Son of a...

Defiantly in a "muted" cycle.

I just woke up in my office chair at 2:00am (classic time for an attack) and I realized that the nightmare I was having was my mind trying to wake me up... because I have a little cluster ramping up right now. I don't expect it to get very bad. maybe a three in my scale. over the last two weeks I have gotten a couple of sharp attacks that "poke through" like this, often related to sleep. Like if I take a nap or sleep a lot the night before.

This have been one of the worst though... it may get up to a four before its ready to break.

Really just a reminder to myself that Topamax is not perfect and I am still getting really painful headaches more than any frigging human should have to.

not to mention that I wake up nearly every day with some level of migraine type pain... OK gonna have to stop typing, getting bad.

Maintaining A Low Roar

I know I haven't been posting much...

A 13 month old son with food sensitivities who wakes up 2-6 times a night and sometimes requires hours of soothing to get him back to sleep will cut into your "writing time". But thats not the only reason... I have been in a lull, bad cluster attack wise. I feel guilty in a way because I know so many of you are out there in such great pain and I don't think I feel worthy to speak about it at during a time that I am not feeling it as intensely.

I am still waking almost every day to a 2-3 migraine style headache and at least I forget... I AM in a little cycle right now. I am getting 1-3 level (my scale) "long and low" cluster pain at my typical times of day for the last two weeks but I am so used to mild cluster pain that I sometimes have to stop and think about it, almost "hunt for it" before realizing oh yeah! There it is!

Kinda sad, being so familiar with pain that it becomes like background noise that you tune out. Its still slowing you, making you less effective, you just don't have the time to acknowledge it anymore.

Now the burning question... Am I not getting bad attacks because I am on Topamax? Yes? Maybe? Partly?
a. I think Topamax is having a positive effect (for me).
b. I have had long stretches of time were I didn't get bad attacks before.
c. I get less headaches when I sleep less... and I have been up a LOT with the baby
d. I honestly think my body may just be "walking it off" due to my son

Topamax has pretty much proven to me that it is having some effect on my attacks. It is the best preventative I have tried so far. I understand it does not work for everyone and that just points out the elusive nature of controlling cluster attacks. For all I know my bad attacks will return with a vengeance in spite of Topamax and I would not be surprised in the least. In fact I am waiting for that shoe to drop.

Hell, It doesn't Have to be the Topamax that is fully responsible. Sometimes I just take a long stretch of time off from bad cycles... It has happened a couple of times before and each time I was hopeful that my nightmare was ending. I was heartbreaking to find I was so wrong.

Its now very clear that for me sleep is a "trigger". Yup! The more I sleep the more likely I am to get bad attacks and even migraines. Well, my son has been a real challenge over the last 13 months he needs around the clock attention and his headache ridden insomniac father can usually stay awake to give it to him. This could be 80% of the answer right here to be honest. When we get help watching him and I get the chance to catch up on sleep... I feel like crap after.

I am a firm believer that the body can rise to a challenge for a period of time and that I may be calling on resources that are keeping me healthier because I am caring for a baby. Now that may sound a bit odd coming from me but I think our own bodies are the best pharmaceutical factories on the planet. I don't think is too far fetched to think that I have triggered "fatherhood" changes in my body and that I am reacting in a positive way to providing care for a new person. Its a nice thought anyway

So there it is.

Still lots of headaches over the months, just not the ones that leave you rocking in a corner beating yourself at the base of the skull with the first weighty object you could find.

My wife told me something the other day that made my blood run cold. Our son has been waking up at night more often that usual recently and screaming loudly when he does. She was having a hard time getting him back to sleep and she said he started banging his head rhythmically against he arm and then started hitting himself in the head with his hand in the same way. We both just just kind of stood there for a moment knowing that if he had headaches it would explain so much about why he has had so much difficulty. Then we both decided it was too horrible to consider and I broke the silence by saying "head banging in children is pretty common".

When I was alone I spent a few minutes sobbing at the idea that I may have passed any of my insane health issues on to my wonderful son.

As Much As I Hate To Do It...

I think I am going to have to put tighter restrictions on posting comments. Lately I have been getting comments which are just long lists of links to commercial sites and I can't abide by that. Thats not what this place is about. People should not have to dig through crap text to get helpful information or the honest comments of someone going through the same awful pain that they suffer.

The fact that people don't respect that is astounding... I know these new posts are likely automated but the people that created the automation knew that it would not be selective or empathetic as it polluted useful sites with garbage text, so they still have no excuse in my book.

Hell, as you may have noticed... to date I haven't had any ads MYSELF! why the hell would people feel comfortable trying to advertise here?! It STUNS me just how rude people can be.

I have always kept the comments open so that people could come and post freely and anonymously without hassle... (The last thing you want when you are in the middle of a cluster attack is to have to set up a damn account so you can vent!) I am sincerely sorry that human greed and my lack of time to police the result of that greed now forces me to close that freedom down.

Honestly I just can't keep up with all the spam and its starting to slip by me. It makes me angry that they have changed the way This blog operates because they are trying to sell "Ugg Boots".

I Don't Use The Kip Scale Personally

Its not because I don't find it adequate mind you... its mainly because I had developed my own scale many years before hearing about the kip scale and everything in my long record is based on my own measurement. (I had clusters long before the magic of the interweb!) Converting now I'm afraid would cause more disassociation with that old pain and cause me to forget what I had really experienced. a level 3 should always be a level 3 in my mind. It will "drift" and you can't stop that with ANY pain rating system but I think changing my point of reference mid stream would be really bad for me.

My apologies if this causes confusion for any readers.

Having said all that I do like mine better because it doesn't spend as much time on the low end. It starts were I precive a bad tention headache peaks in pain and thats what I call a "one". This makes it easy for me to explain the pain to others. I have little doubt that my worst attacks have qualified as being described as 9-10 times more painful than a tension headache.

So on my scale, I tend to be conservative with assigning high ratings. Many times I have marched in circles around my downstairs at 3am repeating a mantra and beating myself in the base of the skull with a heavy object only to rate that a level 6-7. I think I have only given my self 9's a few times and I may have only used 10 once.

On my scale, 10 represents almost a mythic level of pain... believe me I know most of us have peaked into that pit. I just don't want to be casual about it... when it really happens, I want to document it. I want to have a rating that stands out and screams "that night was pure horror." So I kind of keep 10 in reserve.

I think If I was using The kip scale I would be tempted to grant myself 10s more often.

Here is what the KIP scale looks like.
KIP PAIN SCALE
Pain level 0: No pain
Pain level 1: Very minor, shadow's come and go
Pain level 2: More persitent shadow's
Pain level 3: Shadow's are getting constant but can deal with it
Pain level 4: Starting to get bad, want to be left alone
Pain level 5: Still not a "pacer" (needing to walk back and forth) but need space
Pain level 6: Wake up grumbling, curse a bit, but can get back to sleep with out "dancing“
Pain level 7: Wake up, sleep not an option, take the beast for a walk and finally fall into bed exhausted
Pain level 8: Time to scream, yell, curse, head bang, rock, whatever work's
Pain level 9: The "Why me?" syndrome starts to set in
Pain level 10: Major pain, screaming, head banging, ER trip. depressed. suicidal.

Note: Between Pain level 6 and 7, the eye on the hit side starts to tear and nose starts running.

My scale looks more like this
Doc's PAIN SCALE
Pain level 0: No sensation at all (like that ever happens. I get migraines now as well so I usually got some pain in the noggin)
"Aura" Dull non painful sensation behind eye and "stupid feeling" mild confusion( "shadows?" )
Aura w/pain I will sometimes refer to these as a .5 (yes, I know that if I used KIP I wouldn't have to do that.)
Pain level 1: Approximately the pain level of a tension headache
Pain level 2: I am able to mask this level of pain and function, but it is twice what I used to consider a "normal" bad headache
Pain level 3: 3x Even though I am very well practiced, at this level I start losing the ability to "act normal"
Pain level 4: About the level of bad migraines I have experienced, urge to pace and beat self in the head starts.
Pain level 5: Pacing starts, talking to self can begin... this is when fear of a really bad attack sets in
Pain level 6: Marching, try a hot bath (placebo effect imo), full blown mantra by this point. Cursing.
Pain level 7: Trying to keep it together, marching louder mantra, screams of anger common, constant beating self in head.
Pain level 8: Nearing the breaking point, often abandon pacing and retreat to hot bath, question fairness of life.
Pain level 9: Breakdown, too much pain to take. Even a seasoned cluster veteran loses it
Pain level 10: Reserved for events to nightmarish to describe with words.

So as you can see its really similar, just a different "curve" it starts quicker and is more stingy with the ratings as they go up. I may have to go back through my blog and do a "KIP" conversion for each time I rate a cluster. (that would be a pain)

One useful tool I have found for describing clusters to people is telling them to think about an Ice cream headache. Then tell them to imagine that lasting for 45 to 90 minutes! I let them chew on that for a bit... then I drop the bomb that I would consider that about a level 2-3 at most. Of course this assumes everyone experiences those little intense throbs the same... maybe they just always hurt me more than other people... well, people seem dutifully horrified. hehe Pain will never be an easy thing to discuss.

I feel like I bought a set of wrenches and found out I needed metric. : )

Latitude Effect?

A while back a visitor mentioned in a post that people believe location in reference to the earths equator has some effect on cluster headaches. At the time, I had only heard that the theory existed, I had never seen any facts or real studies... A quick poke around seemed to indicate that its based mostly on anecdotal evidence at this point. I can still find no studies. That doesn't mean they don't exist, I didn't look very hard.

I tend to update my knowledge in waves... I am a bit like an Anne Rice vampire that buries himself for one hundred years until things change enough to be interesting... I have had this affliction for so long that its a bit depressing to hash over the stuff that doesn't seem to make any difference or hasn't been thoroughly researched. So every few years I go on a tear... usually because I get one too many REALLY bad cycles and I find out every new bit of information I can. By the end of it, I usually end up a little beaten up because nothing seems to be a firm answer or pertain to me and I begin wondering if I should switch neurologists again and crawl back beneath the surface.

Personally it seems a bit far fetched to me, but finding every bit of the puzzle helps. So this is a quick post to remind myself to look into it further when I am in "research mode" and also to tell people if I think my living in southern latitudes has had a positive effect on my headaches.

Now I would say that in my personal experience that I can NOT confirm the equator phenomena. I live in one of the southern most US states and when I travel I usually go north and spend good amounts of time in places like Boston, and Sandpoint Idaho, Squiem Washington, San Francisco, Victoria Canada and it seems to have the opposite effect. I have noticed I get less headaches... But the same was true when I went to Belize. Basically, when I leave home, I do better.

But then, I am too small of a sample (and I don't travel enough) to base any firm opinions on...

A lot of people seem to be moving because of this... believe me I understand, most of us will do anything for a chance to feel better. But I want to see data before I start packing my bags... because I sure can't go much further south unless I leave the U.S.A. and I really hate the heat. : )

Long Absence

Thank you to all the people still reading the archives and posting or finding this blog for the first time.

I know I have been gone for a while now and just to explain quickly, My son who is now 6 months old has food sensitivities and is pretty demanding. I take care of him during the day and try my best to keep up with my work at night. I also handle night time feedings so his mother can rest and be alert at her job. I am often awake with some type of headache anyway so why not use it to our advantage.

My headaches have not been bad lately (clusters and migraines) it would be nice to think that my son is causing the release of some hormone in my brain that will eventually "repair" me. But its more likely that I am just in one of my long lulls that happen every few years... its like I get a break so that I keep going. Just enough relief to string me along.

Also I am convinced that the lack of sleep I am getting is having a positive effect on my headaches. I have been getting 3-4 hours of sleep a night for the last 6 months and it has seemed to make an impact. Anytime I sleep more I get hit with pain of some type. The last few days my wife and I have changed the schedule so she controls the mornings more and she tends to let me sleep because from her point of view "how could I not need sleep?" but I have been feeling worse than I have in months so I need to start setting an alarm or something.

Of course I am still under treatment... Topamax is not a wonder drug, but it's the least offensive preventative I have taken so fare and at my current dose it seems to contribute to "mixing up" and "muting" the cluster attacks and the migraines.

So I don't know how often I will be posting or answering comments over the next few months... Mr. Babies GI claims he will eventually get over his sensitivities and hopefully that will make him a lot calmer and happier. Maybe he will even sleep through the night! But for know I just have my hands full, and it was not like I had a tone of excess energy before... heh.

I have been suffering with clusters for 18 years now... I have had times when it almost drug me down and times were I got a nice long break from it and started to imagine that I was free. I know how much it sucks... Hang in there folks. I hope everyone who reads this finds relief soon.

Fed up with doctors...

I see 3 doctors at the moment, all 3 generally treat me like I have a time limit on my visits. I have had one stop me in the middle of describing my symptoms and say "We need to move on, we are running out of time." He didn't say he didn't feel what I was describing was unrelated mind you... just that he didn't have time to hear about it.

I have a horrible time contacting another of my doctors, I can't call and speak with her. I have to call her assistant. Now thats not so unusual, except that her assistant doesn't take calls either! You have to leave a voicemail to get a callback from the assistant and that can take 24hrs! The message sternly warns you that only one call can be made a day and that calls must be made before 3pm... remember, this is just to speak to her helper. I just don't feel there is any interest in connecting the dots and finding out what is really wrong with me. She just seems to medicate away my symptoms. Can't any neurologist can do that?

Even the doctor I really like is usually so fast during visits I feel like I am speed dating.

This takes the cake however, My wife is having a baby and yesterday was the due date she was given originally so we called her doctor to see what we needed to do and schedule an appointment (he told us to call if she had not gone into labor yet) But the prick had left the country! Yes, thats right... just left without saying a word to us. My wife is not prone to be overly emotional and she is a level headed chick... but as you might imagine this upset her a great deal. That pisses me off to no end.

We made the decision to use him based on the recommendation of friends and information we had gathered in meeting with him and spending time with him over the last few months. We now know nothing about the doctor that will be in charge of the delivery.

He robbed us.

I have often defended the actions of doctors in this blog, but I don't feel so forgiving at the moment. This is how they see us folks... I know it is different for each doctor, but I honestly think that in order to be successful as a physician you need to be able to be "selectively" empathetic. I think it helps a great deal to be able to turn off your concern for others like a light switch. Watch them like a hawk, and feel free to use them like they use us.

What a pitiful little thing you are...

I fluttered back from the unconsciousness that I hate so much and poured myself out of bed. Shambled down the stairs like an old man and collapsed in a chair. 

When I had enough of me gathered, I looked inside to access how much I hurt and how badly beaten I had been in the night.

What a pitiful little thing you are...

-Murdock Scott 2008

Recent Headache activity

Mon. Sharp Twinges of cluster-like pain in the afternoon and evening dull throbs of migraine like pain off and on throughout the day.

Tues. Woke with somewhat intence migraine pain. Faded by mid morning. Same cluster like twinges throughout the day.
Wen. Woke with bad migraine pain that lasted most of the day. A few very sharp and painful Cluster-like twinges in the evening.

Thursday. woke with a dull migraine pain on the left side by mid morning pain had seemed to consolidate behind the left eye into a throbbing "mock cluster". Its vaguely in the right spot but doesn't really feel the same and "moves" or undulates differently. Its like Mr. "M" is entertaining Mr."C" by putting on his clothes and doing an impersonation of him.

Annoying.

So, the lower dose of Topamax I would say defiantly is not going to be enough to keep them quiet.

Hands feel better after stretching exersizes... still feel like passing out when I do them... weird.

Coughing is reduced but I an on medication for that until we know whats going on I guess.

I don't know, I am sick of all this to the point that I can't even describe.

Long And Low Cluster Pain, Side Effects Update.

I had pain typical of cluster in the classic cluster location for several hours today. It never got over about a 3 on my personal scale (different from the commonly used Kip scale). These "Long and Low" types of headaches are not new for me and typically have a long ramp up that leads toward the more classic short intense attacks sort of like compressing a spring.

I don't really know if other people experience clusters this way. I somethings think that my reluctance to take pain medication gives me a somewhat more "detailed" view of my pain than others may have when its less intense that is. I also firmly believe that everyone is different and its possible that my headaches are just a little "weird". The other possibility I see is that they are "old" I used to have nothing but the short intense attacks, like most people describe. These "long and low versions that now come in between are fairly new, I have developed them over the last 3-4 years. They seem to be an "addition" not just a modification to the attacks I was already having.

Plus, In the last year or two I have also been getting more and more migraines which feel completely different and are located in a different area.

So, one got through the lower dose of Topamax is the point I guess. I think its clear. I am more susceptible to feeling pain from whatever causes the headaches at this lower dose. I want to stress that even at higher doses I could feel "stuff" going on. It just didn't usually get to be long lasting pain... weird short little bursts and twinges while the two demons fought under the blankets piled up on my head.

Also, I had a visit with my regular doctor and he does not seem to think the weird stuff going on with me is related to the Topamax. I love this guy, but I think he may be wrong... I kinda hope he is wrong. He thinks I have carpal tunnel (not necessarily repetitive stress injury I guess but something else falling under that umbrella) and a disorder that makes the lungs sensitive to temperature changes (like from inside and outside your body) and thats causing my airways to spasm. He took some chest X-rays and I am waiting to hear back on that. Ugh.

I would much rather it be the medication.... I don't want more weird stuff wrong with me.

Reduced Topamax Dosage Update

Since my doctor reduced my Topamax dosage I have been doing much better on the complaints I was having.

1. Numbness and or tingling in face, hands and sometimes feet. 
    Seems to have reduced substantially. I have hardly noticed it in the last week or so. 

2. Muscle aches, pains and weakness. Mostly in the hands but also in the feet and legs
    Still kinda weak but not as bad as before I would say.

3. Urge to cough when I draw a deep breath.
    I was hoping this would go away completely but it hasn't and it really worries me. It IS getting better though. I have had one or two days since the drop in dosage that were as bad but mostly I am able to take a deep breath and not cough now.

4. Cloudy urine
    I haven't been checking... It's a gross task. heh.

5. Strange and unpleasant taste/smell in mouth and nostrils

    Doesn't seem as bad.

6. Unusually weak and tired ( I believe more so than before dosage increase but hard to gauge)

    I would say I have more energy.

I also had some lab tests that showed negative for SOMETHING. This hasn't really been explained to me yet, but I assume they wanted to check for some possible negative effect of the drug.

So what about the headaches... sadly yes, I have been feeling them more. Not too badly. But last night I got a cluster twinge and this morning I can feel it again... lurking in there. Its been a good while since I felt "distinct" cluster pain so I am convinced that the Topamax has been "muting" a mild cycle in progress.

Who knows, that may explain some of my "side effects" maybe the fatigue, numbness and weakness were all just what happens in me when I get cluster attacks that are modified by the presents of enough Topamax in my system. Like splash damage in a grenade fight.

Ack! the twinging continues...

Reduced Dosage On Topamax

As of Yesterday I dropped down to less than half the dose of Topamax I was on before on the advice of my doctor. I and getting some lab work done monday and I assume this is to check for issues that may have been caused by the drug. Routine I am sure when someone starts complaining of such an array of possible side effects.

With the drop in dosage the "muting effect" of the drug on headaches that are bouncing around is already noticeably lessened.

I which I had been able to speak with the doctor but all this was arranged by leaving messages for her assistant. So at this point I really don't know what to expect. I am not really sure what amount of my current symptoms are related to the drug. Its hard for me to discern some times. I don't know how other people can be so sure of such things. I guess they have a clearer understanding of what feeling "normal" is like.

I also wanted to say in regards to my last post and the danger to vision from Topamax. I don't feel like my doctor ever put my vision at risk. I was not aware of the issue and I would have liked to know in case something HAD gone wrong and I needed to get to an emergency room fast and demand they take action. But in fairness the chances of that seem next to impossible to me. She has always crept my dosage up very slowly and I am sure this is one of the reasons why.

As I get to know her I am getting to trust that she is very good at what she does. I just wish that it worked out that I could have better access to her. But its probably BECAUSE she is good that I can't speak with her on the phone and our very rare visits seem so rushed. She is just in demand.

Topamax Possible Side Effects

After several weeks on a higher dose of Topamax I am feeling a collection of problems that compelled me to finally call my doctor and see if these could be related to the drug. Now if any doctors read this, pleas note that these symptoms have been going on for weeks, but it is very hard for me yo discern what is "new" discomfort because I don't fell well most of the time... I have been generally tired and have had body aches for example since I was in my 20s and I am almost always suppressing some kind of headache pain. On top of that I simply don't like to complain... If I complained about every ache and pain I have The bitching would be constant and annoying as hell to those around me. So I have trained myself to hush my mouth and "take it".

You may need to understand these traits about some people you give medications to... I am sure some of you do, but in case I catch the ear of someone who had not considered it I thought it was worth explaining.

Drug manufacturers might want to make a note as well... if you actually care. (Yes I am sorry, I see you that way. Please prove me wrong.)

Here is the list of things I have noticed that seem to be going strange with me on my current dose of Topamax:

1. Numbness and or tingling in face, hands and sometimes feet.

2. Muscle aches, pains and weakness. Mostly in the hands but also in the feet and legs

3. Urge to cough when I draw a deep breath.

4. Cloudy urine

5. Strange and unpleasant taste/smell in mouth and nostrils

6. Unusually weak and tired ( I believe more so than before dosage increase but hard to gauge)


Details:

1. Numbness and or tingling in face, hands and sometimes feet.
I had something similar to this before starting Topamax that I believe is just a natural occurrence in me. I am referring to them as "Sleep attacks" my legs and arms get "weak" and "numb" and I feel like I can't move them and I am in a strange half asleep state. much like sleep paralysis. these seem to happen when I am in the low points of my modern headache cycles.

At first I thought the Topamax was just "smoothing" these out and making them occur at weird times and feel different. Now I am not so sure. They are similar, but now I am wondering if the Topamax is not triggering the thing that used to only happen once and a while "naturally" and therefore changing the nature of it.

2. Muscle aches, pains and weakness. Mostly in the hands but also in the feet and legs
Dunno...Is this related to point 1?

3. Urge to cough when I draw a deep breath.
This really freaks me out, I swallowed a pill wrong a few weeks back and honestly I though thats why I have been coughing... but its been weeks now. I don't seem to have any raspyness or flem... and that actually makes me MORE worried.

4. Cloudy urine
I started taking this pharmaceutical quality fish oil for my high triglycerides and I though that was what was doing this so I cut it out for a week and it seemed to get better but then I saw a cloudy batch... I didn't suspect the Topamax until I reread the side effect warnings and connected the dots about kidney stones. I just want to know if this is what is doing it so I can relax and drink tons of watter... I should be any way I guess.

5. Strange and unpleasant taste/smell in mouth and nostrils
Once again I thought this was all because of the fish oil... but I think its BOTH! I am a super taster and this may be a problem for me. Its really annoying, it almost makes me feel ill to have the smell/taste with me all day. Sometimes its like burning electronics.

6. Unusually weak and tired
Like I mentioned, its hard for me to gauge. But, I believe I am worse off than before my dosage increase. I feel pretty crappy as of late.

But of course then there is the big question...

"How have your headaches been doc?"

Not bad... modest pain, manageable, mostly brought on my sleep. If I sleep I hurt... Classic for me. But the short story is that nothing has peaked above a 3-4 since I have been at this level of medication.

My doctor discribed this class of medications as "throwing a blanket over the headache". I would modify that by saying its like throwing a wet wool blanket that sort of stinks over two fighting demons that want yo beat the crap out of your brain and that each increase in dosage is like another smelly old wool blanket that you use to try to block the sound and pain of the fighting demons but also makes it harder for you to walk around normaly and hold your head up like a person without a stack of stinking wet wool blankets wraped tightly around your head.

So at those levels of pain I could function pretty well... IF i had the energy and didn't feel like crap in OTHER ways *sigh* Thats always the story I can trade the pain for side effects that are almost as bad as the pain... and in some cases may be dangerous.

The sad truth is that as much as they hurt like hell, If you are used to them like I am, even the worst clusters can't really hurt you if you refuse to hurt yourself... the medication on the other hand just may blind you or worse.

Please read and be aware about this happening in a small number of Topamax users.
Topamax and Another Acute Glaucoma Attack - Almost.

Sleep=bad post 687

I accidentally fell asleep at just before 11pm tonight and awoke at 1:30am with a pretty screaming "two dogs fighting under a wet blanket" style type headache. Its almost 3am now and I am hoping I can get back to sleep soon and get a few hours of sleep like a normal person.

I need to post my summary of my recent visit with my neurologist. I keep forgetting.

I also need to post about Topamax induced "buzzy" extremities and unique daytime sleepiness I have been experiencing since a recent dosage increase.

Too tired now...

I am still having headaches in the morning.

Almost every morning when I wake up I have a headache usually not that bad, (for me) level 2-ish. Most of the time these disipate withing 30-45 min after waking, almost like being asleep was the cause. Sometimes they stay with me for the rest of the morning and rarely they can last all day. They are normally in the migraine area and have the characteristics of that type of pain.

The day before yesterday. I slept for longer than usual (7 hours) and woke with a very bad headache that lasted much longer. I am trying to get back to a schedule of sleeping a full nights sleep each night but if I continue to wake up in such pain each morning I am afraid I will have poor motivation to do it.