Which are the symptoms of Cluster Headaches?

Symptoms of Cluster Headaches reported by real patients, from the most common to the most limiting, plus a medically reviewed summary with sources.

Posted Feb 21, 2017 by Lucas 1152

The pain around and behind the eye

Posted Mar 3, 2017 by Yoda 4292

The increasing of pain level - seems to have no peak in the early stages. Can be related to a hot poker or ice pick behind the eye. It is more like an alien attempting to give birth in one side of your head.
When they start to kick in I sit in front of a quiet fan and breathe through my nose only as breathing through my mouth and air on my teeth on the lower right jaw creates further pain.
With your nose running like a tap every nose blow feels like your head is ready to explode.
I sit upright as laying down makes the condition worse - he pain becomes so intense that you clench your fists and toes - to the degree that your fingers and toes are numb when things subside.
The feeling of helplessness as pain increases is harrowing as there is no indication of when the pain will peak and commence to reduce. Thus the terminology of suicide headaches.
You can stay away from everything that you think are triggers but it makes no difference in my opinion as this monster has a mind of its own. Even things like digesting a cracker biscuit can bring it on.

Posted Mar 4, 2017 by Donna 1005

Waking in the middle of the night in a full blown attack

Posted Apr 26, 2017 by Scott Wright 401

Tierdness after an attack are the worse as this limits everyday life

Posted Apr 26, 2017 by Mike Parkinson 300

For me it's photophobia which means I can't have ANY light source near me during my 'cycles '. I can spend upto nine months of the year sat in a 'blacked out' room. I'm also scared to leave my house incase of being hit with an attack in public. My sleep pattern during a cycle is all over the place, no sooner have I got to sleep, I get hit with attack. Then every morning I have an attack. I'm unable to commit to anything anymore career wise or socially. There is no point in making plans as I just don't know if I'll be able to carry them out. Then there is the sheer amount of pain you have to live with then all of the pharmaceutical mess you have to have. It's just never ending.

Posted Apr 27, 2017 by Matthew Bcfc 1000

Excruciating pain around the left eye globe.

Posted May 21, 2017 by Pepe922 2000

Facial pain . Eye pain. Burning. Teeth pain.

Posted Jun 3, 2017 by Maria 2001

The stabbing behind the eye

Posted Jun 4, 2017 by Tim 2150

The pain behind the eye is excrucisting, like when you eat something really cold to fast except the sensation last a long time instead of just a few seconds the pain encompasses the entire face sometimes the effect is bodily in that my skin just crawls I feel like I'm going to lose control with my bowel and bladder and I can't breathe I forget how to breathe I have to Splash cold water on my face to make the reaction happen

Posted Jun 9, 2017 by Melissa 400

The after attack I call it my hangover headache just like a bad hangover without pulsating, being drained of every ounce of energy

Posted Jun 11, 2017 by Jeff D 2000

The unrelenting pain. It starts in the occipital region on my right side.....then it creeps around the corner to my jaw and teeth and into my right temple. Feels like lightening. My right eyelid gets red and closes, sometimes a tear of two will fall from my right eye. I get very warm, sometimes roasting hot. It isn't the one time pain that makes me suffer, I can handle that....it's the fact that it will happen several times a day for weeks. THAT fact is what does me in. I can have 50 or more attacks in 10 days.....arrrrrrgh, That is the misery.

Posted Jul 20, 2017 by Leslie 110

The Pain is the worst Thing. The other Symtoms, runing Nose, Hanging red Eye, seating, freezing comes just from the Attack if you abort the Attack the Symtomes are away suddenly.

Posted Sep 13, 2017 by patric 200

Unbearable pain.
Periodicity.
Pacing.
Light/sound intolerance.
Vomits.
Suicidal behaviour.

Posted Sep 14, 2017 by João Pedro Graça 500

Pain behind eye and in head

Posted Sep 14, 2017 by Tracie 515

The only symptom is the pain.

Posted Sep 23, 2017 by stan 1000

The pain. Sleep deprivation. The condition not being understood.

Posted Oct 18, 2017 by Nigel 500

Knife-like pain around the eye on one side of the head night after night can lead to depression. There are triggers that bring on attacks and preventatives work some of the time but then stop working.

Posted Oct 26, 2017 by Lee-Alison 2000

Excruciating, burning, stabbing pain in and around one eye, including facial swelling, sweating, nasal congestion or running nose only on the affected side. Attacks begin and increase to maximum intensity within minutes and last 15 minutes to 3 hours, repeating up to 8 times per day. Attacks occur at regular intervals, particularly during sleep. Most patients experience periodic "clusters" of attacks during the same time every year for several weeks.

Posted Jan 29, 2018 by Tammy 1150

Sharp headaches on the right side of the head and redness in the eye of the same place runny only in one nostril
Nausea

Posted Feb 1, 2018 by Danny 3050

You go to bed just like you're used to every night. Then out of nowhere you wake up feeling like there is a knife on your eyeball from inside trying to come out. That's when the nightmare starts, and that might last a couple of months. You just cant stand still as you feel like when you have a typical migraine. You sit on bed and just cant stop moving on it. After like half an hour the pain stops and as you would not stop moving you feel exhausted. 30 minutes sounds too little time but for sufferers it feels like forever.
As the cluster starts, you try to have a normal life but after a few days you know it is impossible, because that same pain that woke you up a few days ago keeps coming like 5 to 8 times a day. And when it comes, you just cant do anything else besides feeling like a zombie around the room palming your affected eye hoping it wont pop out.
I also was diagnosed with other 2 types of migraines, I'm used to live with pain all my life, but cluster headaches aren't even closed to any other pain I've ever had.

Posted Aug 29, 2018 by Nandarq 500

Severe pain behind right eye

Posted Oct 20, 2018 by Michael Trapp 1600

long lasting facial pain (teeth, nose, eyes, front) and strong headaches. one sided and (for me, clockwork ). as an episodic happens in cycles of around 3~4 months. looks like "seasonal " … to me its fall and spring.

Posted Nov 7, 2018 by Oliver 3000

The pain (in my case my whole left sight of my face.) because it is the worse pain ever and drives a person insane in so far they take their own lives sometimes.
Fatique, You" so tired because you either dont sleep or just a few hours at night or day time if you can. then after an episode you feel like you have run in a competition.

Posted Nov 7, 2018 by MC 2500

Headache in one side of the head. Wet and red eye with pain besides it

Posted May 16, 2019 by vasilis 2500

Obviously the pain is the most prominent and limiting symptom. This will be the most pain you've ever endured, commonly unilateral supraorbital pain that can radiate outwards. Nothing really alleviates the pain. You will experience a personality change, becoming desperately agitated. You will be unable to function or respond appropriately in any situation, making you incapable participation of any activity and leaving you incapacitated. Pain is the first symptom you focus on trying to get rid of. Everything else would be somewhat manageable without the pain.

Posted May 20, 2019 by Kendra 4550

The PAIN! The pain is so intense, along with the fear of getting an attack. And waking up at 2am every single night during an episode is really draining...and an episode can last 6 months or a year or more. I would rather get them during the day when I'm awake and can do something to abort the pain before it gets too intense.

Posted Aug 22, 2019 by Judy 1600

Unilateral stabbing pain behind the eye.

Posted Apr 13, 2020 by Larry 5050

severe unilateral pain mainly around the eye and temple

Red, watering, tearing of the eye on the affected side

Runny nose

Flushing of the face

Pain in the eye and nostril of the affected side

Posted Jul 27, 2020 by Stėph 3000

Severe unilateral pain - mainly around the eye and temple of the affected side

Nasal congestion / nasal drip

eye/facial droop

eye tearing

Posted Jul 27, 2020 by Stephanie 4650

The severe pain is the most limiting. The pain I would get rid of first. I would much rather have the facial swelling, nasal discharge, jaw pain, watery eyes and small pupils than the pain.

Posted Aug 3, 2021 by Hali 900

An intense stabbing, burning pain behind one eye (always same side). I can best describe it as “brain freeze”, as in when you drink something extremely cold too fast. The most bizarre feature is waking up out of a sound sleep at 2:05 am every night during a 6-8 week cluster.

Posted May 20, 2022 by [email protected] 2500

Translated from spanish Improve translation

Headache unbearable that it begins with the eye, in my case in the left eye, it puts me a little boy, the swollen eyelids as if she had cried a lot and the nose as if I had been cold, in the moments of greatest pain, a great anguish and despair, nausea, and even vomiting.

Posted May 9, 2017 by Nélida 1001

Translated from spanish Improve translation

In my case. The right eye is placed. Red. And I chop. And a. Pain. Very. Strong. In the head of the same side. In the point. Maximum. Pain. That. Lasts as 3 to 5. Hours. I suffer from panic and. Phobia-wing darkness. And is characterized by its periodic I suffer the chronic every 48. Hours or 72 hours. All the months of the year. I have 12 years of pain to my rarely give me vomiting

Posted Sep 17, 2017 by alex 900