40/male

I usually DO read before posting on a new board but short on time as I have to get ready for work

QUIZ
1-8: all No
9-16: all Yes except I could not answer 13 yet.

Last night I was suddenly awakened by an extreme headache at 448am, tonight at 312am. Previous night I went to bed about 1:50am and tonight at midnight.

Treated with Goody/BC powder and visine.

Both nights the headache was completely gone within an hour. Felt ok afterwards. Both nights I never went back to sleep (probably the caffeine). My normal wakeup time is now only 20 minutes away.

Last night I was home alone, and tonight I spent the night at my gf's. After several minutes of grunting in pain in bed, I just wanted to get up and got on my knees and rolled up in a vertical ball on the floor. Sort of hit the side of my head with my fist twice it was so excruciating. Also pulling at my hair. Squeezing my head between my hands.

She had only aleve-type headache meds but I know aspririn/caffeine in headache powders always works for me for regular headaches. The thought of attempting to lay down and go to sleep was totally out of the question and had the irresistable urge to just drive home. So I left, stopped to buy a headache powder on the way home. AS I was driving, it vanished almost instantly.

Was not light/sound sensitive like with migraine. Gf was reluctant to turn on the light but I said "light's ok, I need to gather up my stuff" Also where migraine feels like a nauseating illness, this attack felt like someone hit me with a baseball bat, because it came on instantly and woke me up. This feels more like the pain of being physically attacked. I thought the lack of light sensitivity was unusual so felt like I should mention it. I can't associate any burning sensation, just intense physical pain. Feel a little stuffiness but could be from the eye drops.

Both cases were right side, where for 2-3 days prior to these headaches I have been feeling jaw pain, which could be from slipping down the stairs or dental issue (been feeling teeth sensitivity)

This did not start in the eye, but felt more like a baseball bat to the side of the head, slightly to the rear. I felt it more concentrated in the eye after it went away. Now without any headache,  my right eye feels a little 'off'.

First thought is this is my first time experience with clusters (or at least I don't remember this happening before). Morning now, so tonight I will see if there is a 3rd day of headache. Will check for eye droopyness and dialation if it happens again.

First thing is visit dentist to see if I have anything that needs to be taken care of. If that checks out and this continues I'm just going to try to pre-empt it by taking a powder right before I go to sleep. Which should be no problem b/c I will be asleep before the caffeine kicks in.

I have somewhat re-evaluated 'the worst pain imaginable;' however, I am sure this is nothing compared to medieval torture.

Not thrilled to seeing specialists as my company switched us from a 90/10% copay to a catastrophic plan where I'll be footing 100% of the bill til I hit my deductable after $4000 or so (bad timing being the end of the year and I've only spent maybe $400 on medical this year)

Just wanted to see if I can get some feedback before this 3rd night. I almost DON'T want to take a headache powder tonight before going to sleep, to see if it does reoccur, but this is overridden by the fact I DON'T want to experience this again.

So sorry you're going through this! I remember back in the day when my husband took BC powder for these (back before we got a diagnosis) God it did nothing- and the taste just came to be synonomous with pain- it was awful. Bob is right, none of us can tell you you have these- but please know this- there are so many things that help that you do not need a prescription for. Even when Lucas did get diagnosed it didn't do us much good really, until much later when he found a slightly better doctor. The first one sent him on his way with a diagnosis, perscription for Imitrex that 2 poor college students without insurance couldn't afford, and a pat on the a**. Pretty much a "yeah, good luck with those, get out" message.

The 2 things that work the best for Lucas don't require a prescription- Melatonin and O2 (we got him set up with the mask from the site here, a welding regulator, and welding O2) Also Red Bull helped him if he took it at the start of a headache.

Read read read, so much good information, and don't be afraid to ask questions. But please do see a doctor- lets just make sure we rule out anything else. Lucas was diagnosed by a GP, but it's kind of a rare condition, many doctors haven't heard of it, but keep after it.

Welcome!

Thanks for the comments so far.

I will be heading to a specialist, but after Jan 1. Why. Only spent a few hundred dollars to work towards the high deductable med plan my company switched us to. If i went this year, no doubt I would hit the deductable and then have to start all over again a few weeks later. It'll also give some time to see if this clears up / due to being related to my jaw pain (focused 1 inch in front of my right ear, in that soft spot where you can feel your jaw hinge as you move your jawbone side to side)


The Goody's probably did nothing, since it was only 10 minutes after taking it, and that the pain just vanished in thin air. POOF. No way the aleve started working since it was 30 minutes into it that I finally accepted one

So anyway, right as I balled up on the floor, my instant urges were: (visine, headache powder, energy drink, NOWWW!!!! AHHH!!!) luckily I had visine, no headache powder (just aleve), and urge to pound head into floor until unconscious to relieve the pain (which I didn't do of course). She woke up after hearing my noises and I asked her to get me an energy drink I had left in the car 3/4 full.

-cannot relate to a 'burning sensation' as I commonly read this morning, mine was "baseball bat to side of head" type ordeal, but it was a constant extreme pain, not a fading pain like the numbness after you accidently get hit.

-was not light sensitive during the attack. During the day (today and yesterday) I was/am light sensitive now that it's over. I put dark materials on my desk to block the light reflecting up... yesterday I wore sunglasses in my office.

Have an appt with the dentist in about an hour to check the jaw out/teeth sensitivity, which started hurting a couple days before this happened.

Will give update once I find things out. Will be keeping the diary, familiar with that already from past problems.

If this becomes a problem, might hit up harbor freight for a o2 tank. have lots of their (better) stuff as it is... I can just yank the filter out of a used respirator and use it as my mask.

Had a panoscan xray and examination of all the muscles from my neck to my scalp. Dentist found inflamation at the jaw joint you can feel about an inch in front of my ear. Same side as the 2 attacks the past 2 nights.

I declined a pain med since I figured that wouldn't thwart an attack, and went with ibuprofin suggestion to reduce the inflamation a little hopefully enought before 3-5am rolls around.

My worst fear was decay down a tooth root and into my jaw rotting from the inside out lol. No, nothing like that at all.

Will have my energy drink, visine, and goody's (maybe help psychologically not so much physically) at the bedside. Hid all sharp objects! If I can work the phone try to get a pic of my pupils and see if I have any eye muscle sagging.

Since I have a slight problem breathing when I'm sleeping (and im thin) possibly some hyperventilating might help? Either nothing happens, I feel some comfort, or my head explodes...

My company switched us to high deductable plans couple years ago and I have only used a few hundred on medical this year, so I don't want to blow $2500 to hit my deductable with only a few weeks left in the year, when I can do it next year, hit my deductable quickly then also get that expensive sleep study done, saving me money since i'll then only have a 10% copay. If this started now and treatment went into next year, I'd be looking at dropping $5600+ within 2 months.

With possible apnea (undiagnosed as of yet) and headache specialist, brain scans, and whatnot, can get expensive. I hate having to plan around my insurance policy.

Bob Johnson wrote on Nov 20^th, 2010 at 8:06am:


Good call, 2-3 month waits for appointments aren't unusual, especially for the really good docs1

Joe

As prepared as I was, I didn't get the "baseball bat to the head" wakeup last night. I'm not out of the woods yet tho.