Click this link to read a post I like on the clusterheadaches.com message board...

Zeitgeist

CH.com Alumnus

Offline

Clustery szcmustery

Posts: 91
|Norway|
Gender: male

CH - Brain Freeze
Apr 29^th, 2012 at 9:40am

I'm sure many of you have experienced "brain freeze" when eating ice ream to fast. The pain is similar to CH, I think. It appears there has been a break-through in understanding brain freeze. Perhaps the understanding of CH can benefit from this?

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

or

(news.Yahoo.com)

Back to top

-zg

IP Logged

Click Here to visit the CH.com Facebook page!

Guiseppi

CH.com Moderator
CH.com Alumnus

Offline

San Diego to Florida 05-16-2011

Posts: 12063
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA USA
Gender: male

Re: CH - Brain Freeze
Reply #1 - Apr 29^th, 2012 at 9:49am

This increase in flow and resulting increase in size in this artery brought on the pain associated with brain freeze.

When the artery constricts, reining in the response to this increased flow, the pain disappears. The dilation, then quick constriction, of this blood vessel may be a type of self-defense for the brain, the researchers suggested

Which brings us back to the dilation/constriction theory! Very interesting article, thanks for posting. Wink

Joe

Back to top

"Somebody had to say it" is usually a piss poor excuse to be mean.

IP Logged

Ricardo

CH.com Veteran

Offline

I Love CH.com!

Posts: 214
MA
Gender: male

Re: CH - Brain Freeze
Reply #2 - Apr 29^th, 2012 at 10:08am

I was really impressed when I was reading of a Doctor teaching med students about clusters. He brought all his students out for ice cream and got them to eat it fast enough to give them all brain freeze. Then he said something to the effect of "imagine this doesn't go away--this is what cluster headache is like and this is why you need to treat your patient with urgency." Should be required when they teach about clusters!

Back to top

IP Logged

Callico CH.com Hall of Famer Offline Author of "Stranded at Romson's Lodge Posts: 4916 Aurora IL Gender:	Re: CH - Brain Freeze Reply #3 - Apr 29^th, 2012 at 5:55pm I like that doc!!! I wish all new doctors heard something like that. Jerry
Back to top	"Political correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical minority, and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a piece of dung by the clean end." Texas A&M Student (unknown) IP Logged

Linda_Howell

CH.com Moderator
CH.com Alumnus

Offline

Do not feed the Moderators

Posts: 11927
Santa Maria, Ca.
Gender: female

Re: CH - Brain Freeze
Reply #4 - Apr 29^th, 2012 at 6:50pm

Relating a brain freeze, which almost everyone has had, to a friend, co-worker or stranger who has never felt the pain of a CH is a fairly good enough analogy to try to make people know what this feels like. Obviously, I've had both and a brain freeze hurts like hell, but CH pain is far more of a burning hot pain. Red hot poker in the eye, while a brain freeze is more of a intense ache. I do think there's a difference.

I don't mean to be picky just that well....I guess I am being picky. LOL

Back to top

Hurt people.....hurt people. Think about it.

IP Logged

Traveller CH.com Veteran Offline Posts: 148 Tampa, FL Gender:	Re: CH - Brain Freeze Reply #5 - Apr 30^th, 2012 at 8:35am Fascinating conversation and article. When I had my first cycle last fall I used the brain freeze analogy to tell people what I was going through - I think its a useful example, if not quite perfect.
Back to top	IP Logged

Barry_T_Coles CH.com Alumnus Offline Posts: 2073 Karratha\|,West_Australia Gender:	Re: CH - Brain Freeze Reply #6 - May 3^rd, 2012 at 7:53pm Interesting article. A question of others though; I can still get brain freeze when say belting down an icy cold Red Bull BUT only on my non cluster side, since I went chronic I have never had a brain freeze on my cluster side. Just wondering if this happens to others as well? Cheers Barry
Back to top	Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!! You need to or Of all the things i've lost in life the thing i miss most is my mind. IP Logged

wimsey1 CH.com Alumnus Offline I Love CH.com! Posts: 2457 MA Gender:	Re: CH - Brain Freeze Reply #7 - May 4^th, 2012 at 7:52am Hey, Barry. I also get a brain freeze when chugging on a Monster double. Seems to me it's on the affected side (for me, the right) but I'll pay more attention next time...if I can...I'm usually busy trying to abort the hit. Interesting thought, though. blessings. lance
Back to top	IP Logged

BobG CH.com Hall of Famer Offline Posts: 6422 St. George, UT Gender:	Re: CH - Brain Freeze Reply #8 - May 6^th, 2012 at 1:20pm I like my ice cream a lot and often. I also eat it too fast somtimes. My brain freeze is always on the right side and my clusters are lefties. The good thing about brain freeze is they only last about 10 seconds (but seem much longer).
Back to top	Stay stressed. Never relax. Never sleep. Ever. IP Logged

Click Here to visit the CH.com Facebook page!

coach_bill CH.com Hall of Famer Offline "Dont expect me to lay down for this" Posts: 680 x0\|euclid\|USA\|\|0\|0\|OH,Ohio Gender:	Re: CH - Brain Freeze Reply #9 - May 6^th, 2012 at 11:05pm I think it may be a good comparison due to the intensity of the pain and the quickness that it arrives with. To people with tattos, it's alot easier for me to explain to, I tell them it would feel like getting a tatoo on my eyeball. Coach Bill
Back to top	boy i cant wait till it's my turn to give him a headache. paybacks a bitch IP Logged

GG

CH.com Newbie

Offline

I Love CH.com!

Posts: 1

Re: CH - Brain Freeze
Reply #10 - May 22^nd, 2012 at 12:05pm

Just had a big frozen drink from Starbucks... gulped it down fast and got a "brain freeze" on the right side of my head... I kinda chuckled to myself and thought it funny that how I never get any sensations like that on my right side (all my cluster headaches are 100% my left side)... then I had a bit of an insight... that 20 second brain freeze actually lit up all the same pain locations as my real ones (though it is more like a cold tickle compared to an actually attack)... so I Googled it... very interesting stuff...

cluster-headache.blogspot.ca/2008/02/interesting-tid-bit-from-nyu-science.html

bodyodd.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2010/08/19/4929146-brain-freeze-the-agony-and-ecstas
y-of-ice-cream?lite

-GG

Back to top

IP Logged

Zeitgeist

CH.com Alumnus

Offline

Clustery szcmustery

Posts: 91
|Norway|
Gender: male

Re: CH - Brain Freeze
Reply #11 - Sep 17^th, 2015 at 9:29am

Hi all

Here's another and more comprehensive article on brain freeze. Apparently migraine sufferers are more likely to experience them. I suppose that goes for cluster heads as well. I myself find the nature of the pain too similiar to ignore.

Why does ice cream freeze our brain?
Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!! You need to

or

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

or

)

Back to top

-zg

IP Logged

	Welcome, Guest. Please Login or Register
	Search box updated Dec 3, 2011... Search ch.com with Google!