I landed on your site a few days ago and immediately registered myself. This place is great! Thank you!!!

I am 57 years old and I've been living with this beast for 22 years. Like many of you, I didn't know what was happening to me at first. Sinus headaches? Infections? Allergies? Smoking too much pot? Did I have a brain tumor? Was I going to have a stroke for Christ's sake!? All of these questions would run through my mind as I bashed my head against the floor at three o'clock in the morning. Every morning. Day after day after day. Then...like magic...the agony would suddenly stop and life would return to normal. Until the next autumn or spring when the sh!t would hit the fan again. General Practitioners were clueless. They'd poke around for a while, scratch their heads and prescribe painkillers. Nose & Throat specialists were clueless. They'd probe around in my nostrils. Mutter "hmm" a couple times, scratch their heads and prescribe other useless medications. Finally, I consulted with the one medical expert I thought would have some answers. My Mother, the Registered Nurse. She of course couldn't figure anything out either until one day, she read an article in the newspaper describing an affliction known as "Cluster Headache". She clipped the article and sent it to me with a note stating, "This sounds like you!" As I read through the symptoms description I began to tremble as I realized that this is exactly what I'm experiencing! Finally, something I can wrap my head around (pun COMPLETELY intended!) and possibly get some relief. Got with a new doctor, told him EXACTLY what I had, and found that he was familiar with the ailment. The solution he recommended was 360mg daily verapamil as a preventive measure, and 8lpm O2 to kill the headaches whenever they occurred. I immediately started the verapamil and the oxygen was delivered to my home a few days later in a big 'M' tank with a regular medicinal mask. At the first sign of an attack that night, I snorted up the oxygen and was nearly brought to tears as the attack was stopped in its tracks. I cannot describe the euphoria I felt when I knew I finally had a solution! It was like a whole new kind of high. That cycle ended in May of 2000 and for the next 12(!) years I was free! I thought it was over, done, kaput!!

Well...not exactly.

In September of 2012, right around the time our guys were being murdered in Benghazi, our mutual little friend came back into my life. This time with a few more surprises for me. Not only would he wake me up in the middle of the night, but he also enjoyed pounding on me during working hours just so he could laugh at me as I desperately tried to hide from my associates. He would also love to hit me with kip8 or 9 as I drove down the expressway in rush hour traffic. Boy! Was that fun!!! I had his number though. Back to the doc for more verapamil and O2 and his visit was ended finally in February 2013. He crawled away in partial defeat, but came back for a return engagement in March 2014 with more viscous attacks and a couple trips to the ER.

More verapamil and O2 knocked him down again by May of that year.

This year, he's reared himself again for another spring session and we've just recently completed our annual battle. Life, for now, has again returned to normal.

I'm telling you all of this as a means of introducing myself, and to let you know what I've learned from your wonderful site. Now that I'm in remission, I'm going to continue with the verapamil at 360mg per day in stead of quitting it because the cycle has ended. Doc and I have decided that I should stick with it forever in order to try and prevent our friend's uninvited return. I've also found, with your help and guidance, that I've been using the oxygen all wrong. I'm breathing through the same kind of medicinal mask when I should get my hands on a non-rebreathable rig and also increase the flowrate from 8lpm to something like 15 or 25. With these new weapons in my armory, and about half a dozen portable E-tanks of O2, I'll be more than ready to fight this little bastard if/when he makes his appearance again. I will also consult with the doc about the D3 regiment that has been discussed here. That sounds like a nice secret weapon to spring on my little friend and maybe throw him a surprise or two in the future! Cool!!!

I've resigned myself to the fact that, at least for now, there is no cure for this thing. But, with my experiences over the years, and your added vast amounts of knowlege and experiences, I think I have a handle on it and can live a normal life in spite of, and defiance toward, the little monster we all must live with. I intend to drop by and visit with you guys from time to time. Just to catch up and see what's new. But for now, as I am in remission once again, I'd like to forget this thing for a while. But I will never forget the people here.

God Bless you all. Stay well. And fight the fight!

Nicholas

Hi Nicholas and welcome,
Do try the vitamin D regimen as opposed to the Verapamil! It's a much more healthier option in more ways than one, and has a good record at keeping the beast at bay in us Spring and Fall clusterheads. Myself included.

Hoppy