This is one of two citations in the last 15-years!
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Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2001 Feb;5(1):55-9. 


Premonitory symptoms in cluster headache.

Raimondi E.

Catedra de Neurologia, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional de Rosario, 9 de Julio 3826, Rosario 2002 PKP, Argentina. raimondi@cablenet.com.ar

Cluster headache is one of the most excruciating headaches affecting human beings--especially the male sex. Most of the cluster headache cases are of episodic nature, with active cluster periods lasting generally between a few weeks and 2 or 3 months. A still undetermined percentage of patients report nonpainful sensations preceding the onset of the pain attack for a variable period of time. If occurring only a few minutes or a few hours before the onset of pain, such symptoms are called prodromal. When occurring for several days, weeks, or months before the pain, they are termed premonitory symptoms. The author believes that premonitory symptoms have not been properly diagnosed and emphasizes the need to investigate their presence, because by knowing them advances can be made in the understanding of the physiopathology of this particular cephalalgia. Furthermore, it can also allow the physician to be ahead, by giving preventive treatment and stopping or diminishing the intensity and duration of the pain attacks.

Publication Types:
Review

PMID: 11252138 

My other half always seems to know when I'll get one. She notices that I'll sometimes repeat words when I'm talking, almost as if stuttering, or notice that I'm on edge. For myself, I just feel a bit irritable, audio-phobic and just not quite right. Sometimes those feelings just fade away after a few minutes but normally in a minute or three I'll suddenly get hit by a CH.

Then it's a case of getting to my oxygen and telling the beast where to go.

Ask your partner/SO if they've noticed any particular *quirks* before a headache starts.

I know with Jimbo, he tends to put pressure on a particular spot (in fact, that spot is permanently dented now).  Some people are hair pullers, some people get a jumpy leg, etc.

I get a "funny Feeling" (no, not THAT funny feeling).

I can't really put it into words.....just that "something" that tells me hell is fixin' to come calling....get to an O2 tank...like NOW!

Even though the pain of my attacks is worst at the back of my head, I usually get precursor pain in the form of stabbing above my right eye, or sinus pain on the right side, or both. Then I know that within the next few hours, I'll get hit with a whammy. Sometimes the same pain comes back for the duration of the attack, sometimes not.

Since I suffer mainly nightime hits, I just wakeup at about kip 6 or 7. But for daytime hits, it starts by gettting coming and going orbital pain and a burning sensation in the nostril on the side of my attacks and within 10 min.s ...its on.

I wish there was a way to edit these posts after posting them! I accidentally hit post instead of preview...
I wanted to add that when the prehistoric cat with the steel trap jaws turned and stared at me I ran like the dickens and escaped down a flight of stairs to a secret basement where it couldn't get me. 
At that moment I awoke with the pain just beginning to build and I ran downstairs which is where I keep my O2 and got rid of the beast!

Glassman wrote on Feb 11^th, 2011 at 12:22am:


Hit the "modify" button in the top right corner of your post. You can then modify your post. It's considered "Internet polite" to add a ps for your edit..such as

edited for spelling...to add something...etc.

Joe

Much obliged, Joe!
P.S. I did it!

yup, whenever the lights start irritating me...might be the kitchen light or the bathroom light or the hallway light, but one of them will just be TOO bright ...then I know I'm about 25 min away from a hit. BTW I think all lights are too bright all of the time, but I know it's just me...they normally don't irritate me.

I'm real "edgy" about a week before it starts.

The best way I can describe the prelude to a hit is pressure. My right eye and right side of my head feel heavy, my eye feels like it's bulging. Then, the watery eye starts, to go with the stuffy right nostril

Sometimes, it never gets further along then that. I get a lot of daytime hits that are along the lines of Kip 4-5ish. I guess they're almost really bad shadows? Not sure how else to describe it.

This leads me to a sort of related questions......does anyone have cycles that are different? In other words does the time of day, frequency of hits, duration of hits and severity of hits remain consistent from one cycle to the next? Or does it vary?