I am very new to this site, so please bear with me.  I was diagnosed with ch Jan. 2009. From then 'till valentines day 2010 I did a heavy daily regimen of verp. and depicote with very little relief.  9 ver and 4 dep a day and still getting daily hits.  This all started four and a half years ago and, other then the first six months, with a relatively accurate back dated journal, I have not went more than three weeks without an attack.
    Without insurance I have not seen a doctor since I left the Cleveland Clinic in '09.  Every time I called them all they wanted me to do was swallow more pills which I'm not a big fan of.  It wasn't until '10 that without a single ounce of strength left to run and hide, my dad finally saw my dance.  It was the look in his eye that made me know I needed to do more since as many times as I visualised it, I stopped my self by thinking about all of them at my funeral. The people in my life are the only reason I am still alive.  Bless them all.
    This is a much longer story but I type about three words a minute.  I got very lucky (though I don't feel luck had anything to do with it) Valentines day 2010 that a friend of a friend knew someone with ch and made the connection.  Within days I had a new best friend, an o2 tank (thank you Dad and your credit card),  and exposure to this wonderful web site.  I have now weaned myself off my heart medication and anti-depressants and keep a daily journal of all my accounts.  I have tried a different treatment now also.  Again, diligently documenting everything.  I still take daily hits but my quality of life and amount of sleep have been better than any handful of pills have ever provided.
    I'm not saying I know what works.  Actually what I want to say is I'm a six foot two, two hundred pound, very fit carpenter, who toured the U.S. for six years as an armature skateboarder who is on his knees begging for help and input.
   Any friendship, advice, insight or just talk will be welcomed.  I will also accept criticism in my approaches.  As I said above, I am new to this and open to all comments.

Buzz

Hi Buzz!  Welcome home.  Wish we could get you out of the family, but you are stuck with us, and we with you.  Family doesn't give up on each other.

Your story is not unique.  glad you finally got some help.  My first advice is to READ till your eyes bulge, then read some more.  You will find a lot of other people's experiences that will match yours, and you will find others who don't.  What you will need to do is to determine the course of action you want to take and then experiment with that until you find some thing that works for you.  After you find it you will need to be alert to changing it as the beast tends to morph periodically.

You said you've been on Verap and Depicote and didn't like it.  I can identify.  Sometimes things don't work and you need to make adjustments.  Since insurance and Drs are a prob to you I would suggest you try Kudzu as a prevent.  I switched several years ago and have found it works better for me than
Verap and Lithium did.  It doesn't stop the hits, but it does knock them down to a more manageable level.  If you check the archives you will find several threads directed to Kudzu.  Read up on it and decide if it is the route you want to try.  I've found no side effects other than a little bit of gas occasionally.  PM me if you want more info and I'll give you the link to my source online.

My second advice to you is to ask questions!  Preferably do some reading and research first, but as questions come up from what you read ASK!  There is no such thing as a stupid question if it is an honest question.  You MAY however get some stupid answers.  Ignore them and look for the value.

All the best,

Jerry