To ask for urgent help with migraines

[GetOffTheRoof]

I'm at my wits end and have no more ideas.

Always had migraine, but these are the worst they have ever been. I wake up at either 0215 or 0440 on the dot feeling like I've been stabbed in the right eye with a pitchfork, hot pain which shoots through my skull and neck on the same side.

My triptans do work, but I shouldn't take more than 6 per month and this is happening almost daily. I have 3 pills left for the month.

I'm already on preventative medication which isn't working and I'm having Botox on a month, but how the hell am I going to survive the next month?! I'm in agony today. Phone is on dark mode before the naysayers start.

I have a full time job, I need to be able to drive and I need to be able to get up and take my dog out each day / interact with her etc. No kids. DH is in the military and away for the next 4 weeks.

AIBU to ask for any remedies, cures, tinpot ideas others have managed to make work for their bonkers migraine attacks?

I have put an online request into the GP this weekend for any meds they can give me, but won't hear back until Wednesday.

I have a Cefaly which works on normal migraine, but not on these. I use it daily. I also have all sorts of aromatherapy oils, a massage device thing I use on my neck and shoulders, I've changed all my pillows, the bedding, have a fan on in the bedroom, all windows open, take antihistamines, wear a tooth grinding night guard, am hydrated, no caffeine, no alcohol, recent eye checks and tests, take high dose VitB.

Gah. Thank you for reading!

Oils make it worse for me not better. I would get rid of those to start.

Ice or heat on the back of the neck? Apparently it helps calm down the blood flow in the neck which is how migraines can start.

Some people swear by that piercing in their ear, can’t think what it’s called but sure someone will be along to fill in!

Are you exercising? Exercise has been shown to help, even just brisk walking.

Have you tried keeping a food diary? Chocolate and cheese are huge triggers.

I've recently been proscribed sumatriptan and it seems to be doing a great job of curing them, but it's not preventative.

I really sympathise with you :(

My go to remedy for a migraine is dissolvable aspirin and a red bull (or coke would work). It sounds like these are severe so it may not work but worth a go. The combination of painkiller, caffeine and sugar seems more affective than painkillers alone.

In a fit of despair I had my faith pierced. That was two years ago now and my migraines have reduced by about 75%.

*DAITH not faith

My pharmacist said he couldnt officially tell me, but that he’d heard a neurologist say 900mg of aspirin at the first sign of a migraine was good if you’d no issues that aspirin would worsen.

I tried everything under the sun to help with my migraines and nothing seemed to work until I came across a mix of Paracetamol and Isometheptene. Not sure where you are in the world but in the UK their market name is Midrid. They're only available on prescription but I find they are a Godsend. Good luck hope you find something that helps you soon. Migraines are awful.

Get your bp checked. Since I was put on meds for my sky high bp. My migraines have improved no end.

Just a thought.

I find that if I take asprin at the first tiny little sign of a headache I can sometimes stop the migraine developing.

The other thing I do is use Tiger Balm at the first head twinge.

I find that rotating my head around helps too.

One of the most recent successes I have had is with ice wrapped in a wet cold flannel. Holding that against my face and eye really really helps...

... the other thing I have noticed is that if I keep upright rather than lying down that seems to help too...

... I would say thought that it tends to be different for me as to whether it is on left side or right side of my head and once I am sick forget it - I just have to surrender to it for days.

I feel your pain - must be almost killing you to have to read the internet too :(

My sister was told by a neurologist to take 900mg at the first sign of migraine.

I find using an ice pack around my orbital bone (basically all the way round your eyebrows, temples and under your eyes). It takes me approximately 20 mins to work around my face.

Have you tried sudafed (just the basic one, without caffeine), it can reduce the pressure in your sinuses.

Good luck, migraines are the pits

coffee ( if that isnt what sets yours off that is) and a cold cloth, my husband gets migraines and clusters, hes on rizamelt and some other thing that's a preventative, but he has noticed if he has not had a few coffees in a day he gets a migraine... the rizamelt can stop it in its tracks if he takes it at the first twinge... not sure if it called the same thing in the UK

Hi OP, I am under a neurologist for chronic migraines and there are lots of preventatives that can be tried, but finding the right one can take time and all have side effects. I found amitriptyline helped for a while and am currently taking propranolol which is a beta blocker. If you haven't already done so, I would ask your GP for a neurology referral and they should be able to give you lots of options.

A good friend of mine who has suffered debilitating migraines for 20+ years has recently had her daith pierced and hasn't had one since. Its early days but could be worth a shot. I am getting mine done soon.

If it’s one eye and waking you are you sure you don’t have misdiagnosed cluster headaches. I have them, it’s like having a hot poker through your head but they naturally are limited in time. Insanely painful to the point of clawing the walls. Does that fit? Are you rocking/ pacing instead of wanting to lie still?

(If they are I’ve found verapamil gets on top of cluster for me and only injectable Tripitans work)

My ex had clusters. He used to mainline a red bull when it started and found it did help. He also used to get injections into the base of his skull, can't remember what they were called but you can get those, or botox. I think they'd only prescribe after trying virtually all other meds (he had triptan injections that he had to inject into his stomach as the pills didn't work fast enough for clusters) and its not medically advised but would split the dose as one single injection was too strong and would have major side effects, but they only came in one strength. Half a dose was much better, so if you do end up being prescribed injections do look at dose splitting, there's tons online. Another majorly controversial one (but don't discount it!) is micro dosing hallucinagenics. People have had massive successes with taking a very very weak dose of magic mushrooms in a tea (not enough to make you trip in any which way, really tiny amounts!). Some have reported one cup of micro dose tea cured their migraines for up to a year! Also be mindful that GPs aren't usually very up to speed with migraines that don't respond to the first line of things that are prescribed, so if nothing is working push to see a specialist.

Sympathies OP, living with regular migraines is horrible

I cut out caffeine and noticed a slight difference but not enough to completely stop until years later I finally figured out that sweeteners were a HUGE trigger for me, so any fizzy drinks and any flavoured water/cordials etc had to go. As soon as I changed that, I haven’t had a migraine since!! I do hate limiting my drinks to mainly water/tea nowadays but it’s worth it to not have the skull crushing migraines anymore.

The injections in to the base of the skull are greater occipital nerve injections (GONI). DD has had two. She's under a neurologist at GOSH. The first caused a worse headache but the second seems to have worked as the severity of her headaches has reduced somewhat. She may get a third in a few months time.

Where I work (I don't get migraines, luckily) quite a few people have had their daith pierced, like a PP. Anecdotally, they all say it's either made their migraines stop completely or had a marked reduction in frequency. I've only got one piercing in each ear, but if I suffered I'd be down the tattoo shop asap to get my daiths pierced. Good luck. I hope you find a remedy.

OP, I'm so sorry you're suffering. Triptans and beta blockers didn't work for me, painkillers didn't ouch it unless taken hours before they start which doesn't work if they wake you up.

I have my daith pierced which cut the amount of attacks right down, and I'm also careful with my diet and don't eat many foods which contain an amino acid called tyramine. The theory is that some migraine sufferers cant tolerate high levels of tyramine, different foods have different levels so eating too many high foods can trigger an attack, e.g. beef, cheese and tomatoes are all high so lasagne is a big trigger meal, whereas a cheese sandwich would be fine. This has been an absolute life changer and is an easy and natural thing to try. I used to have 3 or 4 migraines a week, now I have less than that in a year and they can be dealt with by taking a couple of paracetamol.

Have you tried acupuncture?

I was getting 3-5 migraines a week and 2 sessions of acupuncture reduced the frequency to around one a month. This was in the days before triptans and preventatives like topiramate, so can't say if it's any better than they are, but it worked a treat for me.

Like other posters I’ve had my daith pierced and only had one migraine since- but I was poorly with a stomach bug at the time, so dehydration had a lot to answer for.
That’s down from a minimum of 2 a month, also prescribed triptans. So I’m happy that I had the piercing done because it’s helped (or the placebo effect, but if many have found it helps, surely there must be something in it?

I've had migraines since I was 10. This is going to sound weird but it's worked for me so hear me out (disclaimer: you're going to need time to yourself if possible) -

As soon as you start getting the aura, or with your first migraine symptom, drink some caffeine, either a can of coke or a strong coffee. Take two ibuprofen.

Get into a cool shower. Stay in there for a good five minutes with the lights off if possible.

Wrap a thin bandana tightly around your eyes (covering them) and tie it at the back of your head.

Go to sleep in a dark and quiet place.

No oils, no soy melts, no candles or any other scents EVER.

I understand that it's not possible for everyone to do this. People have work, kids, other obligations, etc. But if you're home alone and have a few hours to yourself give it a go.

Start taking a good quality magnesium supplement daily. I have seen a huge improvement in the duration/severity of the migraine itself, and a reduction in the number of times they occur by doing these things.

The only thing that touches mine are the solpadeine tablets you dissolve in water. They work within about 15 minutes.

Probably not helpful but my Mum sat in a dark room with a bag of frozen peas in her head. She took migralieve but if she didn't take it in time it didn't kick in.