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CHfather

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Posts posted by CHfather

  1. Posted

    Use a high speed coffee grinder to bust up those seeds.
    Okay, well, here I go again. I had learned, straight from the horse's mouth, that using a coffee grinder was a bad idea. Alleyoop posted on 8/29/10: >>The blender is out, as is the coffee grinder.  Heat is the enemy, and both of these appliances produce a lot of heat.<<

    I'm happy, as always, to be corrected if this info is now outdated.  I understand that it's just a recommendation, not a rule -- and obviously the coffee grinder works for bb and others.  But if "better safe than sorry" is in play here also and you want to avoid heat just in case, a mortar and pestle is a good way to go.  Makes a nice powder with minimal effort, except to keep the seeds from flying out of the mortar.

  3. Posted

    my best to mystina.  hoping for a quick recovery and a return to her irreplacable, irrepressible form.  (irrepressible might seem like a big word, but i just learned it from watching "ozzie and harriet" in my long-ago youth, when ricky (later rick) nelson was always referred to in the show's intro as "the irrepressible ricky."

  5. Posted

    Jeff was posting about the 1mg threshold for LSA needs to be broken in order for 100% success, i am assuming that is a weight measure? Does anyone know about how many seeds that is? 
    1 mg is a measure of the total LSA content.  Unfortunately, no one knows how many seeds it will take to reach that 1 mg level, because the LSA content of seeds varies so much.  I think someone once took a stab at some mg/seeds relationship, but I'd say there are too many variables to try to forecast.   However, 54 or 80 fresh, viable seeds are almost certain to get you there.  According to Sewell's poster that Jeff mentioned and I provided a link to, at least as I read it, the average LSA content in RC seeds is .8 mg per gram of seeds -- but, as he says there and shows there, the actual ratio varies so greatly that you can't rely on the average to mean anything in a particular case.  You could get a lot more or a lot less. Freshness and float-tested viability probably up your odds of being on the "more" side rather than the "less" side.

    To comment briefly on the 1 mg thing: For people with episodic CH, the effectiveness threshold seemed to be getting at least .5 mg of LSA (from "average" seeds, this would be less than a gram of seeds).  As far as I can tell, the seeds of only three people who were chronic were tested, and those whose seeds tested at .5 mg and 1.0 mg were "treatment nonresponders."  I agree with Jeff that if you're chronic (which you seem like you might be from what you've said) it seems as though you'll need more LSA, and you probably ought to dose that way, but the data on which that conclusion is based are very skimpy.  I can recall only a couple of people who were "treatment nonresponders" here who used 50 or more seeds, and for the most part they were people who also were "non-responders" even as they went up to considerably higher numbers of seeds -- it seems LSA just didn't work for them.   As a person who likely has chronic or close-to-chronic CH, you have to expect that it will likely take several doses to lick your CH, but right now, from my perspective, it doesn't seem that seeds are not working for you.

  7. Posted

    Thanks for the information about your time between busts, Jeff.  Very interesting. I have read every post at this board since I joined (except the ones about growing shrooms), and I don't remember anyone, except maybe defectiv, saying they had consistently busted with success while waiting less than five days, and certainly not with waiting less than four days.

    I don't have the link anymore but there's a poster PDF on this website that shows in the details that 100% of people that took over 1mg LSA had success.That's pretty powerful information!
    I believe this is the poster you're referring to, Jeff:

    http://www.maps.org/research/sewell_2008_aha_lsa_poster.pdf

    Note that the data you cite are different from people who are chronic vs. people who are episodic (and the sample sizes are tiny). The person who created this poster, Dr. Sewell, once wrote to me saying that in his studies he had seen a tenfold difference in the LSA content of seeds.  And you can see from the poster that some people got a whole lot more than 1 mg; but there's no indication of how much HBWR they took.  So I don't think we can have any reliable idea how many RC or HBWR seeds will effectively create the required amount of LSA for a chronic or episodic person, which I think is why Bob Wold has said that while he thinks LSA is probably more effective against CH than psilo, the problem is with getting the right dosage of LSA.  All we know is that from experience most people who take 30, 35, or more seeds seem to have busting effects from that dosage, and many people who take less (as few as 10 or 20 in two cases I know of) also have effects.  Because we generally have the goal -- or at least keep in mind the goal -- of helping people minimize tripping, we don't recommend that people should start with 90 or 100 RC seeds: A lower dose has consistently done the job for the vast majority of people (or at least starting at a lower dose has started the job; it seems most people go up from their first dose once they realize they're not gonna trip). 

    I think we can typically guess pretty well when a dose has worked, after the fact, by the effects: often a good night's sleep, maybe some short-term decrease in attacks or severity of attacks, and some post-dose hits. (In tucker's case, he took 54 viable (float-tested) seeds and had fairly typical post-dose reactions. That's why I consider that his seeds were okay and he took enough of them. Now that he knows the effects, he may decide to go higher.)

    But as I'm reading all this (your post, Bob's, and others), I guess I'm wondering why it isn't just as good advice to say "An alternative to waiting five days is to wait three days and take a much bigger dose if you can handle it"?

    I'm just trying to be a good "citizen scientist" here. I know that some of us (including me) don't particularly like to have our preconceptions and traditional ways of doing things challenged, but that's the only way that science actually advances. "Wait five days" is the safe advice, but maybe it's not the best or only advice?  Is that where this discussion is leading us?

  8. Posted

    While it's recommended to wait 5 days, it's not critical to wait. Waiting 2 to 3 days is fine if you're not doing well. Also likely need to up the dose if the seeds are weak (which sounds like they may be).Another reason not to wait the full 5 days, if your first dose was with weak seeds the wait period isn't as critical.
      Gosh, I really need help understanding this advice, Jeff.  At another thread, we just had a discussion about whether waiting four days might be okay, and the consensus was that taking seeds within 4 days might work, but it also might not work, and would then set you back considerably in your busting.  I also recently posted advice I received from a top LSA/CH researcher (whose name many people would recognize but I don't feel comfortable giving here), who wrote to me >>Generally five days between successive administrations seems to be necessary.<<

    Here tucker used 54 viable seeds that, as I understand it, were fresh. He had very good results the first night.  It was his first bust, as I understand it, so slapbacks are predictable, and that could be what he had last night (plus, it's just his first bust).  Of course, it could be that his seeds were "weak," but 54 viable ones seems to me like enough to compensate for that, unless they were really, really weak. So far, he's managing okay with O2.

    Your advice is always good, Jeff.  You have helped me and others a lot. I'm assuming that you have personally busted successfully waiting only two or three days between doses. If so, this seems like very important information . . . and I'm quite sure I've never read anything like it at this board.  To help me (and maybe others) get smarter and give the best possible advice, can you say more about a 2-3 day wait?

  10. Posted

    welcome! 

    hubby is lucky he has me to fight w insurance companies and threaten the ER that we are walking if they don't give him a shot after 4 hours of questions.
    i know you're not boasting here -- someone to advocate for you when you're suffering so much for so long is a great thing!

    stay in touch.  (maybe start a new thread)

    i suspect that you have read these files, but if not, please do:

    "detox" and interactions: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1290130731

    seeds and preparation: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1290128974

  12. Posted

    mrsg, another one here with all fingers and toes crossed hoping that this is the beginning of the end of all you've been through.  your O2 prescription ought to permit you to have more than one tank: ask your provider about that.

  14. Posted

    What about the oxygen that you can get at welding supply's is that the same thing that you get from the pharmacy? I have a regulator for that type bottle, I would just have to figure the flow out and that should not be a problem.
      Many people use welder's oxygen. As you say, since that regulator doesn't register LPM, you just have to open the flow until your bag fills quickly between inhalations.

    I am also off the diltiazem also until i go through the bust.
      Others have cautioned you about this, and they're right. Keep in mind also that busting is usually a process that can take a while. Three or four busts, each five days apart, is pretty common.

  15. Posted

    I remember reading about those lab tests, but I can't recall where.... is there a thread about these lab tests, CHfather?
      Purp, I admire how much you've dug into this and then shared your knowledge with others.  As I was trying to figure out how to prepare RC (before I came to this site), I was reading all these scarily complicated extraction methods (using naptha and other chemicals) at the sites populated by recreational users.  I pulled on some old college ties and contacted someone at a med school who I was told would know about these things from a research perspective.  I told him I was thinking of trying an extraction with red wine, but that seemed so simple compared to those complicated methods that I wasn't sure it would work.  He was wonderfully generous with his advice to me, and among what he wrote was the following:

    >>> A cold-water extraction is fine, since lysergic acids are quite water-soluble. There is a lot of misinformation on the topic of extraction.... Lysergic amides are water-soluble so an alcohol extraction shouldn't be necessary--but wine is close enough to water from a chemical standpoint that it's the same thing. There's endless debate about the number of seeds necessary, but my analysis found a ten-fold difference in LSA content from batch to batch, so it's impossible to predict how much LSA is in a given seed without trying it. Generally five days between successive administrations seems to be necessary.<<<<

    So that is the source of my "knowledge" about methods of extraction and time between doses.  I'm sure he would agree with others here that the "science" of it is still imprecise and evolving.

    I had forgotten (this exchange took place in 2010) that he also discussed kudzu and LSA, which is a topic that was brought up recently in davidj's thread, but here's what he said (correctly, it seems) on that subject:

    >>>Kudzu seems to help intensity, frequency and duration of attacks, but doesn't affect period length. I suspect it's the estrogenic effects of kudzu that helps with cluster headache, and I'm unaware of any interaction with LSA (doesn't mean there ISN'T one of course).<<<

  16. Posted

    i'm no expert. diltiazem, like verapamil, is a calcium channel blocker. (wikipedia says, >>>Its pharmacological activity is somewhat similar to verapamil.<<<)  so, i think i would treat it like verap in terms of the D3 regimen. here's what batch has written about that: >>>in order to minimize a possible interaction with calcium that may limit verapamil effectiveness, separate the verapamil and calcium doses by at least 8 hours.  Again, discus this regimen with your PCP, neurologist, or cardiologist to work out an optimum dosing schedule.<<<  this is from this file: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1314134804

    i believe there is some consensus here that busting can be effective, though maybe not completely effective, while taking verapamil.  i assume the same would be true for diltiazem.  maybe others know more about this.

  17. Posted

    Mrsg, it sure hurts to see you still going through so much, so courageously.  Really hoping for better from your next bust!

    Here's a link to the licorice root info: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1298659068

    To be certain about the D3, you can read the details here if you haven't already:  http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1314134804

    I know that some people have combined the two approaches (D3 and licorice root) with success.  Just please be careful about the various warnings associated with them.

    Sending you intense PF wishes.

  18. Posted

    Tucker, here are some sources for regulators.  Most people, I think, would recommend that you get one that goes up to 25 lpm, but of course 15 might do it for you, as it does for many people.  Some of these places will overnight them (in my experience, eBay doesn't). Be sure that you get one that fits your tank: there are two different types of connections!

    15 lpm: http://www.tinashomecare.com/oxygen_therapy_oxygen_regulators.htm?gclid=CMP24tOb...

    25 lpm regulator (I think you have to call or email them to order):  http://www.lifegas.com/gas_devices_and_therapies/regulators%20and%20demand%20valves.asp

    25 lpm regulator: http://www.madamedical.com/merchant.mv?Screen=CTGY&Store_Code=MM&Category_Code=MOR

    Regular and higher-flow regulators: http://www.floteco2.com/htm/Products/Regulator/B-Regulators.htm

    eBay : http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p5197.m570.l1311&_nkw=medical+o...

    If you're using a tube rather than a mask because you prefer that, then this might not be crucial for you, but a lot of people swear by the O2ptimask, which was designed for people with CH: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/khxc/

    Lots of people understand your hesitation about trying something new, having had their hopes raised and then dashed many, many times.  But lots of people here have benefitted greatly from RC and would urge you to try it.  These files will give you the basic information:

    Background: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1290127865

    Using RC: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1290128974

    "Detox": http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1290130731

    Here's a report of some LSA users' experience (different kind of seed; same active ingredient): http://www.maps.org/research/sewell_2008_aha_lsa_poster.pdf

    I think quite a few people here would also urge you to try the anti-inflammatory "vitamin D3" regimen that has helped a lot of folks: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1314134804

    Or, if you meet the criteria, the licorice root protocol: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1298659068

    As you get closer to taking the seeds, check back in.  People wiser than me will help you along that path.

  20. Posted

    4 days between each busts, sounds fair, I think you need big relief fast.

    The five-day rule is not some random thing made up to cause people to suffer.  It's based on the belief/fact(?) that dosing less than five days apart tends to "shut the door" and make a bust ineffective.  So busting after 4 days, and risking rendering that bust ineffective, really results in waiting 9 days for an effective bust.  Waiting 5 days is strongly recommended for that reason.

    how did you extract the LSA? I did it with orange juice at first. The PH has to be around 4 from what I heard and either (water with some) lemon juice or orange juice will do that.  I extracted twice a couple of hours in the dark fridge (light and heat affect LSA), and once for 24 hours, which didn't seem to make a difference.
    Water alone is just fine. That has been demonstrated in lab tests.  If you want to add those other things, you can.  But water alone is just fine. And yes, real heat will damage the extraction process.  But they can be left at room temperature, and in the light.  If you want to cover them in a fridge, you can.  But it's not necessary.  The lab tests also showed that an hour in water extracts a very high percentage of the LSA.  You can leave it for longer if you want, but it's not going to make much, or any, difference.

    As for the number-of-seeds question: People have busted here successfully with doses of 10 and 12 seeds, with doses of 20, 30, and 30 seeds, and with other seemingly "low" doses.  If you want to take more and you can handle it, of course you can.  I think that what tends to happen is that people take more in later busts than they do in the first one or first couple.  They start to get relief, and they think that it's the larger doses that created the relief, when in fact (in my opinion), it's the cumulative impact of the doses that is bringing them relief, and it's unrelated to how many more seeds they took on the third or fourth dose.  Like I say, there's no harm in more if you can handle it -- there just isn't any real support for the idea that a large amount works better than being sure you've taken enough--and 50 (if they're good) is almost certain to be enough.

  24. Posted

    Yes . . . and I think we would agree that as a doctor, she's not supposed to base treatment on her "beliefs" but on medical science, and about all of that, she's wrong, wrong, wrong. 

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