Cluster migranes

[Beaconbouy]

Anyone get them, bloody crippling, I was taking a pack of ibuprofen a day to get through G.C.S.Es now they are even bloody worse. My mum is a GP but NOOO luck , no cure, plus some doctors think migranes are all in your headDUH.

[TheLemming]

Beaconbouy said:

Anyone get them, bloody crippling, I was taking a pack of ibuprofen a day to get through G.C.S.Es now they are even bloody worse. My mum is a GP but NOOO luck , no cure, plus some doctors think migranes are all in your headDUH.

I used to suffer from these, there are a variety of causes...

In my case it was overmedicating a migraine, resulting in a "rebound" headache, so I killed the first one and a second appeared 12 hours later...

Let me see if I can find some links...

Edited to add, it seems that there is a type of headache known as a "Cluster Headache" as opposed to having a "cluster" of migraines.

The two are very different things, so it may be we are talking at cross purposes.

A couple of links:

www.cnn.com/HEALTH/library/HQ/01292.html

Article on CNN on rebound headaches. From your description of constant painkiller consumption, could this sound familiar?

Unfortunately there is no one-size fits all answer, as the symptoms (my head hurts) can be caused by a whole manner of things, from viral infection, overmedication, allergies and an endless list running all the way up to brain injuries / conditions.

Good luck, they can be crippling and can be a nightmare.

>> Edited by TheLemming on Wednesday 18th May 17:30

[s2rr Kitty]

Do a search on here matey, there was a migraine thread about 6 weeks ago with some interesting & helpful stuff on it.....

I too am in a cluster phase at the moment & have started taking a course beta-blockers - which totally sorted it out for me about 5 years ago.....but they have start breaking through again so I have to take another course.

I also take zolmitriptan for the aura - very effective!

Not nice - good luck!

[Beaconbouy]

TheLemming said:

Beaconbouy said: Anyone get them, bloody crippling, I was taking a pack of ibuprofen a day to get through G.C.S.Es now they are even bloody worse. My mum is a GP but NOOO luck , no cure, plus some doctors think migranes are all in your headDUH. I used to suffer from these, there are a variety of causes... In my case it was overmedicating a migraine, resulting in a "rebound" headache, so I killed the first one and a second appeared 12 hours later... Let me see if I can find some links...

Thanks. Couldn't go to uni as I can't concentrate with them had scans(brain( the full works.

[walls]

I used to get them regularly up until a year or so ago. I figured out what it was...as we have diabetes in the family I decided to cut out all added sugar from my diet. Where I wanted the sweetness like in tea I used an artificial sweetner but i chain drunk tea to get through degree - masters - PhD! stopped taking the sweetners and now the headaches have gone!

[Fatboy]

What you want is Beta Blockers - absolutely brilliant. They'll knock the migranes dead, and no side effects whatsoever. As an added bonus you'll find you no longer get hangovers either.... Great stuff Beta Blockers, can't recommend them highly enough - only problem is getting a GP to prescribe them...

[dick dastardly]

s2rr Kitty said:

Do a search on here matey, there was a migraine thread about 6 weeks ago with some interesting & helpful stuff on it.....

www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?f=141&h=&t=170553

Mine have stopped again for now thankfully.

Interesting that you said you had them through GCSE's because my worst phase was during my Uni finals. Maybe there's some truth in the stress theory...

[titiany]

dick dastardly said:

Interesting that you said you had them through GCSE's because my worst phase was during my Uni finals. Maybe there's some truth in the stress theory...

Good to hear you are not suffering as much at the moment DD!!

[dick dastardly]

I know, relieved isn't the word! thanks for your help by the way.

Has anyone here who used Migraleve found it to be effective? I have to admit that after spending £10 on a box I found them to be no better than 1 paracetemol & 1 ibuprofen.

[Rob_F]

dick dastardly said:

Interesting that you said you had them through GCSE's because my worst phase was during my Uni finals. Maybe there's some truth in the stress theory...

My mum suffers massive migranes, and there definately seems to be a correlation with high stress from work.

Cheers,
Rob.

[titiany]

dick dastardly said:

Has anyone here who used Migraleve found it to be effective?

Nope. Not me. Too expensive, ineffective and not enough of the blimmin things in the packet.

I reckon it's just a gimmick.

[968]

Fatboy said:

What you want is Beta Blockers - absolutely brilliant. They'll knock the migranes dead, and no side effects whatsoever. As an added bonus you'll find you no longer get hangovers either.... Great stuff Beta Blockers, can't recommend them highly enough - only problem is getting a GP to prescribe them...

Whilst Beta Blockers can be very helpful for Migraines, they do have side effects, in particular they can trigger or worsen asthma attacks, if one has a history of heart problems, particularly with a slow heart rate, they can slow it even further, and in some cases can result in patients having pace makers fitted!
Also they can cause impotence, dizziness, tiredness and lethargy...........oh and if you are diabetic, they are a no no, as they mask the symptoms of hypos.

However, in most cases, people are ok, as long as they don't have any contraindications.

[Fatboy]

968 said:

Fatboy said: What you want is Beta Blockers - absolutely brilliant. They'll knock the migranes dead, and no side effects whatsoever. As an added bonus you'll find you no longer get hangovers either.... Great stuff Beta Blockers, can't recommend them highly enough - only problem is getting a GP to prescribe them... Whilst Beta Blockers can be very helpful for Migraines, they do have side effects, in particular they can trigger or worsen asthma attacks, if one has a history of heart problems, particularly with a slow heart rate, they can slow it even further, and in some cases can result in patients having pace makers fitted! Also they can cause impotence, dizziness, tiredness and lethargy...........oh and if you are diabetic, they are a no no, as they mask the symptoms of hypos. However, in most cases, people are ok, as long as they don't have any contraindications.

I never knew that! Goes to show why my new GP (this was 8 years ago) wouldn't re-prescribe them. He did mention side effects, which I really hadn't noticed (though he said 'They will reduce your libido' rather than make you impotent , to which I replied it didn't matter as I'm an ugly goit, and never get laid anyway ).

[s2rr Kitty]

There is no single answer to Migraines, there are different types, different triggers and different treatments... often it's a long process to find something that works for you....

If you can isolate a trigger such as stress or chocolate then great! you're lucky, but it's not always the case.... I'm very sensitive to smells, and light, the chemical that is used in Dry Cleaning (and also Printing) has me in agony within minutes - flickering sunlight through trees also sets me off.... but I get them also when these triggers are not present
The same goes for treatments - I'm lucky that Beta Blockers don't cause me any side effects whatsoever and work really well - I'm 3 weeks in & will only need to take them for 6 months to get 4 years relief - you may have to just try a few things before you find a solution....

A