Bejeeber

Thanks for the report snafu, and glad to see you are so on it with the preventives for this otherwise threatening cycle.

Yes, thanks Vipul. Issues requiring hip surgery are commonly the only extended use pred side effect mentioned, but, from https://creakyjoints.org/living-with-arthritis/coronavirus/treatments/prednisone-steroids-immunosuppressing-coronavirus/: Corticosteroids like prednisone have a laundry list of potential side effects, including high blood pressure; high blood sugar; glaucoma; issues with sleep, mood, and memory; weight gain; fluid retention and swelling; osteoporosis; and more. Side effects tend to increase with higher doses and longer duration of use. Another common side effect of corticosteroids like prednisone is increased risk of infections, including bacterial, fungal, and viral infections. This is particularly important to understand right now in light of the current COVID-19 crisis. A May 2020 editorial in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism cautioned that people who regularly take oral steroids should be considered higher risk for COVID-19 and may be more prone to developing complications.

Talking as normal and sitting in a chair??!! Wow, so glad to hear it, that sounds like incredible progress. And as much of an unpleasant ordeal the fuss kicked up over feeding tube must be, it sounds like it could be a good sign in the overall scheme that she's so determined to return to normal functioning ASAP! Did she inherit this rebellious behavior stuff from her dad?

This report, besides being disturbing, is definitely intriguing and useful, including the neurologist's mention of the observed uptick, as attempts are made to parse what the bleep is up with COVID/CH correlation. Thanks for going on record with it @JY05, and here's hoping you can get to that point of complete relief ASAP!

Congrats on the restored wiggly nose Bewitching capabilities! And the fact that you're still keeping the cluster bunny at arms length like that isn't half shabby either(!!!!).

Happy Birthday @Titan32, and best wishes for a 7-8 hours of straight solid sleep night, as unusual as that might be for a typical clusterhead, whether in or out of cycle!

Oh come on @BoscoPiko, you'll be missing all the fun and exhilaration.

WHAT - [I'm now realizing I instigated] all this because I couldn't discern the difference between stop and end? Augghh As far as temporarily stopping attacks is concerned, my observations (and heavy bias from personal experience with I dunno, maybe 10 or so different pred bursts), says pred will usually stop attacks temporarily. In my personal history, it has always temporarily stopped attacks. Then often when the attacks return, they do so with a pent up vengeance (for me).

That must have been an occasion for 1,000 ecstatic victory laps when the pred taper actually ended all attacks mid cycle!!! I do gain that much more respect for the pred bursts when hearing of such a result. And I suppose even 20% or so could be considered "often" in some contexts, but now strictly having fun with the nitpicking of semantics far beyond what should be considered reasonable, here's one gauge of what 'often' and other indefinite adverbs mean. Going by it, my guess is that prednisone stopping a cluster period occurs closer to rarely than to often: FREQUENCY Frequency refers to how often something is done. How often something is done can be described with indefinite adverbs and definite noun phrases. The most common indefinite adverbs are: always, usually, often, sometimes, rarely, and never. Adverb Frequency it represents always 100 percent of the time (or almost 100%). usually about 80 percent of the time. often more than half of the time. sometimes less than half of the time. rarely about 20 percent of the time. never at no time.

Far be it for me to mince words with one of the world's leading CH experts, but I feel like "It occasionally stops the cluster period" might offer a more accurate idea of what the chances really are. If one of the world's leading CH experts has convincing hard statistics to back up that "often" claim though, I might have to back down.

Wow. Man that seems outrageous. It must have been a hell of a sticker shock moment when you checked out at GNC. I'll hope you may find equivalent stuff, cheaper, as you return to online ordering (or maybe Costco?).

Talking a lot like that seems like it would have to be a really good sign! I would imagine the heavy pain killers etc. she must be receiving could be partly responsible for the lapses into the "Spain" thinking. And wow, possibly removing feeding tube and moving her off critical ward soon? One hurdle after another constantly being overcome. She does sound so strong indeed!

It's always that much more of a relief to hear of another critical milestone like that met - thanks for the update Shaun!

The times they are a changin' - FOR THE BETTER IN THIS CASE! Thanks for the good news! M Tanks are the shiznit.

I second Spiny's WOW - seems like just yesterday you announced the near completion of green house construction, and now full on crops! Some nice lady bugs too (if I remember correctly that they can be desirable company for keeping bad pests at bay).

No bangers!!?? That is exactly the hoped for best case scenario - so glad to hear it. Congrats on pulling it off with that strategic seeds bust!

Here's hoping you're now making it back home to that incredibly nice greenhouse etc. in one piece!

Wow, thanks for this report Shaun - the biggest of the big events ever, and the ultimate cause for celebration! Let the healing continue, and as swiftly as possible! Also, amidst all the hubbub, please don't neglect to swig down your daily D3 regimen pills with that champagne.

When it comes time for the "Should anyone present know of any reason that this couple should not be joined in holy matrimony, speak now or forever hold your peace", just please try not to holler anything out real loud, or if you must, have something super funny all prepared and well rehearsed for the occasion. Best-of-results to you with those doozy-preventer seeds!!!!

I've hidden that double post @BoscoPiko. Meantime they say you can't go back, but sometimes it is also "you shouldn't go back" - sorry it is bad memories-ville USA there . Here's hoping any future trips to the coast can be to fresh new places for making good new memories. Weird (and awful!) that spikes to the left mean an imminent doozy to the right. Still hoping you can still somehow dodge that cluster bunny bullet though. Beautiful pic!

Such a relief to hear this phase was such a success. Big kudos to the surgeon(s) and medical team - it sounds like she is in very capable hands!

Oh thank gosh - that op tomorrow sounds like it will be a huge milestone for her recovery, as will the point at which she wakes. What @BoscoPiko said!!

Hi @Titan32 - there is D3 info here - a thread started by the illustrious and ultra knowledgeable @CHfather. I advise anyone fortunate to receive input from him to take it very seriously. You'll notice this photo, worth more than a thousand words, at that link, showing exactly what pills (and quantity) to take for starters. It's the D3 regimen at a glance, something I particularly appreciate. Last I checked nobody should just go on that D3-50 as a set and forget daily dose though, without blood testing for D3 and calcium levels - it's typically more of an initial, high loading dose for fastest route to getting things under control.

This is horrible - really sorry to hear this is happening to you. As far as I'm concerned, @BoscoPiko has become one of the trusted experts, with some most helpful observations and ideas dished out above. ^^^ Yep, sleep (definitely including naps) is truly a very common trigger. If you're going to take an imitrex pill, some have found that if taken at bedtime, it can prevent the sort of wake up attack that occurs somewhere in the vicinity of an hour after falling asleep. Strange yes, but it is often the nature of cluster cycles. Legions of us have recognized what seems to be a predictable, repeated cycle pattern, only to have it out of nowhere then become unpredictable, much as yours has. Speaking of legions of us, that's about how many are finding significant prevention success with the D3 regimen and/or busting. They can be a major game changer/life changer. Busting info can be found at the blue New Users - Please Read Here First banner above, near the top of the page ^^^.

I can see why you'd be incentivized to go for a demand valve for this aspect you mentioned: And that @Racer1_NC mentioned: Anyone who has been caught on a weekend, holiday or whatever having run out of O2 because they went into sudden unexpected high cycle and burned through tanks faster than anticipated might agree with me that there can be a priceless component to avoiding such a situation.