Posted by Joe Stone (205.169.199.24) on July 12, 1999 at 15:07:11:
In Reply to: I May Have Cluster Headaches Too. posted by T. Powell on July 10, 1999 at 05:47:26:
Definitely go see a neuro, don't mess around with any more general practitioners, and have him rule out everything else. Cluster headaches affect different individuals in different ways. Some get them in the middle of the night. Some during the day. I have always gotten them a couple of hours after waking up like you. Sometimes I'll get one immediately upon waking. This is just a shot in the dark but I would find others whose symptoms are like yours and try what they've found to be successful first. You can mess around with medications for years before you find anything that works. Bar none, for the me the best medication is Imitrex, preferably in the nasal inhalers. The pills take too long to work but are considerably less expensive. Zomig has also been a bit of a miracle drug for me. As for caffeine, it's a bit like taking communion for me. A big ass cup of mountain dew as soon as I get to work has been a ritual for years. I don't know about the effectiveness of it but psychologically, it has the desired affect. The physical pain is one thing to deal with, the psychological trauma is the other. Sometimes just as bad or worse. Stick to this site and don't worry about using it to make yourself feel better. It has literally changed my life. Being able to talk to others with the same problem is immensely helpful. The very nasty depression and anxiety I've been going through for the last several years is beginning to lift, and it's in no small part because of this site. Unfortunately or perhaps fortunately research is pointing to physical abnormalities in the brain as the docking place for the demon. Unfortunately I say because we still know so little about the brain. But fortunately because more research is being done on the brain than ever before. Hang tough and keep boppin and weavin.
Joe Stone