Migraine help

[wifeofaclosefriend]

My 17 yo DS has migraines, usually 8 weeks apart, start with missing words, back of eye pain. He has to sleep and usually vomits after he's slept a while then gets better but the pain can linger all day.
He was given Sumitriptan nasal spray by the GP a few years ago but doesn't feel it works, he takes it as soon as the aura comes but cannot stand the taste and usually spits it back out despite me encouraging him to try and cope with it.
His last one was 8 days ago and quite bad but I've just had to go and fetch him from college as he's got another
He had 2 ibuprofen as soon as he got in the car, refused a spray (he'd got one in his bag but wouldn't take) and fell asleep and he's gone straight to bed
He needs a GP appointment for sure as he's started a new job and can't be having time off and the fact that he's had one so soon but I'm just wondering what his options are re: medication?
I'm not a migraine sufferer as such (two a year where I can't stand noise or light and have to lie down, no pain) so not sure if there are other things he can try?

I'll be ringing docs tomorrow but would like fellow migraine sufferers opinion's also

He might be able to take a tablet version of Sumitriptan? I was on the spray which caused sinus infections and switched to something else. I was put on the tablet version earlier this year but it's a Raynaud's trigger so came off it.

There are also tablets that you can take daily to prevent attacks.

You can get tablets or melts for migraine. I'd ask for those.

Also and please research this yourself, taking a high dose of aspirin can also help.

Neurofen plus also can help with mine.

Definitely go to the dr and get better medication for him.

Also when at the dr ask about preventers too.

I find the only thing that shifts a migraine for me is triplans. Tablets or melts rather than the spray.

Sumatriptan doesn't work for me (and the nasal sprays are horrible!), but he could try a tablet form of a different triptan? Zolmitriptan 2.5mg works really well for me.

Standard painkillers tend not to do anything except for - and I can't explain why! - Anadin Extra. The combination of aspirin, paracetamol and caffeine seems to be greater than the sum of its parts. It's currently as effective for me as Zolmitriptan as long as it's taken at the first signs of an attack.

After a lifetime of struggling with migraine I found prevention was best for me, so I made sure I wasn't overtired or dehydrated, that my blood sugar didn't get too low and if I woke in the night with a bit of an aura or headache or just feeling rough I would have a sweet drink and two painkillers, like @notyourmam I found Anadin extra was best but even just ordinary asprin was better than paracetamol or ibuprofen. It really reduced the number of migraines I had. I know (I was a teenager with migraine) that it is easier for someone older to manage some of those things.

I do think your son needs to be a bit more sensible about the Sumitriptan, does it help if he uses it? To be honest I'd have taken anything to avoid a migraine however unpleasant.

I hope he gets on top of it, I had migraines from an early age, I was 5 the first time I was taken to GP for it, and it is horrible, particularly when people tell you it is a headache.

There are several different triptans and they come in different forms ; they usually work well so he should be able to find one he can tolerate. Some people have a trigger eg cheese etc but most do not easily find one that can be pinned down and avoided. The commonest triggers are too much or too little sleep.He doesn't have them very often so taking a daily preventative would probably be inappropriate. He does need to take some responsibility though. There are lots of options still for him.

Bless him. He needs to ask the GP to put him on a preventative medication, a tablet triptan and possibly a referral to neurology or a migraine clinic.
also, when he feels one start, what I do (if I have no triptans on me) 2 ibuprofen, 2 paracetamol and a can of coke. And home to sleep and triptans!

he could’ve had one so quickly again as he’s worrying about his new job.

good luck. We are a full on migraine family!

In all honesty, the nasal spray make me wretch, I come very close to, and in some cases have vomited after using it so he has my sympathy.
I tried the melts but they didn’t seem to work as well as the tablets.
Has he tried the tablets? Years ago I was given anti sickness medicine to use along with the sumatriptan, it was a small tablet that I had to put inside my mouth on the gum and it dissolved. It was to try and stop me throwing the triptan back up.
I can more or less manage to just take the triptan now.

Unfortunately it’s trial and error finding the right medication.