Energy Drinks - thoughts to as why occasionally effective?

[mikeh2017]

Going through an episodic cluster. Currently less strong than in the past but symptoms remain. Oxygen doesn't seem to be working for me but A few nights ago finally tried downing a can of cold monster energy and somehow after 10 minutes it seemed to have an effect- felt at the lower part of my skull /neck where I assume pituitary / hypothalamus is . Symptoms receded and promptly fell asleep. Was impressive. Is there any research into why they may help?

[CHfather]

I'm not aware of research.  It's well-known of course that caffeine helps, and many people think that the taurine in energy beverages, either alone or in some connection to the caffeine, also helps.  If you're going to be relying in part or in full on caffeine, try to stay away from it at times when you're not using it for attacks.  As with so many other things, it seems you can build a tolerance to caffeine that reduces its effectiveness.  Depending on which Monster drink you used, you might well find that it has less caffeine than the much smaller, quicker-to-get-down energy shots, such as 5-Hour Energy.  A "standard" Monster has about 80ish mg of caffeine, whereas the standard 5-Hour Energy has more than 200mg, and the extra strength 5-Hour has close to 250mg.

28 minutes ago, mikeh2017 said:

Oxygen doesn't seem to be working for me

Assuming that O2 has worked for you but isn't now -- some/many people find that if the pressure in the oxygen tank is low (maybe 1/3 full, or less full), O2 doesn't work as well.

 

[mikeh2017]

Thank you CHfather, The energy drink effect on me has been a godsend. Cluster manifested last night and the trick seemed to work again as an abortive. Within 10 minutes I was back to sleep. Yes. I will stop daytime caffeine to preserve effectiveness and Thank you, will look into the 5 hour energy especially if there is waining effectiveness. Re. Oxygen I am convinced I must be doing it wrong in some way and am going to give it another try, but will watch Bill Mingus's oxygen breathing techniques and get the Clustermask as well.

[xBoss]

Probably a blood pressure change. Just like how a hot soak in the tub can abort a hit.

[devonrex]

Taurine also acts as an anti-inflammatory.

[mikeh2017]

On 3/29/2023 at 12:03 PM, xBoss said:

Probably a blood pressure change. Just like how a hot soak in the tub can abort a hit.

How effective is this for you? How hot does it have to be?

[xBoss]

8 hours ago, mikeh2017 said:

How effective is this for you? How hot does it have to be?

I can get an abort in minutes by soaking in a tub of really hot water. It works like a charm for me but you have to be on top of it in the early minutes while it's ramping up or it tends to not work. I think I have made it work at least 50-100 times now. Been a while since LSD busting. Doing pretty good!

[BoscoPiko]

9 hours ago, mikeh2017 said:

How effective is this for you? How hot does it have to be?

I also use the hot water method and need no less than 105-106 to get er done.. This high temp is also effective in bringing you down from unwanted side effects from things like alternative medicine...

[BoscoPiko]

On 3/26/2023 at 4:09 PM, mikeh2017 said:

Going through an episodic cluster. Currently less strong than in the past but symptoms remain. Oxygen doesn't seem to be working for me but A few nights ago finally tried downing a can of cold monster energy and somehow after 10 minutes it seemed to have an effect- felt at the lower part of my skull /neck where I assume pituitary / hypothalamus is . Symptoms receded and promptly fell asleep. Was impressive. Is there any research into why they may help?

 

On 3/26/2023 at 4:09 PM, mikeh2017 said:

Is there any research into why they may help?

During an attack the blood vessels swell and or go through a flooding of sorts, causing more blood around the brain. The over flow of blood and pressure surrounding the nerves can cause an attack by sending a pain message to the brain. Caffeine restricts the vessels limiting the intake of blood to the brain thereby aiding in the abort and or ceasing of the attack. Hope that makes sense.

[spiny]

I have been doing the very hot bath method since before I joined here. I start out with about 2'-3"s of very hot water. For me, a cool cloth on my Ch side helps too, As the water cools, I add more hot. At the end of the hit, I have a normal bath in depth and still quite hot. As in the bottom half is bright red from the heat. I thought of this when pondering blood vessel dilation and heat. It has to be done very early in the hit as xBoss said. 

Just run it as hot as you can stand. My theory is that it dilates the blood vessels on your bottom half, thereby reducing the pressure in your head. 

Another trick I have used is to down some caffeine about 20 - 30 minutes before an anticipated hit. That has often prevented the first hit of the night. They come like clock work, so I know when to get the caffeine in for me. Might be worth trying. 

[xBoss]

6 hours ago, spiny said:

I have been doing the very hot bath method since before I joined here. I start out with about 2'-3"s of very hot water. For me, a cool cloth on my Ch side helps too, As the water cools, I add more hot. At the end of the hit, I have a normal bath in depth and still quite hot. As in the bottom half is bright red from the heat. I thought of this when pondering blood vessel dilation and heat. It has to be done very early in the hit as xBoss said. 

Just run it as hot as you can stand. My theory is that it dilates the blood vessels on your bottom half, thereby reducing the pressure in your head. 

Another trick I have used is to down some caffeine about 20 - 30 minutes before an anticipated hit. That has often prevented the first hit of the night. They come like clock work, so I know when to get the caffeine in for me. Might be worth trying. 

The only downside is when it does not work, now you are hot, wet, in full blown CH and naked lol. I get super sweaty during most CH and then the freezing cold sweat comes. An awful experience!

[devonrex]

On 4/7/2023 at 7:45 PM, BoscoPiko said:

I also use the hot water method and need no less than 105-106 to get er done.. This high temp is also effective in bringing you down from unwanted side effects from things like alternative medicine...

I tend to get in the tub, turn on the shower and sit with the water pounding on my head and keep increasing the heat until I cannot physically take it any hotter, it helps, doesn't abort but takes some edge off for me.