Please help me diagnose my dd (13) headache, period, HPV

[InVeryveryBadTaste]

Dont want to dripfeed so may be long! About 3 months ago she got the 1st of her HPV imms and had a very funny turn - was sick, fainted and had an immediate headache.

Since then she has had a permament headache. It varies in intensity but never goes away completely. She wakes up with it and goes to bed with it, food doesnt seem to affect it in any way. About 6 weeks after the headache started she had the most godawful period ever and she was actually crying her head was so sore. She woke when her period started, went to the loo and fainted, falling off the loo . The next day she had to change towels very 1/2hr and soaked through 2 super towels, underwear, tights, jeans and jacket onto the car seat. It lasted like this for about 36 hrs and then got lighter.

So fast forward to today and she still has a flipping headache. The GP tried her on migraine meds which didnt make any difference so we stopped, she does wonder if hormone related but dd hasnt had another period since and so we cant tell yet. GP thinks probably Chronic Daily Headache which worries me as there doesnt seem to be any remedy for them - meds or lifestyle or ?? Shes missed 4 days of school so far.

She has lost her appetite, sleeps a lot and looks rubbish; really awful some days. Shes got quite an olice complexion but shes grey some days with big black bags under her eyes. She has tremours which can last a few seconds or up to 10 minutes. She has a sore tummy quite a lot and is just not herself. On a lot of occassions she feels better once she has eaten or drank something and she does also look a bit better after eating.

We had bloods done and all came back pretty normal - only one missed was glucose as the lab fucked up. Goodness thats long - sorry
Any ideas anyone? Seeing peads on the 24th and just wanted some questions straight in my head before we go.
TIA [SMILE]

[GlitterySparklyBaublesOfDoom]

Oh your poor DD, it sounds like she's really suffering and you must be worried sick.

I guess it's either linked to the HPV, which has possibly caused some sort of hormone imbalance. Not that I know if that's possible but I used to suffer terribly with hormonal migraines and heavy periods and often had to have a day or two off work every month as I could neither get out of bed or function. I also used to look grey and lose my appetite and would have to sleep through them. They only stopped - or vastly reduced - when my pill was changed to Cerazette.

But the paeds need to make sure that there isn't a physical cause that has nothing to do with the HPV. Has her blood pressure been checked? High blood pressure can cause constant headaches and shortness of breath/tiredness.

And.... And although I hesitate to say this I can't not and I'm very sorry if this scares you. If you've seen any of my previous posts you might know that my DS had a brain tumour when he was 8. He is now 25, fit, well and totally healthy. But some of your DD's symptoms ring alarm bells for me and you must get them checked out. These were DS's symptoms -

A persistant headache that is worse on waking, feeling constantly ill and tired, sore tummy and vomiting without warning, grey complexion, clumsiness and lack of balance. DS never had tremors but they really need to be checked out.

If I were you I would ask the paeds to rule out any serious health issues before they spend an age trying to rule out hormonal/vaccine problems. DS was also presribed migraine medication for 3 wasted months as we had no idea what we were dealing with back then. Ask them to do an MRI would be my advice to rule out the serious stuff.

And from my experience in dealing with many, many doctors you need to be quite clinical with the order of possible triggers, explaining symptoms, give them a clear timeline of their onset and impact. And don't let them fob you off.

Please feel free to PM me if you want any further info. I hope I am very, very wrong but wanted you to have this info ahead of your appointment.

[InVeryveryBadTaste]

Hi Glittery, thanks for your reply I did recognise you but didn't realise about your ds. You must have been through the wringer - thank goodness he's well now. I suppose a couple of things have alarm bells wringing for me too. The fact that she wakes with it and the tremors worry me quite a bit. And when she looks so awful that even people in the shop comment on it. That last period was really quite something too - not something i have experience if as have always been quite light! I downplay it to her and try to just chivvy her along but it's very difficult. I think I'm going to write down the sequence of events and all symptoms to take with me so I don't forget to mention anything.
You haven't scared me, just made me glad that I pushed for a referral in the first place. So thank you

[GlitterySparklyBaublesOfDoom]

Oh I'm glad I've not scared you InVeryveryBadTaste I re-wrote my post about 15 times trying to get the words right. We were going through it 17 Christmases ago so I just didn't want to have someone else worrying about this stuff right now. But equally I don't want anyone else to be dismissed as we were for being neurotic/paranoid etc and to watch their DC suffer for longer than is necessary.

My message is just to make sure that the docs check everything out and don't just send you home with a different painkiller, an airy fairy diagnosis of it might be this or that and another appointment in 6 months. That happened to us and it was awful.

Don't be afraid to be assertive and ask them to carry out tests to rule out more serious possibilities. And if they say no, ask them to explain why. Do your research and put them on the spot if needs be.

And although you are doing right by downplaying it and chivvying her along to keep her spirits up just bear in mind that she really might not be up for it. I still feel guilty about chivvying DS to go to his tap dancing class, which he loved but because of his loss of balance he couldn't do anymore. We just thought he'd got bored of it.

[Inmyopinion1]

When you see Paeds they will concentrate on the headache and I expect that very little attention will be given to the HPV vaccine - sounds like a bit of a red herring. It doesn't sound like a classic tumour history either - it always needs to be considered with chronic headache but what you've described doesn't fit terribly well.

Whilst organic causes need to be excluded it's worth starting to think about other stresses. How is home life and school life. Any issues with friends, if she was already having trouble at school and then fainted after an injection this could have been a trigger point for more trouble. I'm not saying that this problem is non organic but it always needs consideration and sometimes in the clinic room the immediate answer is always no, of course not, as opposed to a considered response.

Your daughter will likely be asked lots of questions about her periods in the appointment so she may prefer just to be with you depending on how you guys are about this sort of thing.

[sipper]

Sorry to read that your DD is experiencing such constant pain.

I don't believe we can say the vaccination is a red herring - if it fits timing-wise then there is a possibility it's linked. Why should it not be looked in to? But I do think that sadly it will be difficult to get a GP or paediatrician to consider or investigate a link.

The internet is littered with stories of severe headaches after HPV vaccinations. How reliable these stories are - who can tell as it goes without saying that there's a lot of c* posted online but maybe it's worth asking some of the non-government vaccination info sites for info or relevant case studies? Here are a couple of links www.informedparent.co.uk/ and www.nvic.org/ in case of interest.

I am not anti-vax but I am pro-info and pro-safety. I hope it isn't related to the vaccination, but you've seen a timing link so it shouldn't be dismissed without being looked into.

Here is an opinion piece from New Scientist www.newscientist.com/article/dn20928-we-need-to-talk-about-hpv-vaccination--seriously.html?full=true (the article mentions side effects)

I hope your daughter feels better very very soon. Best wishes for the New Year.

[bruffin]

who can tell as it goes without saying that there's a lot of c posted online but maybe it's worth asking some of the non-government vaccination info sites for info or relevant case studies? Here are a couple of links www.informedparent.co.uk/ and www.nvic.org/ in case of interest. *

The crap on line comes from website like informedparent and nvic. They just repeat crap from whale.

[sipper]

Happy New Year bruffin !

[DameSaggarmakersbottomknocker]

OP - sorry your dd is unwell. If you feel this is a reaction to the HPV you can self-report. Google 'yellow card scheme'.

Did they redo the botches glucose test. I'd get that done I think. Hope you can get to the bottom of it.

[InVeryveryBadTaste]

Oh thank you all for replying.
With regards the HPV link i'm really not convinced there is one tbh - other than the time scale. I am very much pro vaccination (not sure who wouldnt be tbh ) and I would usually take all online info with a pinch of salt. I work at GP practice and have access to them and their info and feel very happy and comfortable with the vaccine itself.

The school nurse who gave it did report it at the time as a reaction so I think that is covered.
Actually, over hte last couple of days I am starting to see glimpses of the old dd - just a little. Am keeping my fingers crossed that it has been a virus or something and shes coming out the other side after some rest over the holidays.
I would like to redo the glucose just to put my mind at rest though.
thanks again

[InVeryveryBadTaste]

Oh and I meant to say that school/friends etc all seem to be fine too (although aware she may not tell me) so no added stresses there. She is always keen to go to school and is coping remarkably well. Oh and there is nooooo way she'll talk about periods with a consultant uurrghhh