Before we can discuss possible cluster headache treatment options for the pain your cluster headaches cause, you should be able to determine if you indeed suffer from cluster headaches. To determine that you should list the symptoms for cluster headaches and compare them with your own symptoms. I have earlier posts that talks about cluster headache symptoms, so if you want more information on the symptoms you should check those out. But I can already give you the two main characteristics.

The most important symptom is that cluster headaches are extremely painful, there are cluster headache sufferer that feel like they could be life threatening, although they aren’t really. The other main symptom is that they are cyclical in nature. They will appear at certain times for several weeks or months and then disappear for months or years before they return. So, before you seek help for your cluster headaches, make sure you do have them. For more information on the symptoms take a look at the cluster headache symptoms article on my blog.

The number one cluster headache treatment is the abortive oxygen treatment. You will receive pure oxygen through an oxygen mask for several minutes. Your pain will usually be gone in a few minutes. It might be possible that the relief will only be temporary and that the pain will return after the cluster headache sufferer stops the inhalation off the oxygen.

But there is a problem with the oxygen treatment and that is that the treatment is very inconvenient. Oxygen tanks are bulky, heavy and difficult to carry around. You can have an installation at home, but that won’t do you any good if a cluster headache attacks starts when you’re at work or in your car.

There are also pharmaceutical options. One of those options is imitrex (sumatripan). This will be given to you through an injection. These injections have been proven to work very well with migraines but they are also effective for cluster headaches. The downside is that these injections can cause side effects. You should talk with your doctor about the advantages and disadvantages of this cluster headache treatment.

There is also an IV drug that is effective for cluster headaches: dihydroergotamine. This kind of treatment can only be given at a doctor’s office, this makes it a very inconvenient treatment.

But there are also “treatments” you could do yourself. If you keep a diary of everything you do and eat during the day, you should be able to recognize a pattern in your attacks. There are some foods that cause headaches with certain people. Because the headaches will occur after you have eaten, they will look cyclical and it could be possible that this kind of headache will be classified as a cluster headache. If this is the case, you should be able to recognize the foods that cause the headache with a diary. Experiment with your diet to see if a change in your habits increases or decreases the number of attacks or if they are more or less painful.

It could also be possible that your headaches are related to you being out of shape or not eating healthy. Exercise and diet aren’t scientifically causes of cluster headaches, but you could consider to exercise more and eat healthier. A lot of ailments are the result of a poor lifestyle and not just inevitable and unlucky occurrences. Try it out, it might help with your headaches.

Discover a way to understand your cluster headaches and possible treatment options. After suffering for years with your condition, The Cluster Cure offers you a plan of attack for your clusters so you can lead a relatively pain free life.