greetingz
i am Ronnie.
Glad i found this place. It's always a great help knowing i'm not alone i this. Now where to begin?
I woke up with a killer headache on the 12th of january this year, and was stuck with it for a month. My gp and psychiatrist were getting a bit worried because i was already on lamictin to treat my epilepsy and rivotril to help me sleep. So far i've only had 2 really bad attacks, the last one was on tuesday and i've been terrified of them since. I still need to figure out how to deal with it. They put me on trepiline to help keep them at bay.

Thankfully the neurologist said i could still do mixed martial arts. It's one thing i'll never give up. And now getting punched in the face won't seem as painful anymore so there's a strange positive side to it. I plan on going far in mma and i figure if i can get a handle on the fear i could people to push past their problems instead of using them as an excuse to do nothing.

Hope i'll be of some use here. I like helping people. But i feel weak if i have to ask for help. I suppose helping others is just my way of dealing with my own problems so i hope i can contribute in some way.

Glad you found us. Wondering if your doc has good knowledge/skills to treat Cluster?

I'll mention of items for our learning, the one in the PDF file, below would be useful to print out for your doc.

This article is worth printing in whole:




Cluster headache.
From: START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE (Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases)
[Easy to read; one of the better overview articles I've seen. Suggest printing the full length article--link, line above--if you are serious about keeping a good medical library on the subject.]

Leroux E, Ducros A.

ABSTRACT: Cluster headache (CH) is a primary headache disease characterized by recurrent short-lasting attacks (15 to 180 minutes) of excruciating unilateral periorbital pain accompanied by ipsilateral autonomic signs (lacrimation, nasal congestion, ptosis, miosis, lid edema, redness of the eye). It affects young adults, predominantly males. Prevalence is estimated at 0.5-1.0/1,000. CH has a circannual and circadian periodicity, attacks being clustered (hence the name) in bouts that can occur during specific months of the year. ALCOHOL IS THE ONLY DIETARY TRIGGER OF CH, STRONG ODORS (MAINLY SOLVENTS AND CIGARETTE SMOKE) AND NAPPING MAY ALSO TRIGGER CH ATTACKS. During bouts, attacks may happen at precise hours, especially during the night. During the attacks, patients tend to be restless. CH may be episodic or chronic, depending on the presence of remission periods. CH IS ASSOCIATED WITH TRIGEMINOVASCULAR ACTIVATION AND NEUROENDOCRINE AND VEGETATIVE DISTURBANCES, HOWEVER, THE PRECISE CAUSATIVE MECHANISMS REMAIN UNKNOWN. Involvement of the hypothalamus (a structure regulating endocrine function and sleep-wake rhythms) has been confirmed, explaining, at least in part, the cyclic aspects of CH. The disease is familial in about 10% of cases. Genetic factors play a role in CH susceptibility, and a causative role has been suggested for the hypocretin receptor gene. Diagnosis is clinical. Differential diagnoses include other primary headache diseases such as migraine, paroxysmal hemicrania and SUNCT syndrome. At present, there is no curative treatment. There are efficient treatments to shorten the painful attacks (acute treatments) and to reduce the number of daily attacks (prophylactic treatments). Acute treatment is based on subcutaneous administration of sumatriptan and high-flow oxygen. Verapamil, lithium, methysergide, prednisone, greater occipital nerve blocks and topiramate may be used for prophylaxis. In refractory cases, deep-brain stimulation of the hypothalamus and greater occipital nerve stimulators have been tried in experimental settings.THE DISEASE COURSE OVER A LIFETIME IS UNPREDICTABLE. Some patients have only one period of attacks, while in others the disease evolves from episodic to chronic form.

PMID: 18651939 [PubMed]
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Please be direct if you have specific questions, information needs, etc.

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Ronnie,

It isn't weak to ask for help.  There will be fear with these.  I won't lie about that.  This is what these forums are for.  To try to provide support to one another.  We understand it. 

How to deal with it?  What do you do when you spar or fight?  You prepare as best you can.  You step onto the mat or into the ring and you do what you trained over and over for.  Same idea.  If one treatment, or strategy doesn't work, you change tactics. When the headache changes tactics, you change tactics.  If that requires asking for help, then so be it.  It doesn't mean you're weak.  It means you're human.  It's the best opponent I've ever sparred with. 

You will hear a lot of negative about ch's.  The positive of these.  You will appreciate life that much more.  The good times are that much sweeter.  A little bitter when the pain starts back up, but sweeter.  The respect I give to the people on these boards because they know a staggering (understatement) amount of pain...they've earned it. 

Didn't want this for you Ronnie.  Don't know if this helps.  Hope it does.  Hope your matches are going well.

Damn, Jmag, that was beautifully put. Couldn't have said better myself. We really are sparring with the beast. And it is a tricky bugger. And we do take the hits. But from time to time, we hit back. And that is sweet! Weak? No weakling has ever managed to stay in the ring with the beast. I watched a 2011 fight yesterday between Jones and Rua. Jones dominated the octagon, and after 2 1/2 rounds, Rua looked I do after a long day of sparring the monster. Made me feel kinda tough actually, not weak. And hey, I get to fight the sucker again today! Rather not, of course, but I didn't choose this regimen...it called me out. Blessings. lance