. Both add strain to the neck muscles. So if the problem is mechanical to begin with, she's not able to let the area rest due to her mom duties.
I also have neck trouble and muscle tightness in the shoulders and neck and meniere's disease and it seems that hormonal fluctuations make things worse. I was diagnosed with Meniere's and found that if I stay off of gluten containing foods it stops the attacks.
Go figure. Cow's milk free and a gluten free diet together took away the head pressure, reduced the ringing to barely there, opened up my eustachian tubes (after 5 days on the diet I felt a trickling down the tubes and my hearing was much clearer - got rid of the echoing). The nausea also went away when the fluid drained off.
My recommendation: A gluten free, milk free (all milk products) diet (make sure she is still taking her prenatal vitamins for the breastfeeding and for nutrients lacking on this diet). See if things improve. I know my post is all over the place, because I never quite figured out why these things helped me. Maybe it staightened out my hormones and relieved fluid retention which took the pressure off the brain, etc. So the blood supply and csf problem being effected by the neck problem was not as "challenged" with my hormones in better balance. So maybe all the doctors were right - but just werern't able to pinpoint the starting point. I hope this "all-over-the-place" post makes some sense.
Maybe your wife can blindly follow this diet, not knowing why it might help, and see if the worst of her symptoms go away. I know I'm asking a lot here, but the diet helped the strangest of symptoms. If you need diet recommendations, just leave me a message. Good luck!