cluster headaches! paging Dr. Moses (and other mds)

[id10t]

A friend of mine has suffered with cluster headaches (migranes that spawn migranes on top of eachother... lasts for days/weeks in cycles) for a very long time. He recently moved Colorado, and is now having problems getting a doctor who will do something besides attempt to treat the symtoms with narcs (or nerve cutting). Narcs trigger headaches for him, he is already being accused of being a drug seeker and is being given poor care as a result.

The doctor he was having success with (in terms of preventing the cycles or quickly breaking them once started, not depending on narcs) here in Fl. until a couple of years ago moved out of country, and his subsequent care here in Fl. with a new doc wasn't the best after that (more just presribing more/stronger narcs, which he doesn't want).

So... MDs out there - know of any research or studies being done in the field? Any key words/technologies/methods my friend should be listening for (good or bad) when he interviews his next MD? Any specific questions he should ask?

And for everyone, can anyone recommend a suitable MD that may fit his needs/criteria in Colorado?

[Saintly]

I was having cluster headaches for a long time.. sometimes they would last for a few months. the best thing for me was a chiro.. a few weeks of him twisting and tweaking my neck and they have gone and not come back (2 years now).
One of my friends used to have migraines all the time and for her the fix was a nutritionist (one of the ones that do the blood tests etc and it turned out that she couldn't have wheat. now days if she slips and has something with wheat she feels sick and gets a migraine within a few hours.
Both of us had spent many hours with doctors and neither where recommended by the doctors.

[MikeCT]

Originally posted by Saintly

One of my friends used to have migraines all the time and for her the fix was a nutritionist (one of the ones that do the blood tests etc and it turned out that she couldn't have wheat.

Celiac disease.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Originally posted by MikeCT
Celiac disease.

Yep. Though some people are just allergic to gluten (as opposed to intolerant).

[RoninLB]

pain mgt by MD's is another black hole.

fwiw.. there is a PDR strictly for herbs. The new revised ed was out last yr.

[Mike Andrew]

That sucks. I suffered with these things for years & finally sought out a headache specialist. He provided non narc meds which worked to control the things once I was in a cycle. Absolutely horrific pain.
Fortunately, I have not had a cycle now for over 5 years & may have outgrown them???
A coworker has suffered even more & is now receiving botox injections in her scalp which have cured her.
Strongly urge your friend to find a headache specialist as there are more & more developements in treatment.

[Moses]

Migraines are an EXTREMELY complicated problem. They can be triggered by; allergies, diet, alcohol, stress, disease, sunlight, brain tumors...almost anything.

Successful management is idiopathic. What works for some, does not work for others. Sumatryptan works for some. Others get resolution with acupuncture, biofeedback, magnesium therapy, botox or diet changes. For some unlucky people, symptomatic treatment with narcotics is all that helps. Definitely find a doc who has a special interest in migraine.

[TerryBPP]

I've heard there is treat for clusters using Botox. Check into it.

[legion]

I used to have migraines when I lived in SoCal.

They weren't cluster headaches. I would get one about once a month, unbearable thobbing/pulsing pain, vomitting, and sweating. I'd have to stop everything and go to bed. After 5-6 hours of writhing pain, I'd eventually exhaust myself and fall asleep. I'd feel fine the next day.

When I moved from SoCal, they persisted for 2-3 months and I haven't had a migraine since. My theory is they were caused by the smog. I remember, as a little kid, taking a deep breath and my lungs hurt. That hasn't happened since either.

I still get headaches when I'm around my mother-in-law. She smokes...she and everything around her is saturated with cigarette smoke. Funny thing is, she smokes some off brand, and it's the only brand that seems to bother me. I can be around other smokers all day and not have a problem. Heck, I even have the occasional cigar.

[Jared at Pelican Parts]

chiro has really helped me out with this

[makaio]

I got them for a while when I first started working in the high desert. The relative humidity is what was causing mine. It's twice as low or more than where I live. Once I started taking nasal saline all was good.

[nostatic]

Originally posted by Moses
For some unlucky people, symptomatic treatment with narcotics is all that helps.

unlucky? Dilaudid please...