Feeling bad 10months post-op. Some advice???

[Mia]

Hello
I am now 10months post op GK, and not feeling good. Had some good weeks in january and the beginning of february but then it all starts again. Have since the end of agust had a lot of symptons. Now it is the headache at the right side of my head, the AN side. The headache can be for hours or I can have it 10minutes and maybe
5-20minutes break before it starts up again. It can be the pressuring type in my forehead or other places in my head. Have had som stabbering pains, but only some few times. I am taking Ibuprofen 600mg. X 2, but it doesn`t take all the pain anymore. I am getting really tired about it.
I also a lot of the time have the feeling of having "the flue" in my head. This is really the worst. Feeling sick all the time. Can this be normal?
I am now only working 60%, is not able to go back to 100% work.
Guess I am looking for some advice. Think I maybe have to go to the doctor, but can they help me??

Mia

[sgerrard]

Hi Mia,

Sorry to hear about the headaches and "flu". I guess you will be getting another MRI in May? The first thing is find out if the AN is growing, hopefully it is not. The symptoms may be due to swelling, which is common after radiation, and can drag on for a year in some cases. They can treat swelling with steroids, but steroids have their own side affects, so it can be a tricky thing. Your doctor could tell you more about that.

Other than that, I can only suggest trying to ignore it, and trying to get as healthy as you can: eat well, take vitamins, go for walks, exercise, drink lots of water, sleep well, try to resume normal activities as much as possible. It seems to help the brain heal, if you stimulate it and encourage it to make the adjustment.

Best wishes for improvement in the future,

Steve

[jb]

Mia,
Just thought I would add that I've had similar symptoms with a lot of swelling (verified by MRI) with my AN that was treated by CK 7.5 months ago.  I had been using a lot of Ibuprofen also, but recently got great relief when my doctor prescribed dexamethasone for me, a steroid as Steve mentioned.  I haven't needed any Ibuprofen the entire week I've been on the steroid.  I noticed you had about a 2 cm tumor that may have enlarged a bit since treatment, which was similar in size to mine as well.  Personally, I think it would be very worthwhile to discuss the situation with your doctor.

Good luck,
JB

[Yvette]

Hi Mia, I know it's hard to plod ahead when you feel discouraged that you are not getting better. I'm 14 months post op translab, and still have troubles. I had a set back too, after exercising too soon after surgery. Back to square one, it's very depressing. I pretty much did what Steve recommends. It gets better, hang in there, but it doesn't hurt to see what the docs say:-)

Best wishes, Yvette