Migraine relief for 11 year old

[HowBizxarre]

Dd11 has recently started her periods ( 2nd cycle ) and she has got a horrific migraine. I've just gone upstairs as she was being quiet and she's lay in bed sobbing saying the lights / even her breathing is hurting. She had a paracetamol around 3 hours ago for period pain. For now I've put a cold damp flannel on the back of her neck and ice on the front

Migraines are really common in my family, my mum/ sister and I all suffer from them

My mum and sister both had scans for their migraines ( can't remember which type ) and nothing untoward came back and it was just put down to genetics

I don't want my DD suffering like we have, mine can get so bad that I'd happily choose death over continuing with the pain,

What can I do for her? I don't want her to go on the pill ( I can't have it as it causes adverse reactions )

I feel terrible for her, she's autistic and has a really high pain tolerance so to see her sobbing like this is awful. I feel really helpless and guilty,

Aspirin is actually the best thing for my migraines. A migraine specialist doctor put me on to this. But it's most effective at the start of one. Beyond that point ibuprofen and caffeine.

She needs some caffeine. A can of red coke could be just the ticket.

Cold.compresses, painkillers are all the right things to do.

And a gp appointment as soon as you can get her one.

Poor love. Buckets of sympathy from a fellow sufferer.

My son (9) gets migraines. Not frequent enough to need migraine medication but still fairly often (least a couple of times a month but getting almost weekly). When he gets them he goes all pale and sweaty, can’t tolerate lights and often vomits. When we took him to the GP they advised that ibuprofen often works better than paracetamol for migraines. They advised us that on the first hint of him getting a headache we should give him ibuprofen to stop it worsening. So definitely try ibuprofen. You can get children’s ibuprofen. And it’s safe to take with paracetamol. But definitely take her to the GP if they become a regular thing. Hope she feels better soon

I do not get migraines. But I do get horrible period pains. Paracetamol does absolutely nothing for me.

I need about 2‘400 mg of ibuprofen a day (prescribed by my doctor as well as anti-acids) to exist in a somewhat painfree state. Please get her medical help asap. Period pain should not be accepted as some unfortunate „destiny“… There has been remarkable progress in the treatment of migraines as well, tbh (at least according to my mother who suffers from terribly migraines.)

My son was diagnosed with migraine at 5 and was put on medication called Pizotifen which acts as a blocker. Might be worth asking GP about.

Nurofen migraine is just a fast acting version of ibuprofen. It's ibuprofen lysine.

Perhaps get some reusable ice packs as these can give some relief. I have a couple of quite large ones as I can lie the side of my head fully on it when I have a migraine. Amazon can do next day delivery. Also less messy than frozen peas etc.
they can also be heated so can help with period pains too. I think you might get your moneys worth out of a pack of 2
I hope she is feeling better soon. Period pains and migraine is a rotten combination.

Aspirin is contra indicated in under 16s (apart from in really rare circumstances where the risk of blood clots outweighs the risk of aspirin).

Ibuprofen does tend to work better than paracetamol. Your GP might be happy to prescribe sumatriptan.

Sorry I didn't actually know that!

Definitely ibuprofen. Cola really helps me as well but could be a trigger for some.

Paedeatric Osteopath is your friend.

Migraleve is the only thing that sorts mine out.

I started having mine when I’d just started my periods, as well.

Don't discount another cause based on your family history. It's definitely worth a visit to the GP.
I stopped hormonal contraception last year for the first time in 15 years and whilst on my next period I had the most horrific headache. I figured it was period migraine but ended up at the gp after 3 days of the lights hurting and it turns out I had viral meningitis. Nothing to do with the period.
So now I'm also telling people to get their migraines checked out!
I hope she feels better soon.

Paracetamol and ibuprofen can be given together. You don't have to wait . Give both according to dosing schedules ( usually 4 doses in 24 hours for paracatamol , 3 for ibuprofen ).

At her age, weight is a better indicator of how much ibuprofen she can have. I used this recently to avoid giving my son too much. The dose will be on the back of a pack, one ibuprofen tablet is usually 200mg, but check. healthify.nz/tools/i/ibuprofen-paediatric-dose-calculator

@lemondropsandchimneytops what does pinching do and how hard /much

Wow I had them from an early age and have been left to it by family and medics I'm 50.

Now I find an ice pack helps and ibuprofen.

Also when younger coke and holla hoop crips or something spicy.

Mustard crips muligawney soup.

Massage the head put tiger balm on temples and everything else mentioned.

Migraines are wicked and totally debilitating I hate it when people talk about them like a bad headache.

Soluble aspirin in full sugar cola

Never, ever, for under 16s. It can cause Reye's syndrome which damages the brain and liver.

Get some medical advice first but a huge dose of aspirin does help. Finding a sympathetic GP is a must and fight. Dont let anyone fob you off.

Edited. She’s only 11. Asprin is a no then. I am sorry.

I suffer from chronic migraine. Non-medinical things that help:

• I tie a pair of tights tightly around my head, making a knot over the focal point of the headache, then lie on the knot. The pressure eases the pain.

• I bought a Cefaly machine. It's a TENS machine for the head. They say it's effective as a preventive but I find it only helps with migraine pain itself.

• ice pack on head.

• Full fat coke and a packet of ready salted crisps.

I use the Progesterone only Pill (it was the combined pill that triggered my first ever migraine) and don't have periods.

i haven’t rtft so sorry if this has already been suggested. After many years of migraine, my dd started taking propranolol daily (a beta blocker), as her migraines were getting more regular during times of exam stress as she progressed through high school. It has been very effective, and she rarely gets them now. For relief, paracetemol with full fat coke is good.

To add - obviously the propranolol was prescribed by a doctor! Who also prescribed a sickness medication to take when she gets an attack.

It's acupressure, I'm not sure how/why it works but pinch firmly for several minutes. Just tried it on myself to remind me what it feels like. If you make a v with your thumb and forefinger, the top of it will feel just like skin. Go further down than that to where you can feel muscle and pinch there. It's an odd feeling, not sore.

I second this. There’s like a little nobble where the muscles and bone of the thumb and forefinger meet. It feels more tender to the touch than the surrounding area. Press there and it can help. Same if you press directly under the bridge of the nose on both sides and push up gently.