After skipping a year on my cycle schedule the beast returned last week.  Woke up at about 5am one morning with a 3 or 4 scale headache, popped an Imitrex and the problem was solved.  Then a few days ago I woke up at about 4 am with a 6/7 and it took a while for the Imitrex to knock it out. 

Luckily I had stocked up on meds earlier in the year anticipating the start of my cycle.  Started my prednisone on Friday and will add the verapamil in a few days.  This combo has been very good to me over the past 2-3 cycles so I'm hoping for a relatively uneventful cycle.

Just when the headaches are out of sight out of mind in between cycles they come back and remind us all why we're a part of this community.  Wish I could say that I'm "glad" to be back, but I know you all know the drill.

  Did you ever get that o2 thing going?

              Potter

Welcome back Judge!
    Hope its a short cycle for ya.

Hope to heck you didnt get hit on christmas at least.
                  lorac

Yeah after almost a 2 year reprieve, mine came back too for the holidays! I'm with Potter, didja ever get the 02?? Still a life saver for me. Welcome back ;)

Joe

Just when you think you are out of the woods.....
Sorry to hear that the beast is back. With these things you just never know.
I stay alive by convincing myself that my last headache was my last headache. I hope your cycle is short and it goes away forever.

never could figure how trex pills helped.. Seems to me the first Ch of the day will do as it pleases and if you have a 2nd and 3rd then maybe. But the time for the trex to get out of the digestive tract and into the blood stream is longer than the ch..

I have trex injectors but avoid them at all costs.. o2 works works well for me.

Potter wrote on Dec 28^th, 2009 at 3:08pm:

Did you ever get that o2 thing going?               Potter

I've used O2 successfully in the past, so I'm by no means anti O2.  During my last cycle I don't think I ever had a headache get past the pred and verapamil so I didn't use my O2 once.  So for this cycle I decided to skip the O2 and just use the Trex if/when I get hit.  If I find that more hits are getting past my preventatives I'll get an O2 script.  I'm going to try the less is more approach this cycle rather than going overboard - I know I may be flirting with trouble but I'm had pretty good results with the Trex (pills/nasal spray - haven't used the injections since I was in college 10+ years ago) so that can hold me over.

One thing I appreciate about the board is that even though all of our beasts are different, we're all in the same boat and everyone is willing to offer any helpful recommendations.   

Thanks

Judge_Smails wrote on Dec 30^th, 2009 at 10:26am:

Potter wrote on Dec 28th, 2009 at 3:08pm:   Did you ever get that o2 thing going?               Potter I've used O2 successfully in the past, so I'm by no means anti O2.  During my last cycle I don't think I ever had a headache get past the pred and verapamil so I didn't use my O2 once.  So for this cycle I decided to skip the O2 and just use the Trex if/when I get hit.  If I find that more hits are getting past my preventatives I'll get an O2 script.  I'm going to try the less is more approach this cycle rather than going overboard - I know I may be flirting with trouble but I'm had pretty good results with the Trex (pills/nasal spray - haven't used the injections since I was in college 10+ years ago) so that can hold me over. One thing I appreciate about the board is that even though all of our beasts are different, we're all in the same boat and everyone is willing to offer any helpful recommendations.    Thanks

Wouldn't oxygen be less, rather than more?

            Potter

o2 is the less is more approach and I am ending my season... 100% drug free.

Infact i am bold enough to have tipped a beer to rejoice this very evening. So far, so good...

I only have trex injections, but to me they bring the beast back with prejudice and he revels in it..

basicly i am anti drug for everything, and don't consider o2 a drug..

[/quote]
Wouldn't oxygen be less, rather than more?

            Potter[/quote]

Depends on how we're describing "less".  If by less you mean less drugs, than absolutely.  For me I was referring to less doctor scripts, insurance company dealings, etc.  When I get close to when a cycle should start and notice any shadows I'll go and see my neuro and get my pred and verapamil, but my cycle can start a day from then, a week, a month - it's really not an exact science (this time it was almost a year after I noticed some shadows!).  I don't start taking the meds until I get a solid hit and know my cycle has started.   So in the past I've put off O2 until I knew I was in cycle rather than paying for it sitting around for weeks being unused.  Of course that involves going back to the Dr to get the O2 script (which can take a few weeks to get an appointment). 

I've got plenty of Trex on hand already so for me "less" means less hassle with Dr's and insurance.  Don't get me wrong, I don't have nearly the issues with insurance that some people here have, but it's just another hassle that I if I don't need to deal with I won't.


...all that said, I got another hit last night while on my pred taper (knocked it out with Trex) so looks like I'm going to start the O2 process to have it on hand for the next month or so that my cycle lasts.

Looks like it is time for the welder's o2 discussions...

WHACK

         Potter