Cluster Headache Treatments and Coping With The Pain
Saturday, November 15th, 2008 Subscribe To Our Feed
For a small portion of sufferers, cluster headaches can cause severe pain with little warning. Cluster headaches can strike seemingly random intervals, for which they gain their name. Patients are known to live for years without a problem, and suddenly suffer them for a period of weeks on end. The exact cause of cluster headaches is not known, although it is thought that stress, alcohol, and drugs can all play a role in promoting an attack. Even without these factors, however, a series of cluster headaches can befall a patient at any time in their life. A cluster headache is easy to differentiate from a normal headache because of its severity and distinct symptoms.
A sufferer of a cluster headache sometimes experiences a runny nose or eyes. The pain tends to focus behind one eye, and is often described as feeling like an icepick. This extremely uncomfortable sensation can become very intense, often times resulting in a pain crisis. The pain is often intense enough to cause irrational behavior and extreme reactions. Immediate treatment is very important. Sedatives and pain killers can do a great deal to mitigate the devastating pain frequently associated with a cluster headache.
Cluster headache treatment is a difficult process because of the seemingly random nature of their attacks. Instead of always remaining on medication, cluster headache treatment is usually a matter of lifestyle alteration. Avoiding drugs and alcohol should be a mandatory first step. Although prevention is difficult, cluster headache treatment measures such as powerful pain killers can be necessary to have on hand.
Frequent cluster headaches should be a signal to see the doctor. Although cluster headaches may happen totally at random, they may sometimes be a sign of a deeper neurological issue. If this is the case, patients should see a doctor as soon as possible. Some forms of stress management can also help to reduce cluster headache occurence. Although the role of stress in cluster headache treatment cannot be known for certain, it is thought to play a role, and could potentially have an effect on the cluster variety of headaches. Significant emotional stress is known to cause a variety of physiological symptoms, and could play an important role in cluster headaches as well.
Technorati Tags: cluster headache treatments, cluster headaches
Possible Related Posts