Terrified of sumatriptan

[36and3]

I'm on day 5 of an awful head and the doctor has prescribed this today. Initially gave me 100mg but I freaked out and have bought the otc 50mg.

The side effects terrify me. I have awful medication anxiety.

Side effects similar to a heart attack: jaw/chest/throat tightness.

Rationally I know I need this because even naproxen isn't helping but I'm literally so scared and I just know that I'll be the one in whatever who will experience them all. I'm also nervous about driving the school run tomorrow feeling spaced out etc.

Can anyone share their experiences please?

I bought this otc as the prescribed one was 100mg.

Take this for my hormonal headaches probably once a month. Complete game changer. So much so that I have gone back to worker longer days. No side effects. Gets rid of the migraine in about 20 mins.

I’ve had the tablets but now also have the spray and the injections. No, I never cut a tablet in half, makes me feel a bit ‘fizzy’ in my head but no throat closing.
The spray doesn’t give me any side effects really. The injection does make me feel a bit weird, like ice running through my veins, it’s still preferable to excruciating cluster headaches and migraines though.

I get aural migraines but not much pain thankfully so I didn’t need it, the doctor prescribed it as a ‘just in case’.

Another question (sorry I'm embarrassed by asking so much). It seems it has a short half life. If I took it tonight would it be out of my system come morning, ie if I got the worst side effects would they last long?

I take it it's a lifesaver. It does make me nauseous but I take an anti sickness tablet. It makes me very tired but there the only side effects I have I don't get any throat tightness etc

I take this. Know I'll feel dire half an hour later, but feel marvellous after an hour.

Can't function with a migraine so view it as a miracle drug

I take prescribed 100mg when I get migraines. Thankfully fewer these days. It works brilliantly. My migraines usually come on around 4am. If I take a tablet straight away and go back to sleep I am right as rain by 6am. Only slightly weird feeling is heavy feeling in the legs/ankles when I get up but it doesn't bother me, just a bit odd.

Hope you are on the way to feeling better soon OP.

I was frightened too after reading the leaflet listing all the side effects. I suffered on for much longer than I should have done. During a bad attack, I waited til DC were in bed, sat on the sofa with DH, took the tablet and prepared him for my imminent demise. I had zero side effects and within half an hour the migraine was gone completely. Been using them for around 5 years now and I'd hate to be without them. I hope you have the same success.

I put off taking them and put up with migraines for a long time as I was so worried about the side effects. In hindsight, I really should have taken them much sooner (and also should have started trying preventatives sooner).

These days I get 6-12 migraines a month, and I don't know what I'd do without triptans (and my private prescription for vydura that I use when I'm over my monthly allowance of triptans).

I'm around this evening and will keep refreshing this thread. Take the drug - I really hope it helps!

I have rizotriptan. It works well for me. When I take it I know that however unbearable my headache, it will be gone within a hour. It also makes me drowsy so I take it and lie down and go to sleep as the pain wears off.

I think it is quite a short half life as I feel fine the next day.

Please take it and then go to bed

Listen to a podcast or talking book for a bit to take your mind off worries about side effects. Likely you will be fine.

If the side effects were that bad and that common it wouldn't be licensed. The benefits have got to outweigh the negatives for it to be approved.

I've been taking it for years. I take it as soon as I feel a migraine starting. (usually about 3 in the morning they wake me up)
I feel a bit sluggish and achy after the pain has gone, but not enough that I couldn't go to work or carry on as normal.

How long do all these side effects last? From the serious ones to the minor?

My only side effect was drowsiness cand I think it's about 4 to 5 hours.

Everyone is happy to answer any questions, it really can be a miracle drug and the side effects are far preferable to the migraine! It stopped being that effective for me after a few years and now I'm on rimegant.

Re side effects, i feel a bit weird in the first hour or so but nothing that would affect my driving, working, parenting etc. I took it in pregnancy on occasion. I really recommend it and perhaps start with 50g or half a pill and then increase if needed.

I take it for migraines and sleep it off. I don’t know if I get side effects cause the migraines are so awful I’m out of it. But the sumatriptan is a bit of a miracle cure. No idea if the exhaustion is the migraine or the drug.

20-30mins for side effects. Much less issue than the migraine.

I would also suggest topirmate,
I have intracranial hypertension as well but I take 50mg morning and 50mg at night of topirmate and I have hardly an migraines now.

I love it, I get an odd feeling around my sinuses like I've sniffed too much Vicks for about 15 mins but then 15 mins later the migraine is completely gone. Also great to take at bedtime or in the night then wake up with no migraine.

I buy 100mg but snap them in half. That way they still work, but the box lasts me longer 👍🏻 they're cheap online, I can recommend an online pharmacy called Dr Fox. I found OTC very expensive.

Sometimes I feel a teeny bit spaced out, but I'd rather that than the migraine. Sumatriptan has pretty much changed my life

The headache is better than this morning - as in it was a solid 8/10 earlier. I took naproxen at 3pm.

Shall I just forget it now and see what happens?

I've taken these for years, no side effects. I use 100mg, if I take it as soon as I feel migraine come on, I'm right as rain in an hour or less. If I wait until the migraine is well-established, I often need to lie down and feel a bit spaced out, but the tablets still work. The needing to lie down and feeling spaced out is the migraine, not the tablets. They can be really good.
If you do have any side effects, just talk to your doctor and ask about a change. Similarly if they are ineffective. I did this when my previous migraine medication didn't work effectively enough. The side effects are temporary, so you are not going to do yourself any damage by taking the pills. Different people respond differently to particular migraine medications, and it can take a bit of time to get it right for you - but it is possible !

I had to take Sumatriptan last week, as I had a migraine. I haven't ever taken it before. I didn't have any side effects at all. It cleared my migraine, which I'd had for 3 days at the time.

Triptans give me a slightly achy jaw if I yawn or chew hard. Other than that nothing.
I find they work best taken on an empty stomach with some caffeine.
The reason for this is migraine slow digestion so empty stomach and caffeine means you absorb it quicker.

Does doctors think it's migraine then?
Can you describe the pain?
A lot of people find 1000mg dispersible aspirin as effective as triptans.