Not new to CH unfortunetly! My husband has been getting these for about 15 years but only got diagnosed about 2 years ago, i actually did a google search and found this website and got lots of invaluable information.
Anyways got imitrex injections off his doc after having to change doctors because his last doctor kept recommending nasal sprays for migranes (as thats what he prescribed for his own son who had migranes) even though he told the doc that they were cluster headaches (obviously had no experience with CH).  This is the first chance he has had to use the injections and they are working a miricle thank God - CH gone in about 5 minutes.  The problem is he is having around 1 episode every 6 hours but he is only supposed to take 2 injections ever 24 hours.  He took 4 injections yesterday and is on his 3rd today, i'm really worried in case he does any damage to himself but at the moment i think the relief he is getting outweights any long term damage.
He gets the CH approx. every 2 years but they can go on for a month.
He also has an o2 tank but it's empty at the moment and won't be able to get it filled till Tuesday (he has never used it but it just seems to have emptied itself.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Nasal sprays can trigger CH for me. Sometimes a while after I have finished using them. Took me a long time to work that out and even then I have forgotten about it from time to time.

A steroid taper such as Prednisilone for about 10 days can stop CHs. Start on verapamil or lithium at the same time which takes about 10 days to kick in. That should reduce the use of sumatriptan. I try to keep O2 supply for 3 or 4 days ahead and order it when I have 2 days left.

Best wishes,

Ellick

Also check the Imitrex tip on the left.

Oliver

Hi, yeah i have done and mentioned it to husband but he reckons it will be very difficult to inject himself and push a q tip through the other end without sending the needle far into his leg whilst in agonising pain! I will check with the chemist if it's possible to get imitrex that can be self injected to minimise his dosage but i'd say it will be doubtful!

Ask for the imitrex to be dispenced in vials, where you then use a diabetic syringe to take just the amount needed, instead of the stat doses with the pen.  It can be injected into the belly fat just like a diabetic does.  

My experience with imitrex is that I have episodes where I need to take 2 or so a day, but when I exceed 2 I get concerned that I may be "conditioning" myself to have more frequent attacks.  I have no evidence for this other than a gut feeling.  So in my case, I make sure to limit myself to 2 maximum, and make sure I have enough oxygen around.  Just my personal reflections.

You could look at the tablets.  They seemed to have longer lasting effects for me but they take a while to work unlike the injection, so two pills a day might do it for him.  I would definitely get that oxygen filled, though.  A high flow of 100% oxygen can also work miracles.  I was reluctant to try it after I got it, too, and the 1st time I used it I was pushed away because I was hit hard right after going off the O2.  However, I learned that if I get on it right away, and stay on it a while after the pain has gone down, it works GREAT, there is no limit to how often I can use it (short of running out of oxygen), it's cheaper than imitrex, and it is safe.

Redd:

Where can you get it dispensed in vials?  I never heard of that.

However, I did read a post here that one person takes apart the inj kits and has a way to inject ~2mg at a time.  That's worth a try, but I'm not going to mess with the kits.

If vials are available, that's certainly worth looking into.

andyregan wrote on Feb 8^th, 2009 at 3:06pm:

Hi, yeah i have done and mentioned it to husband but he reckons it will be very difficult to inject himself and push a q tip through the other end without sending the needle far into his leg whilst in agonising pain! I will check with the chemist if it's possible to get imitrex that can be self injected to minimise his dosage but i'd say it will be doubtful!

You can get Sumatriptan in nasal spray form. They can work quite well but the secret of all the treatments is judging ahead. In my experience the earlier you treat the quicker it works. For example, I cant tell when I am going to get hit but I know when I am in cycle that when shadows reach a certain but still manageable point I go for an abort. O2 first then suma if I get heavy shadows before bed. It often means staying awake for long periods so you know the shadows are escalating, rather than go to bed and wake up hit.
The way it works with me is the longer I leave the signs the longer it takes to abort and the pain still escalates even though I have used suma or O2.

Hope what I have written makes sense. Happy to clarify further if you want me too.

Good luck and best wishes for freedom from the pain.

Ellick.

get the vials like redd said. i draw .25 or 3 mg or half the vial and its usually enough to do well enough. then i get 4 shots a day if needed. the imitrex tip is difficult when the vials make it so much easier.

I still didn't hear where I can get some vials instead of the kits or refills for the injections.

Does anyone know where to source the vials?  I'm sure my Dr will write me a script for it, but I need to know where to get.

i get mine at the pharmacy the come in a box of 5 vials or 10 vials.
the first time pharmacist had to order it but he keeps it on hand now.