Posted by Urs Steiger on August 04, 1998 at 15:42:32:
Being new to this group it was impossible for me to read all messages on
this board. Therefore please pardon me, if I repeat facts that are already
known to the forum. The reason for my sometimes strange sounding English
is that my mother tongue is Swiss German.
After having had two episodes with Cluster Headaches in 1986 and 1990 the
3rd started on June, 29. and did not stop yet. But since July, 23. I can
prevent my pains almost totally. That day I realized that consuming any
kind of sugar affects my CH. So I stopped immediately to eat and drink
anything containing sugar.
The result was that I still have my daily attacks showing the typical
symptoms of CH like a certain indisposition, the left eye getting smaller
etc., but the attacks do not culminate in these excruciating pains any more.
Three attacks with distinct but supportable pains seem to confirm my theory:
- Once I couldn't resist to eat a nectarine (fructose).
- One evening an attack showed again a light headache. Asking my wife, what
she used to prepare the supper, I found that she put about 50 ml of milk
(lactose) per person in the meal.
- Another evening we had bread and dried meat for supper. I was astonished
to get pains, but reading on the packing of the bread, I saw that it
contained glucose.
These events teached me to be very cautious, especially with industrially
manufactured food.
I'm very happy now because at the moment I feel not handicapped in my normal
life, but because my method does not cure the CH and it most probably will
not help all sufferers from CH, it is only a small step on the way to the
solution of the problem.
Having read the "fantastic information" I still have many questions and
complementary observations:
1. My attacks occurred almost daily at about 2 p.m., often at about 9 p.m.,
sometimes at about 1 a.m. and rarely at other times of day. This corre-
sponds perfectly with the diagram Fig. 6-4. But I remarked that post-
poning a meal deferred also the following attack. Usually an attack
occurs about 90 minutes after a meal. Is an attack triggered by a bio-
logical clock or by the stomach (some time before the symptoms appear)?
2. Whenever I woke up at 1 a.m. having an attack, Imitrex tablets did not
help because the pains already were established. So I decided not to go
to bed before 2 a.m., because I wanted to be ready when an attack starts.
Sitting very quiet in the living room I remarked about 15 minutes after
having eaten or drunk something that a blood-vessel in the left temple
pulsated, sometimes I also felt a light stab. About 75 minutes later the
attack started. Is there really a correlation between the attacks and the
REM phases during sleep?
3. Having a breakfast with bread, butter and honey never triggered an attack.
This argument seems to be contradictory to my theory. Is it possible that
the attack is not triggered because of the high level of cortisone which
shows a peak in the morning?
4. During the last weeks I never had alcohol because I'm on Verapamil, so I
do not know if it triggers an attack. The first paragraph in the section
"Precipitating Factors" explains a contradiction between the experiences
of the patients and the results of the respective inquiries. Is it possi-
ble that not the alcohol triggers an attack but the sugar which is in
many alcoholic beverages?
Is there anybody who can confirm or refute my observations? Can anybody
answer my provocative questions?