Posted by Bob P (129.65.46.87) on September 10, 1999 at 18:47:46:
In Reply to: Interested posted by Frank on September 10, 1999 at 15:37:01:
This is a response I sent to Gary G earlier this week about best abortives I've found. The background on this is that I've taken cafergot for years when I get hit. Often it makes me sick to my stomach. I noticed that 5-10 minutes after the act of heaving, the HA would abort. Also jumped on a bicycle to ride home from work one day when I had a HA and the HA was gone within 5 blocks. When I found the site on Jan 6, there was an entry in the guest book from a guy that runs up a hill behind his house and the HA is gone when he gets to the top. Been doing it for 20 years. This all prompted me to try the exercise routine. When I'd wake up with a HA starting, usually 1-1/2 hours after I went to bed, I'd take a shot of lidocaine up the schnozz, drop a tablet of cafergot and then go downstairs and do squats until my legs burned and I was really huffing & puffing (48 y/o and 30-40 lbs. overweight so it only took about 30 squats). I'd sit down with and ice pack on my neck and Ha would go in 5-10 minutes. After a few success, I tried it without the cafergot and still, HA gone in 10 minutes. I was able to abort 60+ HAs in a row using this method. I've been at these damn things for 30 years and this is the best thing I've found "for ME". Others have tried exercise without any success.
Immediate, high exertion exercise at the onset of an attack will abort a
headache in 7-10 minutes. I use squats with this reasoning: It
exercises the big muscles in the legs and butt causing an increased flow
of blood to those muscles in order to supply oxygen. This diverts blood
flow from my head. The increased breathing as a result of the exercise
oxygenates the blood, further constricting the vessels in the head. The
ice pack on the headache side of the head & neck further acts to
constrict the blood vessels in the head (the body's normal reaction to
cold is to constrict the surface blood vessels to conserve body heat).
The cafergot is taken to keep the headache from returning. Many that
use O2 say it aborts the headache but the headache soon returns after
terminating the O2. The cafergot tablets, which take 15 minutes - 1/2
hour to get into my system, keep the headache from surfacing again.
Good luck if you give it a try (I've shared this on the board before and a few others have had good results).
LYG
Bob P