Hi everyone, I suffered a concussion and may suspect I have Occipital neuralgia. But how do I know? I mostly have chronic headaches and light sensitivity and also mostly on the left side. I don't have so much pain in the neck. Anyway, I'm going to see an Ophtamologist on Monday. What questions can I ask? How can I be diagnosed? Thank you so much .

How did your opthalmologist appointment go?

When did you suffer your concussion, and what caused it? How would you classify your pain (dull, burning, sharp, stabbing, electric shock, shooting pain, etc.)? Occipital Neuralgia (ON) typically presents with stabbing or electric shock pain that radiates along the path of the nerves/branches, usually on one side of the head, but there are MANY atypical forms. My particular ON started with extreme sharp stabbing pain, but has progressed to include constant dull pain that ranges in intensity from a minor annoyance to head-splitting whole-head pain. I have been on many dozens of different medications, but the only one that helped without severe side-effects has been Cymbalta (duloxetine), which I am taking now at 60mg/day. I use ice packs frequently throughout the day, and this helps change to character of the pain to something more bearable.

Having said all this, and not knowing anything about your concussion or pain, I'd hesitate to consider just ON to explain your pain. For example, light sensitivity is probably more common with migraine and its variants, though it is sometimes present in ON and other pain syndromes.

At this point, I suggest that you talk to your general physician, who may refer you to a pain physician (where you may very well end up ultimately.) I have been seen by so many doctors that I lost count, but I finally found a pain physician in a pain clinic setting who has done me a great deal of good. You may need to see a few such doctors before you find one who is willing to keep trying things until you find what works, so don't feel like you have no options.

Finally, a lot of your options are going to depend on the type of health insurance and/or health system you have at your disposal. Please check back with us and let us know how things are going.