Small transient shadows, and the beginning's of the "neck thing"--increased stiffness and tenderness in the back of the neck on the CH side. 

Plus--and I don't know quite to describe it--I can "feel" it coming on. 

In any event, it's usually pretty obvious when it's time to circle the wagons.

Best,

George

Hello Derek.  I also take the topamax. 75mg twice a day.  It't preventative, but I occassionally still get struck.  Prob chronic not episodic, but here are a couple of things I see before I get slammed.

1.  Will notice that my head/nose gets really stuffed up, particularly on the cluster side.
2.  Shaddows don't help alert me as I always have them, don't know for you.
3.  Topamax appears to have made me somewhat sound sensitive.  (I know this sounds strange).  However, often after having been around events or very noisy settings I'll experience a bout within the next 18-24 hrs.  Go figure.

As many of the great folks here have mentioned if you don't have your oxygen, (I don't have a rx for yet) keep red bull on hand and excedren migrane med is loaded w/caffiene.

Wishing you all the best.

Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2001 Feb;5(1):55-9. 


Premonitory symptoms in cluster headache.

Raimondi E.

Catedra de Neurologia, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, 9 de Julio 3826, Rosario 2002 PKP, Argentina. raimondi@cablenet.com.ar

Cluster headache is one of the most excruciating headaches affecting human beings--especially the male sex. Most of the cluster headache cases are of episodic nature, with active cluster periods lasting generally between a few weeks and 2 or 3 months. A still undetermined percentage of patients report nonpainful sensations preceding the onset of the pain attack for a variable period of time. If occurring only a few minutes or a few hours before the onset of pain, such symptoms are called prodromal. When occurring for several days, weeks, or months before the pain, they are termed premonitory symptoms. The author believes that premonitory symptoms have not been properly diagnosed and emphasizes the need to investigate their presence, because by knowing them advances can be made in the understanding of the physiopathology of this particular cephalalgia. Furthermore, it can also allow the physician to be ahead, by giving preventive treatment and stopping or diminishing the intensity and duration of the pain attacks.

Publication Types:
Review

PMID: 11252138 

Shadows for a good week.  I use to be tricked that I had allergies
and sinus pain, but that really is the smoke rising form the Genie lamp, the bastard/beast inside usually comes out a week later.

I'm like George, I get the "o crap are they back?" feeling in my stomach. My wife will start asking me if they're coming back because my eye starts getting the lazy droopy eye look. I'm fortunate in that my cycles build slowly over a couple of weeks so I have plenty of time to ramp up my prevents, stock up on 02 etc.  (Although no matter how long I've been off cycle there are always 3-4 E-Tanks in my garage, NEVER get caught empty handed!)

Guiseppi

BAck in the old days when I was episodic, I'd get a "cramp" in my ear about an hour or so before they came BACK.... Then it was a full blown HIT. Lordy, that was a long time ago.....

Hugs BD