I have been reading everything on this site for 2 weeks now(which is how long ago my neurologist dignosed me w/ CH).  I am sooo confused by all of this!  I am a 37 yr.old mother of 4 and have never had any medical problems.  I have some questions for anyone out there kind enough to answer.  
1.  Is the Verapimil 180 per day making me feel any better or am I ending my cluster?  (my headache cycle is broken w/ a few milder headaches in the same side of my head)
2.  Do any of you have pain in your teeth on the side of the cluster? I have a crown in the 2nd to last tooth on the bottom right side and when I have a CH my teeth kill me!
3. Do CH's get worse w/ time? Will my next cluster be more resistant and painful?
Thanks and HELP. :)

It is all very confusing.  Some meds work for one cycle and not another one.  Some meds work to abort on a hit today, but not tomorrow.  It is all confusing and quite insane.  I hate it to be perfectly honest.  But yes, I get tooth pain with a hit. And yes, the verapamil might be helping you and reducing the headaches or you could just be getting out of a cycle.  Things we just don't know.  I wouldn't stop the verap too soon though, just in case.  Because if you stop it and then need to go back on it in a few weeks, it might not work - and it might work.  You just never, ever know.  My CH hasn't gotten anymore painful; however, I have become less tolerant of it.  I use to be able to ride it out and be fine.  Now I get really angry about it and that just makes it worse.

1. The verap dose is rather low for CH--unless your doc has told you of his intention to increase over time. It will, in any case, take a couple of weeks to get full benefit and then some dosing adjustment is not uncommon. You will continue to use it until the cycle has stopped. Since there is no test for when this has happened, you doc can guide you in stopping the verap. a few weeks after your last attack.

2. Pain in the teeth is common because your teeth share a nerve pathway which is involved in th CH. Don't let you your dentist talk you into action unless, i.e., x-ray shows an infection in a tooth, etc. Need to stop the CH cycle before dental decisions can be made.

3. CH evolves with time in terms of location and quality and degree of pain. No patterns. It may take months, even years before a stable pattern emerges. Nothing to be concerned about as this variation occurs.

Strongly sugggest you start learning! It's the bests prevention for anxiety/fear. Explore the buttons, left, the many links embedded. OUCH site is well organized for exploration. I'd suggest one of the books, below, and the links listing current therapies. These lists give you a nice tool to  guide discussions with your doc as well as informing you.
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MANAGEMENT OF HEADACHE AND HEADACHE MEDICATIONS, 2nd ed. Lawrence D. Robbins, M.D.; pub. by Springer. $50 at Amazon.Com.  It covers all types of headache and is primarily focused on medications. While the two chapters on CH total 42-pages, the actual relevant material is longer because of multiple references to material in chapters on migraine, reflecting the overlap in drugs used to treat. I'd suggest reading the chapters on migraine for three reasons: he makes references to CH & medications which are not in the index; there are "clinical pearls" about how to approach the treatment of headache; and, you gain better perspective on the nature of headache, in general, and the complexities of treatment (which need to be considered when we create expectations about what is possible). Finally, women will appreciate & benefit from his running information on hormones/menstrual cycles as they affect headache. Chapter on headache following head trauma, also. Obviously, I'm impressed with Robbins' work (even if the book needs the touch of a good editor!) (Somewhat longer review/content statement at 3/22/00, "Good book....")

HEADACHE HELP, Revised edition, 2000; Lawrence Robbins, M.D., Houghton Mifflin, $15. Written for a nonprofessional audience, it contains almost all the material in the preceding volume but it's much easier reading. Highly recommended.
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Here is a link to read and print and take to your doctor.  It describes preventive, transitional, abortive and surgical treatments for CH. Written by one of the better headache docs in the U.S.  (2002)
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Michigan Headache & Neurological Institute for another list of treatments and other articles:

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These things can be very unpredictable.  Yet they can be very predictable.  Essentially, always be prepared for this thing to change.  They can get worse or better.  I have been dealing with these for 13 years.  My last cycle may have been the worst.  Don't panic.  Keep reading and always be prepared when talking to you doc.  Ther verap is a good drug.  Lithium and topamax are also common for CH.  There are many options for you overtime.  Once one option becomes ineffective, it could work again down the road.  Get yourself a script for o2.  You won't feel so helpless when one is coming.  Trust me

Hi Isa,

I also have a crown and my teeth play merry hell when I'm in cylcle. Read some of the posts where people have had their teeth pulled because they had not been properly diagnosed.

The beast does take many forms and can change in intensity and frequency from cycle to cycle. Stay with your current meds - you need to fully try one before moving on to another.

Incidentally I too was in great health before Ch and it is the only thing that can get me anywhere near a dr's surgery.

regards & PF days,

Melvyn

Hi Lisa!

Welcome........    I also get tooth pain with a HA.  My cycles vary a lot!   Last year I had almost four full months of daily horrible pain.  This year I was able to get away with just heavy shadows.  One Fall I only had tooth pain.  No pain in the eye, nose or head at all.  I would just get terrible pain in my teeth.  It felt as if someone was hammering a nail down into a tooth somewhere in my mouth.  I just couldn't pin point which one it was. Just that it was on the right side.   My dentist said that my teeth were fine.  I finally tried an Imitrex injection and it took the pain away until next time.  That cycle was pretty short.

Keep reading and learning about CH.  After a while you'll be able what is CH pain even if it is different from time to time.  There is lots of help around here.  Ask as may questions as you need to.  There are so many great people here that are willing to help you.

PF wishes!

Jeannie

Congratulations on being diagnosed in your first cycle. Many of us go years before we are properly diagnosed. Good thing you found this site early too. Look around, there is a ton of information here.

Welcome,
Kris

many of my Chs ususally start in the area of the teeth!  great u got diagnosed so quickly! it didnt take me too long either, a couple of months, and i diagnosed myself from this site(in march of this year)..........dont know if i will get worse , as i believe i am still in cycle, from jan30, and actually taking elavil @ nite, and it is keeping the beast at bay.........if i try to go off, it comes back......................wishing you PF time and many  [smiley=hug.gif]
deb