Posted by Mr. Andrea Luminati on January 25, 1999 at 15:22:20:
In Reply to: Ain't gonna believe this weekend. posted by Loretta on January 25, 1999 at 13:34:06:
I too have clusters and migranes simultaneously, so I think I have an idea of what your husband goes through. I'd hate to give you any "tips", 'cause much like I have, I'm guessing you've probably heard and tried them all... but just in case, here's a few.
(1) Excercise - I have found some relief in doing pushups and - whenever possible - pull-ups. A lot of them! Sets of 20 with 30 seconds breaks in between. This does not always get rid of all the pain, but it does help alleviate it. In my mind, I picture all the blood that is compressing my head being forced to move to my muscles... this is probably a bunch of nonsense, but the visualization helps. It also helps to eat well and take supplements so your body can stay strong and handle the physical excercise.
(2) Get a vibrator - not the sexual kind, but some kind of massager that vibrates pretty strongly. I then run it up and down the side of my nose where the pain is untill I find that "special" spot that somehow numbs the pain... also, if I can get myself to sneeze (the vibration tickles)it takes a lot of the pressure off... and sometimes the headache goes with it.
(3) Have an orgasm - lie down on your back, stretch your neck back and give yourself an orgasm... if the neck is stretched enough, you'll feel a warm sensation going up and relieving the pain (sort of like what the Imitrex injection does)... this obviously only works when the headache is just beginning :)
(4) DO NOT DESPAIR - fear feeds these monsters. Stay calm, breathe deep and don't lose it.
(5) Warm head, cold feet - don't know why this helps, but it does. Put your face on a heating pad or hot water bottle, then keep your feet (or rest of the body) cold... I've tried putting my feet in ice water (with ice), but that was too extreme.
(6) Watch the heaters - as in the air conditioner type. Too much hot air (or maybe it's the dust) will only make it worse.
(7) WATCH THE MEDS - Let's just face it, there are no medicines for cluster headaches. There are too few of us for the big companies to see any kind of profit in doing any research. All we have are "other" drugs that coincidentally may (????) help. Unfortunately most of these treatments are for other ailments (depression, heart disease, or at best migranes). I almost died from one of these treatments and so I decided I'd stay away from them. They frighten me and in my experience, only make things worse.
Good luck, and for God's sake, please be very careful with the drugs.