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can video games cause migraines

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Q: Hey, can one of you brainiacs answer something?
I woke up at 2:30 this morning with a “crying in a dark room” migraine. For some reason, although watching the usual assortment of late night infomertials (you insomniacs out there will understand perfectly) did nothing to alleive the pain, playing a video game on the computer actually did. Did I just distract the centers of the brain that were causing the migraine by giving them something else to occupy them? I feel pretty stupid asking, but go find a doctor at 3:00 am when you don’t have insurance…..Thanks ever so!

A: in a way,yes.
mezrach and wall’s pain gate theory surmises that pain can be alleviated by counter irritation. in your case, playing games bombards your neural centers and thus “distracts” the nerves responsible for sending out pain messages.in effect, the visual and hand coordination signals overtake the pain signals from reaching the brain…

Q: My husband is great except when I really need him?
I love my husband he is a good man and a good father. But the problem comes when I get sick he just doesn’t do much for me when I really need his help. Example last night I got a bad migraine I get the type that you see lights and get some parts of your body numb so I was asking him for some support if he could stay awake and just talk to me while it goes away but he seem upset cause he had to sleep so he was quite the entire time. Than my baby girl woke up (2 months) he woke up and was really upset I asked if he was ok so he talks to me in a sarcastic way ” I need to stay awake so I can help you and also you told me to stay awake” He is like ” Do you want me to take the baby out the living room so you can rest ” All this sounds nice right? but if you see his face and tone of voice just makes you want to say no thanks I will take care of the baby myself that’s exactly what happen. But this is not the first time it has happen before and not only when I am sick also he makes me feel this way when I say hey I will go do my hair he will ask how much will you spend (coming from a guy that has collections of blu-rays and video games he literally shops every 2 weeks and I still have maternity clothes in my drawers. I have talked to him about this and he tells me ” no honey you need to buy this and that I am sorry if I make you feel like you cant buy anything” This doesn’t bother me as much because I really don’t shop but when I do really need to he just gets weird. When I but anything for myself at the mall he seems down cause I tell him no you already shopped let me have my fun today. To make it simple I just feel that he is selfish and I am starting to look at him differently tell me what to do.

A: I’d say to remind him that he’s only thinking of himself in your moments of need, let him know that thinking of himself is what he resorts to doing when someone else needs support and let him know what you feel he should do in those moments.

it should be a frequent topic of discussion until he understands what he’s doing.

hope that helps.

Q: What can I do to help my head and neck pain?
Ive been getting headaches for awhile now, Ive been to 3 neurologists had an mri, and catscan and the doctors found a small arachnoid cyst, which i was told isnt the cause of my headaches it could be seasonal. I take neurontin and maxalt when needed, ive been getting bad headaches as bad as a migraine ( which i do get ) 2 – 3 times a week, I have neck pain and achiness, when i go tanning if i lift my head back it makes me dizzy and nauseous especially when i close my eyes, also if im watching something on tv such as a video game like halo it makes me nauseous and dizzy. What can this be please help!?!?!?!?!!?

A: I have LOTS of personal experience with migraines. I have to admit I don’t have any information of arachnoid cysts, so I’ll help with what I do have experience and knowledge on.

You said you’ve been to multiple neurologists (can relate). Did any of them diagnose you with migraines? From what I understand from your question, you are getting migraines 2-3 times a week. Are you taking Maxalt 2-3 times a week, then (or more)? You need to communicate with your doctor (whichever doctor prescribed the maxalt) how often you are having migraines and how often you are taking Maxalt.

There are many otc pain relief products (some tylenol products, all excedrin products, majority of cold/sinus products) and some prescription migraine pain killers that provide pain relief short term but then actually cause more headaches/migraines to occur. These additional headaches are called “rebound headaches.” If you take Maxalt too frequently (you’ll have to communicate with your neurologist to find out if you are currently taking it too frequently, or what would constitute as overuse) you will get rebound headaches. This is *possibly* part of your current problem. I’m not a doctor, I just speak from personal experience. Again, communication with your doctor is key here.

When you go tanning are you wearing proper eye protection? The lights in the tanning beds may be a migraine trigger for you. Also, overheating of the body is a common migraine trigger. If you are getting too hot while tanning you may also be triggering migraines. The nausea and dizziness may be feelings forewarning an oncoming migraine attack.

Realistic, 3D video games like Halo make many people dizzy and sick to their stomachs. Do you also get motion sickness? Motion sickness is a common thing among those that get migraines. Be sure and share this information with your doctor as well.

These all sound like common symptoms inter related to headaches/migraines. Hard to do, but you need to RELAX. The more you stress out and worry, the more migraines you’re going to get. Communication with your doctor is key. Share all this information. Also, think about keeping a daily headache journal. In a headache journal you record (daily) what you eat, general description of what you did for the day (worked out, ran errands, stressful day at work, etc.), headache/migraine activity, duration of headache/migraine, and any medications taken. This is REALLY helpful to try and spot patterns that can help you figure out what your triggers might be. It is also a great tool to take along to doctors appointments.

For your neck and back pain, again, relax. Pay attention to what you spend your day doing. Are you in the car a lot? On the computer a lot? In those two activities (especially) most of us sit hunched over in extremely bad posture, putting pressure on our back, neck, and shoulders. You may want to google some basic back stretches you can do. An introductory yoga class can also do really great things to teach you to pay attention to where you are holding stress, release techniques, and stretching (and doing it safely). If you’re at a desk or computer for most of the day, simply taking small breaks where you massage your neck or slowly roll your neck from one side to the other can allow your muscles a break from the same stationery position. Treat yourself to a massage, and explain your problems to the massage therapist.

Hope some of this helps! Good luck!

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