When I was in my late 20s/early 30s, I had a serious problem with migraines. Then it went away, and I think I had one about 2 years ago (at age 46). Then nothing until I had one that lasted about a week in early March of this year, now another one that started last Wednesday - - so as of today it's lasted a week so far.

Just wondering if anyone else struggles with migraines. I went to a neurologist today, and he put me on a preventive medication, muscle relaxer, zomig (to take immediately upon a migraine starting) and percocet. Before seeing the neuro today, I just went to my regular doc and he gave me oxycodone. I hate to be taking pain meds for so long, but the pain is really bad.

I am just so tired of dealing with this, and it certainly doesn't help my depression any. I know this migraine will end some day. It's just getting from here to there.

[SoupDragon]

I developed migraines about 2 years ago. In that time I have had about 3 that were really severe - vomiting and pain that felt like my head would explode. Generally I get them every couple of weeks, not always as severe, but they just make me want to sleep and it is difficult to concentrate.

I hope the medication that you have been prescribed helps - migraines are so horrible to have so regularly.

Soup

Originally Posted by SoupDragon

I developed migraines about 2 years ago. In that time I have had about 3 that were really severe - vomiting and pain that felt like my head would explode. Generally I get them every couple of weeks, not always as severe, but they just make me want to sleep and it is difficult to concentrate.

I hope the medication that you have been prescribed helps - migraines are so horrible to have so regularly.

Soup

Wow, sorry that you get them every couple of weeks - - that would be awful. I'm really hoping that these two I've gotten recently aren't the start of more frequent, ongoing migraines. I really don't want to be taking all this pain medication, plus even when I do take it, the pain relieving effect doesn't last until I'm supposed to take the next dose.

[SoupDragon]

Yes it's pretty annoying to have them regularly, but I just push through it and try to carry on as best as I can and rest when I can. Have you looked into dietary stuff? I think magnesium is supposed to be helpful to some people, (but would discuss this with your doc).

Soup

[SoupDragon]

Supplements and Herbs for Migraine | The Migraine Trust

This might be helpful

[eskielover]

I had never even had a headache before then at the age of 42....I ended up with non-stop migraine pain that I still have. in 1999, they noticed a neck problem & realized I needed a neck fusion & thought that would help but it ended up making the pain worse. At the time of the surgery I was put on the fentynal patch (fairly large dose) but even that didn't work. I was living at the ER & at that point it took a demoral shot to knock the pain down even with the patch....& then relief was only for about 8 hours.

They ended up finally doubling the patch dose & it totally controlled the pain & I could finally function....where most people probably would have been knocked out by the dose I was on, I was finally able to function again, ride my horse & be human again. Started on that dose in 2003 & was on that dose until last year when the government got stupid about being willing to prescribe that amount of medication.....so back into pain again when they lowered the dose back to the lower level.

HOWEVER......I was blessed to get in with a wonderful pain specialist....the founder of His pain practice. He never takes on patients but my pharmacist was able to talk him into taking me on as a patient there & he set up a treatment plan. He ended up raising the dose initially to 3/4 of what I had been on & then started this interesting treatment block. He said that it was a treatment they used long before the development of the migraine meds (oh yes, I had tried all the migraine meds but they really messed with my heart rate so I couldn't use them & others were so expensive I couldn't afford them...& yes, my pain medication is even more expensive but I'm on patient assistance that covers the cost totally).

Ok, so back to this amazing treatment that blocks the pain.....he uses lidocain gel on 2 long q-tips & places them way up into the back of the nose. It goes directly into the pain center of the brain & MY migraines had a horrible effect on my eyes.....I couldn't even open or close them without it hurting. Light & smells were the worst triggers but also cold weather & sounds didn't help either. When he first started the treatment he had a physician's assistant do the treatment under his direction. I lay down & they put the first treatment into my nose for 20 minutes, getting as much gel as possible on the q-tip.....then take that out & give my nose about a 10 minute break then come in & do it a second time for another 20 minutes.

At first I thought....yea, we will see. They were doing the treatment weekly to start with trying to break the cycle because of the lower dose I was put on had totally got the migraine started continuously again. We did it weekly for about 3 months, then dropped the treatment down to once a month & each month, we lowered the dose of the fentynal patch I was on until we finally got it down to 1/2 the large dose I had been on & still had pain but with the treatment, the pain is again under control. Triggers get a mild migraine going & when I wasn't able to have the treatment in January because I had bronchitis & them messed up the Feb appointment (so I had gone 2 months instead of 1 between the treatment), my pain level was at 4 on a continuous basis (which meant that I could distract but it was still there continually). I had to set up another appointment the next week to get the treatment & it ended up snowing & the office ended up closed.....so I was finally able to get in at the end of that next week......so with the pain level at 4, they did the treatment & I took a nice hot shower when I got home after having to dig out my truck to even make it to the appointment & it was -19F by the time I got home that night.....but by the next morning, the migraine pain was totally under control......that was proof to me that the treatment works.....along with the other times when I really was able to go from pain to it being controlled by the next morning......good enough proof for me that at least for me, that is a wonderful treatment especially for someone who can't take the normal migraine meds that others are able to take.

I have to admit, after having all my teeth removed in a major oral surgery on March 27, 2015, I felt like I had been hit by a truck & my migraine was beyond full force.....but taking the ibprofen, helped the migraine & the pain of the surgery get under control by controlling the inflammation.....so with the fentynal patch I'm still on & the ibprofen, I was mostly able to control the pain from the surgery after coming out of the anesthetic & getting home until my pharmacist's wife stopped by with the ibprofen.....I never took the hydrocodone because the ibprofen worked well enough & actually even controlled the migraine.

Problem is that every time the oral surgery pain hits, it triggers the migraine pain & physically I'm in no condition to make the drive to the city to have the lidocain treatment for the migraine & also I needed to let the hole into my sinus that the surgery caused heal some as for the first few days, my sinus was bleeding into my nose....but that's healed now with no serious problems......so when I get my energy built back up a bit, I will probably make the drive to the city because my appointment wasn't set until the end of the month which made it 1 1/2 months again & since the surgery has triggered the migraine, it's much more sensitive at this point in time until the oral surgery finally heals which takes up to 4 months.....then have to have a 2nd surgery to put in the implants for the permanent dentures because I have a horrible gag reflex I can't tolerate the temp dentures at all......so phase 2 is going to cause more migraine triggers....but it's wonderful to have something to counter the triggers & KNOW that it works.

[likewater]

yeah I've had migraine s since I was 9. But they didn't diagnose them until my 20's. Percocet and oxycontin and morphine don't work for me but I take 200 mg of topomax a day and 500 mg of naproxen to prevent them and imitrex when get than but can only have 9 imitrex a month so get kidding which they don't really make anymore from a compound pharmacy. I have arthritis in my neck and fibromyalgia so I think that has something to do with migraines. I notice I don't see or think as well anymore. It's getting really hard to keep a job.

Originally Posted by SoupDragon

Yes it's pretty annoying to have them regularly, but I just push through it and try to carry on as best as I can and rest when I can. Have you looked into dietary stuff? I think magnesium is supposed to be helpful to some people, (but would discuss this with your doc).

Soup

My neurologist gave me a list of food to experiment with avoiding to see if it makes a difference. Two on there that I eat pretty often are aged cheese and bananas. I have cut out the cheese so far. Not the bananas yet.

About the magnesium, I take a multivitamin every day and I'm pretty sure it has magnesium.

Wow eskielover, sounds like you have really been to hell and back with migraines. Next time I feel sorry for myself with these migraines I'll think of your situation and realize it could be much worse.

I have been on the fentanyl patch before, and I remember it helping. I was also taking stadol nasal spray and that completely took the pain away, but I developed a serious addiction to it.

If the problem continues, maybe I'll mention the lidocaine gel on Q-tips to my neurologist and see if he'd be willing to try it. Thanks for sharing your experience and for the lidocaine tip!

Good luck trying to stay out of pain.

Originally Posted by likewater

yeah I've had migraine s since I was 9. But they didn't diagnose them until my 20's. Percocet and oxycontin and morphine don't work for me but I take 200 mg of topomax a day and 500 mg of naproxen to prevent them and imitrex when get than but can only have 9 imitrex a month so get kidding which they don't really make anymore from a compound pharmacy. I have arthritis in my neck and fibromyalgia so I think that has something to do with migraines. I notice I don't see or think as well anymore. It's getting really hard to keep a job.

Sorry it's getting hard for you to keep a job. I just started Topamax too. I'm going to be working my way up to 100 mg I think it is, 2 25s at bedtime and 2 25s in the morning. How much do you take?

By the way I have fibromyalgia too, and neck pain is a big part of my migraines. Sometimes it seems like my neck hurts more than my head!

[Fresia]

I am glad you are getting help with them.

I have been having them since I was little, diagnosed at 5 y.o. I have tried all sorts of medications with some relief with some, others not so much. As I got older they got worse, two episodes a week, so it seemed never ending and couldn't work at times or school, let alone hold a job because of them.

Topamax has been a godsend for over a decade now. I take 100 - 150 mg most of the time because my migraines are cyclical/hormonal it varies. There haven been been periods I have been as high as 250 but I don't like the side effects to stay there if I don't have to. A friend takes 350 -400 to help level out his migraines, so it is just a matter of finding what works best for you. No matter what, drink lots of water with it throughout the day with Topamax; it acts as a anti-diuretic, can be dehydrating, and prone to cause kidney stones if not staying hydrated.

My insurance will not pay for more than 9 tablets of any given migraine medication so I have two, Relpax and Zomig. I also have Zofran for anti-nausea. At times, I couldn't even get the meds down because I was so nauseated. So this helps to get the migraine and other meds into me.

Thanks to the Topamax in particular, I no longer need pure pain medications like the oxys or morphine as much but i do have it just in case. I have not needed it for some time but once in a blue moon thank heavens.

I hope you get some relief soon and find what works best for you. Hang in there.

Thanks Fresia, I hope I get some relief too! Sound like Topamax has been helpful to a couple of you. Hoping it will be helpful to me too.

Still feeling pain 10 days and counting. This really bites. I'm especially not happy because even this strong pain medication (the Percocet) doesn't completely take the pain away. Hope I'm not getting addicted to it either!

I am starting to wonder, since my headache/migraine has been going on for so long, if it hasn't turned into a rebound migraine. I read online that if you use pain medication more than 10 days in a row, your headache could be from medication overuse. Today is the 11th day. So today, unless the pain is unbearable, I'm going without pain meds to see if I can break this cycle.

I've been up for about 2 hours and so far, so good, except for bad neck muscle pain. What could that be about? I thought it was a symptom of migraine, but my head doesn't really hurt too bad right now, just my neck?

[notz]

Had first migraine at 11 years old, next at 14 and countless times since then. I've taken all the meds listed and what works best for me is to simply take 100 mg of Benadryl and go to sleep in a dark, quiet room. It usually does a great job for me. Suggested by my pdoc who used to be an Internist. Granted, I don't always have the luxury of laying down for a few hours but I manage to make it happen.

My triggers are barometric drops, antihistamine responses, too much sunshine, hunger and/or dehydration.

[eskielover]

My pain specialist has said that if the right amount of pain medication is provided to control the pain in the first place....you don't get the rebound effect. Once I got on the amount of pain medication that controlled my migraine, I didn't have to increase the amount & was stable on it for 10 years......then the stupid government got dumb about not being willing to prescribe that amount of medication & started giving the MD's problems about prescribing the amount it took to control the pain even though I had been on it for 10 years without a problem or without needing an increase.

I found that I had more of a problem with anything that wasn't in patch form that was a continual amount of a medication also.....because it was a constant up & down with the migraine coming back as soon as the medication wore off.......the patch was a 3 day patch with enough left over at the end of 3 days that it wasn't immediately gone from my system so I could usually go 4 days rather than 3 but it gave me a buffer.

Oh the stadal nasal......was interesting...I was on that & like everything else...needed it constantly.....I went off it for a little while when I had problems getting it....LOL....went back on it & saw elephants flying around the room.....that was a wild reaction.

Was on Ultram (tramadol) for awhile & it did absolutely NOTHING for the migraine either. When they first started the fentynal patch it was at the time they did the neck fusion as they thought the neck problem was causing the migraine (s) only the surgery didn't help the migraines & the pain specialist I went to afterward gave me the fentynal patch but refuses to increase the amount but gave me other narcotic pills to try & control & they did absolutely NOTHING so I was still in the same amount of pain as I had been before the surgery until they finally increased the amount of the patch....ended up doubling the dose & it took the pain away completely....was on that high dose for 10 years......just last year was forced to lower the dose & that was when this new pain specialist started the lidocain treatments that have made it tolerable. It's NOT as good as the full dose of the fentynal because the migraine gets triggered really easily now & not pain free like I was....but it's better than just that level of the fentynal & any of the other meds they tried to suppliment it with that did absolutely NOTHING.

The rebound effect only happens when the pain medication isn't strong enough to break the pain in the first place......the lidocain block is also wonderful for breaking the cycle & goes directly to the pain center in the brain.....explained that the nerves in the back of the nose have a direct path to that area of the brain.

Oh yes, I forgot that after awhile of going to a neurologist before the neck surgery, he stuck me in the hospital for 5 days & gave me IV DHE treatment....I came out of there with the worse migraine than I had going in....it did absolutely NOTHING & they wouldn't give me demoral but gave me morphine so I was itching from head to toe from the morphine (my typical reaction to it....lucky me...I get all the side effects to most medications.

It's also important to remember that most of the time with pain medications it's not addiction that happens but become dependent on it just like many antidepressants which means that one goes through withdrawal if it's stopped suddenly or the dose is lowered at a large amount at a time rather than slowly tapering off the medication. Addiction means that you continually want the medication for the high that you get off of it & constantly want a higher dose to get that high.....not because it controls the pain........I never got a high off of any pain medication I've taken.....& with the fentynal.....the only thing I got was pain relief even with the high dose....I was totally capable of functioning, driving & riding my horse & doing the dressage training.....I was definitely functional compared to the non-functional I was with the migraine pain.

Only gottcha with the high dose of the fentynal in my situation was that fentynal was part of what they use to knock people out for the major oral surgery I had done & they were afraid that with my high tolerance that they might not be able to knock me out....so they had to use a different combination of drugs to knock me out for the 1 1/2+ hour surgery.

There have also been some research being done to figure out why people like me require such a high dose of narcotics to work on my small body while it doesn't make me completely non-functional as it does other people....they have come up with some information that a person's DNA determines how the body processes the narcotics & they have found that some bodies actually do require a lot more of a drug to actually make it work.....fascinating because no one could figure out how the fentynal at that high dose didn't bother me when my anorexia was bad & I weighed just over 90 pounds.....it effected me no different than when I weighed over 110.

Oh yes, I also forgot about the acupuncture they tried on me..... that made my migraines even worse also

eskielover, I am really glad you found relief for your migraines.

I have been using this Percocet (5 mg dose) for about 10 days now. It only works for about 3 hours and he told me to take it every 8 hours. And it rarely takes the pain away, only dulls it. Right now I'm out so I called my neurologist's office and said the zomig doesn't work and the tizanadine doesn't help my neck pain and could I have more pain medication.

His nurse said, "You went through 30 pills already?" and "Are you seeing any other pain specialists?" Obviously, she's wondering if I'm abusing the stuff or doctor shopping, which I most certainly am not. I have legitimate, serious, daily pain in my head and neck, and I only have him prescribing pain medication.

Because my neck hurts really bad and I had C5/C6 spinal fusion already, I'm also having my PCP do imaging of my neck to see if maybe I don't have a cervical spine problem again. I sure hope not.

Originally Posted by notz

Had first migraine at 11 years old, next at 14 and countless times since then. I've taken all the meds listed and what works best for me is to simply take 100 mg of Benadryl and go to sleep in a dark, quiet room. It usually does a great job for me. Suggested by my pdoc who used to be an Internist. Granted, I don't always have the luxury of laying down for a few hours but I manage to make it happen.

My triggers are barometric drops, antihistamine responses, too much sunshine, hunger and/or dehydration.

notz, thanks for the Benadryl suggestion. I think I have some and may try it next time one starts up.

[Anxietygirl74]

I have had migraines for quite a while. I am on Gralise and Trokendi XR as preventatives and Relpax and possibly Cambia (works even better but fighting insurance to pay for it) as abortives.

[eskielover]

Ugh, this oral surgery I had (which we all were hoping would in the long run help my migraines)....ended up causing continual headaches since I had the surgery on March 27. Have been taking Ibprofen for the mouth pain/reduce swelling but for many weeks I wasn't in any condition to drive to the city to my pain specialist for treatment & then my truck started to overheat. Didn't get the radiator flushed out until last monday. I have an appointment this Thursday with the pain specialist after a morning appointment at the dental school (have to get a new treatment plan because normal dentures aren't going to work because of my gag reflex & also my mouth is so small there's no room for the dentures in the first place which is why it makes the gag reflex even worse....but I figured if I've suffered this long with the headache, what's another week....now just 3 more days.

Know that part of the problem is the jaw alignment after there are no teeth left in my mouth.....have been having lots of pain from that & it just goes right to the migraine area. I haven't even been able to distract the pain away like I had been able to do before.

Pain specialist physician's assistant said that I could come in any time after the surgery if it triggered.....but there was NO WAY to get there so it was a nice offer just nothing I could take advantage of......I've been doing a lot of sleeping lately.....headache gets stronger....I take a hot shower & head to bed no matter what time of day it is.

[possum220]

Migraines are horrid things. I had had them on and off for many years. The first trigger for me was fruit. The acid content in oranges, mangos, lemons, tomatos etc send me off into migraine land so I stopped eating them and they went away. Something in cheese does me no favours either. Then my neck was out of whack so I went to an osteopath and they went away again. My sister and a friend have migraines and they are caused by hormonal imbalances.

Have you had your hormone balances checked out? It never hurts to get test done for this. When I get a migraine I ask myself what have I done differently recently.? Good Luck in tracking the culprit down and finding a cure.

[berthegel]

Hello don't think I have migraines but have had a constant year and a half tension headache with dizzy and nausea .
But I once saw a national geographic TV prog , I'm not advocating drugs so see your doctor first , but this guy had been having migraines for years , he was about 60, someone told him to try magic mushrooms , so he did , and he was amazed . once the psychadelic phase wore off he said his migraine went and was able to function normaly . I think he had to take a doze every month or so.