booj Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Hi Everyone, Booj's mother speaking again. Sorry I have not been around but we are still having trouble finding amounts of mushies so she can do three doses in a row so we are still not having much success. This time she had two doses and in the last two days since taking mushies her attacks have increased again from three a day to eight a day. She is having trouble believing it is actually helping her. Latest specialist appointment have suggested Neurontin. Does anyone know if this will affect the mushies, she has not taken it yet. Thanks I really appreciate being able to talk to you guys. Looking forward to hearing from anyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 its takin me almost a year, . . . 10 months, to get any pain free time. i get post dose hits as well, as soon as the meds where off im sent scrambling to the o2 tank. for me a few days after busting things are out of control. but lately it has been followed by PF time approx 10-12 days after the dose perhaps try strecthing more time between doses. every 5-7 days did nothing for me i dose every 2-4 weeks depending on activity, usually when i cant take it any more and they just wont stop, is when i dose. and i dont use 1.5 i use less, depending on how adventurous i am feeling. usually just 1.0 as far as neurontin, never heard of it. and i have been on a lot of meds for ch, either its not widely useful, or its new. from research it says its for epilepsy and siezure, she has CH right? though it says it is used for some pain, i dont see how this med would help what so ever, aspirin can help with some pain . . . most meds will block the mushrooms from doing what needs to be done . . . what ever that may be. so to give her the best results of busting i would suggest staying of all meds especially steroids, triptans, and opiates. chemicals that alter your mood and behavior probably block as well. and if you are taking a mood/behavior drug that can cause suicidal thoughts like neurontin, i would NOT be taking mushrooms along with it. mushrooms intensify the users mood. if hes feeling good and great, after a dose it will amplify that, but if user has a bad stressful day where thoughts are left racing, user will have bad experience on doses and if she is using this new drug with mushies and the ch stops . . . how will you know what it was that stopped the chaos? mind altering chemicals like anti depressants or mood/behavoir drugs such as zoloft amitryptaline lithium and even perhaps this new one to me neurontin are bad news when combined with mushrooms when a doctor prescribes things for ch its mostly the side effect they are sought after. many people take verap and lithium together, but in both of their pamphlets you should tell your doctor if u are taking one of the other and chemical reactions occur that need to have a keen eye on them all the time right now i feel that u are stuck in a kind of limbo, not sure whats what and what is helping or going to help. its not a one time shot and it can take many treatments before u see success. the road down prescription meds for ch is usually a cliff for most, where as alternatives are currently a path with beautiful bright light at the end of the tunnel. i have a hard time seeing anyone with obtaining success straddling the fence of alternatives and a doctor. need to pick a route, the other road is always still there if you dont like the scenery AO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixie-elf Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Can y'all grow your own in Australia? Or are there laws against getting all of the stuff for it? Mystina Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHfather Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Latest specialist appointment have suggested Neurontin.Does anyone know if this will affect the mushies, she has not taken it yet. Neurontin was also suggested for my daughter. There's a 20-post thread here discussing it, though not directly in relationship to your specific question about mushies: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1300849393 (I wish we had a better search engine here. I don't understand the limitations of the current one, but if you enter neurontin there it doesn't even take you to this thread, let alone whatever mentions of neurontin there might be elsewhere.) Has Booj tried the vitamin D3 regimen? I'd definitely go that way before taking neurontin. Here's something I just wrote about that regimen in another thread:     I think you should consider the vitamin D3 regimen that has helped so many people, which you could start this afternoon and which does not seem to interfere with busting. Very much more likely to help you than the kudzu, I'd say. The recommended dosage for treatment during a cycle is 10,000 international units per day (with food) of vitamin D3, 3-5K mg. of Omega-3 fish oil (with food) per day, and a couple of calcium citrate tablets (the kind that are formulated with magnesium, zinc, and sometimes a little D3) a day (not necessarily with food). Many people find that a glass of lemonade twice a day enhances the effects. I've just told you the basics, which I think is all you need to know, but you can read more about this approach (and many success stories) at these lengthy threads: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1300245052 http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1291969416/50 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brew Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 I believe it does act to block the effects of busting. I took Neurontin for about six months way back when. Did next to nothing for my head, but it made me seriously stupid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bejeeber Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Hi Booj's mom, I don't have super informative, definitive answers for you, but I'll mention what I know about neurontin (AKA gabapentin). I've taken neurontin and at various times, many other boatloads of prescribed drugs for CH. From what I've seen, some CH'ers swear by it, some swear at it. I've seen some report complete prevention success with it, but probably a higher percentage who've tried it without success. I basically assume it will interfere with busting, although I'm not seeing it specifically in the med interactions list found here: http://www.clusterheadaches.com/cb/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1290130731 The last time I was on prescriptions for CH, I tried neurontin for the preventative, and thanked my lucky stars that it kicked in (it can take a couple weeks) just as my episode was about to spiral out of control with too many high kip hits to keep up with just using O2 and partial dose imitrex injections for aborts. It basically cut the amount of attacks down by around 50%, which brought the remaining couple months of the episode down to a manageable level. I felt a bit pleasantly drugged on it at first, but even on a high dose I found that side effect eventually went away. Sorry to hear of the struggles with getting Booj's Ch under control - here's hoping you find a breakthrough soon. :'( -Jeebs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonkers Posted June 1, 2011 Share Posted June 1, 2011 Neurontin=Lyrica=Gabapentin. For most, the drug does little to help with CH. It didn't work for my kid. Don't take it while you're trying to bust. AO wisely suggested to you that "i have a hard time seeing anyone with obtaining success straddling the fence of alternatives and a doctor. need to pick a route, the other road is always still there if you dont like the scenery" Ron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
booj Posted June 1, 2011 Author Share Posted June 1, 2011 Thanks everyone once again for your information. I agree with you, we must commit to something. Booj is just not convinced yet, : I keep telling her about you guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
booj Posted June 1, 2011 Author Share Posted June 1, 2011 Thanks everyone once again for your information. I agree with you, we must commit to something. Booj is just not convinced yet, : I keep telling her about you guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
les genser Posted June 2, 2011 Share Posted June 2, 2011 In a word, no. Gabapentin (neurontin) is an antiseizure med which works by 'decreasing abnormal electrical energy' in the brain; but it is not selective, as you might imagine, and it turns everything down. You become a zombie sock puppet. A potentially suicidal sock puppet. It has a couple of other uses, but CH is NOT one of them. It also comes with a list of serious side effects longer than your arm. Do not think of having your daughter take that shit. I will say this again, though I realize it will anger some people: No pharmaceutical drug in current use is a reliable, effective and safe treatment for cluster headache. No drug exists which targets known causative pathways or secondary neuralgias specifically for the amelioration of cluster. Everything prescribed for cluster is a hand me down of stuff that didn't work all that well for what it was really intended for. By reliable and effective I mean something that works 80% of the time, every time. Virtually every med out there barely clears the statistical placebo level. By safe I mean a substance that will not disrupt normal functions, not cause organ damage and not destroy quality of life for what minimal return they provide. Here's the angry making part: Your doctor and his/her prescription pad is categorically NOT going to help relieve or (gasp) cure your cluster headaches. I don't mean to be flip, but if that were not the case none of us would need to be here. End of rant. Now, specifically, Booj's mom: 1. If she is spiking hits that much after two doses it is likely her serotonin levels are not normalized and/or her receptors need some restoration. 2. I am going to assume she was detoxed prior to busting, but it begs the question was it sufficient? Has she been on any pharmaceuticals, particularly long-term ones? 3. If psylocin is causing disruption, perhaps a gentler option is called for. Have you read the licorice root thread? I have been pain free for nearly six months (after just shy of forty years) using nothing else. Licorice root & skullcap tinctures are little short of miraculous restoratives for frayed out nervous systems. Whether or not they stop the headaches, they would be of much use. Unlike psychedelics, licorice will actually balance serotonin levels as it is a highly efficient reuptake inhibitor. And unlike drugs which do the same thing, there is no tolerance, no withdrawal, and no serotonin syndrome when you stop taking it. And its cheap. And its legal. I would also like to offer the thought that at this place, at least, "alternative" is frequently synonymous with 'useful', 'practical' and 'effective'. I hope she is doing better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottr1966 Posted June 4, 2011 Share Posted June 4, 2011 I've had some kind of reaction to the vitamin D3 regimen. My tongue and throat became irritated. I thought it may have been the D3 so I stopped but then it continued. So I cut out the magnesium/calcium. For the past week I have been taking only the fish oil. Also, I stared taking 10mg Melatonin each night and skullcap tincture, 40 drops in some water 4-5 times per day. I'm going bring the D3 and mag/cal back in one at a time as I try to identify the culprit. But already something is different. Mind you, I do not have CH, I have HC (Hemicrania Continua). I have noticed my daily HA has become less frequent, shorter acting, and less severe. My plan is to throw in some Licorice Root as soon as I can get my hands on it. After 18 months of daily suffering, could I finally be on to something here? Beware the jinx! Les, given the effects of licorice on serotonin, would it interfere with busting if I decided to throw a dose in? Thanks Scott Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CHfather Posted June 4, 2011 Share Posted June 4, 2011 Scott, here are some things that Les wrote at that long thread about licorice root. Knowing Les, I suspect he'll give you a more detailed answer at some point: Genser said, “Single dose busting with real psylocin indole followed by tincture use as an abortive would probably work pretty well. . . . If you try the tincture and it doesn’t work for you, it will clear your system in eight hours or less if you want to bust with shrooms. Licorice has a short half life compared to pharmaceuticals. I have no experience in knowing whether going from hallucinogens to the tincture would require waiting.” Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
les genser Posted June 4, 2011 Share Posted June 4, 2011 What he said. Thanks, Jerry. Just to be clear though: DO NOT do them at the same time. What a SSRI does, of course, is keep more serotonin in circulation before it is recycled. Licorice will amplify the effect of other drugs acting in the same areas, like steroids. So I suspect that one gram might seem like ten. Or, it could be like an interference pattern and cancel out. I really don't know. It would be interesting to find out, but I am NOT looking for volunteers. If you separate by 8 hours you're good. Neither substance sticks around. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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