Brand new blog

Day one of the blog. Let me begin by giving you a little background information.

I am 37 years old, and I got my first Cluster at the ripe age of 9. At the time, it was thought of as allergies. I didn't have another one until I was 23. This was my first cycle and lasted only 3 weeks with once per day attacks. Again I went into a remission until the age of 29. Then began the twice yearly cycles of spring and fall with 2 daily headaches for about 3-4 weeks. It wasn't until I was 34 years old that I was properly diagnosed with Cluster Headache syndrome. Only after seeing CH on a news program and bringing it up to my doctor was I evaluated and finally diagnosed. This after years of being told it was sinusitis or just my imagination.

For the past 2 years I have been a Chronic CH sufferer. 2 years with at least one attack per day and as many as 8. I have been taking Verapamil at 480mg/day for a little over 3 years. For the past several months the efficacy of the Verapamil has dropped to allow more painful and more frequent headaches. After running the gamut of drugs to add to Verapamil: Lithium, Topamax, Depakote. It is down to increasing the daily dosage of Verapamil in hopes of quelling the beast again.

That is a roughing in of my CH background. I will update this blog as often as I can to help make the public more aware of Cluster Headaches in order for a better understanding of them.

PFDN,
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