For those people in the upper Midwest, has the recent weather rarity of the polar vortex dipping down been very painful due to the huge air pressure changes? It has been a killer on my head.

I bet there are many people in the path of this vortex who have the same issues you do. The pressure changes effects many conditions. Hope this cold ends and you get to feeling better. ginnie

Hi Mary-

I just hit my head pretty hard on concrete 5 weeks ago. I'm wondering if you still have ringing in the ears? I still have horrible ringing in my right ear that's very bothersome. The doctors say it should relieve in 8-12 weeks.

Any advice? Thanks.

martin,

Welcome to NeuroTalk. Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) is quite common after a concussion. There is very little help or understanding about tinnitus. Your recovery period is unknown. Every concussion is different.

Is this your only symptom ?

Absolutely. These huge weather swings alway a cause nasty headaches for me. I have talked to others in this area and they notice it too. Wicked and ugly headaches that go on for a couple days. I feel for you.

I noticed this last week! I'm in the midwest, and we had a period of nice weather followed by some freak snowfall and colder temps. I think it explains some of my more severe symptom days last week.

Hopefully it stays nice now so that won't be an issue again...

Yes! I live in PA and typically am not bothered by the cold. However, we've had the vortex stuff here over this winter, and it brought on some of the worst pain I've had since my accident 3 years ago. (Breathing outdoors literally felt like an ice pick poking my brain and would take hours to go away, even if I immediately went indoors. I've never had that happen before!) Our weather has been up and down and it really plays havoc on me due to the pressure changes. Hope you find some relief soon!

I tracked my PCS for about 5 years and suddenly one day realized that MOST of my problems were caused by the weather. (Thanks, Weather Underground Archives) I lived in Northern WI, and got to where I simply could not go on anymore. I would get head pressure, fatigue, nausea, phonophobia, chills, insomnia, dizziness, almost all the time from the continuous weather fronts that moved through.

When I finally realized this a few years ago, I packed up my family and moved to Central Washington (dry side). By doing this, I got rid of about 75% of my issues. In the winter, we go to Yuma AZ for a few months, and there I get rid of about 90% of my issues. It has changed our lives in amazing ways. This past winter I had two head episodes - both when we got some rain in the desert.

Barometric change, Humidity change, and Temperature change all affect me, but in my years of study and observation have noticed a few interesting things:

Pressure Change - We have mountains in WA, and rapid pressure change from going over a pass in not an issue, nor is flying on an airplane. I found that it is the gradual rise or fall in pressure that is the culprit. My threshhold is about 0.2 inches Hg change in a day. Any change greater than this will cause issues. But, a more rapid change like driving over a pass (several inches Hg change in 1/2 hour) is just fine. It seems that the "pressure sensor" is not as sensitive as it ought to be and these gradual pressure changes over the course of a day allow the pressure to build, and then the trigger for the migraine is tripped. Once it is tripped, I will be sick for a few days. I have been able to "evade" a pressure change on a few occasions by going over the pass, and "recalibrating". It helps for a few hours, but if the pressure is still changing, I need to go up again. (Fortunately, I live just 5 miles from a pass.) I have also taken up hiking (gradually built up to that over years) and the daily pressure change from altitude seems to make me a little more immune to weather pressure changes. It also makes me more immune to bumps, as the exercise and hiking poles strengthens the neck and shoulders.

- Humidity change - Now that I have lived a dry climate, I have really noticed that humidity change is bad though I am not sure how or why. Sometimes we get wet weather with very little pressure change, and I get sick. I have wondered if living on the coast might be a little better than the desert as the humidity from the ocean would be more constant, and not going from 10% to 100% when it rains. (But I just could not live in Seattle since I am solar powered.)

- Temperature Change - Warmer is better, and a temperature change from 80s to 60s will cause problems. I have an allergy to Cold anyway, so anything below 75 means I need to bundle up especially my neck (and I was from WI?). I have thought of moving to AZ, where pressure is definitely more steady, but am not sure what the 110*-120* in the summer would do to me.

In conclusion, a place like San Diego or Hawaii (least pressure change in US) would probably be best for my head, but not best for our family or finances right now. Health is a big deal, but there are so many other facets to life. If I can get these health problems into the background, and enjoy a few other things like family and friends close by, and a vibrant church life, I am content.

I'm in the Midwest, and we have severe tornadoes and hail storms on the way for the weekend. Mid afternoon, I had the worst headache that I've experienced in 2 months and nearly fell over (seriously) from the intense pain. My head and eyes still hurt badly. The first thing that came to mind was this post.

Any change of weather and barometric pressure all have a toll on my body. Except the Sun!!! I call myself a fragile bird now with the weather amongst other diagnosis. I also have chronic pain in neck bulging C1-C5, jaw, head, and acute herniated L5. I would like to move to the US virgin islands or Puerto Rico just for my pain and paradise