So a couple of days ago I got a really bad headache that progressively got worse and worse. I had to call my husband home for work so I could lay down. As a child I had a lot of headaches but as an adult not really that often except sinus headaches.
I think I have had a 2 migraines in my life. Light sensitivity, vomiting, etc. The headache I had the other day was on one side of my head mostly in the back, but they my ear on that same side started turning red and it was really hot. Never had this happen before. About an hour after I noticed my ear was red my face started flushing, I took some liquid benadryl and an extra zyrtec and waited 15 minutes nothing, so then I took some Motrin(can tolerate Motrin fine) waited a while nothing. About an hour after that took more Motrin and about 25 minutes later the headache was finally gone. The whole thing lasted about 3 hours.
I don't want to be quick to rush and blame everything on mast cells. I never have had my ear turn red and become hot like that, it was very strange. Was it a migraine, didn't seem typical of a migraine to me although I know they are different for everyone. Anyone had their ear turn red like this?
Melissa

A hot, red ear (or ears) is a common early symptom of mast cell degranulation, and so can be a headache.  In my case, my ear(s) might get red and that will be all, or my ear will get red and then the episode will progress.  I've also had a bad headache as an early symptom and then the flushing will begin later.  Usually it's been a "sick" headache, something like a migraine.  I haven't decided for sure whether I think it's the pain from the headache that triggers the mast cells or if the headache is from histamine, but I tend to think the histamine is the culprit.

Either way, I also think you did the right thing to take the medicine, and that's what I do in that situation, too.  Hope it's a one-time deal!

Thank you Joan. I have been finding a lot stuff on line about the right sided headache with red hot ear. I quess I'm not that weird after all.
Melissa

Hi All ,

Joan you are not alone (hug ). I spend a lot of my time here learning that my symptoms are very similar to others . I have a hot face , then red ear , then onto full flush and antihiatamines work for me too . They also help for headaches . My first migraine was assocaited with a bowel bloat and tight chest episode in 2000. I had a horrid one as my first sign of trouble in 2008 (jan )

I as lisa has , associate these with histamine and I am learning more about protoglandin D2 I see this can also be an influencing factor in both flushing and opened blood vessels in the head . I had seen it as a mix of swelling in neck muscules and flushing from histamine .

I am still finding help in knowing some of the potential causes for my symptoms .

Josie

I get the hot, red ear sometimes, too! It is always my right ear and it is a signal to me that I need to evaluate my surroundings and change something to prevent more triggering.

I also get the headaches. I figured out long ago that they wree histamine headaches, because my usual excedrin wouldn't help it. It finally occured to me to try an extra allegra or zyrtec, and the headache went away! I can usually tell when I get a histamine headache as opposed to a normal one, because my stomach will feel woozy, too.

Also I forgot to mention, yesterday I started to notice something weird about my breathing. I couldn't figure it out, then I realized I can breathe so clear and so much better! I didn't even realize my breathing was affected and for so many years! This is awesome! Probably from the cromolyn huh?
Melissa