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Hmm this is the 1st I've every heard of that my "personality" could be the cause of my cluster headaches...??  My personality has worked fine all my life as I am laid back for the most part and have a great sense of humor.  So let me get this right... Even though my personality served me well up until I hit my mid 30's now all of a sudden it's causing or has a strong relationship with my CH ???  

Suddenly I feel like quacking like a duck....

The thrust of the abstracts BobP has posted is reflective of the research on this question: Our personality DOES NOT cause CH but our personality can influence how well we cope with CH.

I've posted a number of items along these lines with my "essay" (Pain vs. Suffering, on the OUCH site) offering an approach of altering our experience of CH via changing how we think about the experience.
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Pain. 2009 Apr 24. 
Personality profiles and subjective perception of pain in head pain patients.

Mongini F, Rota E, Evangelista A, Ciccone G, Milani C, Ugolini A, Ferrero L, Mongini T, Rosato R.

Department of Clinical Pathophysiology, Headache and Facial Pain Unit, University of Turin, 10126 Turin, Italy.

Little or no information is available regarding the effect of the personality characteristics of headache sufferers on the quality of pain perception. The aim of this study is to investigate, in head pain sufferers, the relationship between the personality profile, assessed by the MMPI, and the different dimensions of pain (sensory, affective and evaluative), as assessed by the MPQ. Three hundred and seventeen patients with Migraine and/or tension-type headache (episodic or chronic) and myogenic facial pain were included. The Italian versions of the MMPI-2 and MPQ were administered, and the pain level was measured by the VAS. Cluster analysis based on the clinical scales of MMPI identified four personality profiles closely corresponding to the MMPI profiles obtained by the previous researchers: "depressive" (Dep.), "emotionally overwhelmed" (Emot.), "conversive" (Conv.) and "Coper". Differences in MPQ scales between personality profiles were investigated by means of a general linear model (GLM), adjusting for sex, age and pain level and type. Results of GLM analysis showed that the affective dimension was significantly higher in cluster Emot. than in Dep. (p=0.027), Conv. (p=0.002) and Coper (p=0.003). Total PRI was significantly higher in Emot. than in Conv. (p=0.010).

THE FINDINGS OF THE PRESENT STUDY SUGGEST THAT A SPECIFIC PERSONALITY PROFILE (EMOT.), CHARACTERIZED BY A HEAVY EMOTIONAL BURDEN, MAY INCREASE THE AFFECTIVE DIMENSION OF PAIN WITH RESPECT TO A DEPRESSIVE PROFILE (DEP.), A CONVERSIVE PROFILE (CONV.) OR A NORMAL PROFILE (COPER), INDEPENDENT OF SEX, AGE AND PAIN LEVEL AND TYPE.

PMID: 19394764 [PubMed]

Bob Johnson wrote on Aug 5^th, 2009 at 9:38am:


Note: Coping is after the fact of the CH or pain hit.  This is not technically personality based it is "Coping Skills" Granted each person has different coping skills and this can depend on how one was raised or the Current stresses in their life, which may in fact have no bearing on "personality".  

I have noticed that if I am more stressed I may get a few more CH hits than normal but, how I cope is not based on my personality, it is based on my coping skills at the time of the CH Hit.  Higher stress may weaken my normal coping skills and make the pain "seem" more intense or unbearable, even though at other times when less stressed I cope better and as calmly as possible run for the Imitrex shot.  But again this is a Stress Factor and current situation coping skills factor, not necessarily a "personality factor".   Just my opinion.

Ok Stepping of my soap box and still feeling like I should be quacking like a duck.  

In the last several years being associated with this family I have observed quite a number of different personality traits.  Especially among the newer members of the family.  Some want to be pampered, some want to be babied and be given a magic pill to stop everything, some want the unvarnished truth and only CH related info, others are looking for community to help give them the support needed to cope with not only CH but the other pressures that bear on life as a result (and sometimes totally unrelated).

What I've observed among those who have stayed around a while though is that many of the more assertive dominant types that want to control their CH and life in general tend to mellow out a bit and learn to go with the flow.  They retain their dominant personalities, but seem to ease off a bit .  Others who tended toward needing to be babied have grown up and learned to take control of their situation and to deal with it.  They don't really change personalities so much as change their focus in dealing with life.

I know I have had to grow up quite a bit in dealing with this mess.  I had learned to "handle" it somewhat before finding CH.com, but with the help of this family I have learned from some the need for strength, from others the need for patience, from still others the need to rely on others for help, and from still others the need to be of help to those in need.  In this I have learned that by helping another I receive the strength needed, and with it have learned (somewhat) patience, and the humility of being willing to ask for help myself.

My personality has not changed, but by personality has been buttressed by what I've learned in this process.

That was a long answer to a short question.   I hope it made sense.  Especially to you, Nelis, as I understand English is not your primary language.  (although your English is better than most of ours).  If I didn't make it plain what I meant (and I may not understand either after getting some sleep) please ask and I'll try to clarify.

Jerry

McGee wrote on Aug 7^th, 2009 at 2:56am:

Yesterday I thought I was a pup tent.  Today, I think I'm a teepee.

My doctor says my problem is that I'm two tents.

Regards,
Jim

there is something that really bothers me with this topic that i am not quite sure what is it yet.

for example
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what does this mean????some of us have really hard time to keep a job and maintain relationships with this f@@^#g pain coming around on and on.solitude is always tempting at least for me and it's really hard not to give in.So much like what??the desire to have an ordinary life like it was supposed to be??

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the way i see this statement is that there is no really good preventative treatment,searching for any godnamed abortives
no idea what's going on with ch
no matter what medical reports suggest from time to time
and now we should work out with our personalities??

some random thoughts and time for a cold cold shower

Some see the glass as half empty.

Others see the glass as half full.

Engineers see the wrong sized glass.

Thank you friends for all these thoughts!

Your emotion Black was the same I had in the first place.
But I got rid of it since I'm convinced that it's like BobP said; "your personality doesn't cause your clusters; what causes your clusters has also helped form your personality. "

And like Jerry says; you have to grow into dealing with a cluster head. (If I understood you well?).
I guess this will never end, (but doesn't this count for everybody?)

I read your essay Bob_Johnson and I appreciate you sharing your insight with others. I think it's of great value to really understand what you mean. I have learned that a big part in dealing with pain is your perception of it, which is heavily influenced by your emotional state of mind. Pain is the perception of a feeling. ( I felt philosophical the last time I dosed the shrooms   )

It is a very good idea to have a party for no particular reason!
Nelis

Brew wrote on Aug 10^th, 2009 at 3:11pm:


Architects and designers see the wrong shaped glass.

People with OCD see the mineral deposits on the glass, and make a note to buy more Rinse Aid in their little notebook.

Chemists see 218 ml, or 12.11 mol.

Chemophobes see chlorine, atrazine and unhealthy levels of sodium.

Clusterheads doing the Water-Water-Water method see 38 minutes before they need to drink another glass of it.

Nelis wrote on Aug 4^th, 2009 at 5:37pm:


yes we are. your doctors assumption about the use of lsd being american is one of the reasons why.

Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or

your doctors knowledge of headache treatment  seems limited at best. if you already know everything about something you can't learn anything.
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