Posted by Brian W on August 17, 1998 at 08:13:25:
In Reply to: My mother is having suicidal thoughts...Help! posted by Cassandra on August 17, 1998 at 00:33:16:
Hi Cassandra,
What you are feeling and what your mother is experiencing are both reported regularly by cluster sufferers and their family members. The main point to remember here is that the clusters are temporary and that she is considering a permanent pain solution.
Her doctor should be consulted and if necessary presented with some of the solutions that are offered here in this forum.
Her doctor's approach to treating her clusters is not being effective so she should try one of the other treatments that have shown success or find another doctor. Some of the effective treatments include lithium, prednisone, verapimil and recently we have heard of experimental success with the drug ritalin.
Your mother should be informed of the success stories here in the forum and reminded that different treatments work for different people.
As Nancy suggested, Oxygen works for most sufferers to stop the pain after a few minutes and the other household version of painrelief is breathing cold air from the freezer of your fridge. The ideal temperature of the air should be 42 degrees. She might at least try this cold air solution if she already hasn't.
You might comfort her by telling her that the thoughts of suicide are pretty well normal for a clusterer. It is a logical conclusion to repeated extreme pain and it's nothing to be embarrassed about.
There are regular chats scheduled here for both your mother and for you, as a family member on Wednesday nights.
Many more solutions are printed here in this forum for your mother to try. Again, what works for one may not work for another but your mother has to be aware that there are still new things to try instead of taking the ultimate pain solution. Some people find that heating the pain area relieves the pain and for others it is cold to the area that works. Read through these postings as time allows and take notes, highlighting the main points, then share it with your mother.
Keep in touch and share your experiences with others,
Wishing you painfree days a'head,
Brian W.