Posted by Joey (208.180.51.243) on May 11, 2000 at 00:41:21:
In Reply to: The Beast posted by cheryl allman on May 10, 2000 at 15:15:28:
I was a chronic ch for 15 years. I had tried
several types of blood pressure meds without
any success. After about five years I gave up
on doctors and decided that ch was just going
to be a way of life for me and I could either
learn to live with it or not. I choose to accept
it. Over the years I discovered many steps to
what yall cleverly call the dance. (I really
like that name.) I would hold a lit cigarette
under almost inside my nose. The heat seemed to
help for about five seconds. You pay for that
after with sinus problems and nausia but I found
the five seconds worth it. Then there was the hot
water. Fill a sink with water as hot or hotter
then you can stand it and submerg your head in
it repeatedly. If that dosent help fill the other
side of the sink with cold water then fill it with
all the ice from the fridg and go back and forth.
Lay on the floor with your head on the couch so
that your sholder is not touching the floor. Do
with the affected side of your head faceing up
to stretch the pain side of the neck or flip over
and compress the pain side. Bad part of this one is
that when the pain goes you have a tendency to
fall asleep. Major pain it the neck when you wake up.
Attack back. Have someone massage your temples,
shoulders, or neck area as hard as they can. Find
the spot that hurts the worst and make it hurt more
and attack it. Kinda spooky though, haveing someone
jamming theit thumbs into your temples but not as
bad as shoveing your own eyeballs back into your
head. Then I noticed that washing dishes helped.
You heard right. Washing dishes. I discovered that
the area between your thumb and index fingers are
pressure points so I figured it must be the hot water
on those points so when nothing worked I soaked
my hands in HOT water. Not as bad as doing my face.
That left blisters. Then I found what turned out
to be the most effective thing of all. Meditation.
I would go into a dark room. Not to hard to find
at midnight, drape a towel over my head, sit indian
style and meditate. It takes a lot of disipline to
sit still during an attack but once you master it
it works. The trick is to let your jaw hang loose,
and relax your eyes and face muscles. Once you get
the hang of it you will notice that the slightest
adjustment of your jaw or eyes will make a difference.
Your eyes should be shut but barley. At first it
will seem to make the pain worse but that is because
you are more focused on it. Stick with it and it
should help. Best of all this method has no residule
affects. By the way, about six years ago I was put
on blood pressure medicine, this time for high blood
pressure, and low and behold the clusters stoped.
I stayed in remission for two years and had a cluster
that lasted about two months. This time I went to a
neurologist. By the time I got to see him the cluster
was gone but he questioned me for an hour and when
he was done he told me that I had cluster headaches.
Somthing that I had known for ten years but had
never had a doctor diagnose. You cant belive how
much that ment to me. I wasnt crazy after all. Well
it's been four years since then and this past week I
have started getting them. There not bad, very mild
in fact so right now I am real nervous. Think I
might call him soon if they get worse.
Anyway I'm sorry that this turned into a mid term
paper. Didnt intend to. It's just that I came across
your site tonight and was floored to the point of
tears to hear some of your stories. It was like
someone was writing my exact story. Didnt know
there were so many others.
OK OK I'LL STOP
Thanks for being here.
JOEY