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        New Message Board Archives >> 2006-2007 Getting to Know Ya Posts >> Newbie:  CRON and Water tx broke a 4 mth head
        
(Message started by: Toni on May 9^th, 2007, 9:53am)

Title: Newbie: CRON and Water tx broke a 4 mth head
Post by Toni on May 9^th, 2007, 9:53am

I began my headache in early January 2007. It was constant, never ceasing, but would ebb/flow from pain levels 3-4 to 7-8, and on occasion, a 10. I was exhausted from pain. Nauseated all the time. I continued to eat whatever I could to maintain my weight but not always a healthy choice. Just whatever I could reach for.

I saw my family doc often over the last 4 months—sometimes twice a week. I saw a chiropractor, a cardiologist, an internist and I’ve had a CT, an MRI, and trips to the ER.

I had been researching migraine headaches because that is what I was told I had and came upon a number of tips for low-carb diet. I dismissed it. In the researching, I also came upon CRON (calorie restriction/optimum nutrition) and dismissed it.

My last trip to the ER on a Saturday night (I went this time to a DIFFERENT hospital), I was lucky enough to be treated by a doctor whose father had cluster headaches and, after detailing all my attempts to alleviate the headache by specialists, he diagnosed me with a cluster headache and told me it’s very uncommon in women but he truly believed that is what I had. He also asked how much water I drank and I told him I believed “a lot” but he said it takes so much to re-hydrate the brain. It settles into a “norm” and it’s hard to get the levels back up again. The body becomes accustomed to it and you just run to the bathroom instead of the body utilizing it. I was in excruciating pain so I didn’t think much about that short conversation until Monday.

He gave me decadron/vistaril/nubain and it relieved it for about 40 hours (my first relief in 4 months.) He also rx’d prednisone.

On Monday, the headache is back, and I reached for breakfast-to-go in the fridge and the thought of yogurt nauseated me. I grabbed some left over chicken breast and went to work. I googled “treatment for cluster headache” and came upon a site written by a woman whose husband drank a glass of water every ½ hour until the headache subsided. She believed it worked for him.

I decided to try it—I’ve seen everyone else and tried every triptan, narcotic, etc., to no avail. I also coupled it with a low-carb (actually NO carb for the first 4 days) low-cal (CRON) diet. On day 4 of drinking 1 gallon of water a day (it was all I could do as each swallow made my head throb) and eating nothing but chicken breast—only about 400-500 calories a day, the headache BROKE.

Today I am at PFD #7. I am continuing my “water therapy” and have implemented the CRON diet (I’m still low-carb on that but I’ll switch up as soon as I feel I’m truly out of the woods and look more toward a Zone-type carb/fat/protein combo) as I have found on the message boards there that other migraine/headache sufferers have not had them since implementing this lifestyle.

It worked for me. I was desperate. And I’m desperate never to have to live through another 4 months like that again.

The best side benefit of CRON is I’m gaining information on nutrition and I look like I’m 28—not 38. It’s amazing.

Title: Re: Newbie: CRON and Water tx broke a 4 mth head
Post by Margi on May 9^th, 2007, 10:11am

Hi Toni :)

I'm the woman who wrote the post about Doc Jerry's water treatment. Glad to hear that it's helping you. I would imagine that your change of diet has also helped but, most probably it's been the prednisone that has given you the break. The water treatment CAN cause a change, but it's certainly not a cluster cure. It only "worked" the one time for my husband.

However, I strongly urge you to get a second opinion on diagnosis though. Cluster headaches don't cause constant pain. You'd be dead if you had a cluster attack last for four months. Cluster attacks cause an increase in blood pressure and heart rate. Your body couldn't take a four month long attack. Women DO get cluster headache as well, so I think your doc is pretty much uninformed about the condition.

You say you had been reaching for not always nutritious food. For something to go on this long, I'd hazard a guess that it's more of a food sensitivity/allergy thing than a diagnosable headache condition. MSG is contained in a lot of foods, especially fast foods and is very guilty in causing headache in some people. Further, you've been on a lot of meds over the last 4 months - any med can cause headache in some people.

Please continue to research nutrition and please be careful - ingesting nothing more than water and chicken breast can't be good for you.

Sorry, I don't mean to rail on you - we just see a lot of misdiagnoses here and it can be very dangerous to take some of the meds prescribed for cluster if you don't have cluster. Especially, prednisone. I'm hoping he's got you on a short-term taper?

Title: Re: Newbie: CRON and Water tx broke a 4 mth head
Post by Toni on May 9^th, 2007, 11:05am

I basically eat healthy all the time but I'd grab something ready-made and bland--mashed potatoes from the deli or butter dripping baked cod-not spicy but easy to swallow and digest. My BP was constantly spiked at 40+ points higher than normal--I run low 70/50 or 80/60 and I was at 118/89 complaining of CONSTANT neck and jaw pain and difficulty swallowing--everyone ignored me because it was WNL. Felt like I was being choked almost 24/7. I couldn't get anyone to listen--even when I was in tach the ENTIRE time I was in the ER. I was in the Stroke Clinic.

I basically eat veggies with a little meat protein (chicken or fish--Levitical diet) but I've flipped it and now add more chicken and fish.

The water/chicken was only 4 days. I've been a nutrition nut all my life--I'm just getting in to MICROnutrition. A normal breakfast is one orange, 4 oz yogurt, 1/2 avocado or one grapefruit and 4 oz yogurt.

I haven't been on a lot of meds--I've TRIED them once or twice. That's all. I don't take even Tylenol or aspirin. I tried hydrocodone--didn't work. Axert worked once (2nd time didn't). Zomig (1/2 tab) locked down my neck. Amerge worked once--not second. Two shots of morphine in one ER trip did nothing other than make me feel like I was dying. So I don't think "meds" caused the headache at all.

I've had "migraines" since 18. It just got worse and worse over the years until this hit. I seemed to be spending more time at the doc than at work.

I know I have food sensitivities and avoid MSG and gluten and rice. Organic fruits/veggies/meat when available. I've been to an allergist and have no known allergies (other than some medications).

Prednisone was 5 days 20 mg bid no taper. The internist said if it was going to work--it would have immediately. I saw him on day 3 of prednisone. I don't know. Maybe it took 4 days?

The doc said women do get clusters--it's just RARE in women and more common in men.

I've been to the cardiologist and am on a 30 day event monitor. Went there myself before the headache broke but haven't had a flutter or pain since going low carb and my BP is back to my normal.

But I will never again consider a soda--diet or otherwise, or breads, or cookies or anything I don't make myself or is not in it's "natural" state. No orange juice unless I squeeze it myself, etc.)

But I really BELIEVE the water helped--I must have slowly been dehydrating myself because I was spending most of my time at the doc or in bed or making it through work. All out of whack there, I'm sure. And the elimination of basically all foods for a short period of time probably helped "detox" all the stuff I normally wouldn't consume--although not atriciously bad food but not my normal consumption-over those past 4 months helped also, I'm sure.

But diet, water, and perhaps the booster of prednisone, I believe, finally did the trick.

And I'll be grateful to you for the rest of my life for the water tip I found!! At a minimum, I will always and forever insure I never go anywhere without a glass of water in tow.

Title: Re: Newbie: CRON and Water tx broke a 4 mth head
Post by Margi on May 9^th, 2007, 12:17pm

well, like I said - I'm really glad the water trick is helping you. There so much benefit to hydration for all aspects of health.

However, my point was more that it doesn't sound like you have cluster headaches. Have you taken the cluster quiz on the left, here?

The most common identifiers of cluster are location of pain and length of attack. Cluster itself is very rare and the symptoms are quite clearly defined.