I have suffered for 15 years. This episode has lasted over 7 weeks. Tonight when I awoke just as I normally do 2 hours after falling asleep I had a dream. The dream was to use the tens unit I have for my back. I placed 2 patches on the same side of my neck and the headache decreased within 30 seconds. OMG, could this really be happening. No use of O2 this time, no imitrex shot, no ice... Just ramped up the tens unit and the pain has decreased by 90%. As a matter of fact, enough for me to be typing this from my phone. I will check in tomorrow to let everyone know if it works on the next attack. I get 5 a night. I am taking 360mg of verapamil and have used high doses of prednisone also which haven't seemed to work this time. I also tried the oppicipital nerve block.
Has anyone ever tried this before? I can't be the only one that has thought of this. And why hasn't my neurologist who specializes in these headaches thought of this before?
I am eager to hear other people's thoughts.
:) Adriane

Ok...Update. Second attack for the night, what I am finding is the placement of the tens unit is of great importance. Took a few minutes this time to find the right spot but I found it. Hoping this is an alternative to Imitrex as I believe that medication caused rebound headaches for me. Side effect of the Verapamil is that it can also cause headaches. This point I am not sure which is causing the rebounds. For the night I am sticking with The Tens Unit! I can't always catch them quick enough for the O2 to work.
Update to follow with next attack or in the morning.
Anyone have any other advice?
Anyone located in Sacramento Ca? Looking for local support.
Adriane

shocking!    Sorry couldn't resist. 

   I have a tens unit... but am not in cycle.    I think i would try it tho.    where excactly do you place the pads?

   Seeds have worked for me for 3 yrs now!!!!  YAY. :)

Seeds? Tell me more.
I place the pads of the side with the pain on the back of my neck. Takes a few tries for the right location. Close to my spine but not on it and the other under the ear but off to the side a bit.
Yeah before this I didn't have them for 2 years!
Adriane

I have a tens unit for anyone who wants it...lol J/K They can also trigger attacks. To each their own.
Seeds=START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE
tachead :D

Quote:

They can also trigger attacks. To each their own.

Oh, Yeah they can.  I've talked to several folks over the years here who have said this.  If it worked for you..good.  But anyone wanting to try this, be warned.

    wow.  Didn't think about it starting  one.    Tens works great for the back tho.    :D


   

Fortunately for me they are helping to abort. Not only that but the baseball bat feeling I have every morning only lasted a few hours this morning. Tonight's a new night....hopefully it continues to help. I've found thru last night that placement of the pads is important. They don't work by placing them just anywhere on my neck. First attack was simple but the 4 other attacks it took a few minutes to find the right spot to put them. Never heard of them triggering but I know that it seems everyone's triggers seem to be different. I don't know mine yet!
Adriane

It worked for me "one  time" and then didn't the next time I tried it. But it was great the time it worked.  Have a unit and think I'll go try it again. Have been getting "ear" crams the last few days and they're about to get to me.

Hope  it keeps helping you.  You might want to try some Melatonin before bedtime. It works for a lot of us on thos ee night hits.
:-*

I tried a tens unit and it didn't do anything for me but make my stressed out neck and shoulders feel better.

Sorry to hear the tens unit didn't work for you. Keep in mind I place the patched very close to my head where that nerve is and then the other just a little bit lower off to the side. I have to hold the patches as they are so close to my head that my hair prevents them from sticking. My attacks are only coming every other night. I am close to the end of my cycle now, I can feel it! For me I believe the tens unit helped kick them! After doing some research I found that some doctors are surgically placing these types of units to help people. I don't think I would ever have that done though!
Adriane

I tried a bunch of stuff to abort with a tens. 
Put the pads right on my head (where the spot is). No luck.  Hurt like hell.  The scalp and the tens are not friends. 

Also wired it up to steel probes and put them all the way in the back/top of my mouth, trying to shock the nerve from that direction.  Since my hands were full with the probes I had my wife turn it on.  Yeah, that hurt like hell too.  Didn't work.  Wife laughed at me.   ;D

Quote:

Also wired it up to steel probes and put them all the way in the back/top of my mouth, trying to shock the nerve from that direction

Don't happen to have a pic of that would you?  8-)

seaworthy wrote on Sep 16^th, 2012 at 10:59am:

Quote: Also wired it up to steel probes and put them all the way in the back/top of my mouth, trying to shock the nerve from that direction Don't happen to have a pic of that would you?  8-)

Yeah the pain makes me think that's a smart idea!!! ::)
Adriane

Adriane - Some people on this board have known each other for a long, long time. We actually do mess with each other from time to time.

I did assume that was the case. I originally joined the site several years ago but had forgotten my password so I had to create a new account. I found found I have to find humor or I would be just plain miserable. I'm only 34 but have had The headaches since I was 18. This episode is the longest period of time I have had them, 8 weeks now! I consider myself very lucky the tens unit is working for me. Imitrex side effects are terrible for me so the only things I'm using are O2 and Verapamil 360mg. I am open to other suggestions however I am trying to stay as natural as possible.
Adriane

Hey Adriane!
This is very interesting and am glad you are having success!
My name is Johnny and am a 35 year chronic clusterhead and am going through new treatments as we speak and actually starting today  I am taking Depakote and Topimax and starting Vitamin D3 therapy today!
Vitamin D3 is Exciting news! Check with Bob Johnson Or Brew about it! Supposed to be an excellent preventative and  may get you pain free in 3 or so weeks!
Check it out! Also try slamin a red bull at the onset of a CH and it will help abort a CH, its the Taurine and caffeine that do the work! It is helping alot of folks!   The Tens unit i am very very familiar with and have tried it with clusters with no luck But the reason I had the unit in the first place was I had 17 operations with severe nerve damage so they recommended trying it and it had some affect but not what I was looking for.
So i took it to the next step and had a neurostimulator
implant installed. I had alot of problems with infection but that's just me! It never quite helped me properly and the specialists told me it was because of i have a vast area of nerve damage and the stimulator is great for just one area
To get to my point A neurostimulator is nothing but a much more sophisticated Tens unit but delivers the same type of stimulation and maybe worth checking with your specialist
about trying it. Before installing the neurostimulator the have a non evasive way to make sure it works! 
I really don't know if this is what you need but instead of trying to "find the spot" every time..... this device already has it tuned in!  I hope this may help you? please at least talk to your specialist about it!......PFD'S!.....Johnny ;)

---

Brew wrote on Sep 16^th, 2012 at 10:55pm:

Adriane - Some people on this board have known each other for a long, long time. We actually do mess with each other from time to time.

  That's true Adriane, but the flip side to that, is that you will never find a more devoted & caring extended family...  [smiley=hug.gif]

Yeah, that was sort of my point. We're comfortable enough to give each other the business once in awhile. And for any new members, if you stick around long enough, maybe help one or two folks along the way, you too will be on both the giving and the receiving end of said business.  ;)

I appreciate the support as all of you know how difficult CH makes life. In regards to Depakote I had really bad side effects and I can't take Topamax bc I have history of kidney stones. I use to slam red bull years ago when having them but found the O2 worked better for me. This cycle I am going with natural medicine. Meaning change of diet, a COMPLETE change of diet. Seeing an Ayurvedic Specialist and she has helped me tremendously! Just balancing my foods to balance my health. Despite the CH I feel great. My "natural clock" is shifting and I am ready for bed almost every night by 8pm. I started some herbal supplements and those seem to be helping as well. Next step is a full cleanse. Alright... Ready for the jokes lol. Will be a rough day however I need to get the toxins out of my body to help get my health balanced.
I will get to know you guys more as I am on the site more. The cycle has ended, 5 days now! Optimistic that I am in the clear. I sure didn't think I was going to make it through this episode, but knowing I am a strong person helped.
I wish there was more knowledge on the cause of attacks. Most seems to be speculation at this point from what I read online. I am interested to know if anyone has actually discovered their Triggers.
Adriane

I appreciate the support as all of you know how difficult CH makes life. In regards to Depakote I had really bad side effects and I can't take Topamax bc I have history of kidney stones. I use to slam red bull years ago when having them but found the O2 worked better for me. This cycle I am going with natural medicine. Meaning change of diet, a COMPLETE change of diet. Seeing an Ayurvedic Specialist and she has helped me tremendously! Just balancing my foods to balance my health. Despite the CH I feel great. My "natural clock" is shifting and I am ready for bed almost every night by 8pm. I started some herbal supplements and those seem to be helping as well. Next step is a full cleanse. Alright... Ready for the jokes lol. Will be a rough day however I need to get the toxins out of my body to help get my health balanced.
I will get to know you guys more as I am on the site more. The cycle has ended, 5 days now! Optimistic that I am in the clear. I sure didn't think I was going to make it through this episode, but knowing I am a strong person helped.
I wish there was more knowledge on the cause of attacks. Most seems to be speculation at this point from what I read online. I am interested to know if anyone has actually discovered their Triggers.
Adriane

Hey Adriane!
As far as triggers go stress has been mine along with certain smells or brightness of light but then I have a large majority that don't seem to have a trigger at all and is the same with many others. I have been studying meditation for about 8 months now and it is helping my daytime attacks.  I make meditation stones along with my jewelry business and they are working very well on relieving a great deal of stress. As far as meditation goes I have heard good stories from CH sufferers but you have to get serious about it and it takes awhile to work......Johnny ;)

Johnny,
I do meditate as well as self hypnosis. Thankfully I started that practice a while back, the meditation part. The self hypnosis is new. I only get the attacks once a year usually, this year I have had 2 episodes 3 months apart. I always get them the same time each year. Are you a chronic sufferer! At this point it seems they have left.  ;D I am still watching my food intake and working with an amazing Ayurvedic specialist which I know has to have helped end the cycle. Just wondering next year how I can avoid as I don't want to stay on a high dose of Verapamil throughout the year.
Adriane

Adriene.....soooo glad your pain free!!  :)         always good to hear. 

As far as triggers... well, we've tried to find "common" ones and so far .. we've not found them.. beer is one that a LOT of us find will trigger, the barometer (or me and some others), some foods (MSG), light, sound, smells, for some.. me, I can drink WHITE wine, but can't go near RED wine..

LIke I said, we've tried to find something "common" and come up ZERO so far. And we've been trying for years and years.. The only thing ANYBODY has come up with so far is that WE have more gray matter than the common person..

The one thing we've found in "common" (for the most part but not total) is that most of us have an artistic tallent of some kind (writing, drawing, musical). But nothing is total for all. It gets real confusing when you try to figure it out.

This board has been wonderful for support .. we can "laugh" at ourselves and each other and sometimes that helps more than any meds. I personally think a sense of humor helps more than anything.. we hurt too bad to cry so anytime we can laugh.. well.. of course that's just my opinion..  :-*

Hi guys,

I'm new here(as of minutes ago) and will be doing an intro thread shortly, but found this thread via google and had to say that I just aborted an attack with my girlfriend's tens unit, 1 pad on my neck just below the ear and another pad just above my left eye(attacks always on the left side).

Well I say aborted, it's more like a massive improvement - I mean my attack started about 20mins ago and well...I'm typing this. 2 weeks into a cluster period, first one for 2 years. :)

That is pretty kickass.
Not at all surprised to hear people are having luck with it.  That experimental implant in the roof of the mouth is doing the same thing... zapping a nerve.

I have a few of those units around the house.  If I ever go back into cycle I will experiment a bit more and try to hurt myself a bit less ;D. 

Back of the neck and ear area, right? 

For me the scalp sucked and, well, you can read the first page regarding my 'roof of the mouth' probes.   :o

Hey Welcome hphennah!
Glad you got some relief with the tens unit! That is pretty cool!
Keep us posted on your results with it as this is an interesting topic.... Oh Check out the thread "Anti-inflammatory regimen and survey" on the "Medications and treatments" page. The D3 regimen is helping a minimum of 76% of the CHers that try it to become CH free including myself......Best of luck.....Johnny :)

My Grandmother was suffering joint pain from last 5 years. She very tried form joint pain and used different medicines but no any effect on join pain. Few months ago one of my friends told me about Tens Unit Pulse Massager. She can use this product herself and in few minutes only she gets relief from her joint pain.