I think most of us get what we call shadows from time to time. Depending on the person, they can range from a bad feeling, to tightness in our head, to mild headaches, to regular headaches. What you describe as spikes don't really sound like shadows though, but could be.
I only get shadows, and full blown CH attacks.
There are some other flavors of CH that have different attack patterns. Maybe try to document when and how they come. That should help with a diagnosis.
J