Posted by Bob on October 28, 1998 at 00:16:12:
In Reply to: READ THIS!! Fellow sufferers, we're on to something! posted by Jerry on October 27, 1998 at 04:18:11:
Jerry,
the water works. i do not dispute that. i see only one problem with your theory, though.
Why only on 1 side?
i've been doing some research, too. i'm not a doctor, i'm a programmer. i've been treating this like i debug programs. i agree that the hypothalmus/pituitary and their secreted hormones are the key. if for no other reason than the circadian (daily/seasonal) nature of the CH attacks.
i've found that the Hypothalmus/pituitary are most active (normally) between 1-2 am and 2-3 pm. an interesting pair of "peaks" at least as regards my (former) attacks. The water does work.
i think there's some injury involved on the side of the attacks that is aggravated by the/some hormone(s) released as a matter of course during normal endocrine (hypothalmus/pituitary) system activity.
specifically, in my case (and, i find, in the case of some other folks in trigemenic nerve problem pages) i may have injured the mandibular division of the TG nerve due to a bad "bite".
11 months ago, i had a filling. 2 weeks later my jaw began to "pop" (same side as the CH). i ignored it (as a typical male, it was not painful, and if it wasn't killing me - well, you know how we are). so i waited until my next cleaning appointment about 3 months away (5 months ago). when asked to make it pop in the dentist's chair - i couldn't. the "pop" had disappeared as my jaw "changed" somehow to accomodate the new "bite" (i'm guessing, here). anyway, with no demonstrable "pop", the dentist did nothing.
2 months ago, the CHs started. i think the jaw displacement annoyed, irritated and/or otherwise injured the lower TG nerve. it goes directly through the lower jaw (this is the one the dentist deadens when he injects novacaine, i believe) and joins the other 2 divisions of the TG nerve as it exits out the jaw where the mandibular (jaw) joint is. it meets the other 2 divisions of the TG nerve - which go throughout the top of the head and behind the eye (opthamalic division) and to the upper teeth and nose (maxillary division). then the TG nerve goes directly into the brain (around the temple). these are the points of (my) CH pain. it's got to be that nerve. why does it hurt on one side only??
although the water works - the monster is still there (unless i'm unique, the pain is gone - but you have the feeling that if you quit drinking the water he'll "be baaaaack" - am i right?). i think the water is flushing the hormones out of the body that are being secreted normally which aggravate the injured TM nerve on the CH side.
I'm going to the dentist this week to begin trying to correct my bite. i feel this is an insidious problem, if something as innocuous as a person's bite is involved, as it can change through dentistry, direct injury, or even the normal erosion of teeth due to use/age. a person might not even notice it changing (or as in the case of young people with this affliction - they may start out with a "bad bite"). i believe any dentist will tell you that the bite is a very sensitive and low tolerance measurement.
I'll let ya know how it goes. these are just my thoughts - to add to yours.
-b