Welcome,

Oxygen at 15 lpm with a non-rebreather mask. The one with the bag on it. It takes my cluster away in less than 5 minutes.

As far as drugs, Well there is no point in even asking for certain drugs from most doctors, They are the one with the nice white coats and plaque on the wall.

Just print out the info on the oxygen and take it with you.

Coach Bill.

As far as advice on what to ask for is concerned, yes you'll find a lot of enthusiastic O2 users here, and reading the oxygen info (there's a link to the left of this page) is essential, since there's important info there that doctors just haven't caught onto yet.

If the O2 fails me I use an imitrex injection to abort an attack. It works every time for me if caught at onset. Imitrex pill form is ineffective for CH but that doesn't prevent stupid doctors from prescribing it all the time.

For a preventative drug, high dose Verapamil is a favorite of some of the folks here. Someone may come on here to advise you about the best form.

Plenty of other ways to beat back this beast, but that would be some stuff you might get from the doctor.

For the powerful beast fighters that you're not going to get from the doctor, I think this Newsweek (American news magazine) article that just came out provides a good introduction:

Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or

For your hits tonight, I suppose you could always try extremely vigorous exercise, like sprinting til you drop, right at the onset, because that will abort an attack for some of us some of the time.

Then there's the topic from today in this same message board titled "Hey everybody! 30 year old male with 3rd go-around" that you could check out. Or not. I have no further comment on it. 

Welcome to the club!!! The dues suck but the members are a lot of fun!!

Go for a 2 pronged approach with your doc. A prevent medication, Verapamil, Lithium, Topomax, Etc., a med you take daily to reduce frequency and intensity.

An abortive. Oxygen, imitrex, nasal spray or injectable. And if you haven't tried energy drinks, Red Bull, Monster etc., any containing caffeine and taurine, try chugging one of those at the first hint of an attack. Many can reduce or even stop an attack with those, worth a shot!

Joe

Best of luck with the doc appointment Windjammer, and glad to see Giuseppi chiming in here - he's someone you can count on for solid advice.

When you are discussing treatments with a doctor you will increase your leverage by presenting him with medical literature to support your thinking.

A couple of items both for your education and to copy for your doc.
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Cluster headache.
From: Multimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or (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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Below for a PDF file. This document prepared by a medical professional association in the U.S. representing family practice physicians.
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And I should not neglect to send greetings from a "nearlandsman". As I sit at the keyboard, a picture of my godmother looks over my shoulder--born on Bornholm, leaving the family farm to spend her life in Chicago.

Think about whether you want to wait for "a few more weeks" or whether you want to force a doctor, specifically a trained neurologist or headache specialist to get to work immediately.

Cluster is an emergency and not the removal of a mole and I would be surprised if in Denmark you couldnt get an appointment with a neuro sooner.

You may want to discuss with your neuro if you can get a course of Prednisone to "Pause" your cycle. Oral dosages vary between 60-80mg a day and are tapered off over the course of 10 days or so. Temporary remission is typically achieved within 1-2 days of taking the first dose. Prednisone is a transitional treatment (and not a long-term treatment) that allows preventative meds to take effect, for the cycle generally restarts after the prednisone has worn off (several days after it has been tapered off). Notwithstanding, there have been cases where the cycle has been broken completely after a treatment with prednisone.

Verapamil, Topamax, Lithium (probably in this order) and others that you can read about here are the preventatives and meds of choice for many here. All need several weeks or more and varying dosages to take effect and should be started simultaneously with the course of prednisone. Discuss the prevent options available to you with your specialist.

Abortives of choice are O2 at flow rates of min. 15 lpm or more (review oxygen info tab on left for correct use) and Imitrex injections. Many here also use energy drinks that contain a combination of taurine and caffeine. If consumed at the first sign of an attack they can, if not always abort the attack, at least reduce the pain levels.

Consider adjusting your lifestyle to very regular sleeping patterns, a low histamine and ph-neutral, yet balanced diet, drinking lots of water and as you will probably already know, staying strictly away from alcohol or exposure to solvents of any kind.

Hope your appointment goes well and fingers crossed for the weekend.

Hi Windjammer, I am 1/2 Danish so it is my honor to offer you a list of some recommended doctors who have helped other cluster headache sufferers in Denmark....this list below is from the OUCH website,,,hope this helps you.

Denmark

Dr. Anette Krabbe, Helsingoer
Danish Headache Center, Copenhagen Univ. Hospital in Glostrup

Flemming Bach
Aarhus Community Hospital, Aarhus University Hospital

Dr. Troels Stahelin Jensen
Aarhus Community Hospital, Aarhus University Hospital

Father was Danish, Mother is Swiss

Oh one good nights sleep can totally change your outlook! Hoope there's a few more to follow.

Joe