Welcome to the board Matt I’ve had CH for 33 years, they haven’t killed me yet! You need an organized approach to managing them so they don’t manage your life. I use a 3 pronged approach, many use a similar approach:
1: A good prevent med. A med I take daily, while on cycle, to reduce the number and intensity of my attacks. I use lithium, it blocks 60-70% of my attack. Verapamil is the most common first line prevent, topomax also has a loyal following. Some have to combine lithium and verapamil together to get relief.
2: A transitional med. Most prevents will take up to 2 weeks to become effective. I go on a prednisone taper, from 80 mg to zero over a two week period to give me a break while my prevent builds up. Prednisone will provide up to 100% relief for many CH’ers but is harsh on the system and should only be used for short periods of time.
3: An abortive therapy, the attack starts, now what? Oxygen should be your first line abortive. Breathing pure 02 will abort an attack for me in less then 10 minutes, that’s completely pain free. Read this link as it must be used correctly or it will not work
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E tanks are what I use, they're portable, on cycle I always kept a tank in the trunk of my cruiser. I'd get hit, pull over, fire off the 02, 10 minutes later I'm back on patrol. Even if insurance won't cover it, they are only about $5 a month to rent and $10-$15 a refill. I was with kaiser and even they covered the 02 when they saw the comparison between 02 and imitrex injectables.
Imitrex nasal spray and injectables are very effective abortives. I use the injectables, they’re expensive, and I rarely use them, mostly just when I get caught away from the oxygen. The pill form generally works too slow to be effective for CH’ers.
Go to the meds section, read the post "123 PAIN FREE DAYS AND I THINK i KNOW WHY." It’s a vitamin/mineral/fish oil supplement, all over the counter stuff, that’s providing a lot of relief for people who have tried it, it’s a long read, worth the time.
For now, get some energy drinks. Rock Star, Monster, any containing the combo of caffeine and taurine, chug it down as fast as you can when you feel an attack starting. Many can abort or at least really reduce an attack using these.
Finally, visit our sister board for “alternative” treatment methods outside of mainstream medicine. As you’ll see from all the success stories on this board, there is something to it.
clusterbusters.com
The biggest key to oxygen is getting on it fast, and use it at a rate to support hyper ventilation. Doing that my aborts run 6-8 minutes. I never tried the water treatment but it has worked for some. As to how long between cycles, that runs all over the board.
Triggers. On cycle my triggers are alcohol, sleep cycle disruptions, letting myself get really hungry, and sustained periods of stress. Alcohol is the more common of the triggers, as you read the board you'll see they're very individualized.
Read everything you can on this board, if you are a CH’er, knowledge is your best ally. We’ll help you all we can.
Joe
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