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        New Message Board Archives >> Jul-Sep 2003 >> Your personal CH triggers?
        
(Message started by: Patrick_A on Jul 9^th, 2003, 11:15am)

Title: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Patrick_A on Jul 9^th, 2003, 11:15am

I am looking for Known CH triggers besides alcohol.
Any and all imputs are appreciated.
Thank you, Patrick

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by BobG on Jul 9^th, 2003, 11:24am

I just posted a list in your Welcome Back...Geeesh string.

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by CJohnson on Jul 9^th, 2003, 11:38am

I think a serotonin imbalance (caused by some anomoly in the hypothalamic regulation of neurotransmission) inducing my trigeminal nerve to release vasoactive neuropeptides triggers activity from pain transmitting nociceptors along all three branches of my trigeminal nerve. It is the presence of these neuropeptides which induce dilation of blood vessels along the trigeminal nerve.
Fortunately triptans bind to my 5HT1d receptors to block the release of these neuropeptides through some 5HT1d specific inhibitory mechanism, effectively aborting the attack.

PFDANs
-Curtis

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by echo on Jul 9^th, 2003, 11:40am

Bob -- ref: Geeesh thread -- Holy shit what a list.

New one for me -- Altocor 60mg (lovastatin) Thought my friggen eye was being ripped from my head. Hung in there for about 8 hours overall. With numerous little breaks throughout -- just long enough to let you think it was over. Wrong - Loser - try again!

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by BobG on Jul 9^th, 2003, 11:46am

echo
your Altocor 60mg (lovastatin) has been added to the list. Thanks

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by echo on Jul 9^th, 2003, 11:49am

Thanks Bob -- I do appreciate you taking care of us the way you do. Hopefully it may save someone else from having an evening of hell like I did.

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Pushkin on Jul 9^th, 2003, 12:06pm

In addition to the great list on the other thread, anger for me.

Anger is an invitation to the beast.

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Big_Dan on Jul 9^th, 2003, 12:17pm

... I honestly don't know.. but I think excessive sunlight causes some shadows...

... sorry I couldn't help more...

... as far as alcohol... the stronger the more painful...

-Big Dan

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by catlind on Jul 9^th, 2003, 1:23pm

There's a few of us who have found that vicks is a trigger as well. I used to use a vicks inhaler to try to clear up my stuffed nose and would get hammered with an attack.

I quit using the vicks and life improved greatly.

Cat

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by jonny on Jul 9^th, 2003, 1:30pm

None here.

.............................jonny

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by RevDeFord on Jul 9^th, 2003, 2:21pm

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The only trigger that I can say with absolute certainty hits me is when I have a wide change in sleep cycle. An example - If I have a lock-in with the kids on Friday, I can guarantee you that by the Tuesday a week and a half later, I will start a cluster episode. This has happened to me time and again like that. Almost always the week or so after I drive a long ways for vacation I get one, when I have been up all night.

It stands to reason since the hypothalamus is tied to clusters as well, that when I have a wide change in sleep, it gets off kilter.

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by taraann on Jul 9^th, 2003, 2:29pm

I also think when my sleep is more than usually lessened I seem to jump start an attack. Also major stress seems to do it too.

Tara

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by NotH20 on Jul 9^th, 2003, 2:44pm

I'd have to agree with Big Dan on the sunlight.....trigger for me as well :(

Mia

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Jayne on Jul 9^th, 2003, 3:02pm

Stress can bring on mine.
Alcohol
Niacin
my boss (she never shuts up)
My boyfriend (he never shuts up)
Heat
did I say my boss yet?
Lack of sleep.
Oh yeah..and my boss

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by ShariRae on Jul 9^th, 2003, 4:22pm

I hafta agree with one of Jayne's triggers...
HEAT does it for me..when it starts to get hot here.. I never stray very far from the pool,the freezer or my frozen peas. Seems that if I can cool my temp down a bit, it will abort or at least lessen the headache..
Shari

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Big_Dan on Jul 9^th, 2003, 4:59pm

... with the sunlight, it gives me shadows out of cycle... that's what I was trying to say....

... working outside during the summer is a bitch for me...

-Big Dan

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by echo on Jul 9^th, 2003, 5:04pm

Jayne's boss. Anytime, anywhere as far as her boss is concerned. I think we should spay or neuter the person. To save time on the search I'll just do it to mine and call it a "Proxy Snip". ;D

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Roxy on Jul 9^th, 2003, 5:35pm

So far, I've only found one trigger. I absolutely cannot refinish hard wood floors......will trigger a hit withing minutes. A vote was taken, and the rest of the family believe it's the manual labor invovled.... ;D, I say it's the fumes...... ;)

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Mark C on Jul 9^th, 2003, 8:09pm

Out of cycle...nothing...in cycle, alcohol...and nitroglycerine !
:o
Look here (http://www.clusterheadaches.org/triggers.htm) and here (http://www.clusterheadaches.org/library/general/pain_ch.htm).

PFDAN's
Mark

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Linda_Howell on Jul 9^th, 2003, 8:16pm

Being chronic, I would have had to say nothing. Til last month when I went to a BBQ and there was Citronella candles going everywhere. The fumes were very strong and I got hit immediately. I'd only been there less than 5 mins. So someone else got to eat my filet mignon. shit!

LindaH

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by paul_b on Jul 9^th, 2003, 9:33pm

Would you believe that "selantro" does it. Have to be careful it is not in the food when I go out to eat. Also, if I get severely overheated, it can bring one on.

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Live4Fun on Jul 9^th, 2003, 9:39pm

Alcohol (80% of time) and rise in temperature are the only two I've narrowed down. I think taking naps in the middle of the day brings them on too, but not sure.

Bryan

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Patrick_A on Jul 9^th, 2003, 10:50pm

All great replies. Thank you.
Now let me try and narrow my list down a bit.
I have episodic Ch's. I tend to start out with 1 or 2 a week and rapidly get into 3 to 6 a day for 4 to 6 weeks. All approximates of course. Then i tend to ramp back the other way.
Alcohol was a 100% trigger for me during my cycles, outside of my cycle, i could drink a truckload and never bother me.
I remember being told to avoid Dry roasted anything, Caffeine, Cheese, alcohol and nicotine. I have never tried quitting smoking, but i am considering it this time. I am trying to find a way to reduce the amounts and severity. If nothing else it will give me a diversion for a while.
Thanks for the info on Oxygen, I vaguely remember that being suggested 3 years ago. I will suggest it to my Neuro at my appointment.
Thanks, Patrick

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by gene on Jul 10^th, 2003, 12:45am

Triggers?

Pot, pain pills, altitude/ flying, vacations, season changes

gene

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by CJohnson on Jul 10^th, 2003, 6:35am

WARNING: WILD SPECULATION
Alcohol has been shown to disrupt circadean rhythm. Perhaps the aspect of circadean rhythm alcohol affects coupled with its vasodilatory effect are the reason an attack follows a drink. Perhaps the circadean rhythm of some chronic sufferers is so out of whack that alcohol doesn't have a predictable or identifiable effect on the timing of an attack. Am I misinformed as far as alcohol not being a trigger for many of the chronic sufferers?

PFDANs
-Curtis

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by sueellen83 on Jul 10^th, 2003, 9:39am

I too am episodic. When in cycle 1 sip of any alcohol will trigger a CH.

Onions and MSG will make the CH more intense.

Drastic changes in temperature from heat to cold and vice versa will trigger a cycle.

Changes in my sleeping habits will also trigger CH.

Nitroglycerin will also trigger a CH when I'm in cycle.
This was bad when I worked on the telemetry floor at the hospital!! I was always having to put Nitro paste on patients every 2-4 hours. No matter how you tried not to get that stuff on you it couldn't be done.

Pain free wishes to all!!!

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by totka on Jul 10^th, 2003, 2:04pm

Milk! I verified it just once but it was a paiful checking.
http://www.tar.hu/totka/woc.jpg

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by don on Jul 10^th, 2003, 2:12pm

breathing

eating

Having a pulse

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by hdbngr on Jul 10^th, 2003, 2:23pm

When chronic, you can go crazy trying to determine what is a trigger. I chased my tail for a year, doing all of the diet changes, meds, exercise regimes, regular sleep times, eat times.

Got down to where I was drinking strawberry slim Fast, Triscuits, and WonTon Soup (without the MSG) and nothing else. Lost a lot of weight, but the headaches didn't get better.

Iwent back to sleeping when I could, eating what I want, and realizing exercise didn't help, it hurt.

I'm only sure of a few things that will make it much WORSE, and they are:

Red wine
flickering flourescent lighting (with that little buzz)
second-hand cigarette smoke (which never bothered me before)
Reglan (a popular headache med)

Strange.

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by NewHeadPLZ on Jul 10^th, 2003, 3:09pm

Extreme temp changes. Mostly Cold to Hot

Weather Changes

MSG

Afternoon naps - hell falling asleep at any time during a cycle.

And I would have never believed this until it happened a few days ago - SEX >:( >:( >:(. Guess that would go along with working out??

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Kenzie60 on Jul 11^th, 2003, 6:59am

Sunlight is also a trigger along with a couple others:

Change of weather (extreme change from hot to cold or cold to hot)

Cittronella candles also.

Also the chlorine in the pool (this one really sucks).

Roseanne

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by pablo on Jul 11^th, 2003, 7:59am

I tried two NA beers last night I had a CH. It had ben four days since my last. Seems even the %0.5 alcohol is enough to trigger my CH.

As I've mentioned in a previous thread: a physical activity that either increases my body temperature and/or my blood pressure (I don't know which), triggers a CH.

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by jlm77 on Jul 11^th, 2003, 3:12pm

Here's some more:

alcohol--1 wine-red
2 beer
3 spirits
msg
onions
tomato
shellfish
citrus--any form,including citric acid--no gummy's ???
yougart
ice cream
fast food--nitrates-sulfates

good luck in finding some of yours

ps--sunlight, heat & caffine---help w/ my CHs

Title: Re: Your personal CH triggers?
Post by Gofishgriff on Jul 11^th, 2003, 6:38pm

The only trigger I've really noticed is an extremely hot, humid day working outside.

Of course, my wife thinks this is a handy excuse not to mow the yard on the weekend! ;D

I tend to go fairly long between cycles, the last gap being well over a year and a half. Also, my cycles seem to last a little under a month, so I haven't put a lot of effort in finding triggers. I sorta bear with them becasue I know they're going to go away.

I know, I know, I'm pretty lucky... I feel for you guys and gals who get them a lot more often.