Posted by Twila (205.167.105.84) on November 15, 1999 at 15:38:36:
Hi. I am a 26 year old female, mother of one.
I hadn't had a CH in about a year and a half until this past weekend. It was really bad. I didn't realize until I was diagnosed by a doctor about four years ago that I had experienced these same headaches in my teenage years. I had mistaken the pain for a toothache because the pain in my eye was so intense that it felt like I had a really, really bad toothache. My doctor has prescribed Midrin. I have been going to the doctor for about six years for CH. I feel that it is time to find out or get to the core of the problem. On my next doctor visit I am going to see if my primary care doctor will refer me to a neurologist so that I can have a better understanding of exactly what is going on when I have these attacks. I also read somewhere that CH sufferers should have at least one MRI done. When people ask me why are you crying or what does it feel like, i tell them........
It starts out like a little nagging feeling in the back of your eye. You feel it but it doesn't really hurt yet. As the minutes pass, it comes closer and closer and becomes more intense to the point that you can stand to bear the sharp intense pain that shoots through your eye. Almost like electricity. My eye waters uncontrollably and it hurts so bad that I could cry. (Literally break down and boo hoo like a baby) but I try not to because that only makes it worse. And then maybe 15 minutes later it starts to back down. It turns around and goes back to wherever it came from. However, the intensity of the HA is so bad that it drained me and the only thing I want to do now is go to sleep for about 30 minutes and recooperate. I had never experienced them at night until this past weekend when I had three during the night. My past experience was that I would always wake up with one and could not get dressed or function or anything until my CH was gone.
When I tell people that I have a headache, they don't understand that it's not JUST a headache. It is the worst pain that you wouldn't even want to wish upon your worst enemy. Well.....then again. I can tell you guys from a womans point of view, it is right up there with LABOR PAINS. Except you don't get a nice wonderful reward at the end. There is no rainbow at the end of a CH's tunnel. Just the realization that you should never take it for granted when there is no pain in your eye and you actually feel good.