Migrane Help

Dear J., My name is A. S. and I to suffer from migranes on a daily basis. I went to my doctor and they gave me the same thing Imatrex(sp) it didn't work so I went back and they gave me Maxalt-MLT(sp) and it works wonders I don't have as many migranes any more and when I do I just take one them and the migrane is gone in minutes. I hope this is helpful to you. Good luck.

I can sympathize as I also suffer from migraine headaches, some also very severe. Imitrex did nothing for me either. I take Topamax every day which prevents most of them and keeps the ones I do get from being so quite as bad. However, when I do get one, believe it or not, Exedrin Migraine, when taken when the pain first starts, helps better than most of the many perscription pain pills I have tried - especially if you take them with Coke (or Diet Coke). I do have a Relpax perscription to take when that does not do the trick and it will usually work, but they are very expensive, so I save them for the very bad headaches. I hope you find relief soon

I realy really understand what u r going threw, I started getting migraines when i was pregnant with my first son and they havent stop for 10 years. I went threw all the test and cat scans and i had the same problems as u even more severe at times where i could have really hurt myself to get rid of them . I did the nose spray when i was pregnant because there wasnt alot i could take , i have been on all the meds all these ladies r talking about and they didnt work for me , i unfortunatly have to go to the ER everytime i have one for a shot that will knock it out.. i have gotten better since my doctor but me on this medicine i was going to the ER at least 2 times a mouth and know i havent been to the ER in 3 months i have had some headaches but nothing severe. i cant remember the meds right now ( i am not at home at the moment). but this is a medicine i take every day to prevent migraines and it seems to work the only down side is i have to take it everyday which is something i am not use to . my migraines started off with less pain than urs and it has progressed more severe over the years , so u need to try to get control of it or at least make them milder to where u can function so they dont get out of hand where u r like me ( or like i was).. if u need anything or want to talk u can e-mail me at ____@____.com. i know what u r going threw and nobody nos how bad they hurt unless u have felt them yourself,,,,keep me posted on how u r doing ..best wishes

Is the numbness a normal symptom of a migrane? That seems kindof extreme. Maybe you should get a second opinion, a cat scan or MRI just to make sure it is just a migrane. Good Luck.

Hello J.! I have had migraines since I was seven, so I hope that you find something that helps you. I have been put on the Immitrex injections. The actual pill does not work for me... You might try one of these and see if it helps. Good luck!

I was having the same symptoms, only my hand would go numb. Then I came home from work one evening, the "migraine" hit again. My whole right side went numb, speech was affected. I had a mini stroke. The symptoms are a severe headache numbness, speech and or vision are affected. I went to the ER and spent a few days in the hospital. I am on blood thinners now (plavix) and have not had any more "migraines". Please make sure tests are done to rule out other causes. My cat scan didn't show anything, but the MRI and MRA did.

Well, mine vary, sometimes Imitrex works sometimes it doesn't. I understand what you mean about not being able to leave a 3 yr old unattended so you can sleep it off. I have tried Amanda's solution and that makes mine worse, in fact, sometimes if I think I just have a tension headache and I take a hot bath or shower I end up with a full blown migraine. I have heard about a nose spray, I don't know if it's a form of Imitrex but it might be worth a try. Another thing that helps me is phenergan. It's actually for the nausea but it seems to help the migraine. One thing I have found with Imitrex is that if I can catch the migraine before it's full blown the Imitrex works but if I don't catch it until it is in full nasty stage the Imitrex does not work. Something my OB told me while I was pregnant was to get regular massages to ward off the migraines since I could not take my migraine meds while pregnant. This seemed to work, I only had 1 migraine during my pregnancy and that was the one that prompted him to tell me to try massage. Good luck!

J.,

Migraines are spasms in the blood vessels in your brain. They are caused by a hypersensitivity to the constriction and relaxation of blood vessels. Many things we eat, such as caffeine, cause our blood vessels to constrict (vasoconstrictors). Other things, such as foods with polyphenols such as wine, chocolate, and berries, cause our blood vessels to relax (vasorelaxers). For some people, too much of this constricting and relaxing will cause a spasm. While you are having the aura, that is the actual spasm. And as you know, the pain quickly follows. The first thing you can do is identify and limit how much of these foods you eat. Here's an article that lists some of the foods to limit: http://familydoctor.org/127.xml Cutting down on caffeine can especially help. Although, once you have a migraine, medecines like Excedrin Migraine actually have caffeine in them because that can help the pain once a migraine has started.

Many studies have shown that certain vitamins can stabilize your blood vessels to prevent all this relaxing and constricting and greatly reduce the frequency and severity of migraines. Riboflavin (which is vitamin B12) and magnesium are two that are available in health food stores and are completely safe to take, up to 400mg/day if you want. Feverfew is another herbal supplement that seems to help but that is not recommended if you are pregnant or nursing. My husband and I both take riboflavin and magnesium every day to prevent migraines and it has helped tremendously.

Here's a great article from the American Council for Headache Education:
http://www.achenet.org/articles/45.php

Good luck!
S. T.

Try a full glass of gatorade when you get the migraines.
M.

J.,
I too suffer from time to time, just had one this week. I take Maxalt, it comes in tablet and a dissolvible tablet. The dissolvible is the BEST!!! Whenever I take it, ususally by the time the tablet is completely dissolved I can already feel some relief. It also depends on what triggers your migraines. Mine are ususally secondary to tension headaches. If you can relieve the tension in your neck it will also help ease the migraine, or at least speed up the process. I take Cephadyn for tension headaches. The best thing about both these medications is that I can still work, drive, or whatever. Neither of them make me sleepy or have any altering affects. Check with your doctor. Neither are hard to get. The Maxalt is kinda expensive, but I usually just buy 2-3 tablets at a time. Also alot of pharmacies do not keep the dissolvible tablets on hand. You may need to ask your pharmacist specifically for them.

I use to take Imitrex and it made me feel weak in the knees literally!!!! So my doc put me on Verampil. It's a high blood pressure med but it works wonders!!!!! Ask your doc about it!!!!

I saw on the news recently that celiac sprue (allergy to gluten) has been linked to headaches. I think there is a blood test that will detect it.

If you are looking for some other way besides all kinds of meds, then you might want to check into a massage therapist. I get a massage regularly and I don't even have regular headaches anymore. And getting a massage is not as expensive as you think. If you have a massage school nearby then they only charge half as much.

Hi J.,

I am Christy a migraine sufferer as well and I talked to my doc about it, I see Dr.Lazurus and he gave me Furinol and they have really not been so terrible lately. Maybe just ask about that, I could not take immetrex, I don't get them when you can feel them sometimes I wake up with it and its worked for me. Have a great day

Hi Jodie my name is D. I am 29 years old single mother of a 4 year old boy, I to suffer from migrains usually every day it seems like. I have delt with them for about 10 years, I can tell when I'm about to get one cause I get a throbbing pain above my right eyebrow and mine last about 3 days at the most. Mine are usually not very severe they come on and stay for 2 or 3 days making my head throb the whole time then go away. The last bad one I had put me to bed for 3 days I was not able to eat or even get up to go to the bathroom I just stayed in bed in the dark and selpt. I have tired everthing over the counter for them, I've tried prescription Imatrex, Maxalt, Relpax, Zomig they all made me feel worse and I had a reaction to the Zomig which scared me, I have had a CT scan which showed nothing, I have had my eyes checked, changed my birthcontrol to the lowest strenght, had long hair down to the mid of my back and cut it all off above my shoulders nothing seemed to work execpt my doctor told me it was due to stress, and he put me on a antidepressant Celexa I took it for several years and Wellbutrin XL for the last few years and they kept me from getting daily headaches to maybe one migraine a month. The only thing about it is that if you were ever to switch insurance companies they see you as being treated for migraines they consider it as a preexisting condition and will not pick it up and pay for the Rx for a year I had this problem when I had to change my insurance compaines and had to go a year with out treatment cause the Wellbutrin XL cost $130 for a 30 day supply and being a single parent when my son was 2 about the time my insurance switched, and could not afford to pay that so I just had to deal with them but also try a chriopractor to they would adjust my neck after a migraine lasting for a week go away instanly. So try some of these and see if they help the odd thing is the only time I did not suffer from migraines was when I was pregnant with my son. If you have any questions feel free to email me ____@____.com

J.,
Looks like you have some really great suggestions, I just wanted to add one more. My sister suffers from migraines. She's been on different drugs for it over the years, but what really worked for her was coming off her birth control pills. She was having some kind of hormone interaction that was causing the headaches. This intensified after her second child. I think it was probably escalating her blood pressure too, since that was sky high before every intense migraine. So if you have a gyn appt coming up, consider mentioning it to him/her as well.

I also suffer from debilitating migraines. I have been on Fioricet, Maxalt, Imitrex, and getting the usual iv drips of Reglan every so often. Excedrin Migraine actually is one of the few things that does work when I feel a migraine coming on. The only thing is that, while it does work, you can only take two in a 24 hour time frame. Sometimes I get migraines back to back, so I usually need a strong pain killer for the second one. I agree with one of the responses above that mentions limiting caffeine and other things in your diet. Another thing I would suggest is to make sure you get your 64oz of water a day. Remember, if it feels like the worst headache you've ever had in your life, and is accompanied by vomiting and/or vision,speech,motor changes then see a doctor immediately. I hope you get some relief.

Hi J.. I don't think I get migranes so much but I use heat to get rid of my really bad headaches. I have one of those things from Beautycontrol that you heat in the microwave for 2 minutes and then I wrap it around my neck or head wherever the pain is.

jen

The imetrex never helped me either. One thing that helps "ease" it off a little is taking a shower as hot as I can stand it. Just stand there and let the water beat down on the back of your neck and let the water run all over your head from time to time. It helps me a lot.

Hi J.! I also suffer from the occasional migraine. I have been having them since I was 12, and I get one about once a month on average. I usually take Excedrin Migraine, like several of the others, when mine hits. I haven't tried prescription medicine b/c they are expensive and they don't hit me that often to need a prescription. I usually take the Excedrin at the first sign of a migraine and I try to take it with Coke or coffee or hot chocolate. The caffeine usually helps the pain, and I have heard that taking it with a hot liquid like coffee or hot chocolate gets the medicine into your system quicker. I don't know if that's true, but it has worked for me in the past. Hopefully this helps! It's nice to know that I'm not the only one who suffers from migraines! We are not alone! :)

I have suffered from migranes for a couple of years now, the best thing i have found to take is the prescription, Axert.

J.,
I'm 37 years old and have delt with this for almost 20 of the 37 years my oldest 3 children have them also. the best way to try and avoid the migranes by limiting your dairy intake (cheese,chocolate,milk,and eggs) Also wear sunglasses outside even in the winter to cut down on the glare from other cars and trucks windows. OH if you go into a eyeglass place and ask them for a pair or glasses with just uv lighting protetion on them this helps with altra violet light (like in stores) I know this seems like alot but I'll tell you what everything helps if it will stop you from having a migrane..GOOD LUCK!!!!
V. W.

There is a new medication on the Market called Relpax and my neurologist said it is actually one of the best for migraines. Maybe see if your doctor will give it a try. It really worked for me but Imitrex works for me most of the time too.