Posted by Jimbo (24.56.212.118) on January 30, 2002 at 02:25:20:
In Reply to: What was your first cluster headache like? posted by bob baker on January 29, 2002 at 23:01:56:
It was november of 1988, I was 24. I'd only been married 4 months, and had a new baby son. It was the middle of the day, and without any warning, or none that I remember, it felt like someone drove a steel spike thru the left side of my head. It was the worst pain I'd ever felt. I've been hit by a car, had serious accidents skiiing, and other painful injuries, but nothing even came close to this. Yes I thought about suicide REAL QUICK! It lasted about 35 minutes, but felt like days. When my wife finally got home, after my call scared her half to death, we went straight to the hospital. Anurisums [sp?] run in my family, so people were thinking this was it. But after a cat-scan and other tests they told me I was fine and that it was migrains and that it was a common headache. I was given tylenol-3 and sent home. It was 3 years before a doctor friend told me about clusters and put me in touch with a doctor that understood them. In the 10 years since then, I have tried most of the medications, and the other "home treatments" that have been passed around. Not much works for me, and I dont currently have ins, so no shots, or pills for me.
My cycle seems to be four times a year with spring and fall being the worst. they plauge me for about 30 days, then get less painful over a few weeks then I'm good for a few months. With me, the worse the pain, the shorter they last, the lesser the pain the longer they last. Either way, by the end of it my sanity is in short supply. My wife and kids are my strength!
Sorry I was soooo long winded,
Jim.