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Where Do You Get Your Headaches?

jmrogers31

By jmrogers31
in Coping with Celiac Disease

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jmrogers31 Contributor
jmrogers31
Posted

I have a question about headaches. Once I got off gluten I had horrible headaches in my withdrawal phase. My headaches during withdrawal and when I get headaches now are on the very back of my head. I almost feels like it would be on my brain stem. I have never had headaches that far back on my head before. They used to always be in my eyes, sinuses, and temples. Now I get a few sinus headaches but most of them are at the very back of my head. Any thoughts on this?

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bartfull Rising Star
bartfull
Posted

Please forgive me, but when I saw the title of your thread, my first thoughts were, "In traffic jams. At loud concerts. When I'm babysitting my friend's kids."

Sorry. But seriously, I never got much in the way of headaches when I was going through gluten withdrawal. Any headaches I get are like they always were - behind my eyes, or occasionally, on one side of my head.

Schatz Apprentice
Schatz
Posted

I have a question about headaches. Once I got off gluten I had horrible headaches in my withdrawal phase. My headaches during withdrawal and when I get headaches now are on the very back of my head. I almost feels like it would be on my brain stem. I have never had headaches that far back on my head before. They used to always be in my eyes, sinuses, and temples. Now I get a few sinus headaches but most of them are at the very back of my head. Any thoughts on this?

Oh my! Me too! I've never had headaches at the back of my head before until now. I also had horrible headaches during my initial with drawl from gluten. Granted it's only been 5 weeks since I was diagnosed celiac. I became very sick this past Sat from accidental gluten, and my headache is exactly where you describe. I've had the headache since Sat night.

I wonder why it's at the back and bottom of the head?

jmrogers31 Contributor
jmrogers31
Posted
  • Author

bartful, that is a funny response. I should have said, besides my 5 year old and 3 year old screaming at each other, where do you get your headaches? Schatz, it is always encouraging to hear that someone else is experiencing the same thing as you. I have read that gluten is an opiate and can accumulate on the brain. So in my head I imagine little sponges cleaning the gluten off of my brain and causing these strange headaches. I really hope someone here can explain why this occurs because it is something in my almost 31 years on this Earth I didn't experience until I got off gluten.

ravenwoodglass Mentor
ravenwoodglass
Posted

I think that area is usually associated with tension headaches. Have you tried either cold or hot compresses to see if it might help?

smeej Newbie
smeej
Posted

Okay, that's weird. I just stopped eating gluten a couple of days ago as the beginning of an elimination diet and had NASTY tension headaches at the very base of my skull on the right side. I thought I just hadn't slept well the last couple of nights (whole host of reasons that could be true).

UKGail Rookie
UKGail
Posted

Just to confuse everyone, I had just posted a comment similar to this in another thread. My reaction is perhaps the opposite. I had a longstanding chronic headache around the base of my skull prior to going gluten free which vanished within 24 hours of the new diet, and has not returned. Still getting some sinus area pain and very mild tension type headaches, but nothing major. For me, what I take to be withdrawal symptoms are purely digestive and skin related.

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AMom2010 Explorer
AMom2010
Posted

I get my headaches over my right eye and at the base of my skull on the right side simultaneously. I really think gallbladder might be an issue for me in addition to gluten. Open Original Shared Link

Strawberry-Jam Enthusiast
Strawberry-Jam
Posted

I get my headaches right in my eyebrows, and in my cheeks when they get really bad.

"back of head" headaches were always related to neck and back pain for me. When I sleep in a wrong position or sit with bad posture for a long time.

idk about the relation to gluten.

jmrogers31 Contributor
jmrogers31
Posted
  • Author

smeej, I am in the same boat. They could be tension headaches, but it just seems like too big of a coincidence that it started as soon as I cut gluten out of my diet and two other people on this post experienced the same thing. That's what makes me wonder what they are. AMom, I never would have considered my gallbladder but that is interesting because one of the things I have been experiencing is dizzyness for a while. Seeing that as a symptom as well opened my eyes. I will have to look into that, thanks for the link.

  • 2 weeks later...
mcat1234 Newbie
mcat1234
Posted

I have headaches in the base of my skull, too. I have not yet confirmed whether or not gluten can cause it, as I am just now starting to be gluten free. I also have found that if I drink too much tea, I can get headaches there too. It doesn't matter whether it is decaf or not. Im not sure if it is from the tannins in tea or if it is just the brand. I just can't drink too much of it.

Kate79 Apprentice
Kate79
Posted

My guess is you're getting migraines in reaction to de-toxing from the gluten. I've gotten migraines all my life, and they can be just where you describe - right at the base of the skull, almost in that hollow-feeling area just above the neck. I also get them in the sinus area. My doctor told me there are nerves in the back of the head that are easily inflamed, so it's not an uncommon place to get a headache. I even get swelling in the back of the head on the right side when I have a particularly bad headache.

Mine have almost completely gone away since I've been gluten free; I only get them occasionally now or if I'm contaminated - rather than the 7-10 a month I used to get. I also had dizzy-ness episodes on and off, which have gone away since going gluten free. Hope yours go away once you've been on the diet a bit longer!

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