"Dealing with Agonizing Headaches: Coping Strategies for Severe Pain"
Daren Frankish, a 53-year-old from Edinburgh, has been suffering from excruciating cluster headaches for 17 years, describing the pain as being hit with a baseball bat while being stabbed in the eye. These attacks, which can last up to 12 hours, have led him to contemplate suicide and have significantly impacted his life. Despite trying various medications and treatments, including oxygen canisters and nerve block injections, there is no cure for his condition. Cluster headaches, affecting about one in 1,000 people, are associated with a threefold increase in risk of depression and often lead to unemployment, with no effective relief currently available.