Let me introduce you to the most painful headache known to mankind, The Cluster Headache. This headache is also known as the suicide headache because a portion of people who suffer from these nightmare headaches eventually off themselves. I am a sufferer of these mother effers and, although I am not the type to kill myself, I do often wonder how I could enjoy life taking these things on for the rest of my life. These headaches reside behind the eye, usually the right. The pain is stabbing and comes in waves, putting pressure on the sinuses and the temple. This causes the affected eye to tear and swell up, like in the picture. The headache also causes temporary mental disorientation and confusion. Cluster headaches can last from minutes to days. My eye has completely shut during several episodes. Let me clarify that I am no wussy when it comes to pain. I was a union iron worker and I have had smashed fingers, burned skin from molten iron dripping off of a beam I was cutting with a torch, I have had broken bones, I dislocated my knee, I have been kicked by horses, and I have given birth naturally at home. I did not cry when any of these events occurred, not even during the dislocation of the knee. However, a cluster headache will make me its bitch in less than an hour and have me crying for mercy in the most pathetic of ways. I would probably assault someone if they stood in they way of me getting relief from one of these things. When one comes on, sometimes I catch it in time and keep it at bay. This is the best case scenario and it feels like a regular headache behind my eye for three days, while both sleeping and awake. The worst scenario is when no amount of over the counter headache medicine works and I need someone to drive me to the hospital to get injections of immuntirex to stop the pain.
I just had one of these bitch ass headaches last week in between going to three births, doing school work, and getting ready for Halloween. Luckily this time I kept it on the light side. I am 34 years old. It is seriously depressing to think that I may have to look forward to a lifetime of visits from these unwanted painful episodes. I do not want to be dependent on drugs to deal with this problem. I continue to search for more holistic approaches so that I do not have to harm my body with the side effects that accompany the allopathic medicines out there. Lack of oxygen has been linked to these headaches and sometimes I am able to make them go away with deep breathing exercises. That is what I did this last week.
Anyway, I would never wish one of these on my worst enemy. They totally suck!
acupuncture?
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