My daughter has been getting headaches every day for 2 months. She almost always gets them at the same exact time every day at 11:30 am. They last anywhere from 10 minutes to 1 hour. The pain is so bad she has to pull over if she gets one while driving. She can get multiple headaches in one day. They come on suddenly, although she does say she can tell one is coming a few minutes before as she gets really thirsty and gets twinges of pain and all of a sudden it's severe pain. No vision problems or nausea. The pain is always on the same side. Her eye gets a bit droopy/swollen and can tear. The most severe pain is behind her eye and in her temple/cheekbone/brow area.

She has gone through episodes similar to this before. She had headaches every day  for 3 weeks in September her senior year in high school. She would get them every day in psych class. That lasted 3 weeks and then they went away. It happened again September of her freshman year in college, same time every day for at least 3 weeks, then they went away.

This time the headaches started in May and have not stopped, in fact they seem to be happening more frequently. I took her to see her primary Dr. who prescribed Flonase in case it was allergy related. She also referred us to a neurologist, who we see in a few days.

She also ordered an MRA head without contrast and an MRI brain with and without contrast. Are those tests typical for diagnosing clusters? Are both necessary?

Any advice for what to ask the neurologist?

Does this sound like cluster headaches?

Thank you!

Some of the symptoms sound like CH, however there is no way that any of us here can give a diagnosis as that requires a skilled medical professional, if possible a neurologist specialising in headaches.

The tests sound perfectly normal as part of the diagnostic process to rule out some conditions that give very similar symptoms as CHs.

Keep reading and if it is CH then you'll have found the best possible place to learn so much about CH and how your daughter can handle it.

Based on the limited information, I can say cluster is a very real possibility here. She's actually the same age when my clusters really started in full force, and the timing and intensity of the pain is generally a dead give away.

She needs to see a professional ASAP to determine if it is in fact cluster. If so, there are quite a few effective treatments and tons of knowledgeable people on this board. I recommend you get her on this site as well.

Veronica
Except from the thirst, this seems like a "schoolbook" description of cluster headache. Be aware though of other conditions like brain tumors and neck injuries that may  cause very similar pain. My best.