What helped manage frequent migraines, especially those linked to hormones?

Mirena coil reduced the frequency of my migraines quite a lot, and I also take Propanolol morning and evening. Hardly ever have them now, and I was getting several a week at one point.

I cut out dairy and reduced my migraines drastically. I also got migraines from other foodstuffs which I eliminated through food diaries. My foods tended to be approx 24- 48 hours before migraines so a diary was imperative. I used to have at least one every week, now have one a year maybe.

Wearing a mouthguard at night helps me.

I cut out meat and dairy 10+ years ago and switched to the arm implant. I cant say either helped but they've definitely reduced in that time period.

Have none of the preventive treatments helped?

Sleep apnea was triggering mine as I started snoring in menopause
Not drinking enough water
Mirena and estrogen patches helped as part of hrt

@Mumbythesea1I’d be very careful about taking hormonal contraception if you have migraines. When I was a teenager and went on the pill that’s what started my migraines. They were so severe and frequent and made me really sick, there weren’t any meds that would help. I was then pulled off of them because I started to get numbness down one side when I had the migraines, so I’d be very careful if you choose that route. I’m early 50s now and have recently started getting them again, from very infrequent to several times over the past month, I’m assuming they’re hormone related.

Metformin worked for me as is regulates hormones even though it’s meant for diabetes, my gp only agreed to it those because it helps polycystic ovaries which I have - I’m not sure they’d give it to someone without

amitriptyline is best taken at night as it does make you drowsy. I was also on propranolol but this got changed to candesartan. I do feel for you. I've had hormonal/stress migraines since my 20's and it's only now that I'm in my 60's and on HRT that they seem under control. I am still on preventative meds & use zolmitriptan if needed.
Surely in 2026 there should be better understanding & treatment.

My migraines are hormonal as well - try Frovatriptan as it’s much longer lasting that the other triptans. If your periods are predictable you can take it 2 days before it’s due to start, and keep going for 5 days in total. Each dose should last 24 hours.

Combining it with nurofen (has to be the fast acting sodium version) just about gets me through. And a cold cap! get one of those off of Amazon, it does help.

The implant and then the mini pill. Absolute godsend, I don’t get hormonal migraines any more! Every so often something else will trigger one but the monthly ones aren’t a problem.

Progesterone.

You probably can’t do this alone. You need a dietitian who is trained on the Royal Prince Alfred Allergy Unit Elimination diet.

Have a look through this website - it will give you the details of dietitian can help.

https://www.fedup.com.au/factsheets/factsheets-by-symptom/headaches-and-migraines

HRT!

Having babies stopped my hormone related migraines! Haven't had one since first pregnancy and I used to get them every other month from age 15 onwards! I also was on sumatriptan and it barely touched the sides. Nowadays absolutely nothing. So this is what normal period pains feel like rather than the debilitating migraines! Very refreshing.

If they are strongly related to hormones, mini pill. Absolute joy, no periods and no migraine. Or at least not some of the migraines.

Honestly think this isn't recommended enough for women's migraine when your cycle is a predictable trigger.

You need to be really really careful with the combined pill, it increases stroke risk for those with migraines. The mini pill made a big difference for me. I have migraines with aura so cannot take the combined pill at all.

Pill didn’t do anything for my hormonal migraines. Stopping it didn’t either.
keeping my blood sugar stable has almost stopped them (less carbs, less snacks, less junk food, more protein - game changer).

Nothing much helpful to add, but sending empathy. Mine are similar, but don't sound as frequent. It's horrendous.

Have you been offered beta blockers? No idea of the side effects, but I was offered them but I wasn't quite chronic enough in the end, so it seemed too drastic for me. They're more of a consistent, preventative measure.

How about the Sumatriptan injections (do they have them for the next medication you mentioned?)? Have you tried them? I once was offered them, too. Apparently the only difference is that they work faster.

I think with this, you'll have to literally book an appointment with the doc every month until they find something that helps. I think we (as women, and as migraine sufferers), tend to underplay our pain and discomfort. But I think by being consistent in alerting the doctors to how your quality of life is declining, hopefully they'll put you through to a specialist that knows their stuff!

Sorry you're going through this, hope you find a solution. Hugs x

As PPs have said, mini pill or coil help with reducing the effects of your cycle (as you don't really have one), then amitriptyline at night. I found losing weight has helped no end too.

When I do feel one coming on, sometimes a very strong and sugary black coffee can also help head it off. When that doesn't work I have a zolmitriptan nasal spray which gets to work so much faster than the tablets.

I am now on atogepant and great improvement. Try sumatriptan and zolmitriptan as nasal sprays. Second cold cap from Amazon, plenty of water, and avoid low blood sugar. Wishing you all the best!

Took me coming off of hrt to realise my migraines were hormone related. I now have sumatriptan to take at onset of migraine, works a treat.

Mine have actually settled since being on HRT. They were absolutely horrendous during menopause but now I'm post meno & on HRT they are a lot more under control. Everyone is so different.

Vit B6

I was put on amitriptyline, which did stop them but also turned me into an anxiety riddled mess (apparently ND means you can be very sensitive to adrenaline and it isn't recommended for ppl with previous panic attacks, which my GP overlooked) so I came off it as for me the 4/5 days of pain vs personality shift into near panic attacks again wasn't worth it. I stick to sumatriptan but only take it on day 3 now so I am trying to use it less. I am already on HRT which did stop them going over 6 days but they were still taking up 4 or 5 days of my month.