RE: Do you get migraines?
May 7, 2019 at 9:15 pm
(This post was last modified: May 7, 2019 at 9:27 pm by Athene.)
I get cluster headaches.
Similar to migraines, but they can be quite different in their frequency, duration, and intensity.
They also tend to radiate differently. In my case, I experience intense pain in my teeth, gums, jaw, scalp, neck and shoulder as well as in my head on the affected side, with the pain originating behind the eye.
Lying down and avoiding sound/light doesn't make me feel any better, and I can generally expect to have them intermittently over the span of a few days. Can't say they I experience much in the way of nausea.
They can managed with OTC meds if I hit them hard, before the pain becomes moderate to severe. Otherwise, I have to tough it out and resign myself to the fact that my day is going to suck tremendously; especially if I'm at work. It makes concentrating extremely difficult, though not impossible.
When I feel one coming on I take extra-strength acetaminophen along with ibuprofen OR aspirin, 100 mg of caffeine (which can also be a possible trigger for some sufferers) and lots of water if I have all of those things available. I've found that that combination prevents the pain from radiating further and increasing in intensity, effectively keeping it at the level of a mildly annoying background ache until it eventually subsides.
However, the real key is to determine what may possibly trigger them if you can, so as to avoid them. I've determined two definite triggers for myself, which are very low humidity and as I've recently discovered, Tramadol.
Anyhoo...That's how I manage my cluster headaches.
If you suffer from frequent, debilitating migraines, I think it would be best to seek your doctor's advice in coming up with a treatment plan.
Similar to migraines, but they can be quite different in their frequency, duration, and intensity.
They also tend to radiate differently. In my case, I experience intense pain in my teeth, gums, jaw, scalp, neck and shoulder as well as in my head on the affected side, with the pain originating behind the eye.
Lying down and avoiding sound/light doesn't make me feel any better, and I can generally expect to have them intermittently over the span of a few days. Can't say they I experience much in the way of nausea.
They can managed with OTC meds if I hit them hard, before the pain becomes moderate to severe. Otherwise, I have to tough it out and resign myself to the fact that my day is going to suck tremendously; especially if I'm at work. It makes concentrating extremely difficult, though not impossible.
When I feel one coming on I take extra-strength acetaminophen along with ibuprofen OR aspirin, 100 mg of caffeine (which can also be a possible trigger for some sufferers) and lots of water if I have all of those things available. I've found that that combination prevents the pain from radiating further and increasing in intensity, effectively keeping it at the level of a mildly annoying background ache until it eventually subsides.
However, the real key is to determine what may possibly trigger them if you can, so as to avoid them. I've determined two definite triggers for myself, which are very low humidity and as I've recently discovered, Tramadol.
Anyhoo...That's how I manage my cluster headaches.
If you suffer from frequent, debilitating migraines, I think it would be best to seek your doctor's advice in coming up with a treatment plan.
