next »

[history_grrrl]

Damn, damn, damn. This weekend needs to be work-intensive; I have a ton of stuff to do, and I've got the momentum to revise my book intro. And wouldn't you know it? I had a migraine on Friday that required two pills (whatever they are, used to be Imitrex, now it's some generic version). And now I have another one! I know that being pissed off probably makes it worse, but really, I just want to stomp my foot and shout, "No fair!" like a four-year-old.

Sigh. Off to take another f---ing pill and lie down in the dark under a warm blanket.

Maybe this belongs on the venting thread.

[kissa_mau]

I feel your pain, literally. Migraines suck. Take a whack of ibuprofen with that triptan and hope for the best!

[papaya]

This will sound a little odd.....but last year when I was suffering 2-3 migraines a week a fellow migraine sufferer told me this what helped with the pulsating/throbbing.  Find a bucket and fill it with the hotest water. You'll need a towel or two because you're going to stick your feet and hands in the water.  The heat of the water/shock of temperature will draw the blood from your head and send it to your feet.  You can actually feel the blood leaving your head.  Depending on the scale of the migraine, I would repeat this again after the water cooled.  It helped.  It didn't make the migraine go away completely, but the pulsating throb behind my left eye (felt like my eye was going to pop out) dulled and I could deal with the pain.

I've also read that the combination of aleve with Imitrex seems to work for a lot of people.  Personally, Imitrex no longer seems to work for me.  I think I've taken it so much that my body is no longer affected by it in the same way.

[high_energy_photons]

I drown my migraines in caffeine (I'm lucky caffeine helps instead of hinders migraines).  It doesn't work as well now that I drink a ridiculous amount of caffeine daily, but it seems to have good synergy with the migraine meds.  It also allows me to still function with migraine meds coursing through my veins (I use Frova since it helps more with hormone craziness).  Sometime, though, nothing works except complete relaxation for a couple days.  I hate when I get one like that when I really need to work (thankfully does not happen often).  I have tried all sorts of things, and it is truly unpredictable what will work for any given migraine.  Good luck with it either way!

[assessment_lady]

I get 2-3 migraines a month (hormone-related), and I've found that when I get stressed, nothing seems to work.  So the only thing to do is lay down in a dark room with a cool washcloth over your forehead and go to sleep for a few hours.  That way your body can relax from the stress and you're giving it time to heal itself.  If you are stressed out and mad, you're spending energy that your body could use to make your headache less "OMG I want to kill myself" and more "OMG I want to kill someone else!".  Good luck :)

[bookishone]

Seems like a sleep session is necessary in order for my triptan to kick in. My doctor says it resets the brain or something.

I don't mind being forced to take a nap, though sometimes I think the stress of then being behind on my work might make the migraine worse.

[inthelab]

Why aren't you on a migraine-preventive like Zonagran or similar?  I'm on a preventive AND carry my Maxalt MLT plus Ultram in case of migraine break-through.

An eval by a neurologist who specializes in mibgraines would not be a bad idea for you.

[assessment_lady]

Why aren't you on a migraine-preventive like Zonagran or similar?  I'm on a preventive AND carry my Maxalt MLT plus Ultram in case of migraine break-through.

An eval by a neurologist who specializes in mibgraines would not be a bad idea for you.

Personally, migraine-preventatives haven't worked very well for me.  Hormonal migraines (aka menstrual migraines) are the most difficult to treat.  My doctor wanted to put me on hormone therapy but as I haven't had children yet and am quite young, I decided against it.  I also went to the best headache clinic in the country 3 times to no avail. 

[inthelab]

Why aren't you on a migraine-preventive like Zonagran or similar?  I'm on a preventive AND carry my Maxalt MLT plus Ultram in case of migraine break-through.

An eval by a neurologist who specializes in mibgraines would not be a bad idea for you.

Personally, migraine-preventatives haven't worked very well for me.  Hormonal migraines (aka menstrual migraines) are the most difficult to treat.  My doctor wanted to put me on hormone therapy but as I haven't had children yet and am quite young, I decided against it.  I also went to the best headache clinic in the country 3 times to no avail. 

there are a lot of preventives out there- Zonagran, topamax, even beta-blockers and verapamil.  You might have to try the diferent ones to know what works best for you and still keep the abortive plus analgesic on-hand.

[high_energy_photons]

I stopped preventatives (I was on Topomax), because it was worse than the migraines.  Topomax diminished my capacity for thought, which is not acceptable in my profession.

[inthelab]

I stopped preventatives (I was on Topomax), because it was worse than the migraines.  Topomax diminished my capacity for thought, which is not acceptable in my profession.

Topomax is called Dopomax by some of the neurologists here (I'm at a med school).  Which is why I am on Zonagran.  And Labkid #2, who had the world's worst migraines starting in 8th grade, is on a combo of stuff.  Forgot what and she's away at college but can report next week when she's back on break.

Point is, try different preventives!  It can make a world of difference!! 

PS- you should be taking it once a day and in the evening.

[spork]

A couple generic questions from someone who does not suffer from migraines but knows several who do:

1) are migraines more common in women than in men?

2) is the prevailing hypothesis about the cause of migraines still "high blood pressure in the brain"?

3) if (2), does exercise that causes vasodilation elsewhere in the body help prevent migraines (and for those with dirty minds, I'm thinking about yoga, not sex).

[inthelab]

A couple generic questions from someone who does not suffer from migraines but knows several who do:

1) are migraines more common in women than in men?

2) is the prevailing hypothesis about the cause of migraines still "high blood pressure in the brain"?

3) if (2), does exercise that causes vasodilation elsewhere in the body help prevent migraines (and for those with dirty minds, I'm thinking about yoga, not sex).

Some answers from what I know:
1) yes
2) no, not exactly.  Still up in the air.  May be similar to mild epileptic seizures, hence the use of anti-seizure meds as migraine preventives.  Also must distinguish between "classic" migraine (with aura) and "common" migriane (without aura).  Mechanisms may or may not be the same.
3) biofeedback may help but I've not heard that yoga does.  movement makes the pain worse.

[kissa_mau]

A couple generic questions from someone who does not suffer from migraines but knows several who do:

1) are migraines more common in women than in men?

2) is the prevailing hypothesis about the cause of migraines still "high blood pressure in the brain"?

3) if (2), does exercise that causes vasodilation elsewhere in the body help prevent migraines (and for those with dirty minds, I'm thinking about yoga, not sex).

Some answers from what I know:
1) yes
2) no, not exactly.  Still up in the air.  May be similar to mild epileptic seizures, hence the use of anti-seizure meds as migraine preventives.  Also must distinguish between "classic" migraine (with aura) and "common" migriane (without aura).  Mechanisms may or may not be the same.
3) biofeedback may help but I've not heard that yoga does.  movement makes the pain worse.

I have found that meditation helps with the pain and nausea. It doesn't make it go away, but I can handle it better.

Migraine comes in so many kinds. It is truly mysterious, especially when you add the various types of auras. I get classic migraine, vestibular migraine and hemiplegic migraine (which has the same symptoms as a stroke- great fun). There are some other labels that have been added on, but apparently there is migraine-activity in my brain all the time, every day-- it just moves around to different places and causes different problems (although the visual stuff never stops). If there is a wacky aura symptom, I've probably had it at some point.

I am on Depakote ER, magnesium, coQ10, and B2 for prevention, along with watching my sleep schedule and avoiding direct sunlight anywhere near my eyes. If I get a bad headache (which is still frequent), I have to deal with ibuprofen, aleve, caffeine, and meditation, because I'm banned from triptans. I have a low-level headache every day.

The neurologists think my medical file is really cool and interesting until they're actually responsible for treating me. Apparently I'm only good for some case studies, but the whole prevention/cure thing is beyond them all.

We unlucky migraine sufferers. May we all find good doctors and meds that work.

[lerasmus]

Guys do get migraines too...

Still using fiorinol (butalbitol+acetomenophen+caffeine) over here. Mazalt/Zomig gives me a panic attack after sending my heart rate through the roof. Ergots and some infamous "related drugs" do the trick in 5 minutes flat...

Many of us have found that there isn't one trigger or that by doing 1-2 things differently migraines go away. If I do ashtanga yoga 2 hours a day, 5 days a week, I basically halve my incidence of migraines. If I get less than 6 hours of sleep I'm more likely to get one. If I'm around a lot of smoke, sometimes I get one. Excessive light, the same. Loud noises and crowds, likely to get one (but not always). This is what maddens doctors - there isn't any 100% determinable cause-and-effect relation, just a bunch of probabilities and potentialities.