Hello to all . I had my first encounter with CH in Oct 2014 .It lasted until February 2015 ,at first I had 1 attack a night starting just after i was asleep . Then 2 a night after 4 weeks I had 6 in one night and then the attacks started to reduce in number till after 8 weeks I had my last one . Last year i was pain free till October came around . It followed the same pattern till February and I had a pain free week . Then to my surprise it came back again . With irregular attacks ,Also one or two during the day  .Yeasterday I had 2 in the evening and 5 in the night . So I decided to join this site to see if I can find some answers . I have been prescribed Verapamil . But till now I only tried it for a couple of days because it made me feel so tired and bunged me up. So I handle the attacks with O2 and they stop after a couple of minutes.Just can`t seem to understand what triggers the attacks . I don`t drink Alchohol avoid Coffee and Bacon etc .It feels good just to write about it knowing that you people will comprehend what I`m on about . Thanks for being there

Hi and welcome to the place where we all know about CH from either having it ourselves or we support someone with it.

Look around, read a lot and ask any questions you might have.

As for triggers, some are easier than others to identify however what is a trigger for some isn't for others, but some common ones include alcohol, being tired, stress (high / low / changes between), solvent smells, being hungry, getting too hot, exercise and more. What can help to identify them is if you keep a headache diary and note any possible triggers, then in time you might see a pattern. However despite avoiding triggers you can still get them.

Dave,

You're very welcome here. As the membership here is spread all over the globe there is always someone here if you need to ask questions or simply vent and we do understand.

I spent many years looking for triggers and alcohol is the only one I can definitely say is a true trigger. So I gave up and concentrated on prevention. (Note I did not say cure, as we don't have that yet).

I have tried all the possibles over the years, from Acupunture to Hypnosis to Codeine and a load of prescribed Meds.

After years of episodic I turned chronic about 3 years ago. That is to say I get hit every day, all year round. Life was pretty tough back then, especially as my wife had a series of serious surgeries around the same time. It caused me to retire 2 years early from work because I just could not do it any longer.

A little over a year ago I found this site and the people here were so welcoming and free with their knowledge ( even the grumpy ones) that I shall be eternally grateful.

I started the Vitamin D3 Regimen and have not looked back since. OK, I'm not totally pain free but I got an 80% improvement. There are countless Cluster Heads here will tell you the same.

SO... Here's your reading assignment for the next couple of days:

Go to the Medications & Treatments section and scroll down till you find the thread "123 days pain free..." And read, read, read.

Then, if you have questions, ask.

Then, with your Doctor's cooperation and a D3 serum blood test, start the Regimen and never stop, even when your not in cycle.

Then, keep us updated on your progress and ask, ask, ask.

One little tip that might help the daytime hits; At the first sign wolf down a cold energy drink (red bull, monster or something similar) and always have a few to hand.

These drinks contain Caffeine and Taurine and the theory is that this combination constricts the arteries and reduces pressure on the nerves causing the pain. The gas speeds absorption into the blood.

Mind yourself and remember, there is always someone here.

Peter.

Peter510 wrote on Mar 30^th, 2016 at 5:30am:


Great post Peter!

Good Morning all . Well I`ve been busy reading and have decided to take up the advice from Batch with regards to the Vitamin supplements I recieved all my vitamins yesterday and plan to start this evening with my main meal.As it happens I take Vitamin D 5,000 IU on a Daily basis along with B12 5,000
yg .I had a hit free night last night and long may it continue. It will be interesting to see if the course really works . But I don`t think so many goodies can do any harm .Thanks for all your support Dave

Hey there,

Don't worry about the low mood, Vitamin D3 is the best thing for that. Think about it, we get it naturally from sunshine and people always feel better in sunny weather.

It takes a bit of time to get your D serum up sufficiently to feel the benefits and everybody is different. It depends on your D serum level when you start.

Stick with it. I WILL get better.

Peter.

D3 has worked wonders for quite a few (myself included), but it doesn't always give an instant result with some taking days or even a few weeks for it to kick in. Give it a bit more time and hopefully you'll benefit from it too.