If Not Surgery

Nobody REALLY wants to have their brain operated on. So what are your options if you don't have the decompression?

Here are some of the things that I have tried:

- Topamax
- Lamictal
- Maxalt (for headaches)
- Gabapentin (for nerve pain)
- Amitriptilyne (for nerve pain)
- Klonopin (when they thought it was anxiety)
- Celexa (when they thought it was depression)
- Physical therapy
- Chiropractor


Some of these worked for a little while. Some didn't work at all. The last dose of PT actually made it worse. From the online world, I have found that some people use Lyrica and have had mixed results.

Basically, you're treating the symptoms. You might be able to find something that helps the headaches. Or, you might be able to find something that helps the nerve pain. If you're having really troublesome symptoms like trouble swallowing, vasovagal syncope, memory loss, or cognitive issues then there doesn't seem to be anything out there that helps. You can't change your fluid flow without surgery.

Decompression surgery does not cure Chiari but it can help manage the symptoms. If you have a syrinx then it might even be necessary.