Cassidy

Carole, I will share my recipe with you. 1st time-- about 20 seeds smashed           soak in 4 oz of water for 2-12 hours           splash of lemon           strain if you like and drink it down. There are varied opinions on soaking. Also different opinions on length of time and what to soak in. And some drink the sludge and others don't. There seems to be a lot of ways to prepare. I have soaked seeds for 2 hours and once for a few days, because my plan got screwed up. The effect didn't seem to vary. I only use lemon water and if you use your imagination, it tastes a little nuttty. As you experiment, you can adjust amount of seeds and the prep. to suit your own needs.    Leslie

Bob, Wish you could have been there also. It would have been much more comfortable, leaning on you rather than that tree. Heavy Metal, Nebraska, Iowa, or South Dakota?

Bobb, I agree that overuse of meds, especially sinus meds will cause the every day headache. I've tried to bite the bullet on that, but never can quite make it. I use the sinus rinse, but still have a hard time without the Tylenol etc. I wonder if the no sweat problem (more than a problem--very dangerous) might cause the cloudy urine. Seems like one's body has to eliminate toxins one way or the other. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Leslie I have sort of given up on getting answers and just blame the screwed up hypothalamus thing. Especially the body temp. Chills when it's hot, hot flashes when cold, and no answers from any doctor. They just shake their head. Sometimes I think they believe it is my treatment for clusters. Am I paranoid? Probably.

Hi Madstring, 1. I do notice cloudiness. 2. I have stuffiness on right side all the time. That does clear up during an attack. 3. Eyes are dry--- blame that on Benadryl. 4. Never sweat. Never! 5. Have sinus headache everyday. (had cat scan on sinus--no problem) 6. Have bright red flush on right side (cluster side) when near a trigger. 7. Get strange numbness-tingling-- no explanation--been checked out.     Leslie :-/

There you go Carole, Listen to these people and you are on your way. Leslie

Happy 4th everyone, Well, I made it to the Santana concert. It was a hot, humid day and I was worried about the cluster curse. As Carlos came on stage and the sun was down, a big black cloud came rolling in with a cool wind. And Carlos said, "this is perfect." He played for almost 2 hours. It was wonderful. The crowd estimated 30,000, in a fairly small space. I found a tree to lean against, and got lost with the music. I really wanted to make that trip, but didn't think I could handle it. I dosed 5 days ahead of time, knowing that heat, pollen and people are my triggers. That is my last outdoor concert. But I did it with a little help from my friends. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Leslie

Hi Carole, No need to be scared or desperate. Easy to say, but trust me, you are in a good place for help and advice. Someone will be around to help you with getting 02, the cheapest way without insurance. I am not an expert in that area. I might be an expert on feeling scared and desperate. There is a lot of information here and a bunch of people that understand because we've all been there. I would like to ease your mind as far as being concerned over getting high. One of the choices you have is using RC seeds. They are a good option and the side effect of being high, really isn't an issue. I have used the seeds many times and had success in controlling the clusters. I did not experiance any high, so to speak. I just wanted to tell you quickly. So hang in and you will get some help as people read your post. Meanwhile, you might try some Red Bull to help abort a CH. Or a tsp. of ginger mixed in a glass of warm water. If you have been on CH.com you are probably aware of many tips like that. Most of all give this a chance. It is the most effective and cheapest way of dealing with clusters.  later Leslie

Tingeling, I think it's the same old thing, we are all different. The stuff actually kept me awake. And made me nervous. I tried it once, gave up after a couple weeks. Then I tried it again. Same result.  Leslie ps I have never found an antidepressant that I could tolerate. I think it's just bad wiring in my head. I think it is all related, the clusters and the strange symptoms that some of us experience. :-/

Hi Brenda, Do you feel the therapy was helping you? If so you might consider continuing the process. If you feel it was causing you grief, then why go back? You asked what do others think. I can tell you from my experience only, that I think, "why bother." I don't believe there is much that can be done to erase trauma. I believe you can't fix what happened. You can accept what happened and live with it. At this time I don't think there is a therapy or a drug that can help what happened yesterday. It's possible I saw some bad therapists and I took the wrong antidepressants that were prescribed, but That is what I think. I also think that there might be some hope with the hallucinogenic drugs that are being studied now, but not approved yet. As far as the hypothalamus is concerned, I am under the impression it has more to do with hormones and body clock and temperature but not necessarily emotions. I suppose it is all connected. I don't know if my thinking is even close to being right, but maybe we will get others to comment.      Leslie

David, Ten seeds might be a little much to hold under the tongue. I'm thinking more about 4 or 5. Like Bobb says, the idea is to abort a hit. Sputs aren't meant to prevent a cycle. They are more for helping you through post dose hits. Or maybe avoid a hit when you are in an inconvenient place and have nothing else to help. BTW, I have kept the sludge around in the fridge after I dosed and used a tiny bit as a sput. Most my experiences with sputs are with mushrooms. A tiny piece under the tongue for about 20 minutes. Some times I have fallen asleep that way. The blue stain is hard to get out of the white pillowcase.  Leslie

Tingeling, To answer your question, about why not many are using paper. My best guess is it isn't available or if it is, some of the people around here are so old they lost their connections. ;D Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Leslie

David, Yes, I was a little happy, but have to be careful here. It's that jinx thing again. Tim, Very happy about the sleep. Leslie

I know David. It's kind of scary to think about. Who would of thought we'd pick the two best teams. It will be interesting. I was't planning on the Twins playing the Mets until this fall. You know at the World Series. Poor Tigers tonight. Anything is possible--- hope you are reading this Birdman. Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Leslie

Birdman, No one will be disgusted with your decision. None of us really know what the others are dealing with at the moment. We share our knowledge and opinions and sympathy in regards to this curse. But in the end you alone have to decide what is best for yourself at this time, or any time for that matter. I will be looking forward to your posts. First things first. Get some relief from the pain, so you can sleep and function. And when you really do something disgusting, I'd like to hear the details.    Leslie

MJ, Excellent post. And no offence taken here. I believe that everything you said needed to be said. When I did my first bust, I wouldn't even touch an aspirin. I was following Flash's advice on CH.com at the time. That was over 5 years ago. As time goes by and we get relief I think we fine tune to our needs, and that might not be the best idea. But some of us have extending circumstances. I posted about using a valium for anxiety over dosing. So yes,I bent the rules also. Bottom line, you are so right and your words deserve attention. Not only do we want success, but it does not help the cause to have some terrible result due to mixing the wrong chemicals.    Leslie

Birdman, If I have it right, you dosed on the 16th, so maybe you are dealing with some post dose hits. Possible that they could let up tonight. I would not give up yet. I'd think about maybe mixing the next dose with something like 1g shroom tea and maybe about 10 RC seeds sprinkled in the mix. Also consider using a sput for the wake up hits. Just put a tiny piece under your tongue. With a little luck you might catch 4 hours of sleep. You have an option of leaving things alone and stretch out the time for the next dose. And you could go against good advice and dose a day earlier. I think I would avoid ambien, it probably wouldn't do any good. If you are going to get the night hits no sleeping meds. are going to stop them. Just my opinion. I'd try to stay pure and keep on truckin. Are you having anything to eat, after you dose? Something simple like toast? (and a ativan) Sounds like a lot of double talk here, but I can only suggest what I have done. Leslie

CArl, Would that be with milk or lemon? ;DÂ Â Leslie

Hey Johnny, Free concert on July 3rd in Sioux City, Iowa. Carlos Santana will be stopping in and will play at dark. Beings he will play after the sun goes down, I'm going to attempt to be there. This is an annual event in SC---"Day in the Park." The last time I tried it was 100 degrees and you know the rest the story. I ended up at the emergency station with a "headache". They told me to drink some water and go sit under a tree. I'm thinking a maintenance dose and no sun, I can do this. Santana's guitar from the band-shell, rolling over the hills is magic. Leslie

Six months ago, my doctor told me that I had to quit smoking. So I did. And then I quit every week. Now it's time to see the Dr. for a check up. My, time does fly. So now I have to see him on Monday. Thought about some detox to flush the nicotine out of my system, but then what's the point. I get so depressed about being such a failure, but then I feel so good smoking that first cig. with a cup of coffee every morning. Thought about Chantix, but hear the side effects can be terrible headaches. I use the gum, and smoke. That's double dipping. So, guess I can go get the lecture about smoking kills or look for a really old Dr. that says smoke em if you got em. What to do?    Leslie ps  Dr. says quitting will help CH go away

I used to drink a cup of hot ginger tea when I was feeling sick, not related to clusters. Then years later I used powdered ginger in cool/cold water to abort a CH. It worked very well. I crave ginger snaps at times, mainly when being bothered with shadows. And when I want a treat I buy Reeds Ginger Ale. It has a real bite to it and is a great drink when you might ordinarily want a cold beer. Usually found in the organic department at the grocery store. Think Reed makes a ginger beer also, no alcohol. Sometimes the Red Bull is just too sweet and ginger ale is refreshing. That's all I know about ginger. Leslie

Birdman/Tim When I first started dosing with 1 or 1.5 tea, I was very anxious. I had no prior experience and did not know what to expect. You got it right, setting is very important. Also hard to achieve. I also had the worst "babysitter" that anyone could find. I tried very hard to follow all the guidelines and knew that Valium/ativan could lessen the effectiveness of the dose. However after convincing myself that I was having some allergic reaction to the tea, I took "mother's little helper." I suppose the strain could cause the anxiety, but frame of mind plays it's part. I hope to achieve that peaceful, easy feeling on my own, but wound a little too tight sometimes. OK, all the time. Think there are some varied opinions about ginger and melatonin close to dosing time. I believe some say to avoid 2 days before and 2 days after. Personally, I think melatonin backfires on me. Bobb is right about the pain killers. So if anxiety is your problem, I'd go for the anti anxiety pill, smallest dose made. And good luck scoring that. Seriously!    Leslie

8-)Don't know how many years I have made this post on the CB board. But it is time again to head up north to open the fishing cabin (shack). LOL Been lots of roadblocks this spring and uncertainties due to health and weather. I have 2 good doses in me and feel confident that the head will behave. After sitting through a wind storm and hail last night here at home, I was questioning that. Pretty big pressure change when tornadoes are near by. Thought the shadow that came with the storm was going to be a real hit, but it passed. No damage here. Cat came out of the basement and is worried why his carrier is sitting out. So-------gone fishing. ( not me, I'll be watching all the Twin's games) Hope to come back in a couple weeks and read nothing but success stories on the board.   Leslie

Post on CH.com. They might have an answer. Never know?

Who does welding in your area? Can you go directly to a "shop", like a garage, or car mechanic and explain and possible take cash? I know I could walk 2 blocks to the fire station and they would help me. Again just trying to grasp at straws. Leslie

Happy Birthday Ron, Sorry I'm late, but had to go away for a few days. Did you have a cake? How much did sixty some candles cost? Have a very good year. Leslie