u/the_gold_lioness

I had my first cluster headaches a couple months ago. Before the headaches started, I had a strange pain in my mouth for about a week (in that meaty vertical part behind my back teeth--idk what it's called). The mouth pain went away, and the next day my cluster headaches started.

I didn't think much of it at the time, but that same pain has started again and now I'm afraid it's signaling another cluster. It could just be a coincidence, but the mouth pain was only on one side last time, and it was the same side as my cluster. The pain during the attacks radiated down into my teeth and jaw, which also makes me think they may be related.

Does anyone get some sort of pre-cluster pain or some other signal that a cluster is about to happen?

Note: My PCP prescribed me verapamil, as well as a triptan nasal spray in case of another attack. I have a neurologist appointment at the end of August (the soonest they could fit me in when I called back in March), so I'm just trying my best to manage until then.

The developers planted 3 red-twig dogwoods on this southwest corner of our lot when we moved in, and none have survived. All of our neighbors’ dogwoods are thriving in their west-facing front yards, so I’m assuming the culprit is the additional southern sun exposure from the empty lot next to us (which will have a house eventually but not for a couple more years).

Any recommendations on replacement shrubs that can handle being blasted by sun all day? I’d prefer native plants, and a stroll through the neighborhood found western sand cherry, golden currant, and potentilla all doing well. I was also considering fernbush or Apache plume, but I’m open to anything else tough enough for this location.

Thanks in advance!

Pre-cluster pain?