SO I'm a newbie

6 episopdes to date over 2 weeks

the first seemed to be triggered when I smoked some weed - anyone else notice this

anyways after the fourth CH -(happened every other day for a week) I went to the hospital and got diagnosed (CT Scan said nothing else too) and the Doc prescribed some Prednisone.

ALso I got some O2 which stops the ache for me , only to have it come back 60 minutes later - this went on all night a couple of nights ago.

Welcome aboard!

Try to stay on the oxygen for ten to fifteen minutes longer, after the pain is gone, and see if that helps.  Oxygen is a life saver for most of us.  There is no way we could continue to function without it.

As far as the wacky terbbaky goes, I have not heard of it being a trigger.  Most have said that it does not effect clusters one way or another.  I wouldn't know as it has been almost forty years since I have partaken of the magic weed.

Chuck

Ok - so I've only been on board two weeks and haven't touched the wacky stuff from fear, but I'll let it be known if it does trigger an attack when and if I do .

meanwhile the O2 is a Godsend - it takes about 10 minutes to relieve the pain after I start to use it - so does that mean I should stay on it for 20-25 minutes - I've only using a small tank and that will just about deplete it -

from what I've read increased O2 in the bloodstream through exercise works too - YES??

Anyone tried KUDZU ?

Thanks Sunset

Sunset, don't smoke anything period while going through a cycle.

I smoke ganj on occassion myself, but only during remission.  It's not worth the trigger.  Drink plenty of water and try some of numerous abortive techniques discussed on this forum, especially O2.

If you want prevention and if you smoke the fine green, look into shrooms or check this site out START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE.  It actually can abort and entire cycle for some.

Wishing you PF days

The wacky tobaccy is not a trigger for me at all.  I think I might be in the minority, though.

Chuck uses the O2 for 10 to 15 minutes after the pain has completely gone away.  I only do about 3 to 5 minutes and it seems to help.  After the pain has gone away, I can generally turn the O2 way down and just take slow deep breaths.

I had the same problem you're having with oxygen, it would stop the CH in less then 10 minutes. Within 20 minutes of shutting down the 02, it's back. For the last several years, I've been combining cafergot with my oxygen. Cafergot is an old school CH med, taken in pill form. I think the combo is caffeine and ergotamine (sp?) but not entirely sure. The 02 would punch the ch down, the cafergot bought me up to 12 hours pain free time.

Several people on the board have posted the same results combining coffee or an energy drink with their oxygen. They got the same results, oxygen would shut down the CH, energy drinks bought them several hours pain free time, I intend to try that next cycle.

Marijuana is a vasodiolator, for CH'ers, that's bad. I'm thinking you'll wanna stash the stash till the cycle is over!

Guiseppi

Trigger. Dont do it.
thebb

before ch was mentioned to me, i thought smokin weed would help.  should of seen me...funny now i think of it.  i was puffin so hard :D, my poor father was beside himself, but whatever he could do to help, he let it slide.  I didn't vomit though, which usually happens to me, and it didn't help. never tried it again...to abort a headache  ;)

angela

just take everything you know about migraines and through it out the window. weed and beers are 2 surefire triggers for me however i've known people that have been successful using both for migraines and other types of headaches.

wrote on Aug 26^th, 2008 at 10:42am:

Trigger. Dont do it. thebb

Yep, is for me too.  But it's rather harmless when I'm not in cycle.  Aaaaaaaannnnnnnnnddddddd just like everything else, it effects different people differently.  Use with caution.

I didn't smoke it, but I was around the smoke, and it damn well triggered me. >_<;

Huge trigger.  While it may help for migraines, it did not help me during a ch.  I thought my eye was gonna burst out of my head.  I can't even be around cigarette smoke during a ch.

Hi

Marijuana and hascish increase the attack during cluster;  

I realised that if i smoke in the firts step before start attac, the attak finish, but after the effect of smok, the attac come back more hard .

Sorry for my english  ;)

your english is better than my italian. :)

Back years ago I was in Jamacia and got hit on the beach one night. Had a joint with me (someone put it in my cigarette case - yeah right!) Lit it up and took a deep breath and wham - no headache (I was hitting close to a Kip-10 at the time). Had to have a "little" help getting home, but I slept the night thru without getting hit again...

But unfortunately, I had to fly back into the states thru Miami and they have cute little dogs sniffing around in that airport so I had to leave my new found "cure" in Jamacia.  This homegrown stuff around here just don't do it....

Been years since I tried any, but it never triggered a headache for me. But that stuff in Jamacia was the only stuff that ever stopped one.

Hugs BD

wrote on Aug 26^th, 2008 at 10:42am:

Trigger. Dont do it. thebb

I've stopped being a user of marijuana for about 10 years now.  I noticed during a 13 month stay in The Netherlands that Marijuana and Hashish was a somewhat weak trigger for my cluster headaches.

That was rather infuriating, as in The Netherlands the stuff is readily available and decriminalized!  It was fun walking around with a brain that was turned into "nutty putty", but not when a CH attack followed in 30-60 minutes.   :'(

Of course, YMMV (Your Milage May Vary)....

Wishing you well,

Ray

Hey sunset I feel your pain. Been dealing with these God awful clusters for 12 years now. I too am in love with Mary Jane for 15 years. But when the beast is around I dump her ass QUICK!! Its just not worth it. Cant even enjoy the high and if by chance you dont get a hit while your high the whole time your worried that you will. Been smoking cigs for 17 years now and that doesnt seem to be a trigger(thats me though) Just wait untill your episode is over and then role the fattest one you ever rolled , put on some Floyd and enjoy!!!   :D Thats my plan. GL

Well I must say you guys are (after the O2) are wonderful and great to know there is all this support out there.

On the positive side - having been hit by the beast for the first time this year I have learned to fight back in various ways
Taurine and B6 three times a day seems to keep things in to a minimal ( painlevel 5 maybe) and I always have one of those 5 hour energy drinks nearby which kept the beast down the other day when I was on the golf course.
Vigorous exercise helps too.
No alchohol and No weed until this is all over

meanwhile I saw a head doctor the other day - got in to see him quickly because he is a teaching doctor and CH is interesting enough that he wanted to use me as a example for a student in his office.

so this head ache doctor is spending time teaching people about CH and how to recognize it because all to often it goes undiagnosed - all good stuff

he prescribed "verapamil" as a 'preventative'  and I've been on it for two days only - the first night I had three mild attachs but since then nothing  --- I've got to watch my blood pressure, it's not recommended for anyone with heart problems - I'll let everyone know how it works.

Anyways thank you all for being there - if anyone in the Toronto area wants to know this doctors name  its - Dr. Jonathan Gladstone - he has clinics in Toronto and CLeveland and really seems to know what he is talking about - doesn't have a great opinion about the internet, blogs or naturalist remedies - - believes in the proven clinical stuff but he was quite pleasant and we will see if his solution works.

Sunset

Quote:

meanwhile I saw a head doctor the other day - got in to see him quickly because he is a teaching doctor and CH is interesting enough that he wanted to use me as a example for a student in his office. so this head ache doctor is spending time teaching people about CH and how to recognize it because all to often it goes undiagnosed

         THAT is fantastic!!!!  wish more were like him.

Over the 10 yrs. I have been here,  the subject of Mary-Jane use has been brought up many times.  I've never taken a poll....but the consensus is that it is a trigger.  I'm happy that until your cycle is over you're going to stay away from it.  Like someone else has already said, it's a vasodialtor just like alcohol and that is a NO-NO for us.

Linda

This Thanksgiving will be 3 years quit smoking weed and I never thought pot was a trigger but if I even had a twing of a CH coming on and I smoked I was guaranteed a kip 10 as you can guess as soon as I put 2 and 2 togather I never did that again. I have to say I don't miss smoking that shit at all.




Dave  

When the O2 worked for me I would take a few hits first then O2 at 15 for 20-30 minutes the hits took edge off til O2 worked BUT for last two years O2 wont do it for me any more even tho I still try it every other day been thur 3 tanks and nothing no help at all BUT the few hits take the edge off and dont trigger it worse than it always is. Terry (being truthfull)

I have found my two triggers. One more so than the other. That is wedd and booze... both things unfortunately I do enjoy on occasion.

Thankfully I do carry an O2 bottle with me (perks of being in EMS I guess). Therefore I can bust them quick as soon as I start to feel the twinge of pain.

I have found however, if I do one or the other completely alone. IE: If I smoke but not drink, my chances are higher that I won't be attacked in my daze. Same with drinking without smoking.

I have also noticed when I do either, or both I tend to smoke cigarettes like they made them illegal too, yet if I limit my cig smoking the chances are a slight bit higher that I won't be attacked.

I am episodic and haven't really found a cycle or pattern to my attacks yet, just little triggers.

Like said above, stay on the O2 10 or minutes even after the pain leaves. It's a big help, I haven't relapsed but once after the O2 treatment and that was an odd day where I had 4 attacks in 12 hours... very, very, very rare I get more than 1 a day even without O2.

Short answer, yea weeds a trigger my friend, limit yourself, stop smoking, or battle the beast is really the only options. I know myself I have cut back so much that it's now once a week at most I'll indulge in smoke or drink, I hate fighting the beast without whacking him on the head with my O2 bottle.

-Jeremy