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Worsening Brain Fog and Head Pressure When Laying Down and Tilting Head

Z

zmagic

Messages
11
I am posting on behalf of my Fiancé. We think he may have ME/CFS or something like it. I was just curious if anyone else has worsening head pressure and brain fog when they lie down, sit back, or tilt their head in any other direction than upright? This seems to be one of his most unexplained symptoms.

Sitting up incredibly straight used to be okay, but now he has started to feel worse when doing that as well. He feels a little better when standing. We are baffled. Wondering if anyone else experiences anything similar? If so, give me a shout!
 
Rufous McKinney

Rufous McKinney

Senior Member
Messages
13,354
Well yes, I seem to not do well lying back.

I sleep mostly on my side. I nap on my stomach.

I seem to not do well head back. I think it may be associated with some Cranial Cervical Instability.

I notice I sort of choke, my throat gets more hoarse, its always hoarse, more of a dull head ache back of head/neck.
 
Z

zmagic

Messages
11
Rufous McKinney said:
I seem to not do well head back. I think it may be associated with some Cranial Cervical Instability.

I notice I sort of choke, my throat gets more hoarse, its always hoarse, more of a dull head ache back of head/neck.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your reply!

My fiancé has problems with his voice projecting/hoarseness as well. Some days he is fine with regard to his voice, but others he is not. Cold water or drinks seem to make that specific symptom worse for him as well. His head pressure tends to be all over with the exception of his face and is sometimes more noticeable around his ears.

have wondered about Craniocervical Instability, it does seem like that may be one of the only things that at least partially describes this issue. Or potentially an inner ear problem, but he doesn't quite fit that box either.
 
Judee

Judee

Psalm 46:1-3
Messages
4,489
Location
Great Lakes
We bought one of these for my Mom. She had COPD and it helped with her breathing. https://www.amazon.com/Avana-Mattre...efix=elevator+bed+avana+5-inch,aps,106&sr=8-2

It's a little difficult to get used to, sleeping at an angle like that. (They also make a 7-inch.)

The 5-inch didn't bother her but I'm not sure everyone could adapt.

Also, it had a very strong paint smell. I had to take 2 weeks to offgas it in a room by itself with the window open when I could. I also wrapped it with a thermal cotton blanket to help absorb some of the odor. Then I still wrapped it later when putting it under her mattress to try to minimize any residual offgassing.

As a side note, some people in the POTs community say elevating the head of the bed is helpful.

So I posted this thinking maybe the blood is pooling in his head when he lays down. Anyway, just a thought. I hope you can figure out what's going on for him.
 
Z

zmagic

Messages
11
Judee said:
We bought one of these for my Mom. She had COPD and it helped with her breathing. https://www.amazon.com/Avana-Mattress-Elevator-Incline-Support/dp/B07R8GLK6B/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2QT85SQZII1PU&keywords=elevator+bed+avana+5-inch&qid=1645924026&sprefix=elevator+bed+avana+5-inch,aps,106&sr=8-2

As a side note, some people in the POTs community say elevating the head of the bed is helpful.

So I posted this thinking maybe the blood is pooling in his head when he lays down. Anyway, just a thought. I hope you can figure out what's going on for him.
Click to expand...

Thanks, @Judee!
We do sleep with the bed elevated; although, it may not be quite high enough. We will probably give this a try regardless. Appreciate your input!
 
Woof!

Woof!

Senior Member
Messages
523
When I get similar symptoms, one of two things is often the culprit: (1) cervical instability (I have a wobbly C2, the result of a horse rolling over my head a few decades ago) or (2) a strong sensitivity to dustmites and fragrances (easily diagnosed and eliminated by doing three things ... putting anti-bedbug/anti-dustmite covers on all your mattresses and pillows; washing all washable cloth items in your bedroom in hot water and fragrance-free detergent, giving your bedroom - and couch, if you spend a lot of time on it - a good vacuuming; and eliminating all fragrances from your environment). Seasonal allergies can also be a factor, so you may want to look into them too. From my own experience...
 
Z

zmagic

Messages
11
I appreciate your thoughts on this, it's definitely worth a try! We actually found out today via a CT scan that he has pretty substantial ethmoid sinusitis. Wondering if that could be playing a factor in all of this as well? I'm sure getting rid of fragrances, washing everything, giving the house a good vacuuming, and things of that sort can't hurt and probably would, at the very least, help a little.
 
Z

zmagic

Messages
11
[QUOTE="Shanti1,
In the thread above someone posted a video from a Dr. Ross Hauser who specializes in CCI (post 5) that is also really informative. He states that chronic sinusitis can be another CCI manifestation.[/QUOTE]

thanks so much for this! Going to pour over that right now.
 
Z

zmagic

Messages
11
I had literally just gotten back from Fort Myers the day I started this thread. Imagine my shock when I found out that's where he was located and that I drove by his office several times while I was there. Was wondering why the name of the place sounded familiar when I opened the link :bang-head:
 
F

flipsliptrip

Messages
12
Late response but if this is not mainly structural (i.e., an issue with the spinal structure itself), this may be a postural issue. Chest/shoulder/neck alignment all have very much to do with respiration, headaches, brain fog.

Maintaining proper posture/mobility demands proper education and a lifestyle , and focusing on merely the problem area will not solve the deeper problem. The education I suggest you get from fluidhealthandfitness.com , and get a free consultation to begin this convo. I do not work for them, but I learned from them and they changed my outlook for the better on this matter.

This said, perhaps these may provide some relief:
-Getting "Expand-a-Lung" type device off Amazon for $20.

-Researching deep neck flexor and lower/middle trapezius exercises (not upper trap)

-Getting a percussion/massage gun and regularly inhibiting the activation of the scalene, sternomascoloid muscles, major and minor pec muscles, and upper trap muscles. Most people do not know how to use percussion/massage guns correctly for muscle inhibition and simply turn it up all the way and dig in. This is the proper technique:
 
Rufous McKinney

Rufous McKinney

Senior Member
Messages
13,354
flipsliptrip said:
but if this is not mainly structural (i.e., an issue with the spinal structure itself)
Click to expand...

I have lists of spinal defects some visible when I was a toddler. Now I"m old (ish) .

So after a lifetime of trying to fight back on having fundmentally a misaligned spine in numerous places....my NECK and HEAD are a problem every single day now.

It's causing me considerable stress and nobody seems to have hands on body repair skills any longer....
 
Rufous McKinney

Rufous McKinney

Senior Member
Messages
13,354
flipsliptrip said:
-Getting a percussion/massage gun
Click to expand...

I"ve never heard of this technique.

I've got a really big heavy massager that vibrates almost like this percussion thing. Working on muscles will cause PEM crashes and release of stored toxins in my case. I have to be very careful and minimal.
 
H

hapl808

Senior Member
Messages
2,099
Rufous McKinney said:
Working on muscles will cause PEM crashes and release of stored toxins in my case. I have to be very careful and minimal.
Click to expand...

Same. Not sure if it's toxins or what, but using the massage gun causes crashes. Shame, because when I was more moderate it was very helpful for healing.
 
F

flipsliptrip

Messages
12
Rufous McKinney said:
I"ve never heard of this technique.

I've got a really big heavy massager that vibrates almost like this percussion thing. Working on muscles will cause PEM crashes and release of stored toxins in my case. I have to be very careful and minimal.
Click to expand...
Luckily for you, the technique for muscle inhibition with the percussion gun demands that you use the lowest setting, and only let the weight of the gun itself sit on the muscle in question (i.e., don't press down or add your own pressure)

The point is not to lengthen these muscles by manipulating them mechanically (as one would with myfascial release techniqes like foam rollers), but to send a message to the central nervous system to lengthen the muscle in question/inhibit the resorption of length.

Primary source of of muscle tightness comes from the CNS, not the structure of the muscle itself.
 
F

flipsliptrip

Messages
12
Rufous McKinney said:
I have lists of spinal defects some visible when I was a toddler. Now I"m old (ish) .

So after a lifetime of trying to fight back on having fundmentally a misaligned spine in numerous places....my NECK and HEAD are a problem every single day now.

It's causing me considerable stress and nobody seems to have hands on body repair skills any longer....
Click to expand...
I'd suggest getting a free consultation call with fluidhealthandfitness.com

I don't live in the same state, I found their videos and found them to be so scientific I decided to request a free consultation, even though I live on the opposite end of the country from him. I've seen enough swindlers to spot them and the consultation convinced me he is the real deal, and I pursued taking his course.

The man in the video (Ryan Maxwell) is a true master of his craft. If you decide to follow through, you will have to spend some money (although to save money you don't necessarily have to buy the equipment from the website, which is more expensive than it would be on Amazon).
 
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