Hello from Pennsylvania and good day to you all. I have been a CH sufferer for 5 years now. I will be turning 50 this coming December. I have been making a journal of all of my cycles and hits since the very first CH I suffered. It freaked me out that much. I get my clusters during the fall every year and my cycle just began on Friday. This may be a coincidence, but the first attack I got was when I was exposed to Mold. Basement mold to be specific. My latest cycle started on friday when I was again exposed to basement mold at my girlfriends home. It hit me straight away with about a kip 7. I had been cluster free for 9 months. I dont know if this is a trigger, but seems more than coincidence. On another note having looked back on all of the notes in my pain journal I have found that the pain, in my case, radiates from the ganglion lump that I get on the back of my neck. during pain down time the lump is not hard, but sore to the touch. while I am having a hit it is swollen and full of fluid or air? All of my head pain can be traced back to the lump. As my hit developes the lump has 3 fingers the extend up to the base of my skull..this is the got cha moment, when the agony begins. Those fingers get tight and HARD AS A ROCK SENDING THE PAIN RIGHT TO THE BRAIN. I  have found that if when I feel the first tinge of a hit coming on if I apply some Capsaicin cream to the lump and gently rub it pulling each finger downward from the base of my skull down to the lump it keeps the fingers from reaching the base of my skull. I take my 2 index fingers and rake the knot downward, the cream makes it easier and feels good on the lump. This has worked very well. If I allow the fingers to get to my skull Im gonna suffer. Sometimes I dont wake up in time and it gets me or sometimes it is just to powerful for this to be affective, but It has worked a lot of times. It seems to me that that knot is the source of all the pain. Rubbing it during a hit will bring  tears streaming down your face and give you a runny nose but its worth the effort. I imagine the knot as a storage vessel for toxins.

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Welcome to the board! The knot you get is common to ch'ers but by no means universal. Have you tried oxygen yet? It's great for those wake up calls when the beast is already firmly entrenched.

Does your current neuro have a good handle on treating CH? Does he have you on an effective prevent such as verapamil, lithium or topomax? Do you have abortives for your attacks like imitrex injectables or nasal sprays? And again, oxygen? Let us know what your treatment plan is, maybe we can give you some ideas to run back to your neuro.

Joe

Also check out the thread on the vitamin D3 regimen Batch startedSTART PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE. Tons of information that has helped quite a few people, including myself.

Thank you. I got started on verapamil and have O2 coming. Aborted last nite with 5 hr energy...my how well that worked. Im on day 2 of D3 and fish oil and feel good. I have a posirive outlook even though im only less than a week into my cycle. Go :od bless this site and its supporters.

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