Hi!  Have you been diagnosed with pseudotumor (I think the term now is IIH Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension or something like that)?  I was diagnosed with that.  Usually the first course of treatment for that is drugs that are used to bring down the pressure in your brain.  One of the most common is called acetazolamide (sp?).  The brand name is Diamox.  I was told that a shunt is only inserted if it is causing swelling in your optic nerves that is causing vision loss.  I would suggest that you be evaluated by a neuro-ophthamologist.  They are eye docs who specialize in treating eye disorders that accompany neuro problems. They treat peudotumor frequently.  If you have a teaching university near your home that has a medical center affiliated with it, they most often have a neuro-ophthamologist in their ophthamology department on their staff.  I definitely would get a 2nd opinion if they are saying that a shunt is the first course of treatment!  There are much more conservative treatments available!  Good luck - Kayleen