{"id":7073,"date":"2019-07-05T05:53:22","date_gmt":"2019-07-05T05:53:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/simplyhealth.io\/?p=7073"},"modified":"2021-06-11T18:44:50","modified_gmt":"2021-06-11T18:44:50","slug":"14-things-you-didnt-know-about-cluster-headaches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/simplyhealth.io\/14-things-you-didnt-know-about-cluster-headaches\/","title":{"rendered":"14 Things You Didn’t Know About Cluster Headaches"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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The human body is flawed in so many ways and the fact that cluster headaches even exist is further proof of this fact. Faulty by design, the human body is susceptible to things like cluster headaches and whilst you may have learned to live with the condition, there are some things you absolutely must know that you might not know already. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pain from these types of headaches can be enough to alarm doctors into thinking that patients may be suffering from much more serious conditions, such as the excruciating nature of the pain. Whilst the pain from this condition can be completely unbearable for anyone affected, the good news is that it is very treatable in most cases. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether you are someone who suffers from cluster headaches, or if you are just interested to know more, here are 8 things you probably didn\u2019t even know. Until now at least.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1.     A type of trigeminal autonomic cephalgia<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

You might know that the trigeminal nerve is responsible for sending pain messages from the face and the head to the brain. You might also know that the autonomic nervous system<\/a> is responsible for controlling functions like eyelid movement, our breathing mechanisms, and our heart rate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cephalgia refers to head pain, of any kind, and all of these three things contribute to what is known as cluster headaches. Usually presented in groups or clusters as the name suggests, cluster headaches are thought to be some of the most painful kinds of headaches that anyone can be afflicted by. Such is their ferocity that people have been misdiagnosed with brain tumors when first observed by medical professionals. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

People who suffer from seizures and epilepsy who also experience cluster headaches report that the pain they feel from cluster headaches is much more severe than even the pain that lingers after a seizure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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2.     Terrifyingly specific type of pain<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The type of pain that defines cluster headaches can be described with words such as agonizing and burning. These two words should leave you in little doubt as to just how unpleasant cluster headaches <\/a>can be. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The fact that they have also been described as sharp and stabbing hardly does anything to soften the blow. The pain is usually felt across one side of the face and usually includes pain felt behind the eye. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the condition is linked to the autonomic nervous system, there are a few other typical symptoms that come hand in hand with the severe pain. These symptoms may include things like droopy or watery eyes, as well as runny and blocked noses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These side effects usually don\u2019t even touch the sides when compared with the excruciating pain though, and so this is why they are perhaps less well known or understood than the typically miserable and ever so painful headaches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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3.     Occur in clusters<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Yes, that’s right. Cluster headaches occur in clusters and whilst this should be obvious, a recent survey of student doctors at an Ohio University found that almost half of the survey respondents thought that cluster headaches were isolated incidents of pain<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps it’s all to do with semantics, but what this does show is that there is always more that can be learned about a medical condition such as this. Whilst the pain can sometimes go away for anything up to 24 hours, it usually doesn’t take long for another seriously painful headache to make its way back into the life of a sufferer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

An episode of cluster headaches can actually last up to a few weeks, with patients experiencing at least one headache a day for that period of time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So whilst you may think this is something you did know about cluster headaches when you look a little further beneath the surface, the term cluster isn’t as simple to understand as you might have first thought.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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4.     Cluster headaches are very rare<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As few as 1 in 1000 people are affected by cluster headaches, making them an incredibly rare thing to affect people. What this means is that when you’re looking to identify the cause of your head pain, chances are that it probably isn’t clustered headaches. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a long list of other head pain-related illnesses and conditions that are much more likely to affect far many more people. Things like dehydration <\/a>and alcohol hangovers are far more likely to be the cause of a new headache pain than cluster headaches are. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a recent survey of people shopping in an Oklahoma shopping mall, a striking 2% of respondents had ever suffered from cluster headaches, proving just how rare they are. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However rare they are though, this doesn’t detract from how life-changing and debilitating from the small percentage of the world’s population who are unfortunate enough to suffer from cluster headaches.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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5.     Doctors don\u2019t know what causes cluster headaches<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

It is usually the case that cluster headaches occur seasonally, most often in spring in fall. They usually occur just a few hours after people fall asleep as well, which is evidence of how annoying they can be. Not only are they incredibly painful, but they also wake you from your sleep <\/a>to announce their arrival. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There have been certain research studies which have focused on trying to ascertain just what causes the condition to develop and reoccur, but the findings have been sketchy at best and largely inconclusive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Without a real understanding of what causes cluster headaches, it is really hard for medical professionals to diagnose and treat them. It also makes it difficult for people who might want to try and work out whether or not they are likely to be affected by cluster headaches. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just because doctors don’t know what causes them though, doesn’t mean that they are any less vicious for those on the receiving end of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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6.     There are some known risk factors<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Whilst the causes are not known or fully understood, there are some risk factors that have been identified from the various studies into cluster headaches which point to certain groups of people being more likely to develop the condition than others. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Most new cases of cluster headaches seem to develop in people between the ages of 20 and 50 and it is men who are more likely to be affected than women. These indicators hardly narrow it down with an age gap of 30 years, but they do provide some indication as to who the most at-risk groups are. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

External lifestyle <\/a>factors such as smoking and alcohol consumption have also been found to be probable risk factors in terms of someone developing cluster headaches. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smoking and drinking have an awful lot to answer for when it comes to health, and cluster headaches are just another one on that list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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7.     Some treatments can help<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Whilst the causes of cluster headaches are far from being clear or even remotely understood, the various research studies which have been undertaken have found some treatments to be quite effective in treating the pain caused by cluster headaches. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Things, like using ice packs and over the counter medications to treat the pain, have proven to be effective in the short term, however, there has been a nasal spray<\/a> that has been developed specifically with cluster headaches in mind. This spray is designed to be used in the interloping period between one headache and another. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the timing of the dosage of this spray can prove difficult to get right, it has proven to be very effective in either delaying the onset of the next headache or in decreasing the ferociousness of the next headache. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The next task will be to develop a treatment that can prevent the next headache from developing altogether.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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8.     You should see a doctor<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

If you suspect that you have cluster headaches, you should definitely seek the advice of a doctor or a medical professional. There is no point suffering in silence when it comes to things like cluster headaches, and whilst a headache may seem like something one should be able to manage without a trip to the emergency room or the doctor\u2019s surgery<\/a>, cluster headaches are a level up from your ordinary headache and should be treated as something a lot more serious. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whilst the doctor may not be able to offer a solution, they will be able to offer some suggestions as to how to manage the pain of cluster headaches and as to how to ease the severity of the condition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cluster headaches are horrible things to suffer from, you probably did know that. This was a list of 8 things you probably didn\u2019t know, until now anyway. So there you go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\r\n

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