This headache disorder involves the occipital nerves that run through your scalp. You may feel pain he pain behind your eye or on your scalp. Occipital neuralgia can be caused by inflamed occipital nerves, pinched nerves, or muscle tightness, or it may be brought on by a fall or stroke or tumor. And it can affect anyone, though you may be more susceptible to it if you have degenerative disc disease, diabetes, gout, osteoarthritis, blood-vessel inflammation, or a head or neck injury. A bout of occipital neuralgia may last a few seconds or a few hour, until the nerve damage heals or is reduced.