OT: Drugs for Migraines

[chunkyfrog]

Blackspinner:
Funny you should mention ocular migraine--that was the symptom that led to my glaucoma diagnosis.
Has anyone noticed any similarity between drugs for migraine and those for glaucoma?
Hmmm; has 'weed' ever been tried for migraines?

[pianochick]

I could write a book on my experience with migraines. Yes, the prescription drugs usually help - Relpax, Imitrix, Maxalt, etc. However, for me, I have to change them after a while, for whatever reason. Also, my insurance only allows me 6 of those lovely little pills every month. So, Excedrin is what I reach for first. My neurologist wanted me to try another pill, something after the Maxalt wasn't working as well. I did some research and found that the only difference between this new pill (the name escapes me now) and the Maxalt was the addition of the generic Aleve. My insurance wanted to charge me $50, instead of the usual $10 for 6 pills. Needless to say, I told my dr. to keep me on the Maxalt and I would just add an Aleve with it. It's working okay. Get in to see a neurologist. The dr. may want to put you on a preventative, like Topomax, which you would take daily. That's one of the best things I ever did. That, and I started to keep a headache journal and food journal. Five years ago, I used to get 12 migraines a month, not to mention the regular headaches. Now, I have completely changed the way I eat, try to get enough rest and not overload myself with unnecessary "stuff" to do, and drink lots of water. My neurologist told me that it was very important to drink lots of water for our brains. Getting diagnosed with sleep apnea actually cut down on my migraines, as I don't wake up with headaches now that I use a CPAP machine. I wish I had seen a dr. much earlier than I did instead of thinking I "just" was having sinus headaches and could treat them on my own.I spent way too many years in pain. Now, I have maybe 2 migraines a month and the severity is so much less. It's "livable". Good luck to you.

[Dazzles]

Hi there!

For me the only thing that has worked for preventing migraines is a drug called topiramate also known as Topoamax. For me, this drug was both a miracle and a curse. FINALLY -- Migraine free days. Not a SINGLE MIGRAINE while on this medicine -- and I was having them almost daily to the point of vomiting, body aches, you name it. From silent migraines to full on tear wrenching pain.

The down side? The side effects. Topamax causes some pretty severe ones. For me it gave me simple partial seizures. Now - these aren't the seizures you see in movies where people are violently shaking with tongue hanging out -- but small seizures that would happen in the 10s and even 100s throughout the day. You'd just sort of -- drift off and lose it. I couldn't concentrate, or think straight. I'd say the wrong words, lose chunks of time. My productivity at work plummeted (literally -- we have numerical scale we are graded on and it dropped by half). Also, I'd get this insane pins and needles effect in my feet -- bad enough to make scream.

But the migraines....they were so bad it almost made it worth it. I couldn't let the medicine cost me a promotion at work so I quit taking it -- and I get the migraines still

I am currently in the process of applying for FMLA so I can try out a bunch of new drugs to treat them. So far I've had one do nothing (Lyrica) and one make me spontaenously vomit (Cymbalta -- though that was for allover pain and not just migraines).

A co-worker of mine suffers from migraines as well -- hers are prevented almost entirely by taking blood pressure meds. Her BP is not "high" but is on the higher end of normal -- it was a complete crapshoot by a very patient and good doctor and it worked!

Some people report success with botox injections as well.

A lot of doctors refuse to treat "migraines" as migraines. They are so intent on finding the root cause of them (when no insurance company in the world is like "here have this MRI done!") and they don't want to help with the PAIN while they are searching. It gets frustrating -- but have her keep at it.

[JointPain]

I used to get migraines a fair bit. I tried Imitrex and it worked really well, but I did not like the side effects. It just made my head feel weird.

I was most likely to get mine on weekends and almost certainly on the first or second day of a holiday. They were a two day affair: the first was a day of intense pain, vomiting and diarrhea, and the second was a day of total exhaustion. This is not a good way to begin a vacation. My wife would get very upset and wonder why I was doing this to her all the time . That is also not a good way to begin a vacation. Normal pain meds were completely ineffective. The first day I just had to spend suffering in a dark quiet room.

Fortunately I found that coffee predisposes me to migraines. Since I went cold turkey on the coffee I have not had one. I think it's more likely the coffee itself and not the caffeine. I tried decaf for a while, but I still got headaches. Now I still drink colas (diet) and tea and rarely get headaches and certainly no migraines.

Not every migraine sufferer has food items as triggers, and for those that do the food can vary. I have a friend who will get a migraine if she has so much as a mouthful of chocolate, coffee, or red wine.

[soundersfootballclub]

Is there a reason why she isn't going to a neurologist? My wife suffers from a lifetime of migraines and it's really not something you should diagnose on the Internet.

[The Choker]

Is there a reason why she isn't going to a neurologist? My wife suffers from a lifetime of migraines and it's really not something you should diagnose on the Internet.

Thank you.

Hmmm; has 'weed' ever been tried for migraines?

Weed has been tried for every malady known to man.

[BlackSpinner]

If the migraines are triggered by stress (and even if not) There is a therapy called autogenics - it is a form of biofeedback I learned about 30 years ago before they had stuff that didn't turn me into a zombie. The biggest problem is the time and dedication required to learn it and the dedication to preserve. However pain is a big motivation.

[chunkyfrog]

Is that like when you mentally will your hands to warm up?
This was done in the 60's; sometimes with a ECG monitor of sorts to show alpha wave output.

[BlackSpinner]

Is that like when you mentally will your hands to warm up?
This was done in the 60's; sometimes with a ECG monitor of sorts to show alpha wave output.

Yes it is related. It works. It is used by NASA to help astronauts deal with motion sickness too.

There is something about going into and out of the relaxation mode that changes the blood flow and can cut migraines down. If you do get a migraine the same technique but staying deep in relaxation mode allows you to "push" the pain away and also to keep the pain from setting up a feedback loop where your muscles tighten and cause more pain.

[msla]

Last August I had a bad headache. It lasted 2 days. The first night when it came on, I could barely sleep. When I checked my report for the night, it was like I had a blizzard of centrals and no obstructives. So what came first, the migrain of the erntrals?