Headaches

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Specializes in IMC, school nursing.

The bane of the school nurses' existence. Had the dreaded contagious headache this afternoon with the preemptive "my teacher says we have drank a lot of water". Well played. I proceeded to find out they just started and it is exceptionally warm outside. I am blessed that I have a fairly wide berth where suck it up buttercup comes into play. Why do these kids think it is never going to be uncomfortable in this life?

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Specializes in school nursing, ortho, trauma.

because they are coddled! Prayers for them when the real world decides to bite the firmly in the aft section.

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Specializes in School nurse.

Omg this post is for me! I have seen so many headaches today. It really is infuriating. I've noticed they seem to occur more towards the end of the day when the students are bored with class. Usually the 5th graders. They can be so shameless in their attempts to leave class or go home early. When I get the feeling they are trying their luck, I don't even give them time to rest. I check for fever, give them water and send them back. I can hardly believe the teachers are actually allowing some of them come down. ?

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Specializes in School Nurse.

Sitting here with sympathy headache - very little h2o today. Gotta hydrate!

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Specializes in School Nursing.
1 hour ago, Flare said:

because they are coddled! Prayers for them when the real world decides to bite the firmly in the aft section.

Aft section ? I'm gonna have to use this one

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1 hour ago, Flare said:

because they are coddled! Prayers for them when the real world decides to bite the firmly in the aft section.

Agreed! The students can call me a meanie or whatever expletives middle schoolers call adults they don't like but they cannot call me a coddler.

I get really tough on headaches. When they come in with a "headache" but they feel the need to talk to everyone else in the nurses office, I flat out tell them it's clearly not a bad enough headache to be out of class. That has stopped 2 of my frequent fliers from coming in multiple times per week with non-existent headaches and bothering students who are sick.

I have another one who just started some meds that have been causing headaches and she gets really upset when I tell her that her friend cannot stay with her in my office. ?

On the flip side, I have a student that gets migraines that are so bad that I have to take a wheelchair to her because she feels uneasy walking to my office. Yet she always insists on trying to go back to class. I almost want to make an example of her, if your headache isn't "need to be escorted to the nurses office in a wheelchair" bad, then you're probably ok to go back to class.

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Specializes in School Nurse.

My middle school kids bypass the headache complaint and go straight to "migraine". Has a doctor diagnosed your migraine? NO? Then it is not a migraine. Most kids just thought they were really bad headaches. Don't joke with THAT!

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Specializes in School Nurse.

Yes, I here that all the time..."I have a migraine, no I've never seen a doctor." I think they say this to make their headache sound more severe.

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Specializes in ED, School Nurse.
16 hours ago, tining said:

My middle school kids bypass the headache complaint and go straight to "migraine". Has a doctor diagnosed your migraine? NO? Then it is not a migraine. Most kids just thought they were really bad headaches. Don't joke with THAT!

YES!!! I say this to students all the time as well. After they answer no to have you seen a doctor for this diagnosis, I always say "So, you have a headache and not a migraine then." just to help reframe their thinking.

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17 hours ago, nursex23 said:

if your headache isn't "need to be escorted to the nurses office in a wheelchair" bad, then you're probably ok to go back to class.

OMG if my kids thought this was an option...

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14 minutes ago, arlingtonnurse said:

OMG if my kids thought this was an option...

that's exactly why I won't let them know that, otherwise I would be running around picking everyone up in a wheelchair ?

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20 hours ago, NurseAlice said:

I can hardly believe the teachers are actually allowing some of them come down

One of the school nurses I work with in my district was just telling me last night she had a couple teachers give her attitude when she sent them an email about reasons not to send kids down. Until she showed them the data that a coupe of those kids had 40-50 nurse visits since September!

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