I was wondering how oxygen is considered cheap to abort attacks?

In 2008 I had tried oxygen with no luck, but I guess I was doing it wrong, and since last week I got some delivered at home after getting an attack at my neuro's clinic and getting showed how to press on the bag to push the O2 into my lungs in a way to maximize the % of oxygen....

...anyway, I went through the tank in a few days for a cost of $38, for about 8 uses that last only about 1.5 hour of relief per use ...while I could have used Zomig nasal sprays at $18 per sprays that give me at least 6 hours of relief....sometimes up to 12 hours....not counting that I can at least sleep and not get up every 1.5 hour every night :(

I know it's less meds in the body, but I can't deal with thinking I will have to have O2 again in 1.5 hour again and again and again....

I use Zomig as a preventive at work since I can't use O2 at work, and I do not want no one to know about my condition.....so, I take a spray before starting my shift, one six hours later.....and keep an Imitrex shot close by for emergencies....and a small O2 cylinder in my personal car for an attack that could come somewhere between home and work

I can't wait to have over 10 posts to tell you all about......nah, I'll keep this as a surprise!

I LOVE your tag line! ;D

As to the expense. It depends on where you live. In countries where the government susidizes the costs of meds, it's not as stark as difference. In the US, trex can cost over a hundred dollars a dose, where oxygen tanks rent for $5 a month and $13 a refill. So here there is no comparison on the costs.

As to the repeat attacks in 1.5 hours, try drinking an energy drink, I use red bull, while you abort with the oxygen. Seems to speed my abort times and pushes the repeat attack way down the line.

A more important question for you......have you ever tried a prevent med? A med you take daily to reduce the number and intensity of your attacks? Verapamil being the most common first try, Lithium is what I use, Topomax works for many. Something worth discussing with your neuro. Hoping you catch a short cycle this go round.

Joe

Hi Joe,

Right now I'm already on all this:

840mg Verapamil + 2000mg Divalproex + 100mg Topamax per day

I guess I can't drink energy drinks with all that in my system...

The neuro wants to bring the Verap to 960 soon, but I need to get another electrocardiogram done..... I was at the hospital last week to get it done, and got an attack.....and no one wanted to give me O2.....I was for like 2 hours dying on the front lawn of the hospital in pain....they told me to wait in the emergency to see the doctor....yeah, OK... :(

He also wants to either bring the Topomax higher, or try Lithium.....but I'm shaking like I suffer like Parkinson as it is....

Anyway, I have been an episodic for like 20 years, but after 2 weeks of my last episode.....another one started.....and that one is nasty....and has been going on since March 22nd...

Thanks for dropping by!  :)

Yan, one thing worth mentioning also on the oxygen is that many here find it most effective to continue with the oxygen beyond aborting the headache. Some say another 10 minutes or so. Others say another 50% of the time that it took to abort. In either case, I understand this helps ward off the rebound clusters.

Perhaps that will help.

Christy

Thanks Christy,

Normally, I will abort within 5 minutes and keep the O2 for 15 minutes, but at night time, in deep sleep.....the beast wakes me up at kip 8-10, and it takes up to 15-20 minutes with a Zomig spray and the O2 to manage to kill the attack.....I will try to stay a bit longer for those nasty attacks :)

Thanks again!

Careful Yan....you're rapidly approaching your 10 post barrier! ;)

Sounds like you have a doc who is pretty on the ball with your CH treatment, a fortunate man indeed.....as to the ER not wanting to give you 02....sigh  :'(...we still have a long way to go in our education department.

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A somewhat radical approach in some peoples opinion.....but it continues to gain in popularity because it works. Non traditional methods for dealing with CH. For some of our more severe cases...that were proving resistant to all main stream treatments, "busting" has given them their lives back. Worth a read, and their big convention is coming up in September in Chicago. Give you a chance to meet many of the pioneers in this treatment method "in person." This is the convention link:

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Joe

Strangely, I can't post using Firefox today???

And the site has some issues too, with no logo etc....strange


Glad to have found my way in.....with Explorer! ;)

Working fine here with Firefox.

Hey Yan,

Try the time proven fix for Firefox...  Reboot your computer.

Regarding cost of oxygen therapy...  I've found that if you own your regulator and mask, the cost of home oxygen therapy is a lot less.

In Northern VA, the cost of a 708 liter E-size cylinder was $20 before insurance.  I was averaging 3 CH a day so needed three of the larger 3995 liter M-size cylinders for a one-month supply.  They ran $30 each before insurance and welder's O2 is even less.

As you've already found, an E-size oxygen cylinder is only good for three aborts so that works out to $6.67/abort for the oxygen content.  I averaged 30 aborts out of a single M-size cylinder so my cost per abort before insurance was $1.00.  My insurance co-pay is 20% so my out of pocket cost/abort was 20 cents.

I say "was" because I stopped having CH last October two days after I perfected and I started taking the anti-inflammatory regimen with vitamin D3...  It costs me less than 20 cents a day to stay pain free...

Take care,

V/R, Batch

PLEASE....explain what is 'anti-inflamatory regimen' you mention!?
thanx so much!

Arlene,

The following link will take you to the post I started last December on the anti-inflammatory regimen...  Read all the pages to see what others are reporting after starting this regimen. 

I've kept a running tally on the efficacy of this regimen...  To date, the raw efficacy of this regimen as a cluster headache preventative is 75% with a ±15% margin of uncertainty. 

To put that in perspective, studies have shown that placebos are effective in 50 or 60 percent of subjects with certain conditions, e.g., "pain, depression, some heart ailments, gastric ulcers and other stomach complaints."

The Cluster Headache survey many of us took in 2008 with 1134 responding gave some interesting statistics on the effectiveness of the leading preventative verapamil. 

Of the 725 CH'ers who had taken or who were presently using verapamil as a preventative for their cluster headaches, only 361 (49.79%) rated it as effective...  and nearly all complained of side effects...

When you put all that together you'll see that the efficacy of this regimen exceeds the highest possible placebo effect, it's clearly more effective than verapamil, and it has no adverse side effects... Draw your own conclusions...

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In short, this regimen combines the anti-inflammatory properties of Omega 3 Fish Oil with similar properties of vitamin D3.  In order to obtain the full benefits of vitamin D3, most nutritionists and physicians who treat patients deficient in vitamin D3 recommend supplementing with calcium, magnesium and zinc.

As neurogenic inflammation is part of the cluster headache syndrome and our cluster headaches respond to steroids like prednisone, my thinking was this regimen could be a less invasive alternative to prednisone as it has no adverse side effects and it's actually healthy for us to boot.

The second part of this regimen is actually a buffer that's formed when the calcium citrate is combined with citric acid from lemonade, limeade or any juice high in citric acid.  The buffering action elevates the pH of stomach contents and this eventually elevates arterial pH making it less acidic.  An elevated arterial pH tends to stimulate vasoconstriction that makes the cluster headache triggering mechanism less effective.

I'd been chronic since 2004 and had used calcium citrate and lemonade in the past to break high cycles and to shorten abort times with oxygen therapy at flow rates that support hyperventilation...  I'd also used Omega 3 Fish Oil to control cholesterol and found it has a pleasant side effect of reducing the frequency of my CH.

Last year after looking over my logs, I found the calcium citrate and lemonade or margarita mix... worked best in the summer time and that started me thinking vitamin D3 was playing a role.

When I put it all together last October after researching optimum vitamin D3 dosing, all I was expecting was a reduction in the frequency of my CH and shorter abort times with oxygen therapy...  What I didn't expect was a complete cessation of my cluster headaches after two days on this regimen...  I've been pain free ever since...

Hope this helps...

Take care,

V/R, Batch