Posted by Diane (216.144.11.16) on January 24, 2001 at 09:27:06:
Hi everyone - I signed the guest book yesterday and have been looking at the boards for a while. This is a great site for everyone with CH. I have had them for 18 or 19 years and have tried a few meds. I've tried oxygen, but unfortunately I wouldn't wake up until the pain was near an excruciating stage. Verapamil seems to work the best for me with the least side affects. I've been taking it for a few years now. My clusters are episodic which usually last 6-8 weeks, but this time I have been with these for almost 3 months. Lately they have not been too painful, but believe me I definetely know about the 9's and 10's. I get 2 a night, about an hour or two after I fall asleep. They come about every 3rd night. Some of them get me out of bed and some do not, but still wake me up. Lately I found that if I go outside in the cold and let the cold air hit my head, it seems to help bring the pain down a little faster. I have also had my share of hot coffee. There are a couple of questions that I would like to have some feedback on: Is it very often that someone goes from Episodic to Chronic? Does anyone think that having a stressful job brings on the clusters? I was wondering about these things since my clusters are lasting longer than usual and I do have a stressful job. It is very hard to get up for work the next day - I'm tired all the time. Thanks to all and I wish everyone pain-free days and nights.