Posted by Margi on June 05, 1999 at 22:22:56:
In Reply to: New poster--long-time sufferer!! posted by Chana on June 05, 1999 at 19:18:24:
Hi Chana,
Sorry to hear you're having a rough time. But, Kip's right....this be the place. My husband is a 20+ year sufferer and the ONLY thing he has found relief from has been the water treatment. He has been the sinus infection route too and has pretty much given up on the locals docs. Dr. Jerry's Water Treatment is what has changed our lives. It BROKE his cycle within two days and he has remained CH free for seven months now. To get a detailed description of this treatment, type WATER in the search button on this board and read the post by Dr. Jerry called "READ THIS". It really lays it out well for you. Basically, it is a glass of water every half hour while you are awake (or as much as you can stand), then another glass when the Beast wakes you up in the night. Mike is still using it as a preventative and so far so good. Do some reading and give it a try. There are precautions to be noted and it doesn't work for everyone but we are hearing of more and more people it has helped every day here on the Board. Linda B was pretty bad there for awhile but, thank God, today she posted she is down to a 0 on Kip's 0 - 10 scale of pain! Another water success story.
Another thing you can try for the middle of the night attacks is to take two or three Dramamine (yes, the motion sickness aid) before bed. It induces sleep but doesn't let you get into the REM phase which is where the Beast can find you. Again, not a cure all but it MIGHT give you a couple of solid night's sleep. Without the REM sleep, you are not totally refreshed in the morning but for Mike, more than 2 consecutive hours of shut-eye was bliss and he was better able to fight the Beast the next day.
He also uses Oxygen and ice bags. I keep 3 of those gel-filled bags in the freezer at all times, just in case. He lays it on the back of his neck and this seems to cool and calm him down enough to deal with the pain.
Hope some of these things help and please feel free to email me directly or ICQ Mike and I at 32178097. He is quite often a night owl and he sure doesn't mind talking to fellow Clusterkids. Our handle is Barly (the name of our dog-child) and we're on most evenings.
Pain free days ahead.
Water Water Water
Margi