Posts tagged ‘Sufferer’

Tension headaches

Sajid Latif asked:




What are tension headaches?

Also known as muscle contraction or chronic daily headache, this is the most common variety of headache. Most people will have suffered from tension headaches at some point in their lives and never seek medical assistance but for a small minority of patients the condition is severe, long-standing and may be difficult to treat.

What causes tension headaches and who is at risk?

It was long believed that tension headaches were due to overcontraction of the muscles covering the scalp and back of the neck. However, all types of chronic (prolonged) headache may give rise to increased muscle tension and individuals with tension headaches often describe the continuous squeezing discomfort even when completely relaxed.

Despite this condition being one of the most common to affect humans, surprisingly little is understood of the exact mechanisms giving rise to the symptoms.

It is not uncommon for tension headaches and migraine (another type of headache described in a separate factsheet) to occur in the same individual, often with the migraine attack subsiding and evolving into a tension headache.

Tension headaches are undoubtedly more common in people suffering from anxiety and depression and effective treatment of these conditions may result in improvement of the headache. As tension headaches can last for a long time, this often arouses the suspicion in the sufferer and his or her doctor that a brain tumour could be the cause of symptoms.

What are the common symptoms and complications of tension headaches?

This headache usually affects both sides of the head, often involving the back of the head and neck but also frequently the sides and front of the head. Commonly, the entire head is affected in a diffuse manner. The pain is described as a dull, aching or squeezing but others often describe sensations such as fullness, tightness or pressure. Sometimes there may be the sensation that the head is surrounded by a band or being compressed in a vice. The onset of the attack is usually more gradual than in migraine and the duration of the attack may range from hours to years. Frequently the sufferer will claim the pain is present every day without a break, although the intensity may vary considerably during this time. Sleep is not usually affected, although the headache is often present on waking or soon after.

Tension headaches rarely begin during childhood or adolescence but more commonly during middle age. They are more common in women than men.

What is the treatment for tension headaches?

One particularly useful drug for treating tension headache is amitriptyline; this is taken at night before going to bed. Treatment is commenced at a low dose and gradually built up over a period of weeks to minimise problematic side effects which may include morning drowsiness. However, this side effect usually improves within a few days to weeks when the headaches should be improving. Amitriptyline is also an effective antidepressant and may helpfully improve the anxiety commonly associated with tension headaches.

Complementary therapy

Acupuncture, the Alexander technique, reflexology and relaxation exercises linked to visualisation with feedback may all be helpful at reducing stress and the chronic anxiety often associated with tension headache.

Identifying particular causes of stress and making appropriate changes in lifestyle (eg taking up regular exercise) may also prove effective.



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The Linden Method

Reuben Wallis asked:




If you tend to suffer from sudden bouts of anxiety attacks then you would know all there is to know with regard to phobias, anxiety disorders and such. It is not exactly known why some of us tend to get affected by these anxiety disorders while others tend to remain normal. That does not mean that you would want to share what you go through on an almost daily basis with others, being unable to sleep, having hidden fears and anxieties that tend to rip right through your conscious thoughts. Well, The Linden Method by Charles Linden offers all anxiety and panic attack sufferers a new way to cure them of the same. This book is sure to be of interest to you as well as others for it has been penned by an ex-anxiety attack and panic attack sufferer.

Have you ever had those moments when you have panicked for no reason at all, all sweaty with your heart beating a mile a minute with no rational thoughts entering your head? Well, you have just had a panic attack, one that some of you may get on a regular basis while there are those who do not get them at all. Seeking treatment for such panic attacks and other related disorders may sound easy but the reality paints a totally different picture. With every doctor in the book advocating his or her own specialized treatment, these disorders often have the nasty habit of staying with you for years before they are actually treated. With The Linden Method by Charles Linden in his book, the treatment advocated here does not sound too complex and most certainly does not involve numerous techniques or drills. It seems to be a firm advocate of the principle ‘one size fits all’ and provides an easy method of tackling with all the anxiety and panic attacks that you may have or get in the near future. Normally, while researching treatment for a medical condition, the resource in question often offers one too many ways to deal with the problem at hand. The end result is often a very confused patient and that I can tell you with a certain confidence is not going to happen here with The Linden Method.

The Linden Method does not come packed with hours of CD or video tutorials and provides its content in a simplified format that you should have no trouble comprehending it. This book takes the anxiety treatment a little further than most of the other treatments to date by addressing the ‘root cause’ than merely treating the symptoms. With the simple treatment advocated here it may be a little bit difficult to believe that such a simple treatment can be used to treat the various phobias, anxiety disorders and panic attacks. But it does seem to work or does so at least going by the rave reviews that it has got of late.

The Linden Method comes with an offer of free counseling and support should you require it in the future. This offer though is valid only for a year, a point that you may wish to take note of. With anxiety disorders and panic attacks, popping a pill is not the solution and the only sane solution that any of you can really accept is a permanent cure to the problem once and for all. Perhaps, with this book, you may be able to do just that!

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Chest Pain: Causes and Treatment


ne, chest pain is a symptom of a number of serious conditions and is generally considered a medical emergency, unless the patient is a known angina pectoris sufferer and the symptoms are familiar (appearing at exertion and resolving at rest, known as “stable angina”). When the chest pain is not attributed to heart disease, it is termed non-cardiac chest pain.

Chest pain is one of the most frightening symptoms a person can have. It is sometimes difficult even for a doctor or other medical professional to tell what is causing chest pain and whether it is life-threatening.

Chest pain and heart attack

Chest discomfort or pain is a key warning symptom of a heart attack. Heart attack symptoms include:

1. Chest discomfort or pain that is crushing or squeezing or feels like a heavy weight on the chest.

2. Chest discomfort or pain that occurs with:

a. Sweating.

b. Shortness of breath.

Causes

causes of chest pain include:

1. Asthma, which is generally accompanied by shortness of breath, wheezing, or cough.

2. Pneumonia, a blood clot to the lung (pulmonary embolism), the collapse of a small area of a lung (pneumothorax), or inflammation of the lining around the lung (pleurisy). In these cases, the chest pain often worsens when you take a deep breath or cough and usually feels sharp.

3. Chest pain is merely a symptom, not a diagnosis. Many medical problems can cause chest pain, and before the chest pain can be adequately treated, the actual underlying cause needs to be identified. The following is a list of the more common causes of chest pain, roughly in order of the frequency in which they are seen in the emergency room.

4. Heart attack. A heart attack can cause pressure, fullness or a crushing pain in your chest that lasts more than a few minutes.

5. Pericarditis. Inflammation of the sac surrounding your heart (pericarditis) causes sharp, piercing and centralized chest pain. You may also have a fever and feel sick.

6. A broken rib can be quite painful, especially when you cough or try to take a deep breath.

7. A blood clot in the lung (pulmonary embolism), which usually causes deep chest pain with the rapid development of extreme shortness of breath.

Treatment of Chest Pain

Taking care of yourself at home

If your doctor has ruled out serious causes of chest pain, it is likely you will make a full recovery. General self-care suggestions include:

* Follow your doctor’s advice about treatment.

* In the first few days at home, try to take it easy.

* Rest if you feel tired.

Standard treatment begins with coronary angiogram to determine the presence of disease and medication therapy. As disease severity progresses, treatment moves to interventional strategies, such as stents or coronary artery bypass surgery. The majority of patients with coronary artery disease achieve excellent results with these standard therapies.



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