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Sunday, July 26, 2009

07-19-09 to 07-25-09

Had a relatively PF week until yesterday 07-25-09 had CH attack 3kip was able to fight through it without preventative meds. Also woke up at 12:30am with another CH attack this one was a bit more intense 4kip, but I was very groggy so I just went back to sleep. If they are mild enough & I'm tired enough sometimes I can get back to sleep and thankfully avoid the pain that way. Didn't have a lot of nasal congestion with this one so that made it easier as well.

I don't want to count my chickens before they hatch, but with the new herbals I've added it seems to be lessening the number of CH attacks I get and their severity. (Keeping my fingers and toes crossed that this is true.)

I did have to stop one of the herbals/supplements I had added, which was Magnesium Citrate due to digestive issues, that's what I get for having a persnickety digestive system. I can't drink milk, I can't eat banana's or anything that has potassium in it higher than 40mg due to severe pain, yes this includes eating too many/much potatoes. I think I must have OD'd on Banana's as a kid or something...
I used to love to eat Peanut butter and banana sandwiches.
Anywhoooo... the only supplement/herbal I've taken off my list is the magnesium and the other herbals/supplements (see last weeks post for list) I've keep in my daily regime, seem to be helping.


On the lighter side of things... Have you seen this ??
CNN Wingnut of the week
I guess even alligators can enjoy a day or two at the beach.
Who would have guessed???


Until next week I'm wishing you have Pain Free Days and Nights all week long!!

Sunday, July 19, 2009

07-12-09 to 7-18-09

Had a Great week with only 1 (3kip) CH attack (Friday 07-07-09) and got through it with no shot or nasal spray. .... Doing the PF Dance !!!

I have added a few Herbals to my regime and so far they do seem to be helping to keep the number of attacks I get down even farther than just the prescription meds my neuro has me on. I have done a lot of online research on these herbals and have seen many other CH'ers mention them as aids. With my number of CH attacks per week seeming to increase I decided it was time to do something about it without adding other prescription meds such as the lithium my neuro mentioned at my last visit. I am doing the Herbals in a gradual addition 2 the 1st week and the remaining 3 the following week as I want to watch for any adverse affects.

Last week I added (the following includes a daily vitamin):

500 mg Taurine per day (CH'ers use this as an abortive in higher dosage or in energy drinks.)

750 mg Echinacea
per day (Said to aid immune system.)


This week I am adding the following:

200 mg Magnesium per day (helps with absorption of other vitamins and aids digestion, Other Ch'ers have reported that this in conjunction with other Herbs some listed here are a great help in limiting the number of CH attacks and their severity.)

613 mg Kudzu per day (Ch'ers use this as a preventative for CH has had good results with other sufferers.)

425 mg Scullcap per day (Said to help with RLS-Restless Leg Syndrome, of which I suffer as well. I will do anything I can do to keep the CH beast at bay and get a good nights sleep.)


Till Next week have a PFDAN!

Friday, July 17, 2009

*&#&@!

Swearing Makes Pain More Tolerable
By LiveScience Staff


That muttered curse word that reflexively comes out when you stub your toe could actually make it easier to bear the throbbing pain, a new study suggests.

Swearing is a common response to pain, but no previous research has connected the uttering of an expletive to the actual physical experience of pain.

"Swearing has been around for centuries and is an almost universal human linguistic phenomenon," said Richard Stephens of Keele University in England and one of the authors of the new study. "It taps into emotional brain centers and appears to arise in the right brain, whereas most language production occurs in the left cerebral hemisphere of the brain."

Stephens and his fellow Keele researchers John Atkins and Andrew Kingston sought to test how swearing would affect an individual's tolerance to pain. Because swearing often has an exaggerating effect that can overstate the severity of pain, the team thought that swearing would lessen a person's tolerance.

As it turned out, the opposite seems to be true.

The researchers enlisted 64 undergraduate volunteers and had them submerge their hand in a tub of ice water for as long as possible while repeating a swear word of their choice. The experiment was then repeated with the volunteer repeating a more common word that they would use to describe a table.

Contrary to what the researcher expected, the volunteers kept their hands submerged longer while repeating the swear word.

The researchers think that the increase in pain tolerance occurs because swearing triggers the body's natural "fight-or-flight" response. Stephens and his colleagues suggest that swearing may increase aggression (seen in accelerated heart rates), which downplays weakness to appear stronger or more macho.

"Our research shows one potential reason why swearing developed and why it persists," Stephens said.

The results of the study are detailed in the Aug. 5 issue of the journal NeuroReport.
*************

I have a tendency to lay out a litany of swear words that make me sound like someone with Tourette's syndrome. It doesn't help much from what I can tell, but sometimes it just helps to vent the pain somehow.
In essence Feel Free to Swear up a storm when in pain

Sunday, July 12, 2009

7-05-09 to 7-11-09

Monday and Tuesday went smoothly with no CH attacks until Wednesday 7-08-09 Had CH attack in the afternoon (didn't note the time) was in too much of a hurry running for the Imitrex shot and a bathroom. Got through the rest of the day feeling like I'd lost a few thousand brain cells.

Thursday no CH attack.

Friday 7-10-09 the beast came back again in the afternoon at work, scrambled for my Imitrex shot again and struggled through the murkiness of CH side affects. On the plus side even with the CH attack I passed the 1st training test in my new position with flying colors. :D

Saturday 7-11-09 Spend most of the day shopping with one family member or another LOL
Took Dad shopping in the morning and then after noon both kids needed me to play taxi for them around town. It was enjoyable and they stayed for dinner and spent some quality time before Dinner. During dinner I had the beginnings of a CH attack didn't want to stop in mid dinner to deal with it so I suffer through for a bit... After dinner there was no way I could hide it any longer. (Turns out I wasn't hiding it well anyway LOL my son knew.) I didn't want to use another shot (had already gone through two during the week) so I opted for the nasal Imitrex, my second mistake today with the beast. It didn't take affect until about 1/2 hour after usage needless to say I was in the rocking back and forth and squirming stages of a 6-7 kip. My son helped me through it with constant replenishing of Hot clothes, and my daughter with a hug and light back rubbing and thankfully going for a smoke in the other room. Cigarette smoke during an attack is just unbearable. Yes I do smoke but have cut way back on it due to CH I am down to about a 1/2 pack a day on it.

On another note...I have been having to put up with one of those annoying people at work this week. God Help ME!!! You know the whiners that always talk about there problems in this case depression and the subject never changes on any given day. I must have heard the same story 15 times this week alone. Anyway this annoying person has known and been corrected on my issue with CH several times...well this time she hit me at a bad moment. It was Wednesday I think and she saw me with my shot pack I quickly asked her to tell the trainer if he was to look for me that I had gone to take a shot.
My bad again...LOL
She then proceeded to stop me and ask "do you have Diabetes ?"
"No", I said again... "I have Cluster headaches."
"Oh Migraines" she said...
Um... "No Cluster headaches!" I said AGAIN and I left for the bathroom and a much needed shot.

Come to find out on Friday I was talking to another girl at work and was told by her that this annoying other person told her that I had Yelled at her when correcting her for the umpteenth time on my CH issue. I looked at this girl and Laughed! I said the last thing I want to do when I am having a CH attack is yell, let alone speak. Not to mention we were in a training class so, I was not going to yell then either. LOL
For several reasons including the ones above I've been trying to avoid this annoying person, without much luck as unfortunately she sits next to me in the Training class.
GOD HELP ME!

This is not to say that I am unsympathetic to people with Depression, God knows I've suffered from it a time or two usually due to some medical condition I am dealing with at the time. But to constantly whine about it and say the same thing over and over again. Please Give me a Break. Get over yourself and try living life rather than whining about it.
(Ginger...Steps off soap box.)

One Last Comment on CH Triggers.
I'm not sure how many sufferers have notice this but, certain smells can bring on a CH attack. Certain perfumes (strong ones) almost always get me, which can be difficult to avoid when you work in a large company like the one I do. My daughter was wearing a perfume a few years ago that would set me off every time, I finally had to tell her not to wear it when coming over here.

Sunday, July 5, 2009

06-28-09 to 07-04-09

This week was an easy/busy week. I got way with a pain free work week, had Friday 07-03 off and had mild CH attack on Friday and Saturday. I'd rather be home when I am arguing with the beast (CH) so it worked out well. The attack on Saturday 07-04 (Happy 4th of July) was a bit more intense than Fridays attack but got through it without using any medication...probably should have used some but with training in my new position at work coming up this week and continuing for the next 3-4 weeks I really need to save the Imitrex for work usage.

I have added a few over the counter aids known to the CH community, and started them a week ago. I am taking 1 500mg tab of Taurine per day, I also changed out my daily allergy medication to Zyrtec (aka cetirizine)and take that at night to help prevent the night time attacks. This new regime seems to be working so far with no adverse affects or uptick in CH attacks. Many take melatonin as well at night but for some reason this doesn't work for me and has a tendency to increase my CH attacks at night.

I'm Feeling Chipper and hoping you have an awesome week !!!