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        New Message Board Archives >> Medications, Treatments, Therapies 2004 >> i am new to ch 
        
(Message started by: disco on Feb 2^nd, 2004, 6:51pm)

Title: i am new to ch
Post by disco on Feb 2^nd, 2004, 6:51pm

hi i am new hear and have had ch every day for two weeks no medicine has helpped yet .No one in my town nos what they are need sum help

Title: Re: i am new to ch
Post by Giovanni on Feb 2^nd, 2004, 7:28pm

Hi Disco,

Try to find a neurologist or doctor perhaps in a closeby town that is familiar with CH. In the meantime educate yourself as much as possible with the links provided to your left on this board. You'll be looking for some preventatives and abortatives for these headaches. Verapamil works for many of us as a preventative. Imitrex injections and or oxygen are good choices for abortatives. There are many others, some successful other not. What works on one person, may not work on another.

Did you received a comfirmed diagonisis of cluster headaches? Anyway, best of luck to you and read on.

John

:-/

Title: Re: i am new to ch
Post by disco on Feb 2^nd, 2004, 7:34pm

i am going to see a neuro in the next couple of weeks at the moment i have got maxmalt and when its really bad i go to the docs and he gives me a 30 mg ijection of morphine

Title: Re: i am new to ch
Post by Stevieray on Feb 3^rd, 2004, 12:14am

Welcome to our world. Sorry to hear that you have met the "Beast". I don't know if you have done much reading on this site, but there is a wealth if information here for you, perhaps moe than you can absorb, but from what I gleaned from all my reading, I found that not all treatments work for everyone. Or in other words you will have to find what works for you. When you do it will help you recover more quickly.My first bout lasted almost 4 months but this time my MD went straight to the computor and researched what she thought would be the best treatment for me and my bout only lasted one month this time. As for the pain, Imitrex seems to work quickly for me. I use the nasal spray and although the taste can make you gag, it knocks the pain down in about five minutes. I've heard that the injections work in about 3 minutes, and they don't put you out like the narcotics do.. I did the demerol thing last time and I could't do anything for half a day after, no work or driving (for 24 hrsl. egally)although my kids caught me up on the roof shoveling the snow off one time.
I have used the Imitrex at work and have been able to continue in less than half an hour although I was a bit groggy and had what they call a "shadow" for about 4 hours after but was still able to function reasonably well and then drive for an hour home after. You should also check out the OUCH web site as it originated in GB and there is a lot of information there too. Good luck with your visit to the neuro and don't take no for an answer. Make sure you feel that they are looking out for your best interests. Mine just said ' You have cluster headaches, keep on the meds" and then left the room, after I took a day off work and drove for 2 hours to see him. Hell, my cat coulda said the same thing!(demerol talking gain!) A lot of MDs don't know diddly about cluster headaches and I was impressed that mine took the time during my visit to research the affliction. She used Mayo Clinic and some neuro research Hospital in California to come up with the meds she gave me, Verapimil and then Lithium. What ever , it did the trick and I am pain free now for 20 days now. Cheers, Stevieray.

Title: Re: i am new to ch
Post by ave on Feb 3^rd, 2004, 4:19am

Disco,

rather than getting yourself shop up with morphine, try a knowledgeable doc.

You may find one here: http://www.clusterheadaches.org/doctors.htm

The whole OUCH site has lots of good info too, as does this one, under the buttons on the left.

But get out of that morphine-slough.

Title: Couple of ideas.....
Post by Bob_Johnson on Feb 3^rd, 2004, 11:35am

While I'm glad you are seeing a neurologist, too many folks here have found that they are not all skilled in working with headache. I'd suggest that you call his office and ask, very directly, whether he has interest, training, and experience with complex headache cases. (You can ask the office staff. If they balk at responding, then ask to talk to the doc.)

The point is: look for another doc if you can't get assurance that this person is skilled. The medical literature and experiences reported here, report people taking several years to find a skilled physician--if you just move around, trying here and there. Better to ask directly before you make a commitment to someone.

Also, buy one of the following and start educating yourself. Such a resource will give you confidence, give you ideas to talk to the doc about re. treatment.
--

HANDBOOK OF HEADACHE MANAGEMENT, 2nd ed., Au. Joel Saper, MD, 1999, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. A highly condensed volume for doctors but good for "advanced" clusterheads who have a grasp of medical terminology and medications. Covers all types of headache with the section on cluster being brief. Sections on general considerations in treatment and on medications are important.

MANAGEMENT OF HEADACHE AND HEADACHE MEDICATIONS, 2nd ed. Lawrence D. Robbins, M.D.; pub. by Springer. $49 at Amazon.Com. This volume is better organized and easier to read for nonprofessionals compared to Saper's book. It covers all types of headache and is primarily focused on medications. While the two chapters on CH total 42-pages, the actual relevant material is longer because of multiple references to material in chapters on migraine, reflecting the overlap in drugs used to treat. I'd suggest reading the chapters on migraine for three reasons: he makes references to CH & medications which are not in the index; there are "clinical pearls" about how to approach the treatment of headache; and, you gain better perspective on the nature of headache, in general, and the complexities of treatment (which need to be considered when we create expectations about what is possible). Finally, women will appreciate & benefit from his running information on hormones/menstrual cycles as they affect headache. Chapter on headache following head trauma, also. Obviously, I'm impressed with Robbins' work (even if the book needs the touch of a good editor!) (Somewhat longer review/content statement at 3/22/00, "Good book....")

HEADACHE HELP, Revised edition, 2000; Lawrence Robbins, M.D., Houghton Mifflin, $15. Written for a nonprofessional audience, it contains almost all the material in the preceding volume but it's much easier reading. Highly recommended.