Cluster headaches

[Lilmix03]

Has anyone found the Sumatriptan Nasal Spray or Injection useful for their headaches. The NHS website says I should be offered Oxygen Therapy, has anyone tried this? I'm currently on Naratriptan 2.5mg Oral but it doesn't seem to have much effect

[Blearyeyed]

I didn't get relief with Sumatriptan, but I don't respond to any Triptans .My daughter does , although if it is a severe cluster it doesn't clear it entirely for her , but dies if it's a single Migraine.

I have had oxygen therapy . I wasn't offered it , I had to push for it and only got the chance to trial it because I have other health issues too.

It needed starting with very short sessions and after the first few sessions I got rebound migraines but it did help little by little . Trouble is, the trial treatment was short term and by the time I really began to feel benefit the session was up.

I couldn't afford to keep it up , even with subsidy , and it is one of those things that needs to be kept up regularly and consistently to keep giving relief.

[Mavary]

hi! Naratriptan was my saviour. I used to get horrendous migraines. At the end I had cluster headaches. I’m now both migraine and cluster headache free. I hope this will maybe happen to you sometime.

[Aquariel in reply to Mavary]

naratriptan is marvellous. Any drug has serious side effects on me including asthma drugs, but not these.

[WaterDragon]

I have used sumatriptan ever since 1999, an absolute life saver, often with diet coke as it seems to be absorbed quicker, but once my stomach shutsdown and nausea starts it is the injection version, if I am away from home the 20mg nasal spray helps sometimes (I cant inject myself, hence the wife does it) I have seen several neurologists and tried a whole array of meds, but only sumatriptain helps. I tried zomaptripan but did not work well, same as the generic sumatriptan injection, only numbed the migraine. I am 70 and had migraines since I was 14.

[WaterDragon in reply to WaterDragon]

One other point, if your migraines increase, check your blood pressure, I am on cadesartain and not only regulated my blood pressure, but reduced the number of migraines I now get. So in many way it acts as a preventer too.

[Lilmix03 in reply to WaterDragon]

Thanks, I'll keep an eye on my blood pressure.. Atm it's stable but it can fluctuate because I have suspected POTS

[troy04 in reply to WaterDragon]

WaterDragon What is the Candesartan dose (mg) you take daily? It is used often by doctors for migraine prophylaxis on its own. Since this is working for you, I am guessing you must be taking 16mg or more per day.

[WaterDragon]

That's awful,I get a fast heart occasionally (160) I hate it but a beta blocker from doc helps. I put it down to being old, take care.

[natoneill]

I have been using Sumatriptan injections for many years and they are a godsend. I have had migraines since I was abt 10 and I am now 48

My migraines have changed in the last 10 years though, I used to get a migraine and would use the sumatriptan injection and that would be the end of it. Various things contributed to the migraines but nothing in particular triggered them.

Now my migraines are cyclical and related to my hormones. I get a 4-5 day migraine every month at around the same time. I have to use an injection for each day, sometimes 2, as the meds wear off and the migraine comes back. It must be the drop in hormone levels when my period starts although I now have the coil which has effectively stopped my physical periods but I still get the migraines.

I have to use the injection as I used to use the tablets but the migraine would affect my stomach and I start to feel sick and throw up. I have tried the nasal spray and found that it wasn’t as effective

I have now steered HRT (in April) which I thought would help but so far it hasn’t and I am now tweaking the dose to see if that helps

It’s an absolute nightmare

But without the injection I wld be a lot worse

[Rayan2017]

yes it goes after 20 minutes- avoid laying down