not that i'm complaining as ive been pain free for 5 days. but, it just drives me crazy how they just suddenly end for no apparent reason. why? and not knowing why, now i have to wait for them to start again. for no apparent reason.

seems to be the nature of the beast. 

Congrats on the pf break!

I don't know ,,,,but I sure wish mine would!

Nature of the Beast.

Why do they just start?

ATSEA<
hMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM......If you ask some chronics, they will tell you, at least they don't have to worry about when they'll get hit again.it's a constant, they never let their guard down, and they never expect a break........they also never have that fear and anticipation episodics have..........
THAT SAID>>>>>
I hope you break is lonnnnnnnnnnnng and restful and enjoyable........life is what you live between hits.so make the most of it!

Why do they just end? Because a cycle ending is soo much better than A CYCLE BEGINNING!

Merry Christmas!!

Cathi

I LOVE it when they just end!!!!!

Happy for you,

Jeannie

...or perhaps the question should be, "Why don't they just end?

i agree. i'm grateful. very grateful. but, the physiological inexplicability leaves me, well, almost angry. there must be an explanation. there has to be. i cannot accept that they just end. there must be some mechanism of control. and perhaps that is the same mechanism that starts them. i can go a whole year without them. so, i am at a loss when it comes to seasonal, histamine, circadian rhythm explanations.

Savor it!

Most of the time it seemed that I'd slowly realize that I'd have may 5 hits rather than 6 but by the time I realized it they suddenly stopped completely.

Charlie

There is a concrete reason why it starts and ends, it's cyclical and it's related to the brains internal timing system, circadian rhythms.  I believe that's the reason for some people like me, they happen at exact times of the day and night, like an alarm clock; and many times they start when the seasons change and the days become shorter or longer.    As far as a deeper understanding of exactly how the brain functions, it's worth a try to read up on it but it's a very hard subject. 

joh889 wrote on Dec 23^rd, 2009 at 7:03am:

There is a concrete reason why it starts and ends, it's cyclical and it's related to the brains internal timing system, circadian rhythms.  I believe that's the reason for some people like me, they happen at exact times of the day and night, like an alarm clock; and many times they start when the seasons change and the days become shorter or longer.    As far as a deeper understanding of exactly how the brain functions, it's worth a try to read up on it but it's a very hard subject.

Perhaps that partially explains the episodic side of CH, but does not offer any insight into those who are chronic. That's one of the things that fascinates me about this thing - some people get hit every day, multiple times per day, with no real regularity (other than that it's all the f'n time).

My question is not why do they stop but why do they always go off at the same exact time every day.  Like clockwork.  It was so nicely answered above by prior poster but that is the question that makes me go nuts and have anxiety issues.  The waiting for the hits to come.

Brew wrote on Dec 23^rd, 2009 at 7:27am:

joh889 wrote on Dec 23rd, 2009 at 7:03am: There is a concrete reason why it starts and ends, it's cyclical and it's related to the brains internal timing system, circadian rhythms.  I believe that's the reason for some people like me, they happen at exact times of the day and night, like an alarm clock; and many times they start when the seasons change and the days become shorter or longer.    As far as a deeper understanding of exactly how the brain functions, it's worth a try to read up on it but it's a very hard subject.  Perhaps that partially explains the episodic side of CH, but does not offer any insight into those who are chronic. That's one of the things that fascinates me about this thing - some people get hit every day, multiple times per day, with no real regularity (other than that it's all the f'n time).

Good point, no two sentence generality is going to explain it for everyone or even someone.  But I thinks it's helpful to explain what I understand about mine, and I am classic episodic.  For me, I am sure it is caused by a major artery dilating(expanding) and pressing against a major nerve entering the side of my face and head, thus the oxygen tricks my brain into constricting that artery.  And the artery dilates because of a malfunctioning hypothalamus which has to do with the internal clock or circadion rythms, and this dilation starts on regular, very well timed intervals and the whole episode happens  on season changes when the day length changes.  I figured this out because other people posted it in these simple terms for me.  You would need a damn medical degree to understand the "medical info" link to the left, though it was helpful for me give to a GP one time, but I will be honest I was lost in the first paragraph of that very technical description.  I can't be the only one and I know I am not.   

Anyway, Merry Christmas   
 

Well, I'm glad you have it figured out because there are a good handful of good doctors that have devoted their careers to trying to figure it out and haven't yet.

You see, if they had figured out the initial mechanism(s), the next step would be to figuring out how to stop that mechanism in the first place. I don't think they're there yet. We have ways to temporarily stop the mechanism, but it just keeps coming back. When they can figure THAT out, then we're talking the "C" word (cure).

Quote:

Well, I'm glad you have it figured out because there are a good handful of good doctors that have devoted their careers to trying to figure it out and haven't yet.

Ouch, I never said I had it all figured out or had a cure.  Lighten up Mr Heavy.

BTW, I don't believe anything I said is outside the realm of what doctors have found out.  If you believe it is, you should probably correct me.

joh889 wrote on Dec 24^th, 2009 at 12:37pm:

Quote: Well, I'm glad you have it figured out because there are a good handful of good doctors that have devoted their careers to trying to figure it out and haven't yet. Ouch, I never said I had it all figured out or had a cure.  Lighten up Mr Heavy. BTW, I don't believe anything I said is outside the realm of what doctors have found out.  If you believe it is, you should probably correct me.

Put down the gun, dude. It was meant as a joke. I apologize if you didn't get it.

Regards,

Mr. Heavy

I guess I was being the heavy, sorry.  My pea-shooter is now holstered.  Regards to you.

if it were changes in the season, or exposure to light for me i'd expect it to happen every year, which it doesnt. i thought for a while it may have something to do with vitamin d, as, sunlight is required to facilitate its production in the body, and often, at work, i will go three weeks without seeing the sun.
i agree the daily timeliness of the attacks could have something to do with the body's natural circadian rhythms. but, it could also be regulated by the body's chnage in core temperature through out the day or the change in certain hormones such as testosterone or cortisol.

They start, they end, they have a mind of their own. As someone else said, it's the nature of the beast.

I went 20 years with no diagnosis and the MD saying I couldn't have CH because I was female. Then I had those years of trying to figure them out. Yes, it's psychological torture not knowing when they strike -- or go away. In a few years you'll just be grateful for the good times. But keeping thinking because, who knows, you or another of us will figure this thing out.

atsea wrote on Dec 26^th, 2009 at 9:03am:

if it were changes in the season, or exposure to light for me i'd expect it to happen every year, which it doesnt. i thought for a while it may have something to do with vitamin d, as, sunlight is required to facilitate its production in the body, and often, at work, i will go three weeks without seeing the sun. i agree the daily timeliness of the attacks could have something to do with the body's natural circadian rhythms. but, it could also be regulated by the body's change in core temperature through out the day or the change in certain hormones such as testosterone or cortisol.

The fact that it has to do with certain brain systems just gives you the rough idea of why it happens when it does, unfortunately it does not mean it will be predictable.  It sounds like you just guessing with Vitamin D.  Maybe it helps, but it sounds painful to play guessing games when there is well-tread paths to help.  For me, I am just ready to react when it does show up with an arsenal of stuff I have learned from others on the med boards.  For some it's standard meds, for others it's the alternatives.  For me, it's a mix of alternatives and O2.   When it starts, if it starts, I am ready and I do the best I can with the arsenal I have found helps the most. 

i agree that aborting an attack is my primary concern. but, i am curious by nature. if i am going to be a part of this earth for hopefully nearly a century, i want to understand reasons for phenomena, not just outcomes. this applies to all facets of life. every action has a reaction. i am just trying to look at my clusters as the reaction.  so, what is the action, you know?
im not attempting to treat with vitamin d, as supplementing externally can never replicate a process the body performs on its own. i am merely entertaining the theory that perhaps it is the body's diminished exposure to UVA/UVB rays during the winter months, and the resultant decline in the body"s natural production of vitamin D which itself invariably affects the synthesis of other micronutrients/agents in the body, that may or may not play some role in clusters. for all i know, it cold be that the lack of sunlight causes an imbalance in some enzyme in the rods and cones of your retina.
all i know is eventually there will be an answer. just like there will eventually be an answer for autism, alzheimers,  and aids. its just a matter of time. and in the meantime, i am going to explore, and perhaps discount, as many theories as my pea size imagination can come up with.

atsea wrote on Dec 26^th, 2009 at 9:29pm:

i am merely entertaining the theory that perhaps it is the body's diminished exposure to UVA/UVB rays during the winter months, and the resultant decline in the body"s natural production of vitamin D which itself invariably affects the synthesis of other micronutrients/agents in the body, that may or may not play some role in clusters. for all i know, it cold be that the lack of sunlight causes an imbalance in some enzyme in the rods and cones of your retina.

dunno about that..i use a tanning bed in the winter also, so i think im getting enough cancer...err..i mean rays year round?

but, its not natural sunlght. its no medical mystery that exposure to sunlight promotes the synthesis of vit D in the body. does a tanning bed replicate that? i have no idea. its not the sun. it may produce similar effects. but, it is still a replica. we are hard wired on a genetic level. have specific receptors for specific agonists found in nature. are physiology/anatomy are not up to speed with our culture, i.e., processed foods, HFCS, MSG, etc. this stuff doesnt exist in nature. this may be the very reason for the recent exponential increase in autism. who knows? but we expose ourselves/consume agents our bodies are currently not adapted to process. maybe that is part of the problem.

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but, i am curious by nature. if i am going to be a part of this earth for hopefully nearly a century, i want to understand reasons for phenomena, not just outcomes.

The attempt should be enlightening, you'll definitely learn something.  I don't know the reason for CH, please make sure you take the time to learn how to manage it in the mean time.  Good luck.