Hi,

Im new here, Ive been here in the past when a CH would come on and go away- I would come here to read up.  I feel it is time to post, these attacks are getting worse.

I was originally diagnosed a few years ago by an eye doctor of all people.  I went to him because my eye was hurting, and the space behind my eye was hurting.  I thought it was a problem with my eye, so I went to get checked out.  He ran a whole battery of tests, checked my eyes and came back and told me I had cluster headaches.  He asked more questions and then I went home and did some research.  I found this site.

Here I am a few years later and the pains have started again tonight.  I was driving to work and developed a bit of a headache and thought nothing of it, the closer to work I got, the worse this got.  My eye was tearing up pretty bad, my eye socket felt like it got crushed. I thought I was going to have to pull over, I had a hard time seeing the road. Right now, the pain is gone but I can still feel 'it' in my head, I dont think its done, its like a demon that is sitting there waiting to attack my head again,  It sounds crazy but I feel it up there in my eye, its just taking a break.

Will these attacks get worse in severity?  This was the worse one so far.

dfwaviator wrote on Nov 2^nd, 2008 at 10:34pm:

Will these attacks get worse in severity?

Yes ... or maybe ... NO ...

We never know.  It is not worth worrying about, as there is nothing you can do to change what is going to happen.

You said that you were diagnosed by an eye doctor.  That is fine, as long as other problems that can seem like clusters have been eliminated.  You need to get a CAT scan and MRI, to eliminate these other problems.

It would be best if you could get to a headache specialist neurologist.  Please get checked out!

If you do have clusters, you are in the right place.  When at your neuro, ask him/her to prescribe you with oxygen as an abortive.  Always keep a tank in your car, or nearby.  Many of us have multiple tanks and regulators.  I have some in my house, some in my car, and some at work, in my office.

Go to the medications section, and read the two threads, pinned at the top, about oxygen.  Those should give you a good idea about oxygen.  If you have any other questions, don't be afraid to ask.

I have been accused of being an "oxygen pusher" ... Well, maybe I am.  All I know, oxygen has allowed me to live a somewhat normal life, and many others have also.

Chuck, the oxygen pusher

 Im with Chuck if you havn't seen a neuro do it, they can get you the meds you need there are alot of options abortives like o2 and Imitrex or preventives like Verapamil and Lithium there tons of meds these are just some off the top of my head.  Hang in there and keep reading every thing here get the info and go to the doctor.
       Best wishes,  Phil

And another 02 pusher....get it, it works. Caffiene and energy drinks work sometimes

Get to the neuro
START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE
Keep up the good fight.
the bb

Hello and Welcome.

    Ditto to what these guys told you.  Hope you can get under someones care soon.

    My meds start with a ten day Prednisone burst along with Verapamil for the duration of the cycle.

    Just recently started using the oxygen.  I wish I would have used it long ago.

                                     Good Pf Luck To Ya
                                            JPC

Welcome to the board.  I'm with Chuck as well.

This was one of Chuck's good days.... Read up on the O2 and get to a neuro. Get on some prevents and let us know how you're doing...

Hugs BD

 
Cluster headache.
From: START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE (Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases)
[Easy to read; one of the best overview articles I've seen. Suggest printing the full length article if you are serious about keeping a
good medical library on the subject.]

Leroux E, Ducros A.

ABSTRACT: Cluster headache (CH) is a primary headache disease characterized by recurrent short-lasting attacks (15 to 180 minutes) of excruciating unilateral periorbital pain accompanied by ipsilateral autonomic signs (lacrimation, nasal congestion, ptosis, miosis, lid edema, redness of the eye). It affects young adults, predominantly males. Prevalence is estimated at 0.5-1.0/1,000. CH has a circannual and circadian periodicity, attacks being clustered (hence the name) in bouts that can occur during specific months of the year. ALCOHOL IS THE ONLY DIETARY TRIGGER OF CH, STRONG ODORS (MAINLY SOLVENTS AND CIGARETTE SMOKE) AND NAPPING MAY ALSO TRIGGER CH ATTACKS. During bouts, attacks may happen at precise hours, especially during the night. During the attacks, patients tend to be restless. CH may be episodic or chronic, depending on the presence of remission periods. CH IS ASSOCIATED WITH TRIGEMINOVASCULAR ACTIVATION AND NEUROENDOCRINE AND VEGETATIVE DISTURBANCES, HOWEVER, THE PRECISE CAUSATIVE MECHANISMS REMAIN UNKNOWN. Involvement of the hypothalamus (a structure regulating endocrine function and sleep-wake rhythms) has been confirmed, explaining, at least in part, the cyclic aspects of CH. The disease is familial in about 10% of cases. Genetic factors play a role in CH susceptibility, and a causative role has been suggested for the hypocretin receptor gene. Diagnosis is clinical. Differential diagnoses include other primary headache diseases such as migraine, paroxysmal hemicrania and SUNCT syndrome. At present, there is no curative treatment. There are efficient treatments to shorten the painful attacks (acute treatments) and to reduce the number of daily attacks (prophylactic treatments). Acute treatment is based on subcutaneous administration of sumatriptan and high-flow oxygen. Verapamil, lithium, methysergide, prednisone, greater occipital nerve blocks and topiramate may be used for prophylaxis. In refractory cases, deep-brain stimulation of the hypothalamus and greater occipital nerve stimulators have been tried in experimental settings.THE DISEASE COURSE OVER A LIFETIME IS UNPREDICTABLE. Some patients have only one period of attacks, while in others the disease evolves from episodic to chronic form.

PMID: 18651939 [PubMed]
==============
START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE

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)
================
Michigan Headache & Neurological Institute for another list of treatments and other articles:

START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE
==============
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.