[kkfk]

Hello, All

Let's start a new thread for Migraine Headaches?

Subs:
Migraines with Aura
Migraines without Aura
General Migraines
Recurrent Migraines

[kkfk]

My migraines are treacherous, to say the least.

The first one that I experienced was in 1997. I thought (at that time) that I was experiencing a stroke (CVA), because I had severe (stabbing) type pain on the right side (top) of my head, at my right temple and at the base of my skull...yes...right side. I also had a speech slur, weakness on my right side, numbness in my right arm and Optic Neuritis.

I was given a CT Scan and Migraine, a week later, which found that I had Multiple Sclerosis.

Apparently, Migraines are common among women with M.S. Much more so, than in men with M.S.

I also think that my migraines may be cyclical. Do you find this to be true, too?

I am VERY sleepy before my migraines, to the point of having to lay down and sleep for quite a few hours. Doing so, will avert the migraine. But, I'm also VERY sleepy "after" my migraine. It helps to lay down for a few hours recover from the migraine. Why the sleepiness? Any thoughts, comments or ideas?

I thought I had found the cause of my migraines to be white cheese, because most times that I ate pizza or ate any white cheese I would have a migraine. So much for logical thinking! I had pizza, one day, and I did not have a migraine.

I'm a very lucky one and have found that Zomig, 5mg works great for relieving my migraines...IF...I take it at the first indication of a migraine. The "trick" is to "know" when that first indication happens.

Sometimes I have bright/light flashes in my eyes but they do not seem to be related to my migraines. I think this is more from the retinal scarring in my right eye, than migraines.

I had to go to the E.R., once, and was given something (can't remember the name of the medicine), but it did NOT completely relieve the pain. I was told to go home and sleep it off and I would feel better in the morning, which I did. Anyone had that experience?

I have Cervical Stenosis in my neck C5 thru C7 which causes pain in my right shoulder and neck. Sometimes that pain radiates to my right shoulder area, then sneaks up into my neck, then travels to my skull. Anyone out there have Cervical Pain/Damage and Migraines?

Something else that is interesting is that I am finding that I have significant changes in my mood/behavior when a migraine is ready to come on. Anyone else have this???

What works for you? Sleep? Rest?

What works for Pain Relief?

Do you have Aura's? If so, what kind?

Do you have other problems associated with your migraines?
Nausea, Vomiting, Flashing Lights, Numness, Sleepiness, Mood Chanes

Let's talk about this???

[Aunt Donna]

I have migraines with auras and without. Usually it starts with me seeing black spots floating across my eyes. The doctor has me taking plain tylenol and laying down in a cold, dark room. It helps. I am taking meds for my blood pressure so the doctor is careful of what I take. Motion sickness medicine and a nerve pill help along with the tylenol.

[kkfk]

Hi, Donna,

I wish I Tylenol would relieve my migraines, but that's not the case, unfortunately. I've tried all the OTC meds and they do not relieve my pain. I took Imitrex and a couple of other prescribed meds before finding that Zomig works within about 30 minutes to completely relieve my pain/nausea/vomiting/noise and light sensitivity, but I also have to lay down and sleep in a dark room. Once I have slept, it is as if I am a new person. My mood is better and the pain is completely gone. Usually, the next day, I'm quite sleepy and try and take it easy.

Anyone else have sleepiness before and after a migraine? Why is this, does anyone know?

[PleaseHelp]

I have suffered from migraines for quite sometime. I can't take prescription migraine meds b/c they interfere with my psych meds and cause serotonin syndrome (not fun). When the start coming on I take 2 Excedrin Migraine, if I can make it 4 hours I take 3 Ibuprofen, then wait another 4 hours and 2 more Excedrin.... My pdoc OKd the Excedrin for up to 6 pills in a 24 hour period.

I can get the nausea, sensitivity to light/sound/movement. If I don't have to work or be functioning. The best thing for me is to make a room as dark as possible, take some Ibuprofen and Benadryl (b/c it makes me sleepy) and sleep it off. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. I try not to drink too much caffeine so when a migraine does hit, drinking caffeine can help to a degree.

[phipps88fan]

Hi there, I've had intractable migraines/chronic headaches for going on 14 years now. Mine are different than your normal migraines...they never go away no matter what I do and it's always in the same place in my head. Some days are worse than others from a dull toothache type of pain to an ice pick stabbing pain. I've tried about every medicine you can imagine and nothing helps so right now I'm taking Opana ER 80mgs 2 times a day and Fentora 600mcg 3 times a day. I think mine were caused by taking Phen-fen. Has anyone taken that in the past and have this problem now?

[jbug]

I have a low grade headache every day but about once a week get a severe migrane. I have noticed that about a day before my eyes get droopy and the day of the migrane one of my eyelids is droopy. I forgot to mention this to my neurologist last time I saw him. I currently take Imitrex and Maxalt when I get the migrane and to prevent them I take Topamax, Keppra, Magnesium and something else that I just started to take and I can't remember the name of right now. I am being weaned off of the Keppra.

I had my first time of auras last year and it scared the living day lights out of me because I practically went blind. I was in line at Walmart checking out and everything went blurry and then all of a sudden I couldn't see anything when I went outside in the bright sun. Just as soon as it came on it went away. I get that every couple of months.

They don't know what is causing my migranes and really don't know how to treat them. They are just grasping at straws.

Jan

[(JD)]

I have auras and prodromes. The hardest thing for me right now is to recognize the prodrome or aura and take the medicine right then! (Even though I may feel okay.)

[Fresia]

I had constant migraines with or without aura, with tunnel vision at times, and n/v and cluster headaches at times too for 4-6 times a month and would last for 3 days since I was a child. Have been on everything. Thanks to Topamax daily (starting when it was in trials), they are restricted now to a menstral migraine and 1 or 2 a month only. I have Frova for those breakthrough times, can take it at first signs of aura or if get a full blown one instantly. Has worked wonders for some chance at normalcy (with BP if you can call it that! LOL).

[AngelAsmodeus]

My body is very temperamental. If anything is out of whack (my blood sugar, my blood pressure, etc.), I will at the very least get a severe headache. I have migraines at least once a month (usually more, but I try not to keep track of them) for somewhere around 6 years. When I'm in school, it's usually once a week. It's a combination of PCOS and stress that triggers it for me sometimes, I believe. Doctors tell me to avoid this and that food, but it never helps. I was put on a large dose of naproxen before, but at one point it just made the migraine worse and I had an anxiety attack (in school, no less...). I'm actually afraid of taking any medication for them, and the last doctor I saw about it didn't think I should take any. So I just deal with them as is, dizziness, nausea and all. It's really not that great LOL

[feddy]

I have had migraines for 20 years, but they became significantly worse after a car accident 5 years ago. At their peak, I was getting 4 - 5/week, and was more or less incapacitated at times with pain. I get both migraine with aura and without. Sometimes I see silver sparkles before they start...it's like someone threw glitter in front of my face. While it's kind of pretty, I also know it's a really bad sign.

I can't use a lot of the triptans because I have an allergy to an ingredient but Frova and Relpax used to work well for me. Unfortunately, I can no longer take them because of the anti-depressants I'm on. Now, I use Fiorinal with Codeine, which typically works well at blocking the pain. OTCs do nothing at all for me. It's still not great with my ADs, but less of a risk. I also take Topamax daily as a preventative and generally, am down to menstrual migraines and about 3 - 4 migraines/month. For me, that's a HUGE improvement.

Lately though, I have been under a good deal of stress and I have noticed that my headaches have gotten much worse. For me, my most significant triggers are sleep (too much/too little), alcohol, weather and stress. So the combination lately (Toronto weather has been all over the map, my life is in a state of flux and I am totally stressed) has meant MAJOR migraines.

[feddy]

Oh, and while I don't become sleepy before I get a migraine, I DO get extremely emotional. I cry at anything. After the migraine ends, I am totally exhausted, like I've been awake for days. I call it the migraine hangover. I could just stay in bed and sleep, sleep, sleep.

[Forget-me-not]

I, too, am a long-time member of the migraine club. I'm not certain when they started, but I was getting them by the time I was 10 years old.

I first went to the doctor about them when I was 15 because I was getting an average of 3/week, and nothing OTC helped. I was then prescribed a preventative, which reduced the number to 2/week, and Imitrex. After a year or two I switched to Maxalt since the Imitrex did little to ease the more painful migraines.

When I was 18, I stopped taking the preventative when I was finally diagnosed with depression (of which I had been dealing with over the previous 6+ years).

When I was 20, I was in school and started to get a severe migraine; I had no more Maxalt and was desperate. I went to the nearest pharmacy and scanned the pain relievers, and decided on Mortrin IB Superior strength - an OTC that I had not seen before and thus had never tried. After this point, I only used this as it was just as effective as the prescription stuff.

Over the years I have narrowed down what my triggers are, though I'm sure that there are things that I'm still unaware of.

A few years ago I read about how studies have shown that taking Riboflavin and Magnesium supplements can reduce the number and severity of migraines, so I gave it a try. After a number of months trying this out, I found no difference.

About 15 months ago, I decided to try out something else I read about: omega-3 fatty acids. So, I began to take Omega 3-6-9 supplements daily. A few months later I noticed that the number of migraines I got significantly dropped!

I still get them - there's no escape - but I would encourage any fellow sufferer to consider taking such supplements (or get more from your diet) as a possible means of reducing the number of attacks. Of course, it goes without saying, I am not a doctor or an expert, so you might want to consult with your doctor about it first.

I once read a book called Migraine by Oliver Sacks. It's a bit academic in the way it's written but I quite liked it as it explored the various types and the many causes of migraines.