I started the D3 regimen on the 3rd day of this out-of-the-ordinary (for me) cycle. The first 2 days, I went with the maintenance dosing schedule of 10,000 IU D3 along with the other supplements in the regimen. On the 3rd day, I switch to the accelerated D3 regimen of 25,000 IU along with a loading dose 1 day a week of 50,000 IU for the first 2 weeks.

Now, I've been at it for 12 day, and so far I haven't seen any change for the better. My hits have actually ramped up from a hit a day to 2+ hits per day (random times) much like my typical cycles of the past without D3 supplementation. The severity of the hits has ramped up as normally would be expected without the D3 as well. I guess with seeing so many people have such great results with the D3 regimen even on the maintenance dose, I was expecting faster results for myself even if only a reduction in hits and/or severity on the kip scale.

Now, it would have likely helped if I could have taken the test to see where I stood in terms of D3 deficiency to start with, of course. The problem is, it takes every dime I don't actually have (credit card) as it is just to see the necessary doc to get prescriptions for and buy the Imitrex to abort these ridiculous attacks. Couple that with other current financial burdens, and I end up having to avoid anything that isn't absolutely necessary at the moment.

I'm still giving this whole D3 the full run for its money, and we'll see what it does for me. But, this is an update to give others an idea what they might possibly expect for themselves should they try this route. In other words, I know many have posted great results in a matter of days in terms of reduced hits, etc. But, in trying this, you may (like myself) have to exercise a good deal of patience and diligence.

Quote:

I can attest to this. It took me almost that long to raise my serum level into the therapeutic range - and I started doing 20,000iu per day with a once-a-week loading dose of 50,000iu.

Stick with it - I've been completely pain free for well over a year now. I was chronic.

It makes me feel so sad that folks have to suffer through this nightmare without help because of money. No one should be financially compromised just because they are ill. Here, we all complain about our national health service but thank god for it.

If I could send you a few shots I would do it in a heartbeat, but US customs would not be so sympathetic.

The only other suggestion I can make is to try and stockpile some meds when you are not in cycle and money is not quite so tight. The test too. I know that doesn't help now but could help future cycles. I really hope you can find a solution.

Wishing you the best
Maz.

Yeah, Maz, the lack of stockpiling I attribute to my long remissions. Sounds stupid when you think about it now, of course. But, during those several years of sweet break, it's still hard to make yourself fork out the money for the doctors and shots simply because there is that glimmer of false hope that MAYBE, just maybe these things are gone for good this time. And, to go to the doctor and buy the shots would be a waste. However, I think I've learned once and for all that this is a lifetime ailment, a curse that is better accepted and better being prepared for than  denied and ignored. Stockpile, I will, even if the D3 shows great promise. 

Jair, I've already been "cheating" a bit by adding some extra loading doses in an effort to speed up any possible results. I've been tracking the doses for the regimen in my HA journal. All, I know right now is, the hits per day are about as high as I've ever received in previous cycles, so with any luck, it's all downhill from here.

Ahhh... well, it could be that your D3 levels were just like... REALLY low. If I remember correctly, it took some people up to a month or two before the regimen started to kick in. Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

Hi TheAnthonyCarter, i am sorry to hear that the D3 regimen is not yet working for you. Stick with it, there is a very strong chance that it will work for you. I have started the regimen myself in february/march this year and have had great results. Are you taking the full regimen, D3, Calcium, Magnesium, Fish oils, Vit K2, Zinc and Boron? It seems important to take them all at the doses stated by Batch. This is what i take and it's a winner for me. When i started the regimen, i was 3 weeks into a cycle that ususaly last 4 to 5 months. However, after 3 weeks on the regimen, the attacks stopped. Usually the worst month for me is June, However this june i got attacks of 2 or 3 max. I had managed to get my doctor to prescribe Oxygen and these attacks in june were quickly aborted with the Oxygen. I currently take 10000iu D3 every day along with the rest of the regimen. It has happened a couple of times that I forgot to take the weekly 50000iu loading dose and after 2 weeks i would start feeling a shadow, so it is important (for me) to take that weekly loading dose. Thanks to batch and the regimen that he has come up with, I am now pain free. If it wasn't for this regimen i would right now be in excruciating pain as for years i would start another cycle in september/october that would last 3 to 4 months. Today i am enjoying another pain free day YIPPIE and thank you Batch. By the way, i just got tested for D3 level it is 229 nmol/L. I am lucky that i can visit my doctor for free here in Ireland because (unfortunately) I am un-employed, she also fully supports the D3 regimen. I use to have to take Zoming twice a day during cycles, I am so glad that i do not have to take this any more as it can, as a rare side effect, provoke heart attacks. I was also on a preventative -Epilim Chrono 500mg-, it use give me the shakes, however i was also able to stop taking this drug and the shakes are gone .
I wish you all the best and sincerely hope that the regimen will work for you and that you will become pain free.
All the best
Thierry

Okay, so I had to stop taking the D3 regimen altogether for 3 days due to an uncomfortable feeling in my lower right abdomen. It felt kind of like an odd pressure and not really full-on pain. However, if made it "worrisome" to sit in certain positions, etc. I don't have a clue what it was. Liver? If so, not good. Either way, the feeling subsided shortly after stopping the accelerated D3 regimen.

I'll note that the day I stopped taking the regimen, and this could be a coincidence, I got over 24 hours without an attack. This "break" after daily hits 1 to 4 times a day for a week or more on the accelerated regimen. The next day, I wasn't as lucky, but I got only one attack which was easily aborted with a 2mg Imitrex shot. The same for the 3rd day. Since the lower right abdomen "pressure" subsided, I took a small 5000 IU dose of D3 alone on the 4th day. Then, I took 10,000 IU of D3 along with a lower dosage of the remaining regimen vits the next day, and again for a 3rd day.

Each day during the resumption of the lowered D3 regimen, I experienced a single attack per day 6-8 kip and easily aborted. That is, except for last night which is the 3rd day of the resumed lower-dosage regimen. Again, this could be a coincidence as my attacks are rarely ever predictable, but last night's attack was a kip 9, madman, which wasn't stopped with 2mg or an additional dose of 2mg of Imitrex. The beast was determined, to say the least, but this isn't the only time I've ever had the Imitrex leave me hanging.

This attacked happened around 8pm, and then I was awakened just before my alarm clock would have gone off to wake me for work at 6:40 am with another visit from the beast. This attack peaked at around kip 7 when the shot did its job, thank ya Jesus!

Could this be another increase in the number of attacks per day? Could it be the regimen causing this at all in my case? It's hard to say, and my intention isn't to discourage others from trying this at all. These are MY experiences.

I know MANY people have had great success with this regimen. But, not ALL have. I keep a log of all attacks, times, possible triggers, meds taken, dosage, the time they take to effect, and so on and so on. My attacks seemed to increase in quantity per day on the accelerated regimen, I got the small break mentioned the day I stopped the accelerated regimen followed by a lower per-day attack rate, then a resuming quantity of attacks per day following the resumption of the regimen even in a lower dosage.

Now, is this all meaning the regimen is to blame for my increased attacks? Or, is it just not really doing anything... yet? Good questions as it is difficult to tell due to the relatively unpredictable timing, quantity, and intensity of my attacks from cycle to cycle and during each cycle. I also don't have a blood test to know where my D3 levels stand. However, I'm starting to see it like this... My cycles tend to be no more than 1 to 2 months with no significant diet, lifestyle changes on my part. With that being said, and given the length of time many have had to stay on the regimen even in the accelerated dosages to see any positive effect, I'm starting to wonder if it is in my best interest to continue the regimen if it COULD be increasing the quantity of attacks I have while I'm dealing with this cycle.

Hiya Anthony Carter,
I started the D3 Regimen mid Sept, I understand your frustrations, not knowing what its doing or if its gonna work, but try to keep strong and continue with it.  Give it a good go!

In my opinion, the uncomfortable abdominal feelings could be there is not enough food to soften the blow of the vitamins hitting your gut. I don't know... but ensure you have a good meal prior to taking them.

I am only a newby at this regimen, but I'm certainly going to give it all! Our CH's are scary, no doubt.

Keep asking questions and keep your focus, you'll be okay.  I'm wishing you success, good luck.
pfw's Sue

Like Anthony, I also have this lower abdominal discomfort plus a burning sensation in my joints and muscles.

I am on this regimen since 17 Sept, after a month my level was 63 ng/mL, my CH was much better. I did developed normal headaches, but after I increased the Mg to 500mg it was fine. But the abdominal discomfort made me to drop to only 10 000IU per day. Last week I cut out the Ca and it was going better with the discomfort, but by Saturday most of the hits were back.

Yesterday I took 40 000IU and only 250mg Ca  plus rest of supplement and the night hits was better and today 25 000IU and 250mg Ca and the rest. The CH is better, but now the abdominal discomfort and burning sensation is back.

Batch in the other thread you mentioned K2, in that link she suggested 100mcg of vit K2 (MK7) for each 1000IU vit D. My supplement K2 has 155mcg MK-4 and only 45mcg MK-7. Will go and see if I can find anything with more MK-7 in it and see if the discomfort will go away.

I feel you, Hell-Jee. I'm still hanging in there with the D3 even though I've been, stopping, starting, raising and lowering dosages. Removed all but the D3, then have been adding the other supplements one at at time. Currently, I'm back up to taking 15,000 IU D3 daily, 500mg Mag, Multi-Vit for Vit A and general, 1200mg Fish Oil. I'll be adding the Calcium back today if this abdomen deal stays in check.

The good news is that I finally ordered the 25(OH)D test today. The bad news is, it'll take a few days to get here plus whatever time to mail back and for the results to return. So, in the meantime, I'm continuing to struggle with these doctors over getting the shots when I need them (they gotta pay their BMW payments, I suppose), and trying to take it one day and however many attacks at a time. 

Batch thanks for the reply, you are such a great guy!!!

That link to Dr Kate Rheaume-Blue about vit K2 was soooo! interesting!! It took a day to read everything!! Yes I know I'm a bit slow!!

I've stopped the D3 completely for the last 2 days, and only took vitK2 800mcg and Mg yesterday, and today after reading that interview with Dr Mercola, I did add the Vit A.

I will go for all the tests again this week, and see where I stand now. But it seems my discomfort can probably be  because of too little K2 to direct the Calsium to its correct destination, and now it is deposited in all the wrong places?
A month ago my Ca level was still normal and on average  I only took max 15 000IU a day?

Batch on vitamindwiki under headaches-cluster headaches the vit K  MK-4 MK-7 levels are much higher than the levels on the vitD regiment. I know I came in very late and to read through all 63 pages is going to take very long, I don't know if something was mentioned there? On that link it is mentioned perhaps 100mcg K2 for each 1000IU D3.

Anthony, perhaps this is our simple solution????

Update:

I've been enjoying the past 3 days PAIN FREE, aside from a very few, very minor shadows! I didn't want to say anything earlier so as not to jinx myself. Today will be day 4 PF if I make it through the whole day.

Now, I've been taking the D3 regimen still minus the 2 times (a couple of days each) that I stopped the regimen over the course due to the discomfort in my lower abdomen that I've mentioned throughout this thread. Whether or not the PF time is due directly to the D3 or my nearing the end of this cycle since it has been around a month now is difficult to say with any degree of certainty. I'll need to check my HA journal for a better understanding, but I'm not at home at the moment. Another thing that I should note is that I removed the calcium from the regimen as Batch suggested which coincidentally or not happened to coincide with the days just prior to and during these PF days I've experienced. Regardless, after weeks of daily attacks since this cycle got itself into full swing, the break has been a godsend whatever the cause.

Either way, I still say that anyone that hasn't given the D3 regimen a chance yet and is suffering through a cycle (or nearing the start of one) should give it a shot. The majority of people that have tried this have seen awesome results much faster than I have and with none of the discomfort that I and hell-jee seem to have experienced. For myself, the discomfort was relatively slight and could easily be considered "worth-it" if the D3 is behind the break I'm now receiving.

My 25(OH)D test should be here soon, and I'll take that and send it in for the results. If I'm in the green zone, perhaps from that I'll be able to calculate a rough idea of what my D3 levels were prior to starting the regimen. I'll be reducing my D3 intake gradually towards the 10,000 IU maintenance dose in the meantime provided that I don't get a return visit from the beast.

Of course, I'm a bit of a pessimist, and I'm not quite "counting my chickens" just yet. We shall see. Needless to say, I haven't mixed up a drink from the bar to celebrate just yet.