Had follow up with my nuero yesterday. He gave me two more nerve block shots in my head. Those shots really help and makes my eye feel much better. He took me off the indomicine and increased my verapimil dosage and lyrica dosage. He also gave me some needle free sumartiptan injections. He told me these will be alot more convenient for when I go back to work and if I get to go on my trip at the end of the year. He is sending to a pain managment doctor next week to get injections in my neck and in my nostril. The one in the nostril is suppose to go up the nose to the nerve over the eye. He said these injections will last longer than the ones he give me. He said they could last up to six months and at the least a month. He still will not let me go back to work because of all the meds I am on and I work with alot of machinary. He said if I am doing well after my next appointment with him, hopefully before Christmas then he will let me go back to work after Jan. 1. I really wanted to go back to work before Christmas but I have to do what the Doc says.  The doctor did tell me if these headaches do keep getting worse with these head,neck, and nostril injections after the first of the year that he may set up an operation.  He said the nuero surgion will put a stimulator on the occiptal nerve and this stimulator would have a wire running to a small device that I will have to keep with me at all times. If I feel a headache coming on I push a button and it stimulats the nerve much like these injections and the headache is better. That is the good part the bad is wearing a device the rest of my life. Have anyone here heard of this before? I just pray that these injections and the meds I am taking will break the cycle because I really don't want to do this procedure if I don't have to. Please pray for me that I get better and can get back normal again. Man, I hate not going to the gym and working out. Some of these meds is really putting the weight on me and I will soon have to go out and buy new suits. My dress pants and jackets are getting tight. I would love to go walk on the eliptical machine but I am scared the excercise would bring on a hit.
Thanks for your thoughts and prayers and I am praying for all my clusterheads friends on here.
Darryl

There are several surgery types and without names of the specific procedure we can't give any info. about outcomes, etc.

What is your current Verap. dosage?

I believe you're referring to an Occipital Nerve Stimulator Implant (ONSI). If so, I'm in the process of evaluation for this procedure, although I still haven't decided to go ahead with it. It is a device that's implanted in you abdomen with wires running to your occipital and in some cases supraorbital nerves. The external handheld controller lets you manage the intensity and turn it off when driving, etc. Apparently quite a few have had success with this, although only a few for CH. There is a facebook group dedicated to this: "Nerve Stimulation for Chronic Pain" Recommend checking it out.

-Chris

The nuero has me on verapamil 480 a day. I take two pills 3 times a day, 80 mg a pill.  He raised my lycria to two times a day. 300 mg a day, 50mg pill. I don't know how these injections will go Monday. I think they will put me to sleep or a light twilight sleep.  One injection in my neck and then up my nose to a nerve around my right eye. I hope and pray no complications and hopefully it will give me relief for a few months. Maybe by that time the cycle will break.

Good luck  [smiley=hug.gif]

We have a member on the board who succesfully went thru the implant procedure. She gave a great session at the last OUCH Conference on her experience, it was a pretty incredible journey. She was succesful, but will be the first to tell you, it's not to be taken lightly, and only after the less invasive methods have been tried and failed. Wishing you some pain free time soon.

Joe

Oxygen not helping?

Dito wimsey1 on the oxygen...  Have you tried the Omega 3 Fish Oil and Vitamin D3?

I've been on a regimen of 3000mg Omega 3 Fish Oil and 10,000I.U. Vitamin D3 a day since 5 October and have been pain free for the entire time...  That's the first time PF that long in over 6 years!

Having said that...  This could be yet another, albeit very pleasant, example of how the beast changes the game on us... or... and, I hesitate to use the "R" word, I might be out of the woods for a while...  As always... time will tell in all things cluster headache.

Take care,

V/R, Batch