I have had periodic clusters since 1994 occurring approx. every three years and lasting for 4 to six months. Tried everything and found that Oxygen works for me if caught in time and if not, only solution is Imitrex injections.

Well, I started an episode about 4 weeks ago. Usually within 1 week it is full blown. I was in the garden and started a twinge. For some unknown reason I plucked a Basil leaf and chewed it and put the mess under my tongue. Within about 8 minutes I was clear. I have now been doing this for about three weeks and it has worked 100% of the time. More importantly, the episode has not progressed into a full blown system.

I am hoping that this continues and hope that this will help someone out there in cluster land. I am sure it will not work for everyone but is certainly worth a try. A lot cheaper than Imitrex!

Welcome.

I would be asking my insurance company to pay for seeds, soil, water, maybe even a greenhouse.

Seriously, glad you found something that works for you.

Trevor,
thank you for sharing your discovery with the rest of us. I hope that basil leaves keep on helping you! :)

All the best,
Sanna

I have a massive Basil bush by my front door, rest assured I'll give it a try next cycle. I've been patiently watching this thread waiting for one of our chemists to give an opinion on what the chemical is that's doing the trick. Here's hoping it keeps working for you! ;)

Guiseppi

Thank you for all the comments. Heavens, I hope this works for someone else and so hope it continues for me.

I was rushing around downtown Toronto today looking for a restaurant that had some fresh basil. Found it at a tiny Thai restaurant. Worked again in about 8 minutes.

So wish there was a cure for this!

Cheers,

Trevor

Thank you for sharing!  I may have to start a Basil garden!  I'll give it a try too, next cycle.  I hope you continue to have success!

Jeannie

Quote:

Abstract Aroma compounds in the extracts of basil leaves (Ocimum basilicum L.) and thyme leaves (Thymus vulgaris L.) were identified by gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The major aroma constituents of basil were 3,7-dimethyl-1,6-octadien-3-ol (linalool; 3.94 mg/g), 1-methoxy-4-(2-propenyl) benzene (estragole; 2.03 mg/g), methyl cinnamate (1.28 mg/g), 4-allyl-2-methoxyphenol (eugenol; 0.896 mg/g), and 1,8-cineole (0.288 mg/g). The major aroma constituents of thyme were 2-isopropyl-5-methylphenol (thymol; 8.55 mg/g), 4-isopropyl-2-methylphenol (carvacrol; 0.681 mg/g), linalool (0.471 mg/g), α-terpineol (0.291 mg/g), and 1,8-cineole (0.245 mg/g). Twelve aroma constituents of basil and thyme were examined for their antioxidant activities using the aldehyde/carboxylic acid assay. Eugenol, thymol, carvacrol, and 4-allylphenol showed stronger antioxidant activities than did the other components tested in the assay. They all inhibited the oxidation of hexanal by almost 100% for a period of 30 days at a concentration of 5 μg/ml. Their antioxidant activities were comparable to those of the known antioxidants

And there ya have it Guiseppi.   ::)

Well that sure cleared it up for me! :-?
(not!)
Guiseppi

Phil and I went out and bought some basil leaves.  Hey, he's willing to try anything at least once.

Hugs,

Jen

me either Joe...but I was curious as to what was the chemical in Basil   that could possibly help and that was what I found.


Back to square one.  At least Basil is good in a tomatoe sauce if nothing else and it certainly can't hurt.   :-/

I'll have to give it a go myself.  Couldn't hurt to have have some fresh basil anyhow, I sure love fresh spices in my tomato sauce among other dishes.

IMHO Basil tastes like $hit when you chew it [smiley=hurl.gif] and it didn't do anything for the beast.  I thought the nasty taste would aleast take my mind off the hit,  I kept it in my mouth for ten minutes and nothing.   oh-well it was worth a try.           Phil

Trevor,

Hmmm...  Linda's post is as compelling as any I've read...  In fact, there could be a lot of biochemical factors involved in eating basil that may just do the trick.  There are a lot of beneficial medications that have come from the jungles of the Amazon basin so there's no reason to think that eating basil leaves is a lark.  If it works for you... Go for it!!!!

I prefer grasshopper spit pesto...  It's made with equal parts of basil, flat leaf parsley, cilantro, and mint with a clove of garlic, a pinch of salt, a dash of lemon juice, and enough olive oil to blend it up into thick creamy pesto sauce.  It comes out an incredible iridescent green color kind of like the spit of a grasshopper if you hold one between your fingers...  

The taste is something else...  Your pallet senses the basil, parsley and salt followed by a delightful aftertaste of cilantro and mint.  It's best served over grilled chicken breast in a sandwich with lettuce and tomato.

Having said that, green veggies are good when it comes to elevating your pH.  I'm not sure if one or two basil leaves are enough to elevate your pH, hence my interest in Linda's response to your post.

If nothing else, give the grilled chicken sandwich with  grasshopper spit a try...

Bon appetite, and take care,

V/R, Batch

For the love of God Batch, you're making me hungry and it's only 7:20am, LMAO!

Batch wrote on Oct 4^th, 2008 at 6:59pm:

It's made with equal parts of basil, flat leaf parsley, cilantro, and mint with a clove of garlic, a pinch of salt, a dash of lemon juice, and enough olive oil to blend it up into thick creamy pesto sauce.

What? No pine nuts?

Get back to me when you decide to include pine nuts.

wrote on Oct 7^th, 2008 at 7:33am:

Batch wrote on Oct 4th, 2008 at 6:59pm: It's made with equal parts of basil, flat leaf parsley, cilantro, and mint with a clove of garlic, a pinch of salt, a dash of lemon juice, and enough olive oil to blend it up into thick creamy pesto sauce. What? No pine nuts? Get back to me when you decide to include pine nuts.

I agree. Pine nuts are essential to any and all forms of pesto. I like mine to include a few gratings of fresh parmigiano-reggiano and orange zest instead of lemon. But hey, all forms of food are spectacular. I eat anything that doesn't eat me first.

thanks for the basil tip-  certainly worth a shot...

Kelly

Thanks for all the info on this. Good recipe Batch!

Still using basil and still going OK. Obviously this could be just a different episode from my normal ones but ..... who knows. Like most, I will try anything to ease it all. Tried shrooms last time with no effect what soever. Tried giving myself acupuncture too but only worked about 3 out of ten times.

As long as this keeps 'working' I am all for it! Picked up some very hot chillies today so will try that tonight when they visit.

Basil bush is picked clean so I am now buying the stuff. So much cheaper than Imitrex! Not as good but makes it bearable.

Luck to all.

Trevor