This topic may have been broached before, but I'm not certain. My question is if there is such a thing as a "partial" cluster headache. I've had CH's for about 16 years, interspersed with long periods of dormancy. Currently the headaches have been dormant since January 2013, with the exception that I sometimes get the very initial symptoms of a full-blown CH. Specifically, I get the initial stabbing pain above and behind the right eye, a feeling of tissue swelling in the sinuses and nasal tract, and some minor residual pain along the trigeminal nerve. And then it disappears. It can last for as little as five minutes or as long as half an hour, and doesn't manifest as a full-blown CH. On a pain scale, this is about a 1 or 2 in comparison with the 10 of a full CH. The pain is entirely manageable, but menacing, as if it's a reminder that CH's are just waiting to re-emerge. This initial pain is exactly the way a CH begins for me, with the full-blown headache occurring within about five minutes. I mentioned this to my doctor about a year ago and received somewhat of a non-response. Does this "partial" cluster headache sound like something any of you have experienced? Any thoughts on whether it is indeed related to CH or if it is a different phenomenon? Thanks...

Gravity Rising wrote on Jan 26^th, 2016 at 1:00am:

...The pain is entirely manageable, but menacing, as if it's a reminder that CH's are just waiting to re-emerge. This initial pain is exactly the way a CH begins for me...

G'day, welcome, and everything you say makes perfect sense to one ClusterHead or another. None of us are the same, and for many no two cycles are the same, but the joy of CH is you never know what little surprise is coming next.

Your little wake-up calls could just be the monster tapping you on the shoulder to say, "I'm still here, mate. Not done with ya yet," and I really hate that.

There's also what we call Phantom attacks where you get every symptom except the pain. Problem here is that many say you can't be having a headache if it doesn't hurt so we must be mad, and perhaps they're right.

A really lousy possibility is that you're enjoying more than just the one headache syndrome. ("Oh, joy! Oh, wonder! Oh, frabjous day!!", I hear you cry.)

A good bet might be just keeping an eye on it, perhaps starting a headache journal, but if symptoms persist we always recommend discussing it with your favourite health professional.

Please let us know how you're getting on with it because we care,

Brian down under.

Thank you, Brian. The points you make are good ones--no two headaches are ever alike, and each has its own unique aspects. What you mention as "phantom attacks" sounds quite like what I experience and refer to as initial pain. In fact, on some occasions I simply have the pain in the lower trigeminal nerve (manifesting as a "toothache"), precisely like what happens during a CH--but that tooth pain is the only symptom. I've had at least one unnecessary root canal as a result of this. In any case, I have not found anything about this initial pain/phantom attacks in CH literature, so I'm very glad to have this info from you and learn more about it.

Best regards,
Carl

Carl,

I get this several times a day.  Being chronic for the last few years means I don't get any remission periods at all.

I started the D3 regimen in early 2015 after experiencing a previous 2 years of daily hell and now what you are describing is my daily lot.

I think Brian is probably right about the Beast letting you know he"s still around and if that's the case, heed the warning.

Why don't you read up on the D3 regimen here? You will find it in the Medications and Treatments section under the thread"123 days pain free....."

It's certainly worth doing for CH but also for general health.

As always, if your concerned about any symptoms, go see your Doctor.

Mind yourself,

Peter.

Every one here probably has some experience of what you describe.  I  always assume they are the "shadows" that are mentioned so often.

Those are the ones I waste a precious shot on to "get it" early.

Gravity, I call those shadows. Not the full blown attack but a gentle and irritating reminder that the Beast is still there. I usually get them when I am sleeping and a quick hit of O2 knocks them out in a few minutes. Sometimes I wake up with one and while I am debating whether to get out of my warm bed..the next thing I know it is morning. It's either a slight pain at the root in the back of the head or the toothache and stuffed nose with sometimes a runny eye.

Do you not have access to O2? It is a life saver! And please start the D3 regimen and stay on it year round.

BTW I've always been episodic..6-8 weeks every 2 years but have had these since August so I'm afraid I'm going chronic. But as long as I have my O2...it beats suffering or having to take meds.

Hoping you are soon totally pain free!
Judy

I fell the same way. I have had CHs since I was 20 yrs old.

Either mine are actually less intense, or I just take them better. I recently jumped BACK into a cycle ..the last 10 days.

I've also figured out what to do and not do, i suppose.
I don't smoke anymore. I don't even touch alcohol when in a cycle.. I don't eat certain foods (processed..none at all)
drink water a TON, etc etc

I also don't freak out like I used to. I try myt best to think "It'll pass. It's just a miscommunication going on in my body. It'll pass"

I get all the thing you said. Happens to me as well.

I can’t  even call it a shadow for most of the time but its really weird and having me worried/fear. Feeling this weird sensations. As if something pinch gentle on parts of my brain. squeezing a piece of brain between a thumb and index finger on the pain side (very hard to explain) Weird tickles shoot through my head. Some (very) feint shadows, runny nose and a mild sore neck all this; off and on randomly during the day. Its not worsening its not reduced its steady. This sensations & shadows stared about the same time the cycle started in between attacks mid November 2015. Im PF for almost 6 weeks now but still got all those symptoms except the bouts/attacks. Dormancy CH is the right term i think. Fingers crossed and PF wishes.

For the shadow attacks that just hang on and hang on I take a shot of 5 Hour Energy drink. Kills to shadow in just a few minutes. Red Bull or Monster are also good.

I was diagnosed with "chronic cluster headache, not intractable - Primary" by the docs at Stanford.  Most of my problem is lying in the shadows, 8 - 10 hours a day of a 1 - 3 on the Kipsometer.  During that time I might go up to a 4 or 5 for a few minutes.  I've had a few of the 10's over the last five years, but they are very rare and imitrex knocks it down to a five in about an hour.

It seems my flavor demon prefers the days, and long slow dances.  But there is nothing that takes away the shadow for me.  Nine hours of sitting there with a #3 sucks, since I can't go to work.  I've tried the seeds and once they worked great and never again since.

And with CH, we also get irritability.  This is not because of the pain, but is part of the triggering grey matter.  If I could just knock down the irritability I think I could deal with a #3 at work.

I just gulped down 60mg of prednisone in my hope of stopping this current cycle which has been intermittent since mid December.

Hi Nervely,
It sounds like your imitrex is in pill form if it takes an hour to work and only knocks it down to a 5.  You should try the auto injections, as they will kill it off completely in less than 10  minutes. Easy to use at work too.

Try taking a pill in advance. That's what some of us do at bedtime, and it often holds off the attack for a few hours, allowing some sleep.

Have you tried a redbull, or similar energy drink for the shadows. It doesn't work for every one, but many of us do get relief from it, so worth a try.