Migraines - does anyone have any remedies?

[NellDunnHadItRight]

Hi all, a brand new mum asking for advice on behalf of DH. Our DD was born nearly two weeks ago and is beautiful and healthy. However, DH isn't doing as well. He's been diagnosed with migraines and since DD came home has really been struggling with horrible headaches due to broken sleep and increased stress. It doesn't help that DD has a tongue tie which means that although she's keen to nurse she can't breastfeed very well and must be topped up with formula/expressed milk, which he's been dealing with so I can concentrate on breastfeeding.

DH has just been prescribed sumatriptan after paracetamol couldn't help, and DD has a referral for the tongue tie in a week - if it's snipped we hope she'll breastfeed much better and I can take over night feeds and we can work out a rota system so we can both get more rest. This isn't guaranteed, however, and although he's soldiering on sometimes he just crashes and can barely function.

I feel so lost - we should be savouring this time with DD, exhaustion notwithstanding and instead I'm worrying about DH's health. He adores his baby and is stepping up to do as much as he can but when a migraine hits he can barely keep his eyes open and I'm effectively a single parent. We're lucky in having lots of family support and my super Mum has stopped overnight a couple of times so DH can get a decent night's rest, but he's due back at work soon which won't help.

Sorry about the long rant, I just wanted to get it off my chest. Basically, does anyone know if sumatriptan is effective or does anyone have any migraine remedies? He's been told to lay off the caffeine but apart from that we're novices! Any and all advice desperately needed, or is it just a matter of persevering until DD is older and sleeping better?

I have a monthly sports massage, with the focus being on my neck, shoulders and upper back. This makes a huge difference and has reduced the amount of migraines I have. Maybe this is something your partner could try.
Congratulations on becoming a new mum.

I need to hear more about the trampolining

Vitamin b2 riboflavin 400 mg, I take sumatriptan as well but this has helped massively reduce my migraines x

Lots and lots of green vegetables! You can hide a lot of spinach in pasta. If you have a juicer, raw spinach juice.

It's probably the magnesium, together with the fibre:
pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29920023/
www.webmd.com/migraines-headaches/magnesium-migraine

www.migrainekey.com/blog/fiber-for-migraine-prevention/#:~:text=%20Fiber%20for%20Migraine%20Prevention%20%201%20Higher,gives%20the%20body%20time%20to%20absorb...%20More%20

He needs to get the sumatriptan in literally the moment he feels it's coming on.

Reduce caffeine

Drink enough water. At least 2l per day.

Good luck.

Ah yes, vitamin B2, I take 400mg daily like a PP on the advice of my neurologist, it’s not so easy to get hold of the high dose tablets though. 100mg aren’t too difficult to find, maybe try them & see if they help at all. Holland & Barrett sell them, I used to stock up in the penny sale before I found an online supplier.

And yes to adequate hydration. A lot of people swear by caffeine but I wonder if they are suffering caffeine withdrawal migraines TBH. I quit caffeine 17 years ago, it was the first trigger I ever identified. Only ever have a bit in chocolate these days, not much & not often.

Feverfew works better than anything for me, it stops an attack in its tracks as well as being a preventative. I am aware it doesn’t work this well for everyone though.

@TheCountessofFitzdotterel

Feverfew works better than anything for me, it stops an attack in its tracks as well as being a preventative. I am aware it doesn’t work this well for everyone though.

@TheCountessofFitzdotterel
May I ask how you take it please? Amounts formats etc ?

I had rolling migraines this spring - had days of them without end and sumatriptan stoppped working (and made me nauseoustoo). My GP prescribed me anti-nausea pills to take in conjunction with rizatriptan and 3 standard strength ibuprofen pills. He called it a migraine 'bomb'. Worked a treat.

Also I find a high dose of vitamin D supplements helps me, and making sure I'm on the correct dose of levothyroxine. But that's only if you suffer with hypothyroidism obviously.

Believe it or not, going vegan completely cured my severe migraines.

@smith5715

I take 2x syndol and have a sleep in a dark room. Never have had to have more than 2 doses and the migraine has always gone.

I thought they had taken syndol off the shelves?

2 x 400mg of ibuprofen help me. It's always a 3 day event, so I get through a lot of them!!

Dh has gone from four crippling migraines a week to about one every two months by taking propranolol, a beta blocker.

Propranolol helped me some years ago when i was getting several auras a week. I get them less severely now but paracetamol had never even touched a migraine. Cocodamol 30 /500mg is the only drug the even take the adge off.

Hi all,

Thanks so much for all the suggestions! DH was bad earlier but plenty of water, a cool compress and a dose of the sumatriptan (plus keeping all the lights low!) have helped tonight. Will work our way through everything suggested and see what works so hopefully at some point it will just be regular new baby exhaustion he's battling!

@poppymaewrite

Believe it or not, going vegan completely cured my severe migraines.

Wow really? I’m seriously considering going vegan anyway, for unrelated health reasons.

Get the two pills. Blue one and pink one. It's like a whole system, from the chemist. You take one as soon as it starts then another after an hour or something and they totally work.

Drink coffee the moment it starts coming on. Too. Dilates the spasmed vessels.

@jozipozi31

Get the two pills. Blue one and pink one. It's like a whole system, from the chemist. You take one as soon as it starts then another after an hour or something and they totally work.

Drink coffee the moment it starts coming on. Too. Dilates the spasmed vessels.

I'm addicted to coffee but the minute I feel a migraine coming on, I can't stand the stuff. Makes my head so much worse.

Sports massage once a month
Co-codamol/syndol
Tiger balm neck & shoulder rub
Swimming

I came on to say I swear by masturbation, a dark room and a warm compress across the brow, followed by sleep. Seeing it's not you but your DH, I say go with suggesting what you feel comfortable with.
And congratulations!

@userxx

Oh how I miss Syndol. Obviously you can get the rubbish version but not the good ones 😢

Chronic migraine sufferer here. Sumatriptan really does work for me. But I do still get a crap / hangover feeling after.

Broken sleep is a massive trigger. As is the caffeine i tend to mainline following the broken sleep. I’ve quit the coffee and the baby had had a run of sleeping well. I’m now 4 weeks since my last migraine - amazing progress from having one every few days.

I can highly recommended Feverfew and magnesium supplements. These have honestly been life changing for me. I was getting three day long migraines that literally wiped me out and made me so sick that I could take no medication at all. After trying these preventatives, I've not had a migraine for months!

Can of cold red coke and three aspirin at the first sign really stops mine. Also a humidifier running at night because dehydration is a huge trigger for me.

I've had migraines for so many years now and have never found anything that helps. They last three days and I can barely function with them. Stress, overtiredness and hormones are my triggers.

Sumatriptan, Immigran, nasal sprays never worked. Hot and cold compresses don't help. I lie in bed unable to sleep because walking hurts my head.
I am interested in feverfew as I have never tried it.
Do you take it daily? And in what quantity?

Congratulations on your baby.

I suffered from migraines for years although now post menopause, they are much less severe.

When I was in my 40's and suffering from them weekly, a GP recommended trying a daily dose of Feverfew and after about 4 weeks it definitely reduced the frequency and severity. I used to be projectile vomiting as the sickness would come on suddenly. Only occasionally was my vision affected.

I now take Almagran when I can feel one coming on and it usually works within about 30minutes. It's vital to take the triptan as soon as you have any telltale symptoms. If you leave it hoping it might go away with a couple of paracetamol, and if it gets much worse, the triptan won't work as effectively.

Dehydration can be a problem so make sure he always carries a bottle of water with him.