Head feels swollen at times and stiff

[MissBurb]

Hi, I had my surgery in July 2003 and my head has started bothering me more lately.  Someitmes I wake up from sleeping to find it feels stiff and hurts.  I also get lumps where the surgery was? Has anyone experienced this?  I go to myotherapy and it does help a great deal.  She can tell when my head is swollen or just feels lumpy.  After I go my headaches seem better as well. Thank you for any thoughts you may have!

[Brendalu]

I get bumps were my incision is and some swelling.  The headaches are constant for me.  My ENT keeps telling me to give it a few more months and I do and almost a year has passed and I am worse off than I was a year ago.  I get nervous when I see that some have had more than one AN.  I just want to be done with all of this.  Others have told me that swelling and stiffness is the new norm.   Good luck to you.

[MissBurb]

Hi Brenda,

Well funny enough my name is Brenda too! I had my surgery in July of 2003 and I am deaf in my right ear.  You might want to try deep tissue massage. It has been a saving grace for me when it comes to headaches.  I never had headaches before this and now when things get tight or my head seems swollen like yours it does help.  The stiffness at night is a new thing.  I will be turning 40 this year so I am hoping its not the age! LOL

Feel to write back!

[Brendalu]

  :)Hi Brenda!
Love your name!! I don't think it is the age, I'll be 56 in October!  Deep tissue massage?  Wow, I won't let anyone come near my head.  I can no longer use or have used on me a blow dryer.  The heat and the noise intensify the pain.  I was a hair stylist for too many years to count and then a Lancome makeup consultant after that, so my hair and general appearance has always been a priority.  What a difference a little AN makes!!  I am also non-hearing on my right side.  Must be the name.  Does your family still forget that you can't hear on that side and always seem to come at you from that side or walk on the right side of you?  I'm going to start hitting mine with my cane!  My balance is so poor that I use a walker on uneven surfaces and a cane on flat surfaces.  I have PT and OT and so far I don't see anything positive coming from it.  Unfortunately, in my area, (maybe for others it is fortunate) not that many people have had the surgery.  My ENT had only done one other in a sixth month time frame and the NS not anymore than that.  They were both highly recommended for my area.  They do not understand the problems afterwards though.  They released me to go back to work after six weeks and I couldn't stay awake for more than two hours at a time and I couldn't walk at all without falling.  I still can't work.  This site has helped me understand so much more and realize that I am luckier than a lot of folks.  I am so grateful after all of the searches I did to find it!