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        New Message Board Archives >> Medications, Treatments, Therapies 2004 >> Newbie looking for advice
        
(Message started by: Poeticsoul on Feb 10^th, 2004, 10:05pm)

Title: Newbie looking for advice
Post by Poeticsoul on Feb 10^th, 2004, 10:05pm

I'm new to this site to. It wasn't until last sping that I was diagnosed with CH. It was my ENT who told me this was a possibility. All this time, I thought I was having severe sinus attacks. I have always has sinus problems since I was 22. But I started have CHs in 99. My primary doc never diagnosed it and missed it. I was taking several different sinus medications and though my sinuses felt better, my pain from the CH would only subside after some Motrin. I always got hit around February-April of every year. In 2000, I didn't have any hits. 2001 to current, I have had hits. The truly weird sh*t is that my ENT told me my CHs can trigger sinus attacks and my sinus attacks can trigger CHs for me. I found this website thanks to a fellow diver and who just happened to be a doctor. Sure enough, the symptoms and experiences that are described here, I have been experiencing since 1999. >:(So hopefully, those of you who have been experiencing this for a long time can help some of us newbies. ::) I have a doctor friend who I will be asking for a script for Imitrex. But for tonight, I will try Excedrin for Migranes and see if it helps. Last night was so bad. I took 8 200mg tabs of motrin before bed. By 2am I had a CH. I downed 2 more 200 mgs tabs. No good. Another 4 more and 2 hours later, I finally fell asleep. Only to be woken up at 7 by the alarm to go to work. I felt like I was in the ring with Lenox Lewis, Mike Tyson, Muhammed Ali, and George Foreman at the same time. Not to mention feeling very groggy. I need some help here. Unfortunately right now, I'm working without insurance. Bummer. So I have some money for meds. But I don't have the benefits of insurance. If any of you have any further advice for me or any newbies to this site please inform us. I am certainly willing to try anything. Last night, the pain was so bad I could have lifted my car up and held up for a few minutes with the pain I felt.

Title: Re: Newbie looking for advice
Post by Prense on Feb 10^th, 2004, 10:42pm

on 02/10/04 at 22:05:03, Poeticsoul wrote:

But for tonight, I will try Excedrin for Migranes and see if it helps. Last night was so bad. I took 8 200mg tabs of motrin before bed. By 2am I had a CH. I downed 2 more 200 mgs tabs. No good. Another 4 more and 2 hours later, I finally fell asleep.

Generally speaking, OTC meds do notta for CH. You can probably save a little $$ by not wasting your time with them. Additionally, overuse of some OTC meds can produce some ill effects. By far the cheapest abortive is O2. Excluding, of course, direct ice application, running, etc. Some here have reported success with melatonin, however, it does nothing for me. Actually, nothing has worked in any way as a preventative for me thus far.

Welcome aboard, stick around, read...there will be plenty of folks that will answer your questions better than I can.

Hang in there!

Chris

Title: Re: Newbie looking for advice
Post by rextangle on Feb 10^th, 2004, 10:46pm

Hi there,

I'm new to this site too...
Ok, in my experience, Motrin, Excedrin, etc... did help for a short while. Then they had the reverse effect on me.

Everytime I had a CH, I would take over the counter meds, and the pain would double within minutes. I've learned to stop taking that crap no matter how bad I would get. What has helped, and again it's my own experience, is drinking very hot mint tea right when I can feel one coming on.

Also, I use a vaporiser (the kind that has steam coming out of it) with some Vicks Inhalant in the little compartment for it. I stick my face about 10 inches from it and breathe through my nose and exhale through my mouth. It's painful (because of the heat) but it has a great effect and helps me breathe.

I also have bad sinuses and whenever I get an attack, right before it, I notice that I can't breathe through my nose.

The past week has been very tough on me too. Saturday night, I had a 2 hour battle with a CH from hell. It was un-freakin-bearable. My right eye was shut and tearing up and the pain was excrutiating.

I hope this can help you somehow.
Good luck with all of it! :)

Title: Re: Newbie looking for advice
Post by Giovanni on Feb 11^th, 2004, 6:47am

Probably the best abortive for a single headache is imitrex injections, too many of which can cause rebounds and possible longer cycle. The imitrex injections work on me within 5 minutes. The next would be O2--probably the cheapest and very few side effects. I have personally had luck with melatonin @9mg one hour before planned bedtime. The melatonin taken with a B-Complex 50. One of the more successful preventatives is verapamil taken at least 240 and up. This may take a few weeks to take hold.

I am now trying the "alternative" treatment for the first time to try to prevent a cycle that always starts in March. For information on this go to:
www.clusterbusters.com

If you have not tried imitrex stat dose injections; ask your doc for a sample and try it. Very expensive to purchase. Good luck to you.

John

Title: Re: Newbie looking for advice
Post by mediccpc on Feb 11^th, 2004, 9:37am

Another suggestion would be to get on Verapimal. It is a cheap drug, Usually taken around 240-360 mg a day. There are some folks that take alot more. It may take about a week to see some change.

Title: Re: Newbie looking for advice
Post by tabbs on Feb 11^th, 2004, 10:05am

I'm a newbie on this site too.
I posted a message about sore heads.

I am in the Uk and have been reading some of the messages on the message board and looking at all of the differences of opinions and medicatons there are available to try but this has just left me more unsure about what to try myself.

I have tried Pizotifen in the past which didn't work.
My bouts last for 3 months and then go away for 2 to 3 years.I am currently 1 month into a cycle/bout and if I don't take anything, then I can get from 1 to 4 attacks a day, but mostly I get an attack after having slept for an hour and it lasts an hour, and if I wait for it to go and then try to sleep again I get another attack.

Anyway, this cycle I went to my doctors after having done my own research into preventative options.But due to risk factors of the preventaives, my doctors prefered I tried one of those as a last resort so instead gave me imigran to try ( known as imitrex in the usa).
So I now take two 50mg tablets a day.

I take one tablet before I go to sleep and then when I wake up with that soreness that indicates I'm about to get an attack (usually after 5 hours), I take another imigran tablet.
I have been following this routine for the past 3 weeks and it has worked for me so far, in terms of it stops night time attacks and means I get to sleep as much as I need (which is from 6 to 8 hours a night).
I have another 2 months to go but have been told and also saw on this site that it's not a good idea what I'm doing, taking the imigran as a preventative as it could cause rebound headaches and also stop being able to work altogeher.
This is a great shame as in the past I have had to go without any relief and very little sleep when I get a cycle on top of all of the pain and misery of the condition.So I was delighted initially when these imigran tablets worked and stopped all of that.

However, now I am worried that I shouldn't carry on using this routine that so far has been working for me and feel that I should go back to the doctors and try a preventative drug instead.
But I'm not sure which to try and to ask my doctor to give me.

Does anyone have any ideas on which would be my best direction now?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Title: Re: Newbie looking for advice
Post by Edski_1 on Feb 11^th, 2004, 10:36am

Generally triptans (imigran/imitrex is sumatriptan) is not used a preventative since these drugs seems to have a limited time scale for effectiveness...thus they are generally used for abortives. But several people have reported using them prior to bed when they have been getting regular night HA's...

I have also noted that using Zomig (zolmitriptan) sometimes leaves me felling pretty good the next day...I've used the 5 mg orally disintegrating tabs mostly...often I've wondered if there was an option for a 1 mg tab if it might have any use as a preventative of if I'd build a tolerance.

This link is a pretty good overview of treatment options for CH's...I think it's from late 2002. TD Rozen has been referenced a few other places, so he (she?) has a little credibility:

http://www.future-drugs.com/Iparticle.asp?publicationid=4&articleid=286

(Been a while since I went there...it's Todd Rozen, so I guess it's HE! :) )

Title: Re: Newbie looking for advice
Post by bobkip on Feb 11^th, 2004, 10:52am

OTC meds for pain (Tylenol, etc) don't do squat for ch. I've been doing the max Tylenol for arthritus and neuropathy pain for months and still got hit, usually 1 to 2 hours after falling asleep and 3 times a night, kip 7s. My abortive is O2 and it works great. Tried verap but had no luck with it. Can't do trex but would if I could. I started a neurontin regime last week for the neuropathy and haven't had a visit from the beast since tho there have been some heavy shadows. Maybe it was just a short cycle?
Kip