Hi all my father suffers from CH and he put me onto this site some years back when i saw him for the first time having cycles to help me understand.
let me start by saying this site is great for clusterheads them selves and family alike,there needs to be awareness.
last year i got bad headaches and i was diagnosed with tension headaches.after 3 weeks of massages ect i was all good.
now again a year later i have the headaches back but the pain is worse.when i got the first one i went to the doc who again said tension.i have been taking bacofen for my muscles and getting massages for two weeks and no good.i get them 5 or 6 nights a week and they come at about 1130-12 at night and again at 330-4 in the mrning.its always on the left side and my nostril is bocked.my eye waters and the pain is terrible but not as bad as i have seen dad or what i have read on this site.does it get worse over the years and is it in the genes?any info would be appreciated.i have pretty bad sinus but sinus medication does not help.
i am worried.

Sounds like it could be clusters - the fact that it is on one side, and occurs at regular times while asleep are suggestive - you should go back to the doc and discuss it further ... maybe get a referral to a headache specialist. You might want to start a headache diary, with times, duration, symptoms, intensity, etc.  

Yes, it could be genetic - people who have a first degree relative (like parent) with clusters are more likely to get them, although it does not seem to be a single, predictable gene, and it often occurs in only one member of a family.

No, it doesn't necessarily get worse with age - many people report the opposite, longer periods of remission as one moves into middle age ... but it is highly variable.

Am I correct in assuming that these things wake you out of a sound sleep? If so and with the regularity, they very well could be clusters.

God, I hope not.

Charlie

They sure don't sound like tension headaches. They usually affect both sides or the entire head, not one side.

Have you taken the cluster quiz ( link on the left)? That will tell you if you may have CH.

And see your neuro again! And if he won't listen, go see another one who will. My first neuro also diagnosed me with tension headaches. Because I also have a whiplash due to 2 car crashes in the past, I know about tension headaches. The attacks I told this neuro about definitely was something else, but he wasn't convinced. Now I see another neuro, a headache specialist, and he diagnosed me with CH. Prescribed O2 right away (which works just great!), and we're trying to find a preventative drug that works for me.

Good luck and PFDAN!

Lottie

Monty's suggestion of a head ache diary is an excellent idea. When they start, how long they last, how fast they build, how high they build, (KIP scale on the left side is a great measuring tool). how long they stay at peak, how fast they recede. Also helps you identify triggers, (Alcohol is an almost universal trigger while in cycle). Then find a neuro, with experience in headaches!

In my late teens, the pain never went up past a 7 or so for me. So yeah, it's possible they're on their way, and if it is CH, will continue to build in intensity in future cycles. I certainly hope not, but on the other hand, how awesome your dad's already paved the road for you and helped you to skip the years and years of painful misidagnosis most of us go thru!

Hoping it's not CH, please stick around as a member, if it is, or just as a supporter, if it aint!

Joe

That sounds alot like how mine got going i'm sorry to say. I started out very light perhaps about a kip 3-4 (at the time it felt like kip 10!) but i guess my pain threshold has moved up a bit. But mine increased in intensity and frequency over about 3 - 4 year time period. Your dad can help you alot. Just to have someone who understands is huge. I truly hope you are not becoming a clusterhead, it has to be one of the most debilitating conditions anyone can have.

Good Luck and keep a diary like mentioned earlier....

Without a good diagnosis you don't know what the problem is or how to treat it safely/effectively. It's becoming a medical standard to have a brain scan done before making a diagnosis. We can't do the job of a good specialist!
---
LOCATING HEADACHE SPECIALIST

1. Search the OUCH site (button on left) for a list of recommended M.D.s.

2. Yellow Pages phone book: look for "Headache Clinics" in the M.D. section and look under "neurologist" where some docs will list speciality areas of practice.

3.  Call your hospital/medical center. They often have an office to assist in finding a physician. You may have to ask for the social worker/patient advocate.

4. START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE  On-line screen to find a physician.

5. START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE Look for "Physician Finder" search box.  Call 1-800-643-5552; they will send a list of M.D.s for your state.I suggest using this source for several reasons: first, we have read several messages from people who, even seeing neurologists, are unhappy with the quality of care and ATTITUDES they have encountered; second, the clinical director of the Jefferson (Philadelphia) Headache Clinic said, in late 1999, that upwards of 40%+ of U.S. doctors have poor training in treating headache and/or hold attitudes about headache ("hysterical female disorder") which block them from sympathetic and effective work with the patient; third, it's necessary to find a doctor who has experience, skill, and a set of attitudes which give hope of success. This is the best method I know of to find such a physician.

Thanks alot for all the great advice.i am keeping a diary and go in for a CT scan tomorrow.