I had my craniotomy a little over 2 months ago on my temporal lobe. I am still having pain and horrible headaches. I was just wondering if people still have headaches forever or if they end up going away? I had bad headaches before I had a rupture and surgery, so I don’t know if this is something I will just have to deal with forever.
I just wanted to hear how people’s headaches ended up being.
Thank you and God bless all of you and your overall health and recovery!
Hello I did not have a craniotomy but after my angiogram and embolism I had horrible pain esp in my occipatal lobes
I do get botox shots in my head every 3 months it does help but I still have pain
I am going back in for my second angiogram and hope it does not make it worse
do you have a pain neuro? if not get to one my pain neuro convinced me to the botox cause she said if I did not get control of the pain I would be like that for the rest of my life
which would mean not functioning at all I was in bed with ice packs every day for months
Good luck
Angela
Hi TLo, Perfect discussion for me to give you my side of the story :) , So I have headaches still now, I had a haemorrhage on Dec 31st 2013 and with it a craniotomy to "clear" the clot and pressure. Since then I've had what I would describe as a constant headache. The only relief I get is via Codeine based meds :( which I have been taking since the rupture. Now my AVM was on my right Temp lobe and was removed via another Craniotomy July 7th 2014, But the headaches continued and they thing are due to damage from the rupture. I have been referred to a headache specialist (Neurologist) at a headache centre/department of the neurology dept. They have said that my headaches are more like migraines so has put me on new meds to prevent migraines (propranolol). So my advice to you would be 2 fold, Try to see your Neurologists and ask if there are any specialist that deal with people that have headache/pain due to trauma and get as much rest as you can or find out "triggers" which make you headache worse than "normal", For me getting enough sleep was key, I've been on the new meds for about a week now and will let you know how it goes with it.
TLo, Great advise from both Angela & Martin.
For me, I was in pain for quite a while after my craniotomy in 2007. I didn't seek treatment for them as I was able to handle it with just Tylenol. I've always had high tolerance for pain (including the labor and delivery of my daughter) and as you know every case is different. Please try to get medical advise on how to manage your pain.
What I can say is that now 7 years after my rupture and craniotomy, I no longer get the headaches. Hang in there!
hi.....hello........I had a craniotomy in April 2001 about 14 years ago......I have had a phase of severe head aches for about few months post surgery and then phases of on & off headaches since then....but believe me it will reduce over a period of time......but over years.......but all that we can do to move on with these struggles is firstly take the medication prescribed by doctors regularly mainly because the brain cells are still very weak post surgery and will take its time to heal over a period of time and secondly do take enough rest as and when possible....small naps and relaxation breathing exercises(u can google it there are many suggestions available).
Also try to distract your mind by keeping yourself busy always as it will help you from consiously avoiding about that thought of pain always........if mingling with people has its limitations and struggles then do try to go for long walks putting on music or sitting in parks or maybe hobbies like photography etc.......it will all help indirectly to reduce the pain over a period of time.
good luck...hang on :)
Cheers,
Santhosh
Bangalore, India.
My head aches started before my crainiotomy. I’m 4 weeks post surgery and still suffer. This post was good for me to see. Here is to hoping that my migraine like-dizzy vertigo-double vision will resolve with time. Best wishes to you. You are not alone
It depends on the type of headache you're experiencing I think. The big "my brain is still healing" headache does go away, it's the musculature that covers the plate that hurts me to this day (4 yrs later). for months after the surgery I always seemed to have a lingering headache that would make me nauseous sometimes, I was prescribed Elavil. It helped a lot.
Be sure to speak with your Neurologist about this.
Best wishes to you for a speedy and full recovery.
TLo its been 3yrs and still getting headaches from time to time...you will get use to them and as long as they dont get worse then you will be okay...if they get worse over time then please see your neuro ASAP...God bless!
Thank you soooo much for everyone’s response! It makes me more aware and expectant of things, especially pain. I don’t feel as alone and know we are all going through the same, but different things and can learn from each others experiences.
again, thank you so much and God bless you all 
I also had AVM treatment for my temporal lobe. I had my procedure ~6 months ago and I am also experiencing headaches post-operation. If yours is similar enough to mine, the headaches will become less severe. It takes a substantial amount of time, but getting plenty of rest at night will help (8-9) hours is definitely optimal. After 6 months I now only experience significant headaches after a hard workout and they usually do not last long.
Hope this helps and I hope your recovery goes well. Remember, sleep is the most important factor when it comes to repairing damage so get plenty of it.
I still get headaches too but they’re not as bad. So far anyway. I am 4 weeks post OP from a crainiotomy in my left frontal lobe
I had a craniotomy for an unruptured right frontal AVM on Jan 16. For the first couple months, I had headaches on and off to varying degrees, particularly after I stopped taking Keppra. Every morning I would wake up feeling hung over too, no matter how I felt the night before. I noticed some big improvements once I started pushing myself and jogging again around 5-6 weeks post-op (on the recommendation of my neurosurgeon). In my case, I feel like exercise really helped me get back to feeling normal. I had to do it in the afternoon though or I would be completely exhausted for the rest of the day. I still get fatigued more easily than before, but things continue to improve and now a little exercise actually helps pick me up from afternoon slumps. I know it is different for everyone. I am 10 weeks out now and most days I do not have a headache. I have always had headaches too, so I guess I will find out in time if the AVM was at least in part to blame. I hope you are feeling better soon.
hi im four months post op had my AVM removed from my left side in my cerebellum via a craniotomy i suffered with headaches before op that is how they found my AVM. im still suffering with headaches i was told before op that they could not be sure my headaches were due to my AVM only time would tell some days are different to others and i have what i call a weird sensation/pain where my scar is on the inside if that makes sense as well as my head just hurting regards amanda