Chronic and episodic are just labels and beyond tagging a chronic as someone who has gone at least a year without a break of more than a month.

So having long cycles with short breaks and multi-year cycles both count as chronic.

The boundary could easily have been set at 6 months, 10 months or more, it just means very long cycles.

There is nothing different about any single CH that a chronic or an episodic will experience and it is only by the person with CH keeping records that a doctor can differentiate between the two.

Mike, I'm glad you phrased it the way you did. I put that one year thing in there b/c in the past if someone posted that they thought they were going going "chronic" the immediate response would be "yer ain't chronic unless it's been a year". 
     But....being "chronic" would be a game changer for me...as an episodic for 22 years I've always viewed my condition as temporary, I give up a couple of months of my life and move on. I would just as soon forget about my problem (and do). Due to the regularity of my episodes I can make plans and do things without the specter of ch hanging over my head. Pursuing the activities that my family and I enjoy doing  takes one away from the security blanket that exists at home. I can bring oxygen on some of my ventures but not so for many others. Besides the negative effects on ones daily attitude it's a real ball and chain. Oh, I can adjust but it would sure be nice not to have to. Basically, never knowning when the next hit is coming means never letting your guard down.
   Peter, without the D3 helping you, do you run the risk of getting hit at any old time just more frequently during spring and autumn?
   Thanks for responding guys.    Sean

Sean,

I have tested this a couple of times, by stopping the D3 altogether and within 10 days or so, I’m in real trouble every few hours, any time of the year.

So, needless to say, I’ve learned over the years to be very diligent about taking it, and all the cofactors.

In truth, I retired at 58 because I was unable to continue working the way things were. There is no question that being chronic is on another level, but it is manaeagable.

Best,

Peter.

And thanks to Batch for finding and relaying on those new water soluble caps, they seem to be far more effective than the 5 or 10 thousand oil based caps.
     Sean

Sean...quoting myself from another forum...it seems appropriate...

My greatest fear over  23 yrs of episodic was that it would become chronic. I was obsessed with the thought. Used to dismiss comments on ch.com that chronics preferred it to episodic.... thought they were nuts. Then it happened.... and the reality was FAR less than the fear of the unknown had led me to believe.

Hits were lighter, aborts worked better, triggers were reduced or went away, depression lessened. It still aint no damn fun...but if ya got the right attitude, a plan and the right tools..... it's manageable.

Best

Jon

I have been chronic for about 9 years now, but i often would go a week or two without a hit.  I have been mostly pain free since switching to a keto diet amd taking lots of vitamin D3. 

I still get nightly hits, but they are mild and go away with a little hyperventilation.

I started as chronic 26 years ago and have been ever since.  Usually one (spring, around the time change) and sometimes a second time (fall) I'll get in "high" cycle and they hit more often and we need to add other meds.  The rest of the year they are controllable with verapamil, periactin, and amitriptyline.