IM NEW TO THE SITE..I HAVE HAD CLUSTER HEADACHES SINCE MY EARLY 20'S BUT WASNT DIAGNOSED UNTIL ABOUT FOUR YEARS AGO (IM 29)...I DIDNT KNOW WHAT CLUSTERS WERE BUT WHEN I RESEARCHED THEM FOR THE FIRST TIME ON THE NET AND MATCHED MY SYMPTOMS WITH WHAT I WAS READING, TEARS STREAMED DOWN MY CHEEK...TO KNOW THAT I HAD FOUND WHAT WAS WRONG..& EMPATHETIC THAT OTHER PEOPLE WERE GOING THRU THIS...IT IS NICE TO SEE THIS FORUM BECAUSE YOU SEE IN MANY PEOPLES EYES THAT THEY LACK THE ABILITY TO UNDERSTAND THE SEVERITY OF PAIN..THE PACING, THE CLUTCHING OF THE TEMPLES, THE WISH FOR DEATH, THE BANGING OF ONES HEAD JUST TO TRY TO DISTRACT YOURSELF WITH ANOTHER FORM OF PAIN, THE PAIN ASSOCIATED WITH FEELING HELPLESS & EXHAUSTED & ALONE...I RELATE TO IT ALL..I HAVE HAD MANY DAREDEVIL ACCIDENTS IN MY TIME INCLUDING SNAPPING BOTH BONES IN MY ARM AND NOTHING COMPARES TO THIS......I JUST STARTED MY CYCLE AGAIN THE DAY BEFORE THANKSGIVING...& THEY USUALLY LAST FOR ABOUT 2-3 MONTHS..I USUALLY "ONLY" HAVE ONE EPISODE A DAY BUT THIS TIME IS DIFFERENT WITH THEM WANTING TO COME BACK MORE OFTEN THROUGHOUT..I CAN BE THANKFUL THAT MY REMISSION PERIODS ARE GENERALLY LONG.. ANYWHERE FROM 9 MONTHS-2 YEARS (WITH THE 2 YEAR REMISSION ONLY HAPPENING ONCE)..MY DEEPEST PRAYERS GO TO ANYONE AFFLICTED WITH THIS..& THOUGH I WOULD NOT EVER WISH THIS ON ANYONE TO GIVE MY MISERY COMPANY, IT IS COMFORTING TO KNOW THAT SOME PEOPLE UNDERSTAND...THESE ARE NOT HEADACHES OR MIGRAINES...WE ARE IN A CLASS BY OURSELVES...WE ARE DEALING WITH A PAIN MOST PEOPLE WILL NEVER KNOW (THANK GOD) OR COMPREHEND...WE ARE STRONG...AND WE ARE BEING TESTED...IT DOES NOT MAKE US WEAK TO NOT WANT THAT TEST...BUT REGARDLESS, WE PROVE OUR STRENGTH.. NOT BY WITHHOLDING OUR SCREAMS, BUT BY REMAINING POSITIVE IN OUR LIVES DESPITE THE BURDEN THAT HAS BEEN PLACED ON OUR HEADS....BLESS YOU ALL...   

WELCOME, TRY AND TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR ABOUT USING OXYGEN FOR THE TREATMENT OF CLUSTER HEADACHES. i CAN ABORT A CLUSTER IN LESS THAN 5 MINUTES WITH THE OXYGEN, THATS ABOUT THE BEST ADVISE YOU WILL GET.

                            Lot'sof luck.. Coach Bill

Oxygen...yeah....you might hear that a time or two around here!

But what else do you use? Do you have a good preventative med, one you take daily to reduce the number and intensity of your hits? Common prevents are verapamil, lithium and topomax.

What abortives do you have? Oxygen? Imitrex? Give us a rundown of what you've used, what has and hasn't worked. Danged glad you found us, hoping we can help you. Welcome home.

joe