xxx

Hey Joe, How far are you from my favorite haunt in the UK, the Imperial War Museum Duxford? Take care, V/R, Batch

FunTimes, Have you had a recent lab test of your serum 25(OH)D? Off hand, I suspect you're experiencing a CGRP cascade. Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide, and its nasty peptide cousin, Substance P (SP), are responsible for the neurogenic inflammation and terrible pain we know as CH. During a CGRP cascade, the CGRP and SP generated during the pain phase of CH triggers mast cells to release histamine. The histamine, in turn, triggers neurons in the trigeminal ganglia to release even more CGRP and SP. This creates a circular biochemical chain reaction causing a flood or cascade of CGRP. When that happens, CH frequency goes through the roof and none of the Standards of Care Recommended CH interventions work... A good first-generation antihistamine like Benadryl (Diphenhydramine HCL), at 25 mg every four hours for a week to 10 days might do the trick. A change in diet to the Atkins or ketogenic diet with no sugars, carbs or wheat products can help. These diets work best when started with a 24 to 36 hour fast drinking only water... 2.5 liters/day. If you're not taking vitamin B2 (riboflavin), starting it has helped CHers and migraineurs. Most migraineurs start at 100 mg/day B2 and titrate the dose up to 400 mg/day. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey JJ, Welcome to Clusterbusters. I've sent you a message so check your InBox by clicking the envelop icon at the top right corner of this page. As your PCP is willing to work with you, be sure to ask for the lab test of your serum 25(OH)D. You're likely vitamin D3 deficient and that deficiency is contributing to the frequency, severity and duration of your CH. Take care, V/R, Batch

There are several migraine studies that have shown avoiding sugars and wheat products is prudent in diet selection. I'd also add eating organic NON GMO veggies and fruits along with free range organic meat, poultry and eggs is a great way to go. A serving or two of wild caught fish a week is also great.The rationale for avoiding GMO food types is they all contain glyphosate - a herbicide called Roundup. Nearly all GMO crops were genetically modified to resist Roundup. As the friendly colonies of bacteria called the microbiome living in our GI tract are all nearly all members of the plant family, herbicides kill them off... That's not a good thing as our microbiome is responsible for 70% or our immune system. Just do an Internet search of food types containing Glyphosate... The following links on this topic should perk your interest in eating Organic NON GMO food types. https://www.ecowatch.com/monsanto-glyphosate-cheerios-2093130379.html https://janeshealthykitchen.com/avoid-these-foods-with-monsantos-glyphosate/ Take care, Happy New Year... and watch what you eat... V/R, Batch

Maria, There's more to the anti-inflammatory regimen CH preventative treatment protocol than it appears you are taking. You can find the complete description of the supplements and their doses for this regimen at the following link. All the vitamin D3 cofactors are essential with magnesium and zinc being the most important as they are needed for vitamin D3 metabolism. http://www.vitamindwiki.com/tiki-download_wiki_attachment.php?attId=7708 The 12-Day accelerated vitamin D3 loading schedule at 50,000 IU/day for 12 days is the fastest way to elevate your serum 25(OH)D into the therapeutic range where most CHers experience relief from their CH. At the completion of the 12-Day loading schedule drop back to a vitamin D3 maintenance dose of 10,000 IU/day. If you're sticking with this regimen, it's a good idea to ask your PCP for lab tests of your serum 25(OH)D, calcium and PTH 30 days after starting it. As long as your serum calcium is within its normal reference range and your PTH is in the lower third of its normal reference range, there's no vitamin D3 intoxication/toxicity a.k.a., hypercalcemia (too much serum calcium). Take along a copy of the treatment protocol. I developed it for physicians. Take care and please keep us posted V/R, Batch

Hey Atikhan, It's not uncommon for a few CHers to experience phantom CH where there's no pain but some of the other symptoms. Experiencing some CH symptoms with no CH pain tends to indicate your cellular concentrations of vitamin D3 and 25(OH)D are being metabolized to enough 1,25(OH)2D3 to stop the pain, but not enough to stop the other CH symptoms. CHers experiencing this phenomenon have found a few more days of 50,000 IU vitamin D3 loading doses and/or a higher vitamin D3 maintenance dose works to prevent all CH symptoms. As always, keep your PCP and or neurologist in the loop and be sure to take all the vitamin D3 cofactors and drink at least 2.5 liters of water a day. Hope this answers your questions. Take care, have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. V/R, Batch

Alikhan, I'm trying to answer your questions but this website keeps rejecting my reply. I'll try again later. Take care, V/R, Batch

Elrik, You're likely vitamin D3 deficient and that deficiency is contributing to the frequency, severity and duration of your CH. I would pick up the following tomorrow along with some Benadryl (Diphenhydramine HCL) 80% of the CHers who start this regimen at the doses illustrated above, experience an 80% reduction in the frequency of their CH in the first 30 days. 50% who start this regimen experience a complete cessation of CH symptoms in the first 30 days. The majority of CHers start responding to this regimen within the first 10 days. You can find more about this regimen at the following link. Be sure to discuss this treatment protocol with your PCP or neurologist. http://www.vitamindwiki.com/tiki-download_wiki_attachment.php?attId=7708 Be sure to drink at least 2.5 liters of water a day. The majority of CHers taking heavy hits are dehydrated. Oxygen therapy works most effectively if you hyperventilate with room air for 30 seconds then inhale a lungful of 100% oxygen and hold it for 30 seconds... Most CHers using this procedure will experience a complete CH abort to a pain free state with seven of the above sequences... a.k.a. 7 minutes. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey CHChris, Thank you for your service and the kind words. It was a tough battle as always between the UW and WSU this year... fortunately both teams came away with bowl games ahead. I served with both fast attack and boomer skippers at USPACOM '83-'88, so have a great deal of respect for the guys and gals who fly or flew their boats under water to keep us safe. The Sub Base at Bangor, WA is 10 minute drive from home... I kept nearly all of my GMTs busy training at SWFPAC while Gun Boss on Kitty Hawk going through COH at Puget '81-82. The training paid off... We were the first carrier to pass our NWAI on the first attempt coming out of COH. Take care with a Very Merry Christmas to you and yours. Have a Happy and Healthy CH PF New Year as well. V/R, Batch

Freud, Fair question and thanks for the kind words. I'm a 74 year old retired Navy Fighter Pilot. I was flying Navy fighters like the F9-F8 Cougar and F-8 Crusader, a.k.a., Mig Master before they started the first Top Gun class... I've a degree in Chemistry and at one point, was considering a career in medicine... I got a ride in a Navy trainer aircraft (T-34) my Junior year at the U of W, Seattle and that sealed the deal... The thought of flying Navy fighters appeared to be be a lot more fun than another 6 years of school so I joined the Navy to fly in 1965... I'm also a long time CHer (first CH attack in 1994), chronic since 2004. I've over 3000 hours flying Navy fighters and all of that flight time was spent breathing 100% oxygen from takeoff to landing (usually aboard an aircraft carrier). I can assure you, I was sucking down 100% oxygen at flow rates that support hyperventilation during high G-Force dog fights and combat maneuvering... like getting shot at by bad guy SAMs and AAA. I'm a patent holder for the demand valve method of rapid CH aborts method of therapy. I also have 15 years training in aviation physiology with most of that training in oxygen breathing systems. I'm a member of the American Academy of Neurology as a cluster headache researcher and I've had the opportunity to meet with some of the top neurologists in the world experienced in treating patients suffering from cluster and migraine headache. Bottom line... I'm here to help CHers avoid the terrible pain we all know so well by providing information outreach on safe and effective methods of controlling CH (oxygen therapy with hyperventilation as a safe and effective CH abortive and vitamin D3 therapy as a safe and effective CH preventative). I started doing this in 2006. You can find my web page at VitaminDWiki at the following link: http://is.gd/clustervitd 'Hope this answers your question. Take care, V/R, Batch

We did a pilot study of the oxygen demand valve method of aborting CH in 2008 with 7 CHers. 4 of the CHers used the oxygen demand valve breathing at respiration rates that produced the effects of hyperventilation. The other 3 used a 0-60 liter/minute InGage regulator from Flotec set at 40 liters/minute. Both methods produced the same rapid CH aborts in an average of 7 minutes to a CH pain free state across CH pain levels 3 to 9 using the 10-Point Headache Pain Scale. The seven CHers collected abort times and pain levels for a total of 8 weeks each. This resulted in data for a total of 366 aborts. One CHer collected data for a week using a standard disposable oxygen mask at an oxygen flow rate of 15 liters/minute. The results are illustrated in the following graphic. 364 of these aborts were effective in less than or equal to 20 liters/minute for a success rate of 99.4%. The two failures happened when the CHer got trapped away from his oxygen system until the pain level as already at 10 at start of therapy. As you can also see, oxygen therapy at flow rates that support hyperventilation produced much shorter abort times than a flow rate of 15 liters/minute. This chart also illustrates the higher the CH pain level at start of oxygen therapy at oxygen flow rates that support hyperventilation, the longer it took to abort the CH. This is the reason why we need to start oxygen therapy at the first indication of a CH attack while pain levels are low.

Hyperventilating with 100% oxygen is 95% effective for 95% of CHers. The down side of this breathing procedure is it consumes a lot of oxygen... like 250 liters per abort. The key is hyperventilating as that lowers arterial CO2. Accordingly, hyperventilating at forced vital capacity tidal volumes for 30 seconds with room air then inhale a lungful of 100% oxygen and hold it for 30 seconds is just as effective. Repeat this sequence until the CH pain stops. That usually takes an average of 7 complete cycles (7 minutes) and consumes roughly 25 liters of oxygen... One tenth of what's consumed hyperventilating with 100% oxygen. Sucking ice water through a straw from a glass filled with ice and water so it washes across the hard pallet on the CH hit side chills the hard pallet and sphenopalatine ganglia directly above it causing a mini brain freeze. This has the same effect helping to abort a CH as slamming a 5-Hour sports drink.

ClusterHubby, How much vitamin D3 is your wife taking? Is she taking all the cofactors? Did she start the 3-month course of vitamin B 100 complex? Has she had the lab test for her serum 25(OH)D? If her serum 25(OH)D is not up around 80 ng/mL (200 nmol/L), she needs a higher vitamin D3 maintenance dose. Many CHers with her problem found relief by taking a 50,000 IU loading dose for 3 to 4 days then dropped back to a new vitamin D3 maintenance dose of 15,000 IU/day. Has she tried a first-generation antihistamine like Diphenhydramine (Benedryl)? Don't forget diet. Zero sugars, zero wheat products and low carbs... The Atkins or Ketogenic diets can work wonders... Is she drinking at least 2.5 liters of water a day? Sorry for all the questions... It's just there's almost always a reason why this regimen isn't effective. The trick is finding the problem. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey Brian, As the guy who developed the anti-inflammatory regimen to prevent CH, I'll second CHfather's suggestion to read all about it. It works to prevent both CH and migraine. I suspect it's also effective for the rest of the TACs. I'd also suggest a trip to your PCP/GP for a lab test of your serum 25(OH)D. This is the serum level metabolite of vitamin D3 that's used to measure its status. The following chart illustrates baseline 25(OH)D results from CHers with active bouts of CH before starting the anti-inflammatory regimen. The normal reference range for the 25(OH)D lab test is 30 to 100 ng/mL (75 to 250 nmol/L). CHers need a 25(OH)D serum concentration around 80 ng/mL (200 nmol/L) to prevent CH. That requires at least 10,000 IU/day vitamin D3 plus the cofactors. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey Seff, Thank you for the update. It appears you're responding nicely to the vitamin D3 loading schedule... Good on you for skipping the prednisone. It would have helped a little, but slowed down the vitamin D3 response. You're on the right track at this point. Another round of labs for your serum 25(OH)D, calcium and PTH will be in order after 30 days on this regimen. You'll be looking for a 25(OH)D serum concentration up around 80 ng/mL (200 nmol/L), calcium within its normal reference range (That means no vitamin D3 toxicity) and PTH in the lower third of its normal reference range. Take care and please keep us posted, V/R, Batch

Elrik, 5,000 IU/day vitamin D3 is fine for healthy adults... That said, it is too low a dose for CHers with active bouts of CH. 10,000 IU/day has been the go to daily maintenance dose of vitamin D3 following a 12-Day accelerated vitamin D3 loading schedule at 50,000 IU/day for 12 days. The following graphic illustrates the rational for this dosing schedule. As you can see, the 12-Day loading schedule elevates serum 25(OH)D rapidly into the therapeutic range around 80 ng/mL where most CHers respond to this regimen. At just 10,000 IU/day it could take 2 to 3 months to elevate serum 25(OH)D to 80 ng/mL. Again you can pull down the anti-inflammatory regimen CH preventative treatment protocol at the following link. Take a printed copy to your new neurologist to discuss. http://www.vitamindwiki.com/tiki-download_wiki_attachment.php?attId=7708 Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey Dandownunder, There is almost always a reason why some CHers don't respond to the anti-inflammatory regimen. Have you had a recent lab test for your serum 25(OH)D concentration? The most common reason for non-response is a low 25(OH)D response below the therapeutic range around 80 ng/mL, (200 nmol/L). If that's the case, a higher dose of vitamin D3 may be needed. Several CHers including me have found the Bio-Tech D3-50 water soluble vitamin D3 is more effective than the liquid soft gel vitamin D3 formulations. Taking all the cofactors... including Omega-3 fish oil and a 3-month course of vitamin B 100 Complex is essential. If your serum 25(OH)D concentration is up in this therapeutic range and you're still getting whacked... the problem is either an allergic reaction or diet related allergy. Allergic reactions are a spoiler for this regimen as they result in a flood of histamine that makes nearly all forms of CH intervention ineffective, A week to 10-Day course of a first-generation antihistamine like Benadryl (Diphenhydramine HCL) at 25 mg every 4 hours throughout the day addresses most allergic reactions. Just be careful and not drive as this much Diphenhydramine HCL will make you drowsy. If you need to drive during the day, wait until you're home for the day then take 50 mg Benadryl as you walk through the door and another 50 mg at bed time. If there's no favorable change in CH patterns after a week of Benadryl, discontinue. Diet is an important consideration for all CHers and migraineurs... The first two diet rules are zero sugars of any kind and no wheat products including bread, pasta, cereals, pizza and grain oils like Canola. Canola and grain oils come from GMO grains so are almost are contaminated with glyphosates (Roundup resistant genetically modified grains). You can eat all the organic grass fed meats and free range poultry including eggs, wild caught fish, green and yellow veggies, tomatoes and avocados you want. Whole fresh NON GMO Organic foods are best. Limit the fruits to a serving a day of blueberries, blackberries, raspberries or strawberries. Basically you're looking for a low carbohydrate diet, the Atkins diet or a good ketogenic diet that switches your metabolism from sugar burning to fat burning. Metabolizing dietary fats and any excess fat you may have around your middle and backside results in ketones being eliminated in urine. Pick up some keto test strips at your local chemist/pharmacy. A few drops of urine on the keto test strip will tell you if you're doing good or cheating on your diet. As long as the test patch turns pink to purple, you're diet is good. If the test patch remains beige, you've been cheating... A Big Mac or two slices of toast is all it takes to revert back to a sugar burning metabolism... Better living through chemistry... A 24 hour fast will help kick-start any of these diets. Be sure to drink at least 2.5 liters of water a day. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey CHMom and Muggle, Welcome to the anti-inflammatory regimen CH preventative treatment protocol with vitamin D3, Omega-3 fish oil and the vitamin D3 cofactors. You've both made a very good decision starting this safe, effective and healthy regimen. The following chart from the online survey of 283 CHers taking this regimen illustrates the reported time to respond by day. As you can see, the 80% of CHers who respond to this regimen do so within the first 30 days and the majority of them respond in the first two weeks. Muggle, you're doing great as an early bird responding in three days. Given the results obtained from the online survey of 283 CHers taking this regimen, the cessation of your CH attacks is not a coincident. CHMom, this chart tells you what to expect. The accelerated 12-Day vitamin D3 loading schedule at 50,000 IU/day for 12 days is still a good idea for both of you for several reasons. The typical CHer needs a total oral loading dose of 600,000 IU of vitamin D3. This can be taken in a single oral dose or spread out over 12 days to two weeks. There are several vitamin D3 studies using a single oral loading dose this high resulting in a 25(OH)D response of 60 ng/mL (150 nmol/L) on top of the baseline (starting) 25(OH)D serum concentration with no adverse events. Both molecular vitamin D3 and its first metabolite, 25(OH)D3 enter cells throughout the body to initiate genetic expression. When they reach neurons in the trigeminal ganglia, they flip a genetic switch that down-regulates, (suppresses) the expression of calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) and Substance P (SP). These are the two neuropeptides headache experts think are responsible for cluster and migraine headaches. This loading schedule builds 25(OH)D reserves into the therapeutic range around 80 ng/mL in 12 days to act as a reserve in preventing CH. A vitamin D3 intake of 10,000 IU/day works to prevent CH as long as its taken daily but at this dose, it can take two to three months to build 25(OH)D serum concentration reserves to 80 ng/mL. If you miss a day or two, the CH preventative effect drops as there are no reserves to cover the missed doses. This loading schedule also helps eliminate shadows. A lab test for 25(OH)D before start of regimen is nice to have for several reasons of which the most important is establishing a link between the frequency of your CH and a low 25(OH)D serum concentration in your neurlogist's mind. When your neurologist sees the results of your second 25(OH)D 25(OH)D lab test taken 30 days after start of regimen and you're either CH pain free or CH frequency is greatly reduced, it connects the dots... Low 25(OH)D = increased CH frequency and 25(OH)D around 80 ng/mL (200 nmol/L) = complete cessation of CH or a significant reduction in CH frequency. That's the "A-Ha" moment where the neurologists sees the light... that there's an inverse relationship between the frequency of CH and 25(OH)D serum concentration. In simple logical terms, IF A THEN B. This is the clinical evidence that tends to make neurologists a believer in this regimen. When that happens, you've got a neurologist who is willing to work with you while taking this regimen instead of prescribing pharmaceutical preventatives that don't work as well and which carry onerous side effects. This is also where the lab tests for serum calcium and PTH are important. Without these two lab tests, too many physicians will pitch a hissy over a 25(OH)D serum concentration around 80 ng/mL (200 nmol/L) saying you're "toxic." In reality, the lab test for 25(OH)D is a poor indicator of vitamin D3 intoxication/toxicity. Only the lab test for serum calcium should be used in this case. As long as serum calcium remains within its normal reference range, there is NO VITAMIN D3 TOXICITY a.k.a., hypercalcemia (too much serum calcium). Serum parathyroid hormone (PTH) concentration is also a good biomarker to use while taking this regimen. When 25(OH)D is low, PTH tends to be near the high end of its normal reference range. With a 25(OH)D up around 80 ng/mL or higher, PTH tends to be near the low end of its normal reference range. For reference, I've run my serum 25(OH)D up to 180 ng/mL (450 nmol/L), but my serum calcium remained within its normal reference range and my PTH was low as expected. I gave my PCP a copy of the anti-inflammatory regimen treatment protocol so he knew what to expect... Accordingly he had no problem with my 25(OH)D serum concentration being this high. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch.

Glo, Muscle cramps (not tummy/GI tract disturbances) are usually an indication of not enough magnesium. Vitamin D3 at the doses we take consumes magnesium. Without adequate magnesium supplements, we end up with a poor calcium - magnesium balance with too little magnesium. Our muscles need calcium to contract and magnesium to relax... Without a proper calcium - magnesium balance, muscle cramps are likely. Have your husband try doubling the magnesium with 400 mg in the morning with breakfast and 400 mg with the evening meal. Splitting the magnesium dose like this helps prevent osmotic diarrhea. Obviously, if the muscle cramps get worse, lay off the magnesium for a couple days to see what happens. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey Seff, You've taken the right course of action to prevent your CH. I'm confident you'll be happy with the results. Please let us know the results of your 25(OH)D lab test. My guess is your results will fall under the following normal distribution curve for baseline 25(OH)D test results from 257 CHers before start of regimen. Take care, V/R, Batch

Hey Dandownunder, We ran a pilot study of the oxygen demand valve method of aborting CH back in 2008 with Seven (7) CHers (6 CCHers and 1 ECHer) collecting abort time and pain level data on every abort with this method of oxygen therapy for a period of 8 weeks each. I developed this method of oxygen therapy as a CH abortive in 2005 using a flow rate type oxygen regulator good to over 70 liters/minuet and modified it to work with an oxygen demand valve in late 2007. I also hold a patent for the method of oxygen therapy. An oxygen demand valve delivers oxygen on demand just the same as a SCUBA diver's 2nd stage regulator. The harder you try to inhale, the higher the oxygen flow rate. You basically control the oxygen flow rate with respiration rate at deep tidal volumes. The procedures I developed call for a respiration rate high enough to support hyperventilation. That respiration rate equates to an oxygen flow rate of roughly 40 liters/minute. 3 of the 7 CHers used a 0 to 60 liter/minute "InGage" regulator from FloTec set at a flow rate of 40 liters/minute with the Cluster Kit mask from CH.com with the 3 liter reservoir bag. We also had one of the CHers in this pilot study, very experienced in the use of oxygen therapy as a CH abortive, collect abort time and pain level data for a week using the standard disposable oxygen mask with 1 liter reservoir bag and an oxygen flow rate of 15 liters/minute (curve shown in red). The results are illustrated in the following graphic. As you can see, oxygen therapy at flow rates/respiration rates that support hyperventilation result in significantly shorter abort times and higher efficacy rates than that experienced at a flow rate of 15 liters/minute with a disposable oxygen mask. We used ≤ 20 minutes to an abort as the primary endpoint for efficacy. All but two aborts took ≤ 20 minutes so there were 364 successful aborts for 366 attempts for a 99.6% efficacy. The two failed attempts occurred when the CHer got trapped away from home and his demand valve system when his CH hit. He was either locked out of his home or away from home shopping. Both times he was unable to start this therapy until his CH pain level had already reached 10 on the 10-Point Headache Pain Scale. There were no differences in abort times between the oxygen demand valve and InGage regulator set at 40 liters/minute. Moreover, the mean abort time across all pain levels was 7 minutes flat for oxygen therapy at flow/respiration rates that support hyperventilation. This graphic also provided an interesting finding that no other study of oxygen therapy as a CH abortive has reported. The higher the CH pain level at start of therapy, the longer the abort time. This little factoid should make it obvious to start oxygen therapy at the first sign of an approaching CH while the pain level is still low. We also discovered a curious phenomenon where the frequency of CH increased for 3 to 4 weeks after starting the demand valve method of oxygen therapy. This up-tic in CH frequency continued to a maximum at week 5 of the 8 week long study then dropped to less than the starting frequency by week 8. All seven CHers in this pilot study experienced this same up-tick in CH frequency. All this happened before I developed and started taking the anti-inflammatory regimen CH preventative treatment protocol with 10,000 IU/day vitamin D3, Omega-3 fish oil and vitamin D3 cofactors in October of 2010. Since then, my oxygen demand valve has been stored in a zip lock bag unused. The anti-inflammatory CH preventative treatment protocol has proven to be effective in the first 30 days by 80% of the CHers who start this regimen. They experience an 80% reduction in the frequency of their CH from an average of 3 CH/day down to 3 to 4 CH/week. 50% of the CHers who start this regimen experience a complete and lasting cessation of all CH attacks in the first 30 days after start of regimen. This regimen is effective for both episodic and chronic CH although ECHers tend to respond at a slightly higher rate. You can download a copy of the anti-inflammatory CH preventative treatment protocol at the following link. Take a copy to your PCP/GP to discuss and ask for the lab test of your serum 25(OH)D. This is the serum level metabolite of vitamin D3 that's used to measure its status. The normal reference range for this lab test is 30 to 100 ng/mL (75 to 250 nmol/L) CHers with active bouts of CH tend to have a mean 25(OH)D serum concentration around 23 ng/mL at baseline before starting this regimen and a 25(OH)D serum concentration around 80 ng/mL (200 nmol/L) after 30 days on this regimen. http://www.vitamindwiki.com/tiki-download_wiki_attachment.php?attId=7708 There are plenty of CHers down under taking this regimen who will be happy to help you source the needed supplements. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey Chano, The best course of action is to pick up some 5,000 IU vitamin D3 soft gel capsules and 400 mg magnesium softgels, Omega-3 Fish oil and 50+ Adult Mature Mulit shown with daily doses in the following photo. They're available at Cosco and most super markets. Rationale... You're likely vitamin D3 deficient and that deficiency is contributing to the frequency, severity and duration of your CH. Colds are a viral infection so will also respond to large doses of vitamin C and zinc. I take 6 to 8 grams (6000 to 8000 mg/day) of vitamin C and 50 mg/day zinc if I feel a cold coming on. Vitamin D3 and Omega-3 Fish Oil are also natural antiviral agents so will help reduce the length of colds... and help prevent your CH. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey Glo, Thank you for the feedback and great news your husband is responding well to the anti-inflammatory regimen. After 24 years with CH, chronic since 2004, I know the wonderful feeling the first time you wake up and realize you haven't had a CH in 24 hours... I've been CH pain free since I developed and started this regimen in October of 2010. The best course of action at this point is for your husband to stay on the anti-inflammatory regimen. A few days of a vitamin D3 loading dose of 50,000 IU/day vitamin D3 should take care of the shadows. After that, a vitamin D3 maintenance dose of 10,000 IU/day plus all the cofactors should keep him CH pain free. I'm not a fan of psychotropic drugs like Depakote, a.k.a., "Dopeycoat" as they have little efficacy in preventing CH and only cause other adverse side effects so would discontinue. Have your husband discuss this decision with his PCP/neurologist and to ask for the lab test of his serum 25(OH)D. This is the serum level metabolite of vitamin D3 that's used to measure its status. The normal reference range for this lab test is 30 to 100 ng/mL (75 to 250 nmol/L). As CHers, we need to maintain a 25(OH)D serum concentration around 80 ng/mL (200 nmol/L) or higher in order to remain CH pain free. Doing this will get two birds with one stone... On one hand, your husband will know the therapeutic level of 25(OH)D that keeps him CH pain free and on the other hand, it will help educate his doctor about the benefits of taking vitamin D3 and the cofactors as an effective CH preventative. Great questions. 1. It's best to take this regimen (all of it) with the largest meal of the day. This helps vitamin D3 absorption and lowers the probability of GI tract disturbances. 2 and 3. The anti-inflammatory regimen is not a cure for CH, but rather a way of life (a long and healthy way of life) that should be taken daily, until the body reaches room temperature, to prevent a return of CH and many other medical conditions. At roughly 50 cents a day, I look at this regimen as the most effective, safest, and least expensive form of health insurance we can buy. On that note, you should be taking this regimen too!. If your husband will have a long and healthy life while taking this regimen, I'm guessing you want to be right there with him... I started my wife on this regimen in December of 2010. She was a 20 year episodic migraineur at the time with migraine headaches hitting like clockwork for 3 to 5 days a month. She hasn't had a migraine headache since. She is now 82, in great health (she takes no Rx medications), has more energy than I've seen in over 20 years and she runs my backside off. This regimen has so many health benefits I have my entire family taking it and none of them have CH or migraines. That also includes two grand kids, a grand niece and grand nephew who have been bathed in maternal vitamin D3 since conception and while breast feeding (their mothers have been taking this regimen with 10,000 IU/day vitamin D3 for many years). After that, these incredibly healthy kids take 50 IU of vitamin D3 per pound of body weight per day. They're all young Einsteins. If your husband has been on this regimen for at least 30 days, now is also a good time for your him to take the survey for CHers taking the anti-inflammatory regimen to prevent their CH. To start this survey, click on the following link: http://www.esurveyspro.com/Survey.aspx?id=fb8a2415-629f-4ebc-907c-c5ce971022f6 This online survey of CHers taking the anti-inflammatory regimen has been running continuously since 11 December of 2011 so we are rapidly approaching seven full years of data collection. As of last week there were 283 completed surveys. The near term goal is 300 completed and submitted surveys. I will be using this survey data in early 2019 to publish the results. A survey population of 300 adds strength to reported results. The serum 25(OH)D data is also very important as it provides the clinical data and medical evidence neurologists, headache specialists and GPs need in order to suggest this very effective and safe CH preventative treatment protocol to their CH and migraine patients. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Hey Seff, Regarding vitamin D3 loading doses... I've been suggesting a total loading dose of 600,000 IU of vitamin D3 when starting with a low serum 25(OH)D concentration. This total loading dose of vitamin D3 can be taken all at once (there are several studies where this was done in a single oral dose with no adverse reactions) or spread out over 2 to 4 weeks. We've seen excellent results with the 12-Day accelerated vitamin D3 loading schedule at 50,000 IU/day for 12 days followed by a drop in vitamin D3 dose to an initial daily maintenance dose of 10,000 IU/day. I've also suggested CHers discuss lab tests with their PCP/GP or neurologist for serum 25(OH)D, calcium and PTH (Parathyroid Hormone) after 30 days on this regimen. 25(OH)D is a poor indicator of vitamin D3 intoxication/toxicity. Only serum calcium and PTH should be used here. As long as serum calcium remains within its normal reference range and PTH is in the lower third of its normal reference range, there is no vitamin D3 intoxication/toxicity as evidenced by hypercalcemia (too much serum calcium). For reference, I've maintained my serum 25(OH)D concentration up around 180 ng/mL (450 nmol/L) for at least two years. In all that time my serum calcium remained within its normal reference range and PTH was low as expected. My PCP had no problem with these results as there were no indications of vitamin D3 toxicity. Take care and please keep us posted. V/R, Batch

Antibiotics are a necessary evil when treating significant bacterial infections. They do nothing for viral infections. That's where a healthy immune system comes into play as that's how the body fights off viral infections. Again, there are no pharmaceutical silver bullets for viral infections. The best response to a course of antibiotics is to start at least a month long course of probiotics to rebuild and recolonize the friendly bacteria in the GI tract called the microbiome that were destroyed by antibiotics. This is an important course of action as the majority of our immune system centers around the GI tract. A healthy microbiome helps ensure a healthy immune system. Vitamin D3 and Omega-3 fish oil also help build a healthy microbiome and immune system. Take care, V/R, Batch