Headache upon waking

Hi all,
This is my first post. I'm so glad to have learned about TMS in the last ten days. I can see already my chronic neck, back, and wrist pain greatly diminished. I had been having that pain for about six years.

My question is about my headaches, which I've had for over twenty years. The typical pattern is this - When I wake up in the morning, the headache is already there at full strength. When I go to sleep I feel fine, physically and emotionally, sleep soundly, but wake up in the morning in great pain. These headaches occur at least once every ten days, and sometimes as frequently as three times per week.

Since I'm not awake when the headache starts, I don't understand how or why it is happening, and I need help understanding this, and developing a plan on what I can do about it. Thanks in advance!

 

Sometimes the doors of the unconscious mind only open up during REM sleep in the wee hours of the morning just before you wake up. That's when you can recollect dreams and their story-lines most easily too. See what I mean? Maybe your repressed emotions are trying to break out of their prison in the early morning, and that's what's scaring you and causing your recurrent headaches? You might try doing some programmed dreams to see if you can better remember what's going on before you wake up.

 

Hi Heather,

I agree totally with what Bruce said, but I've something to add.

I used to wake with a headache every single day, it's awful isn't it. I also used to suffered very disturbed sleep with vivid dreams and often nightmares, some relating to past events, some I couldn't fathom at all. It wasn't until I mysteriously broke two teeth that my dentist said I was clenching my teeth in my sleep, which was also causing my headaches. He fitted me with a mouthguard to protect my teeth, and hey presto no headache ! My sleep is fine now and the crazy dreams have stopped, so I don't clench anymore.

Might be worth try.

 

Mermaid, I'm glad your dentist sunk his teeth into your sleep problem due to clenched teeth while sleeping.
I wonder how he knew that!

I'm going to learn more about what BruceMc suggests: programmed dreams.
There are some events in my life that were so great, I'd like to dream about them. haha

 

I just googled about programmed dreams and this site came up:

http://www.erinpavlina.com/blog/2010/04/how-to-pre-program-a-dream/

She talks about lucid dreaming that she's practiced for years.

For me, headaches go away when I do deep breathing and relaxation/meditation.
I never know the difference between a headache and a feeling of a "stuffy head."
Most of the time, I think I have a stuffy head.

 

Dr James Alexander's The Hidden Psychology of Pain (2011) has a couple of long chapters on programmed dreams and improving sleep patterns:

• Chapter 11: The Healing Power of Dreams, pp. 208-235.
• Chapter 13: Improving Your Sleep, pp. 262-282.

Dr Alexander talks a lot about how to initiate programmed dreams and how to create optimal conditions while sleeping to enter into REM sleep (where dreaming occurs). Lots of tips on how to record and remember your dreams too.

 

Thanks, Bruce. I'll look at those pages.
Have you had experience with programmed dreams?

 

Thanks all for the suggestions. I will look into the info on programmed dreams, and improving my sleep.

I do have history of clenching/grinding my teeth in my sleep. I've never looked into getting a mouthguard because I had heard too many people say it protected their teeth, but didn't stop the clenching. I didn't want to spend a lot of money on something that had a poor chance of success.

Walt, sometimes my headaches start out as more of a stuffy head, too, but even then they always develop into painful headaches.

 

Hi Heather

A mouthguard doesn't stop you clenching, it reduces the pressure on your teeth, so reducing damage and lessening the tension in the facial and cranial muscles, which creates the headache. Mine didn't cost very much, and I would definitely recommend one. It was a life saver for me. With TMS healing I don't clench anymore, so it was just a temporary measure, I didn't want to break any more teeth !

 

Mermaid - upon doing some online research, I am seeing that custom mouthguards (made by a dentist) cost between $450 and $1700. There are also $30-50 off-the-shelf mouthguards that can be heated and then form to your mouth as they cool. Which sort did you use?

 

My dentist said it is a very common occurrence for people who take

I'm in England so we have a slightly different system, however I do pay for all my dental work. I have insurance which costs £35 ($59) per month for myself and my husband, the cost of my custom made mouthguard was £20 ($33). This was not covered by my insurance. It would be cheaper for you to fly over here for one . I'd get one of the off the shelf one to try first if I was you, give yourself a little time to get used to it even a custom made one feels odd at first.