Eagle Syndrome

Hi, @linda21 - I also wanted to welcome you to Mayo Clinic Connect and find out what you may have learned from the CT scan?

@clara01 - do you also have a diagnosis of Eagle Syndrome? What symptoms have you been experiencing? It would be great if @hoping could return and share more about where the surgery took place.

@de9g - you'd mentioned previously you were feeling stuck due to a disagreement on diagnosis. Has anything changed at all with that situation?

@jackiejean - How are you doing? Did you end up having surgery?

@sann @jchristophersen @clara01 @linda21 @lioness @mommyg33 @jealink @keetee @abby4paige @debdeb12 @de9g @theeaglehasland @alcorreia0123 @empy @brooklyngirl @melb777

I want to thank you all for coming to the this site and sharing all your heartfelt stories.
I have had a busy last few months with my move and work. so I have not had a chance to comment.

I started this feed for Son, and others who was diagnosed with Eagle's Syndrome. I love the fact that so many of you are all helping each other. Your stories are all truly heart wrenching. There is nothing worse than being in pain and Dr's not certain as to what the cause or how to treat you. I feel it is scary to just have them guessing or looking at us like we are crazy. That is exactly how my Son felt for 10 yrs till he was diagnosed.

My son has not gone through any treatments. He has done every natural treatment he can find. Because the few Dr's he saw scared him off of surgery. Told him to hold off as long as he can.

Now what he has done may not work for everyone. So you will still need to consult with your DR's. He has gone on a complete health food eating kick. Limiting any milk products and meats from his diet. He keeps himself very slim. He even started practicing yoga. He feels when he gains weight, he notices this aggravates his eagles syndrome. I know he needs another CT scan to check on the Styloids , and compare to his last set. He has not done that yet, Hoping he does that soon! This way I can give you all an update.

I saw some of you posted a couple of other support groups. https://www.livingwitheagle.org/c/bens-friends and https://www.livingwitheagle.org/. I believe they are both linked together.There is a link on that site to a list of Dr's that people have gone too.

I honestly do hope, you all see at least a few Dr's, to get some good second and third opinions on treatments, My Son saw 3 Dr's. One being at Cleveland Clinic which has been a few years ago now. Cleveland Clinic, at the time did not have a Dr on staff that treated Eagles Syndrome.

I noticed a post by someone, that they now do offer treatment. That is wonderful to know thank you so much for sharing.

My Son saw a Dr. at UF Health Stands Medical in Gainsville and another Dr in Dayton Ohio.
I am praying you all feel some relief soon.
Blessing you all.
Jackie

@sann @jchristophersen @clara01 @linda21 @lioness @mommyg33 @jealink @keetee @abby4paige @debdeb12 @de9g @theeaglehasland @alcorreia0123 @empy @brooklyngirl @melb777

I want to thank you all for coming to the this site and sharing all your heartfelt stories.
I have had a busy last few months with my move and work. so I have not had a chance to comment.

I started this feed for Son, and others who was diagnosed with Eagle's Syndrome. I love the fact that so many of you are all helping each other. Your stories are all truly heart wrenching. There is nothing worse than being in pain and Dr's not certain as to what the cause or how to treat you. I feel it is scary to just have them guessing or looking at us like we are crazy. That is exactly how my Son felt for 10 yrs till he was diagnosed.

My son has not gone through any treatments. He has done every natural treatment he can find. Because the few Dr's he saw scared him off of surgery. Told him to hold off as long as he can.

Now what he has done may not work for everyone. So you will still need to consult with your DR's. He has gone on a complete health food eating kick. Limiting any milk products and meats from his diet. He keeps himself very slim. He even started practicing yoga. He feels when he gains weight, he notices this aggravates his eagles syndrome. I know he needs another CT scan to check on the Styloids , and compare to his last set. He has not done that yet, Hoping he does that soon! This way I can give you all an update.

I saw some of you posted a couple of other support groups. https://www.livingwitheagle.org/c/bens-friends and https://www.livingwitheagle.org/. I believe they are both linked together.There is a link on that site to a list of Dr's that people have gone too.

I honestly do hope, you all see at least a few Dr's, to get some good second and third opinions on treatments, My Son saw 3 Dr's. One being at Cleveland Clinic which has been a few years ago now. Cleveland Clinic, at the time did not have a Dr on staff that treated Eagles Syndrome.

I noticed a post by someone, that they now do offer treatment. That is wonderful to know thank you so much for sharing.

My Son saw a Dr. at UF Health Stands Medical in Gainsville and another Dr in Dayton Ohio.
I am praying you all feel some relief soon.
Blessing you all.
Jackie

I can appreciate all that you have said, but...
I have had stomach issues for too many years and I have learned that a good diet, exercise, plenty of sleep and an otherwise healthy lifestyle helped. All of that did not help the constant poking throat pain, the burning tongue pain, choking on food, difficulty swallowing, etc until I had the styloid removed. (I did not attribute my stomach issues to ES, though some say it might have been.) I am 9 weeks post op and dealing with scar tissue pain but I am glad that the left side is free. I still have the issues on the right and I will want the surgery to take care of this. The remaining styloid is 5.5 cm and literally feels like a stick in my throat that doesn't belong causing all of the issues I've mentioned. How did it get to be 5.5 cms and is it still growing? If it is still growing then more issues can ensue, in which case I would want it out sooner then later. The only way to get rid of the symptoms is to have it removed.

I can appreciate all that you have said, but...
I have had stomach issues for too many years and I have learned that a good diet, exercise, plenty of sleep and an otherwise healthy lifestyle helped. All of that did not help the constant poking throat pain, the burning tongue pain, choking on food, difficulty swallowing, etc until I had the styloid removed. (I did not attribute my stomach issues to ES, though some say it might have been.) I am 9 weeks post op and dealing with scar tissue pain but I am glad that the left side is free. I still have the issues on the right and I will want the surgery to take care of this. The remaining styloid is 5.5 cm and literally feels like a stick in my throat that doesn't belong causing all of the issues I've mentioned. How did it get to be 5.5 cms and is it still growing? If it is still growing then more issues can ensue, in which case I would want it out sooner then later. The only way to get rid of the symptoms is to have it removed.

That sounds like me. I also have eagles syndrome, but I was also recently diagnosed with psuedo tumor cerebri. Which was the cause for my pressure feeling when I got my headaches. It was also the reason why it seemed the more I moved around the worse it got. The psuedo tumor is also the same reason my heart rate always ran a little high. I was always 110-105 resting. I am down to 95 resting on average now since I was started on diamox. I haven't had a headache since the diamox either. Even with as long as my ES styloids are. I still feel my styloids in there poking, making my ears hurt. I think sometimes when you have the styloids you can have other things wrong and sometimes the symptoms overlap. I don't know a whole lot about the VA, but I do know that it sounds like you aren't being cared for the way you should. I had to go to another state to find answers because no one in my state knew what eagles syndrome even was without having to do a Google search. I wish you the best. Keep looking for answers and never settle for second best!

I can appreciate all that you have said, but...
I have had stomach issues for too many years and I have learned that a good diet, exercise, plenty of sleep and an otherwise healthy lifestyle helped. All of that did not help the constant poking throat pain, the burning tongue pain, choking on food, difficulty swallowing, etc until I had the styloid removed. (I did not attribute my stomach issues to ES, though some say it might have been.) I am 9 weeks post op and dealing with scar tissue pain but I am glad that the left side is free. I still have the issues on the right and I will want the surgery to take care of this. The remaining styloid is 5.5 cm and literally feels like a stick in my throat that doesn't belong causing all of the issues I've mentioned. How did it get to be 5.5 cms and is it still growing? If it is still growing then more issues can ensue, in which case I would want it out sooner then later. The only way to get rid of the symptoms is to have it removed.

I am not sure my pain is like others have posted. Maybe I just didn't read all of them. I am now 73 years of age. When I was in my early twenties when I would brush my teeth the left side of my throat would hurt, no bad but ache when he shouldn't be. Later my right side did the same. I could feel the bones poking me in my throat but didn't have a clue what it meant. I went to an EMT doctor and told him my symptoms a few years later. He looked at my throat and said it was my tonsils and they needed to come out. I was thirty when I had them out. It didn't help, just like I felt it wouldn't, but I'm not a doctor. Once I healed from having them out I knew it was not any better and that wasn't the problem. A few years later, I was feeling bad and running a low grade fever, let work and went to see a MD and told him my symptoms and he sent me to an oral surgeon. He ex-rayed my mouth and called his assistant in and really excited. He told me I had ES, which I had never heard of. He said I needed surgery and I said no. I could stand the discomfort and pain it wasn't so bad that I felt like I wanted surgery. He said that one day I would be begging for surgery. Fast forward December 29,2018. Approximately 40 years later. I have a high pain tolerance due to my different health problems but this is nerve pain and it is really bad. From the end of Dec. until sometime in June, I would hurt really bad everyday. I thought I was having cluster headaches because I have twice before, once in 2000 and once in 2006. Both of those episodes lasted about 6 weeks and I would have them at the same time everyday. It is horrible pain, they are called the suicide headaches. When this started I though it was another episodes of those headaches because they can come in cycles every six years. To get to the point they were not. The pain is the same kind but not as severe but they last longer. I went to a neurologist and he did an MRI just to check if it was being caused by something other than cluster headaches. They weren't. They finally stopped but now they have started back each day for the last three days. I couldn't figure it out and I didn't even mention ES to my neurologist because I wasn't associating it with this nerve pain. I knew the pain was some different because it is face, behind my ear and my neck. It is bad as well. It dawned on me to look ES up again because when I read about it there wasn't that much information on it. That is what it is but I don't want to have it done at my age. A person can't live like this because your quality of life is horrible and you never know when it will start. You fear going anywhere because you can't function while it is hurting. I just pray that they will stop. My heart goes out to anyone who is having this type of nerve pain. I am going to trust in my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to give me the strength I need and to heal this pain.