Hello everyone.  I'm new to the Forum, but an 8-year veteran of cluster headaches.  Wish I knew about this forum before... have already consumed 2 bottles of water since finding this site less than an hour ago.

Some background.  Originally from the Caribbean, and been in the USA since 1991.  Was living in Los Angeles and preparing for my marriage when I got my 1st attack in 2002.  Have gotten attacks every 1-2 years ever since.  Currently living in Maryland, and (yup) been living in cluster hell since last Friday.  Immitrex pills are what I take for relief, and this usually works in 30-60 mins. 

Now, to get to my unorthodox treatments. 

(1) I have noticed 2 consistencies during all of my cluster periods - stress and allergies.  During my last cluster period, I saw an allergist and he recommended using Mucinex-D in addition to my regular allergy meds.  Somehow when I take Mucinex-D, that stuffy head feeling goes away and my sinuses are clear.  For the last three nights, I took Mucinex-D at night in addition to my allergy meds and Verapamil, and presto - no nightly attacks. 

(2) I somehow know that this this next unorthodx treatment is probably bad for me, but for 2 of the last 3 headache-free nights, I have also taken 2 Excedrin migrane pills before falling asleep as a preventative measure.  I have only taken these when my head felt "wierd" before falling asleep.  Whether this has contributed or not to my apparent relief is TBD.

So 3 nights without a cluster headache in what is proving to be the shortest cluster period ever.  Alls well that ends well, right?  Of course, I had to ^&#%%^ it up today.  After shoveling snow for 4 nonstop hours today (reminder - I live in Maryland), I saw a Heineken in the garage and thought "what harm could this do."  I got the mother of all cluster headaches less than an hour later... arguably my worst headache in life. It took almost 2 hours for the Immitrex (followed 30 mins later by Excedrin Migraine) to kick in.  And now, I'm scared once again to go to sleep. 

Hopefully the Mucinex-D, Verapamil, and allergy med stew will do its job tonight. Whether it works or not, I'm just glad to be a part of the Forum and to find others empathetic to my hell.

OUCH! A couple of things jump out at me. Caffeine is a great tool many of us use. I think that may be one of the reasons the excederin works well. Just be careful, this kind of med brings on nasty rebound head aches.

BEER BAD!! Alcohol is an almost universal trigger for people with CH. I'm at 1200 mg a day lithium as my prevent, which will usually allow me to cheat a little so tonight I had a beer with my buddies. Ouch. Just finished huffing on my oxygen tank to finish off the rest of that attack! :'( I know better I just get pissed at the beast sometimes and double dog dare him!

While I'm discussing oxygen. For me it's the best abortive ever! I can usually wipe an attack out in less then 10 minutes just huffing on the oxygen. Read the oxygen info tab on the left as it must be used correctly to be effective.

The cold medicine is used by some to get through the night. I'd be really careful with that as it can cause you problems with long term useage.

Instead of excederin, buy yourself a couple of energy drinks, rock star, monster, any containing the combo of caffeine and taurine. Chug one of those at the first sign of an attack, many can abort or really reduce an attack with that.

That's enough for now! Welcome to the board, glad you found us!

Joe

Thanks Joe.  Visiting my neurologist next week and will explore the oxygen option.  And will stock-up on Red Bull as a temporary alternative to the Excedrins.  Did not get a headache last night, but woke up with my head feeling fuzzy (I think you call it the shadows). 

Of course, this had to come during the week of Snowmageddon... with my home being transformed into an igloo with 3+ feet of snow outside and 50+ mph winds... a toddler going through that temper tantrum phase... and Emergency Rooms being the only option as all medical facilities were shut down. Thank God I found an old stash of expired Imitrex and not-yet-expired Verapamil to get me through the hiatus. 

Nigel V. wrote on Feb 12^th, 2010 at 11:45am:

Thanks Joe.  Visiting my neurologist next week and will explore the oxygen option.  And will stock-up on Red Bull as a temporary alternative to the Excedrins.  Did not get a headache last night, but woke up with my head feeling fuzzy (I think you call it the shadows).  Of course, this had to come during the week of Snowmageddon... with my home being transformed into an igloo with 3+ feet of snow outside and 50+ mph winds... a toddler going through that temper tantrum phase... and Emergency Rooms being the only option as all medical facilities were shut down. Thank God I found an old stash of expired Imitrex and not-yet-expired Verapamil to get me through the hiatus.

     If you had oxygen you wouldn't be in this predicament.  It's not an option it's required.

                 Potter

               

Hello Nigel V. from another Nigel V.
Welcome to the board.
I've never tried Imtrex pills but I do have Imtrex injections and they work grate usually aborting a CH in 3 minuets , could be worth a try.

I'm very new to CH having only been suffering for  7 months , though I'm now in remission.

there's lots of people on this board who know a hell of a lot about CH and meds , and a grate support network.

all the best
Nigel

Wow... another Nigel V. clusterhead... if we find a third, it may be statistically significant enough to warrant an additional yes-no question to the tracking survey:  Is your name Nigel V?  ;-)

Nice meeting you. 

As to inconvenient start times....I hear ya! >:( This cycle started 5 days before I was due to change insurance plans! Total panicsville. Fortunately after 31 years I've learned to stock pile everything and could probably last a year or 2 on what I have in my cupboards!

Lesson learned a long time ago, enjoy the pain free times, but always be ready to do battle! Push hard on the 02, the success rate on the board has been phenomenal!

Joe

Wow.  Night #2 without a cluster awakening.  Head felt cloudy when I went to bed; was so certain I would wake-up in pain.  Ended-up caving on the Excedrin and Mucinex-D, and slept with my head to the right (vs. the left) in hopes that gravity would prevent the sinuses from building on my cluster side.  Whatever I did, it worked.  Woke-up today with a clear head. 

I'll take these victories with a smile.  As Joe said, enjoy the pain free times. 

That's awesome news Nigel! Amazing what a good nights sleep can do for your disposition! ;)

Joe

O2 is definitely the way to go.  I'd  also suggest switching from the Imitrex pills to either the injections or nasal sprays.  They work a lot fast than the pills and are still portable!