You have an excellent support group: Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or
They can give you all the medical information you need plus guide you thru your health care system.

Our experience with UK folks strongly suggests that your local docs are often often lacking in understanding of Cluster and, therefore, give poor treatment.

I understand that, by law, you can ask for a direct referral to a headache clinic. (OUCH can speak to this issue.)

While you are working on these steps, here is some background reading to help you understand the nature of Cluster.
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Cluster headache.
From: Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or (Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases)
[Easy to read; one of the better overview articles I've seen. Suggest printing the full length article--link, line above--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]
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When you get to a headache specialist, the types of meds you may expect to be given are outlined in the PDF file, below. It's a good tool to print out and use to discuss your options with any doc you see.

The picture for successful control of Cluster (there is no cure) is really quite good. But you must get to the right doctor.

Keep us informed!

Jaffa wrote on Jan 25^th, 2012 at 10:27am:


Hi Danny,

your Dr may be more on the ball than you realise. Firstly they did pick up on the possibility of cluster headache, which is a good start (from the stories of others many doctors miss this as a possible diagnosis). This may be an important first step in getting a definitive diagnosis.

Secondly the prescription of metoclopramide is not unreasonable since it does have pain relieving properties in migraine headache. There would be many doctors who may not be aware of this. Whether or not it will be beneficial in your case is another matter, but not unreasonable for the Dr to give it a try when the diagnosis is somewhat uncertain.
See: Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or
Also try a Google search for "metoclopramide headache"

Cheers,

Dave.

The referral to someone who is a headache specialist, and even better one who is a CH specialist, is the right way to go. Your pursuit of a pain alleviator seems limited to a narcotic intervention. If you have CHs, these will be of little value. Why not try some of the more common abortives? Things like O2, imitrex and migranal? Not pill form but inectable or nasal spray. Under a dr's care, these can go a long way in helping to establish not only what works to abort the attack, or doesn't, but also provides clinical data from which to make a diagnosis. Blessings. lance