3 Year Old Wth Neck and Head Pain

Updated on April 27, 2010
M.H. asks from Fredericksburg, VA
7 answers

My 3 year old son has been complaining of his neck and head hurting for about 2 weeks. About once a day he will say either his head or neck hurts. He doesn't have any other symptoms like fever, vomitting, or diarrhea so I have not taken him to the doctor yet. I am not sure if this is just normal kid complaining about aches and pains or if it could be something more serious. My daughter had strep throat about 2-3 weeks ago but I had him checked out too and he did not have it so I don't think it could be anything else he has been exposed to.

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M.H.

answers from Atlanta on

HI Michelle,

Have you ever used chiropractic care? I started using a principled upper cervical chiropractor when my oldest girl was having febrile seizures/ear infections and my second went straight to the chiropractor's office from the hospital...It has done wonders for our overall health. Neck and head pain, not only is bad, but can lead to other issues as well. If you don't have one you can go to ucspine.com and find one in your area. When you interview them, just like a regular physician, ask them to explain how chiropractic care can improve the immune system. If they can't, find another one but most on this site are great doctors. Most are great diagnosticians as well.

It's completely possible that he slept in a funny position and he simply needs his vertabrae to get back to where they are supposed to be. A proper spinal alignment is important to the entire body functioning properly.

Hope I helped!

M.

1 mom found this helpful
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T.J.

answers from Seattle on

I have headaches and my three year old used to say she did too, mostly was copying what she hears me saying. But our chiropractor ruled out anything serious and we have had her adjusted since birth, which helps everything! A lot of chiropractors work with kids, just ask..it helps if they themselves have kids.

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J.C.

answers from Washington DC on

Could it possibly be seasonal allergies? I know that is how I feel now if I don't take allergy medicine w/ the pollen count so high; just a thought.

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H.P.

answers from New York on

I would take him to a doctor, especially if he's been saying it's been bother him for 2 weeks. Sometimes kids that age don't really know what part of their head is hurting. They'll say "my head hurts" but it could be their throat or ears... When I first read the post, I was worried about meningitis, but if it's been going on 2 weeks, you probably would have known by now. Think it's worth a call and visit to the doctor, though.

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S.L.

answers from Washington DC on

When my son was young, he often said his neck hurt when he meant his throat. I would have to say, "does your neck hurt on the inside or outside?" to get a good answer. You can also ask them to touch with their finger where it hurts.

I agree that you should take him back to the doctor just to be safe, but, with no fever or other symptoms, it sounds like he may be suffering from allergies.

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D.W.

answers from Indianapolis on

It might be worth a call to the pediatrician's office just to see if they think it's worthy of another visit.

Our 3 year-old doesn't do a very good job of expressing when things hurt. We're even struggling with him telling us when he's hungry, so I find it really hard to know when it's real and when it's their active imaginations picking-up on things we say and being creative.

Because of my own health issues the past few years, I'm overly sensitive to my children's health, and our pediatrician (knowing about my cancer and treatment) is very good not to chastise us when we may seem a little like hypochondriacs.

Good luck! Hoping it's nothing.

H.S.

answers from Cincinnati on

It does sound like a rather odd complaint for a 3 year old. I'd get to the pediatrician to make sure it's nothing to be worried about! Or catch whatever it is before it gets worse!

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