eraserhead Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 hey I'm new to this forum and have been dealing with cluster headaches since the age of 14. Im 20 years old now and after 8 months of not having an attack they're back. Whats your experience with nasal sumatriptan? I never take medicine for my attacks because i feel as if they're detrimental, but my mom is persisting that I take the medicine. I don't like the pills because of the rebound headache/lethargy that pursues after. Also, does anyone get a strange sense of euphoria after an attack? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs Brasil Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 Hi eraserhead To me the nasal version of sumatriptan causes seriouse slapbacks too. But I can't compare to the injections but most likely it is the same. No clue on euphoria. But wondering how bad your CH may be you not taking meds? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eraserhead Posted July 15, 2017 Author Share Posted July 15, 2017 4 hours ago, urs said: Hi eraserhead To me the nasal version of sumatriptan causes seriouse slapbacks too. But I can't compare to the injections but most likely it is the same. No clue on euphoria. But wondering how bad your CH may be you not taking meds? Its bad enough to where I can't do anything but scream and squirm around on the floor wishing i was dead lol. I am a big advocate on staying away from medicine. I don't even use advil most of the time. I just ordered oxygen so hopefully that will help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHfather Posted July 15, 2017 Share Posted July 15, 2017 e'head, I hope your oxygen works well for you. If it doesn't, please check back with us for some possible tips. It's not clear to me what you mean when you say you just ordered oxygen. If you're looking for a great treatment with no side effects, oxygen is it, but of course it only aborts attacks, it doesn't prevent them from happening. Like I say, please keep us informed about your O2. When you have it working properly, it will very significantly reduce your need to also use a triptan. The vitamin D3 regimen (lots of pills, but nothing pharmaceutical) is also a good option, which might actually be good for you: https://clusterbusters.org/forums/topic/1308-d3-regimen/ You should probably check to be sure you're not unnecessarily triggering any attacks. A lot of foods typically consumed by young folks tend to have MSG in them, for example. https://clusterbusters.org/forums/topic/4568-triggers/ A 5-Hour Energy drunk down at the first sign of an attack can often reduce the severity of the attack or even abort it. The stuff in there might not be particularly good for you, either, but you have to make the tradeoff between screaming and squirming around on the floor wishing you were dead and addressing the frequency and severity of your attacks. There's no question that some meds are, as you say, "detrimental," but they probably have relative degrees of detrimentalness. I'm not sure what urs means by "slapbacks" from nasal triptans or injected ones. There is some evidence that they might have detrimental effects, such as causing subsequent attacks, making attacks worse, or lengthening cycles. There are also people who never used triptans who experienced all those things. There are people here who would tell you never to use a triptan, and there are others who will tell you that the tradeoff between having a multi-hour attack and aborting it with a triptan is easy for them to make. Some people find that putting their feet in a bathtub of very hot water helps calm an attack. You might find some interesting other ideas in the ClusterBuster Files section. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueHeeler Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 I have also experienced that sense of euphoria after an attack. I have been fighting back the pain and suddenly it lifts and I realize its gone and I have won. I usually get it after the headaches where I don't take anything and just fight my way through it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eraserhead Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 1 hour ago, BlueHeeler said: I have also experienced that sense of euphoria after an attack. I have been fighting back the pain and suddenly it lifts and I realize its gone and I have won. I usually get it after the headaches where I don't take anything and just fight my way through it. Yes i have the same experience. When I take medicine to relieve the pain I feel lethargic and drained. When I refuse to take medicine and just fight it, after its over the sense of euphoria washes over me and I feel so alive lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs Brasil Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 Just wondering how long you guys are able to do this! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eraserhead Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 19 minutes ago, urs said: Just wondering how long you guys are able to do this! Do what not take medicine? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
urs Brasil Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 Yes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spiny Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 I wonder why it would be suggested that you use a Triptan without using Verapamil as a preventative? Your doctor has recommended this without providing you with a preventative like Verap? Nor has he/she offered a taper pack of prednisone? Hmmmm. I don't think that I would trust that either. O2 should be your best friend! Please check out the D3 Regimen in the Clusterbuster Files section. Just vitamins. No drugs. Hard to say 'No' to that. Lowers the intensity and slows the ramp up for me and many others. Some actually go PF on it! No doctor required either and no icky medicine feeling. I can imagine feeling like 'king of the mountain' after an attack is over. Sort of like you just conquered the world. I had that feeling of success when I was just having one hit a day. After that, not so much. CHF gave you some great advice above. Check it out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
didgens Posted July 17, 2017 Share Posted July 17, 2017 They never worked for my Son Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BlueHeeler Posted July 21, 2017 Share Posted July 21, 2017 When I go without medicine its not by choice. Its usually because I don't have access to anything to abort the headache, or have already taken my limit for that day. One of the worst was earlier this year on a walk. I frequently take multi hour walks for stress relief. I was about an hour down the trail when the headache came on, I had forgotten any medicine and had no choice but to walk the whole way back with the headache. It finally broke about the time I got back to my Jeep and it was certainly a rush when it broke like glass and the headache was gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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