CHfather
-
Posts
6,522 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
383
Posts posted by CHfather
-
-
This reminds me of an article I was reading the other day from Scientific American, about the so-called "second brain" that resides in our intestines (the "enteric nervous system"). The whole article is pretty interesting, but there were two points in it that I found possibly somehow relevant.
1. "The enteric nervous system uses more than 30 neurotransmitters, just like the brain, and in fact 95 percent of the body's serotonin is found in the bowels." Reminded me of the suggestion made more than once by someone (Ricardo, I think) of using tryptamine suppositories.
2. "Scientists were shocked to learn that about 90 percent of the fibers in the primary visceral nerve, the vagus, carry information from the gut to the brain and not the other way around." I was thinking about that gammaCore device that was previewed at the CB conference and tested by some folks, which works by affecting the vagus nerve. (I'm going to post something about that in another thread.)
Here's the Scientific American article: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/gut-second-brain/
-
I use Firefox. Like I said, I did absolutely nothing different from the first time to the second: e.g., didn't clear my cache first. Just typed clusterbusters.org into the address bar each time. First time I got that error message; second time it let me in.
-
Working fine now (without trying anything except what I had done before), and the doctor list is where it was said to be (https://clusterbusters.org/?page_id=455).
-
Oh, didg, I am so, so sorry to read this. People have surprised their doctors before, and we all know you're not the type to leave a stone unturned. Wishing for the best.
Jerry
-
I wanted to check this out -- but I can't even connect to the general CB site.
Secure Connection Failed
An error occurred during a connection to clusterbusters.org. Peer's Certificate has been revoked. (Error code: sec_error_revoked_certificate)
  The page you are trying to view cannot be shown because the authenticity of the received data could not be verified.
  Please contact the website owners to inform them of this problem. Alternatively, use the command found in the help menu to report this broken site.
-
very sorry for how much you are suffering, muneca.
it doesn't sound like you have cluster headaches, from what you describe. you do seem like a very good candidate for disability insurance. we have had some discussions about that here. several people here have applied on their own and won their cases to receive social security disability benefits. you can read about the process and requirements for making that application here: http://www.ssa.gov/dibplan/dqualify.htm.
if you meet the basic criteria described there and you don't want to pursue this on your own (or with the help of someone like your sister), you can probably get a lawyer to take your case. there is very little up-front cost to you in doing that. the lawyer's fees are not collected unless you win. if you lose, the lawyer doesn't get paid. when i say "very little up-front cost," that's a relative thing -- there are fees for things like copying your files, and they can add up. but by far the biggest cost item, the attorney's fees, are not charged unless/until you win, when it's taken out of part of the benefits you receive. there are many law firms that specialize in disability cases. here is a link to one of them: http://ssd.binderandbinder.com/google/?wm_crID=20102154&wm_lpID=40732117&wm_ctID=399&wm_kwID=19373890&wm_mtID=1&wm_content=0&wm_g_crID=46673559550&wm_g_kw=%2bssdi&wm_g_pcmt=&wm_g_cnt=0&wm_g_device=c&gclid=CM_ogJ7hsb4CFe47MgoddzQAaA&wm_kw=%2bssdi&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=%2bssdi&utm_campaign=social+security+disability&wm_sd=1&wm_v=google. like i say, there are many such firms, and also many smaller local firms that will handle a disability case.
best wishes to you.
-
Vitamin D Deficiency Predicts Prostate Biopsy Outcomes
Abstract
Purpose: The association between vitamin D and prostate biopsy outcomes has not been evaluated. We examine serum vitamin D levels with prostate biopsy results in men with an abnormal prostate-specific antigen and/or digital rectal examination.
Experimental Design: Serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH D) was obtained from 667 men, ages 40 to 79 years, prospectively enrolled from Chicago urology clinics undergoing first prostate biopsy. Logistic regression was used to evaluate the associations between 25-OH D status and incident prostate cancer, Gleason score, and tumor stage.
Results: Among European American (EA) men, there was an association of 25-OH D <12 ng/mL with higher Gleason score [ch8805] 4+4 [OR, 3.66; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.41–9.50; P = 0.008] and tumor stage [stage [ch8805] cT2b vs. [ch8804] cT2a, OR, 2.42 (1.14–5.10); P = 0.008]. In African American (AA) men, we find increased odds of prostate cancer diagnosis on biopsy with 25-OH D < 20 ng/mL [OR, 2.43 (1.20–4.94); P = 0.01]. AA men demonstrated an association between 25-OH D < 12 ng/mL and Gleason [ch8805] 4+4 [OR, 4.89 (1.59–15.07); P = 0.006]. There was an association with tumor stage [ch8805] cT2b vs. [ch8804] cT2a [OR, 4.22 (1.52–11.74); P = 0.003].
Conclusions: In AA men, vitamin D deficiency was associated with increased odds of prostate cancer diagnosis on biopsy. In both EA and AA men, severe deficiency was positively associated with higher Gleason grade and tumor stage. Clin Cancer Res; 20(9); 2289–99. ©2014 AACR.
-
No idea whether this might also somehow be applicable to CH, but some big guys (Goadsby, for one) apparently think it has great promise for migraines (which some people here also experience).
May 5, 2014
MINNEAPOLIS -- May 5, 2014 -- Monoclonal antibodies show promise for the prevention of migraines, according to 2 studies presented at the 66th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology (AAN).
Both drugs are directed against a relatively new target in migraine prevention -- calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP).
One study involved 163 people who had migraine from 5 to 14 days per month. They received either a single IV dose of a drug called ALD403 or placebo, and were followed for 24 weeks. Those who received the drug had an average of 5.6 fewer migraine days per month -- a 66% decrease compared with 4.6 fewer days per month for those who received a placebo (52% decrease). Sixteen percent of those who received the drug had no migraine days at 12 weeks, while none of those who received the placebo were free from migraine at that point.
There were no differences in side effects between those receiving the drug and those receiving the placebo.
“These results may potentially represent a new era in preventive therapy for migraine,” said Peter Goadsby, MD, University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, California, who is an author on both studies.
In the other study, 217 people who had migraine 4 to 14 days per month received biweekly subcutaneous injections of either a placebo or a drug called LY2951742 for 12 weeks.
Those who received the drug had an average of 4.2 fewer migraine days per month at 12 weeks (63% decrease), while those who received placebo had 3 fewer migraine days per month (42% decrease).
Those who received the drug were more likely to have side effects including pain at the injection site, upper respiratory tract infections, and abdominal pain, but overall the drug was considered to be safe and well-tolerated.
“Migraine remains poorly treated, and there are few effective and well tolerated treatments approved that prevent attacks from occurring,” said David Dodick, MD, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, Arizona, who was also an author on both studies. “There is a huge treatment need for migraine. We’re cautiously optimistic that a new era of mechanism-based migraine prevention is beginning.”
-
Bob is one of those special people you meet along life's path.
Yes, he is, yes he is.
-
slagroom, aap. (Only two Dutch words I ever learned. Translation, "Whipped cream, monkey.")
Hey, really hoping everything will go well for you! Hoping preventive busting will keep you from having to be back in touch any time soon -- but we'll be here! Best wishes.
-
Well, didg, you're not asking for sympathy, but you and your husband certainly have my best wishes. I see that at least the prognosis is better for his kind of tumor than for many other forms of lung cancer. Hoping that things will turn out well for him.
-
the reason why i never really tried o2 yet, is because i heard it will make the attack come back quite quickly, like in a matter of hours?
This is just NOT TRUE. In fact, proper use of oxygen can often prevent later attacks. It's quite sad that such bad information has kept you from using such a valuable and important treatment.
You must not have used your injections for 5 days before the shrooms will really work. That's why the oxygen is so important--it makes it possible to make it through all those days without an injection.Â
We have a lot to do to educate you!!
:)Â Â Very glad you are here. I'm sorry to say that I never learned more than two Dutch words. Sad, eh? -
No, no need to identify where you are.Â
A strong energy drink or shot will be considerably higher in caffeine than your Coke, and it will have taurine, which some say helps. Maybe try a sugar-free version, as a way to possibly avoid the Coke vomiting. Shots are easier to get down fast and have as much caffeine as most of the full drinks. The heavy-duty version is Monster Hitman Sniper, but 5 Hour Energy or 6 Hour Power will work, I hope. Given that the Coke sometimes helps, you could also try just a strong cup of coffee. Whatever you use, drink it down at the first sign of an attack. Hoping this helps without upset.
There are a lot of clinical trials showing that 40 mg of eletriptan (Relpax) works better on migraines than 100 mg of sumatriptan, so your doc's prescription isn't completely crazy. But for CH, you really want something injectable, not a pill. Pills are too slow. But it'll probably be costly with your insurance. There's a way to extend the injections so you get three from every syringe instead of one (we can point you to that info if you get to that point).
Oh, man, all that stuff in your environment definitely is not good! Here's hoping we can reach some solutions. When you get O2, be sure you get at least one smaller tank (an "E" tank) as well as at least one big ("M") tank, so you have something portable that you can bring to school with you.
-
You should also check to see whether you can buy your own insurance through Obamacare. I don't think you have to be a US citizen to be eligible, but I could be wrong about that. I think legal visitors ("lawfully present immigrants") might be eligible.
Here's the website for Minnesota: https://www.mnsure.org/individual-family/families/index.jsp  Do you have someone who could contact them and ask? The "open enrollment" period is over, but I think you get an exception if you are newly arrived in the US, so you could apply when you get here.
All guessing on my part, but probably worth checking.
Very hard for me to imagine how you could have tried everything except oxygen! As Jeebs says, that's your first priority, whether you can get it through insurance or in some other way.
Welcome (in advance) to the US. My own family came from the Netherlands (grandparents). My father spoke Dutch.
-
M'Joe,
I suspect that Cindy (1961mom, the first post in this thread) will see this, but you could send a PM to her (bottom of her post, the icon that says PM). I'll bet she can advise you.
-
You have to get oxygen!!!!! It's not even a question. I can't agree with calling your doctor "great" if he didn't prescribe it. If it's too costly with your insurance, you can probably set up a system using welding oxygen for less $.
If you're studying architecture at Yale (where Dr. Sewell (RIP) was), I think that Paul Rudolph building would be enough to create migraines, if not CH!
Have you tried an energy drink or energy shot at the first sign of an attack? That can help, sometimes a lot.
Good luck with the shrooms. You could also try RC seeds for a probably-tripless dosing method.
Stay in touch.
-
Did you get an OXYGEN prescription?? Most important thing you can have.
What else are you doing for your CH? Considering busting?
-
Hmmm. I thought I posted a long message last night in response to this, but it seems not to be here. The shorter version is that it depends on what shipping method you chose, and the rough timeframes for delivery are listed at their website, here: https://tranceplants.net/consumer.php. So if you chose the slowest version, it might not be until next week that you get them. Here's hoping that it happens sooner than that. Please check back with us before you take them, unless you feel completely confident that you'll be doing it right. Best wishes for a successful bust.
-
Donnie, here's the info about the D3: https://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1314134804 When you see your doc next week, ask about getting your vitamin D level tested. It's part of a standard blood panel, I think. As you can see from the link, a lot of people get a lot of relief when they get their D levels up (and most people have very low D levels).
I guess I just have one question about the seeds. Did you soak them for much longer than an hour or 90 minutes? That's all you need (you probably already know this, but I want to be sure). I remember that a person or maybe a couple of people who soaked them for considerably longer times had more stomach upset.
Wish I had more for you. Have you thought about growing shrooms???
-
 You should look over the numbered files in the "ClusterBuster Files" section of this board, particularly #s 1, 3, 5, and 6. Here's a link to #5, which is about LSA: https://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1290128974 If you decide to proceed in this direction, check back for specifics. If you're thinking about buying some RC seeds just to have them, a lot of people here feel good about these vendors: www.iamshaman.com; www.tranceplants.net; www.psychoactiveherbs.com. I'm not sure which would have fast delivery options.Busting is what brought me here and I am willing to try it. -
Asleep at the switch here again . . .
Couple of things to add to Jeebs's good advice.
Are you staying on the O2 after an attack has been aborted? That's been found to prevent or lessen the severity of a possible next attack. Stay on for 5-10 minutes.
Try an energy drink or energy shot just before the O2. Shot is easier to get down quickly, and just as good (6 Hour Power, 5 Hour Energy, Monster Hitman Sniper). Helps a lot of the time, though not as much if you're awakened by one that's already pretty far along; somehow typically does not keep people awake (although that Hitman Sniper, which has a ton of caffeine, might, I suppose).
Some people find that a substantial dose of melatonin before bed helps with the nighttime attacks. You could consider starting with 6-9 mg. and add 3 mg. per night until you've found what helps. In cycle, some people are up above 20 mg. (Some folks have found that the chewable type, which often comes in much smaller doses -- Trader Joe's version is .5 mg -- works faster and better. Of course, you wouldn't take as much.)
I'm gathering that because your previous cycles have been pretty short and manageable, you don't have meds beyond O2. If you're going the conventional meds route, you'd want injectable imitrex, I would think.
Jeebs is of course right about busting, particularly if you're now only using O2. You can get some supplies (RC seeds) overnighted to you and start using them, as Jeebs likes to say, toot sweet.Â
If you're anywhere near a store that sells homeopathic stuff and you meet the medical conditions, you could try the licorice root protocol. Basics here: https://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1298659068.
And there's also probably no reason not to try the D3 regimen described here: https://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1314134804
-
No new information here (at least as far as I can tell from the abstract), but the report is new, so I figured I'd post it. http://cep.sagepub.com/content/early/2014/04/10/0333102414529672.abstract
Purpose Our aim was to review the existing literature to document oxygenÂ’s therapeutic effect on cluster headache.
Method A PubMed search resulted in 28 hits, and from these and their references we found in total 11 relevant studies. We included six studies that investigated the efficacy of oxygen treatment. One study is observational and the remaining five are RCTs. Another five studies were on hyperbaric oxygen treatment hereof two case studies.
Conclusion Oxygen therapy can be administered at different flow rates. Three studies investigate the effect of low-flow oxygen, 6–7[ch8201]l/min, and found a positive response in 56%, 75% and 82%, respectively, of the patients. One study investigates high-flow oxygen, 12[ch8201]l/min, and found efficacy in 78% of attacks. The effect of hyperbaric oxygen therapy has been investigated in a few small studies and there is evidence only for an acute, but not a prophylactic effect. Despite the fact that only a few high-quality RCT studies are available, oxygen treatment is close to an ideal treatment because it is effective and safe. However, sufferers of cluster headache do not always have access to oxygen because of logistic and financial concerns.
-
I can't help asking -- Is Dr. M hoping for BOL in the near future on the basis of some new information, or is he just "hoping" like the rest of us? I have to admit that I have always understood that before the regulations and red tape, funding was what was holding back Entheogen (and from Dr. Halpern's presentation at the last conference, I felt very pessimistic about that). If there's any reason for optimism (as opposed to hope), I'd be thrilled to hear it.John Halpern, is trying to bring brominated LSD to market in the United States. The regulations and red tape have been daunting despite herculean efforts by Dt. Halpern. “But we’re hoping that this may be an option in the near future,” Dr. McGeeney said. -
Thanks -- again -- BHD!
gammaCore
in General Board
Posted
This hand-held, portable device, which is supposed to abort cluster headaches, was discussed at last year's CB conference, and some folks from this board participated in clinical trials. As I recall, at least some of them felt that it sometimes worked pretty well.
I just checked their website, and it appears that it's available in several countries (not the US), including Canada, Italy, and the UK. Wondering whether anyone has got one, or looked into it? Since it generally was not as effective as oxygen (as I recall), it doesn't seem like a huge breakthrough, but maybe the easy portability could make it a good alternative in some situations, such as when traveling without oxygen(???). And maybe they'll make it better based on the trials (???).
Website: http://www.electrocoremedical.com/gammacore