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Topic: Water Treatment (Read 322 times) |
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doogienj
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Hi Fellow CH Sufferers,
I read a recent post about drinking water and CH. Since I always seem to get very dehydrated during ch attacks I decided to try it.
Maybe it's a coincidence, or that I managed to take my Imitrex pill in time, but the water drinking seems to work. I now drink 2 20oz bottles of water during an attack. Now some attacks are only 10-15 minutes, instead of the usual 40 minutes.
Anyone else have experiences or luck with drinking water during CH?
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Linda T
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Re: Water Treatment
« Reply #1 on: Apr 2nd, 2002, 1:42pm » |
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My attacks have been fluctuating around alot lately. I don't know why. First I was getting hit 3x a nite. Started taking imitrex and amerge before bed and then started getting hit during the day. No set times, sometimes 10-11a usually around 3p then again at 7p which would last 2-3 hours ebbing and peaking, ebbing and peaking.
Yesterday, the first time I got hit was 8:30p. I decided I was going to try the water. I drank down 2.5 16 oz glasses of water as fast as I could. Five minutes later the ch was gone. So, by 8:50 it was all over and so far, as of right now, not another attack. (slightly uncomfortable shadow sometime during the nite but I was able to roll over and go back to sleep). I don't mean to say that the water has kept the attacks away for this long, but it may have shortened the last one. I will try it again during the next attack but I think I'm gonna do it alot faster and not wait till its full blown.
Good luck. PFDAN always, Linda T.
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Margi
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Re: Water Treatment
« Reply #2 on: Apr 2nd, 2002, 2:00pm » |
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I'm glad to see some folks are having success with the water treatment. But it's really NOT an abortive at all - and it can be quite dangerous to flood yourselves like that so fast.
The way the Water Treatment was originally brought to us by Doc Jerry was to drink large amounts of water through the day, at regular intervals. This gives your system more time to assimilate the extra water and it's a little easier on your liver and kidneys that way.
And, again - the water treatment works WAY better and is MUCH less dangerous if you are otherwise med-free.
Please be careful!!
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tommyD
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Re: Water Treatment
« Reply #3 on: Apr 2nd, 2002, 4:57pm » |
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Margi --
Can you tell us more about why/how it's dangerous to chug water as an abortive? (I might be the one that posted the idea about water aa an abortive that doogienj saw).
I tried water as a preventative from reading your water X 3 page, somehow got confused (or maybe someone else mentioned this and I forgot where I saw it) and tried drinking about a quart at the onset of an attack. The attack was gone in five minutes, and I was pleasently surprised. It got me through about two months of clusters. I was using no meds. (prescribed Imitrex, but it didn't work near as well as the water, and cost a helluva lot more!)
I remember reading several threads on this board about the water treatment back last summer, but don't recall any warnings against chugging large amounts.... I also mentioned water as an abortive to my GP and my Neuro, and neither had any objection, though neither had heard of water as abortive or preventative.
I've suggested before trying water as abortive, and I sure don't want to encourage people to do something dangerous.
On the other hand, if I use water as abortive, and it works much more often than not, doesn't that make it an abortive by definition? And how much more dangerous is it than say, Imitrex or ergotamine?
Frankly, if my present treatment someday fails, I'm going back on the water -- unless you manage to scare the hell out of me with the dangers of chugging a quart at onset. In fact, drinking lots of water, tho not to the degree I had been, seems to keep the shadows away.
I don't know, maybe I'm different. As a kid I heard the warnings about drinking too much coold water toop quickly when hot, and I would watched my buddies puke when they tried it. But it never seemed to affect me that way...
And I'm one of those people who never got headaches --'til the Beast made my accquaintence. 
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Margi
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Re: Water Treatment
« Reply #4 on: Apr 2nd, 2002, 5:00pm » |
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I have no idea WHY it works the way it does, I'm just following Doc Jerry's original orders from the early days of the board.
Anything consumed quickly in large quantities is hard for the body to assimilate.
Just my two cents.
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And, on the Eighth Day...God created Beer (to stop the Canadians from taking over the world)
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kathy copelin, ch.com 8/8/06
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chjohn
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Re: Water Treatment
« Reply #5 on: Apr 2nd, 2002, 7:16pm » |
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I drink alot after work to re-hydrate myself, I work in heat all day, with little chance for water consumption.
And to AID my liver and kidneys, and flush out the alcohol I also like to consume (water soluble you know?). Not to mention the other health benefits.
I also drink water during a Cluster Attack, does it help? I don't know, but it doesn't hurt. It is readily available, cheap, tastes good, and it is the foundation of all life on earth. (By God's engineering I believe).
While I don't profess to be as knowledgeable as many who frequent this site, I do believe that a resonable consumption of water is not harmful, especially when compared to many pharmacuticals (I know..spelling).
When you got to pee. It's enough. When you don't gotta pee, need more.
John ;D
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tommyD
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Re: Water Treatment
« Reply #6 on: Apr 4th, 2002, 5:08am » |
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Went back into the archives and found this from Dr. Jerry:
http://www.clusterheadaches.com/wwwboard/messages/3311.html
http://www.clusterheadaches.com/wwwboard/messages/3396.html
Two excerpts:
"try drinking a large glass of water on the half hour while awake (at least on the hour), have another glass or two when you wake up at night, and have 2 to 3 glasses at the onset of a cluster."
"First, avoid all forms of caffeine (coffee, and most teas, coke, chocolate, etc.) Simultaneously start drinking a large glass of water, preferably on the half hour, during day time, as well as when you wake up at night(do not specially wake yourself, as you need lots of rest). If "on the half hour" does not work, drink water on the hour, but you need about 10 to 12 glasses in a 24 hour period, minimum. Alcohol is a definite NO-NO-NO-NO. Cluster sufferers would agree that 90% of the time alcohol, even in the smallest quantity, does trigger clusters (with a small exception %). Water therapy should be maintained, but you scale it down to 6 to 8 larege glasses per day once your clusters have disappeared. Also talk to your doctor, he/she should help monitor the effect on you of such vast amounts of water in your system. Relief comes within a couple of days.
During a cluster attack, drink extra water as it starts, and move yourself to an area with lots of fresh air." (continues with suggestion to use breathing/hyperventilation along with the water)
Reading this, I now remember seeing back last summer when I first came to the board, and did a lot of research on the water treatment. Jerry (his full name, Gerhard Steenkamp; he's a psychologist and Clusterhead) was looking into hydration and salt levels and such, as too much salt seems to trigger attacks in some folks -- salty snacks seem to bring on the shadows ot even a mild attack for me. Found no warnings about chugging water being a shock to the kidneys and liver, but it sounds reasonable.
My research was interrupted when the computer was seized by teenagers, but jerry seems to have disappeared from the board by 1999. My search got confused when three or four other "Jerries" joined the board in '98/'99.I will look some more when I get more time, but anyone know what became of Jerry?
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