Migraine treatments- aaaargggghhhhhh!!!!

[AphroditeInHerNightie]

Migraine sufferers - I salute you! Having put up with the hell of (non-aura) migraines since my teens I sympathise with the pain and disruption they cause.
A few years ago my doctor diagnosed the "sinus headaches with throwing up" as migraines and I realised that I've probably been suffering these, undiagnosed, for over 20 years. My migraines are cyclical, always occuring after ovulation and stopping after menstruation. For 2 or 3 years now I've been taking Maxalt Melt to treat them and they've been FANTASTIC.
However, my GP in their wisdom decided that a prophylactic treatment would be more suitable and prescribed Pizotifen. The headaches went but the side effects were hellish. My Pre-menstrual dypshoric disorder (PMT with attitude, usually controlled by low-dose Prozac) got a lot worse and I couldn't stop eating, and ended up putting on 19lbs in seven weeks. A real bummer, especially as I'd lost over 5st with Slimming World and am still trying to lose some more. I later found out that Pizotifen is used in the third world for severley malnourished people to help them gain weight and increase their appetite. Thanks, doc!
Anyway, am off the Pizotifen now and have been prescribed Propranolol. Headaches are decreasing but I just feel so knackered and listless, especially come early evening when I feel weak, shakey and 'spaced-out'. I also occasionally get bouts of nausea which I suspect are migraine symptoms without the headache!
This is driving me nuts- the doctor has suggested I persist for a month with the propranolol but I don't know if I can.
Anyone with any similar experiences?

and i get very easily depressed, too. grrrr!

So sorry you suffer with Migraines they are awful.
I have suffered for over 15 years.
I get blurred/loss of vision (aura) and sickness.
I have also been on Pizotifen,Inderol (beta blockers). I had ct scan then went to see a neurologist. She suggested 1 aspirin a day. I came off all other medication and took the aspirin.(which seemed to work for me)
I now have a dd 2yrs and ds 7 month so have not taken any medication since before dd.
I have only had 3/4 migraines in this time.
I have also obviously not taken the contraceptive pill in this time.
My pill was changed to when with the lower dose of ??? (sorry cant remember name) but apperantly can help with migraines.
I was admitted to hospital on few occasions with severe migraine and constant sickness (thought I was dying ) and was given supositaries(sp?) for the pain and anti sickness injections.

I am sure there is a link to the pill and hormone balance. I was also told to watch certain foods the obvious cheese,red wine, chocolate, and orange.
I was also told to avoid banana,vanilla and strawberries, but I dont and I am ok with these. Sorry if I am no help here, just I was told by doc to persist with the inderol for 2 months but I couldnt they made me feel terrible and I had shakes and felt anxious.
(I worked as a vet nurse at the time and one of the vets suggested I should stop taking them) so I did.
I knew I wanted children at somepoint and wouldnt be able to take certain medication so looked for alternatives. I also suffer with bad back (another story) so I see a chiropractor regularly) the adjustments also help with tension headaches that often lead to migraines in my case.
hth

thanks
am seriously considering looking into homeopathy and/or accupuncture and coming off all the drugs they keep throwing at me. I'm sure my poor system doesn't have a clue where it's at while they keep chopping and changing things.
glad things seem to be working out for you.

I have found aspirin very good too.How much propanolol are you on?I was on 40 a day for yrs and got used to the effects and it was amazing but I had to stop it for other reasons but only get about 3 migraines a years now and treat with syndol aspirin full fat coke and tortilla chips!Dry crisp carbs really help me

am on 40mg twice a day

I think I would have found 80 tricky.Can you ask to start on a smaller dose until you get used to it?It may turn out to be enough

neurofen plus are the only thing that has ever touched my migraines. have been getting them since very early childhood (mother never bothers to bring me to docs, father convinced that my skull was damged by the forceps at birth)

i'd get them between once every week or 4 weeks.. often inclusters of one a week for several weeks, then a break for a month

not eating brought them on, as did certain food, stress and, once i hit puberty, my period.

i start with the aura, then the pounding head, then the vomiting. nothing but 12 hours in a dark room can sort them.

my mother once gave me migraine tablets she got fromthe doc for herself but they just knocked me out.

haven't had as many in recent years, oddly enough since having the top of my face slashed open in a night club one night they've only been about once every 5/6 months . neurofen plus takes the edge off long enough to get to my dark place and curl up.

I can recommend taking 400 mg daily of magnesium supplement, it really helps, it is supposed to prevent migraines after two months of regular use but you must continue taking it forever. Also in my particular case I noticed a more significant improvement after 4 months! Now I hardly ever have any sign whatsoever of a menstrual migraine.

Hope this helps!
Reikimarie

I feel your pain, sis. Migraines are the absolute pits. I don't understand why your GP decided that a prophylactic approach would be better than treating the migraines as they occur with Maxalt. Was it because you were taking the Maxalt more often than is considered safe?
I have sumatriptan prescribed (same drug family as Maxalt), but I usually find that if I get a migraine it starts while I'm asleep so by the time I wake up it's too well-established for the drug to have much of an effect. Like PinkTulips, a good twelve hours in bed is generally the only way to see it off.

I've been getting awful migraines since I was a teenager and have tried lts of prescription and otc painkillers/remedies but the only thing that has worked without any side effects is cranial osteopathy.

I feel your pain. I've been getting non-aura migraines for 9 years. Some are hideous and some are bareable. Mine are triggered by hormones, the ovulating days and periods are particularly bad. Also, if I oversleep I def get one. Doesn't matter if I sleep for 15 hours, as long as I don't wake after 8am.

I have done propanalol, didn't work, I put on 6 pounds and felt anxious once I stopped them. I was mig free after week 20 of my 1st preg and they returned with a VENGEANCE 2 weeks after dd1. I wasn't so lucky with 2nd preg and got them all the way thru, but have eased off since dd2 was born. Prior to the girls, I took imigran once a mig started and worked like a dream. Obv, can't use in preg and as I bf dd1 for 14 months and am still bf'ing dd2, I can only take paracetamol.

The bottom line is Panadol Extra, soluble actually works 9 1/2 times out of 10. Can't be normal panadol or non-soluble, has to be the Extra soluble. Sometimes takes 12-16 hours to work (3-4 doses), but it really does work and it takes the nausea away as has settling properties.

Give this a go. Obv chick with your GP first. If preg, you can't use the Extra, but I think the plain Panadol works. I have found shop brands are NOT as effective.

Also, any form of contraceptive pill makes them worse for me. I am sure a herbal or vitamin supplement could help, but can't take anything at mo, as bfing.

Very best of luck :->

I also had what I thought were sinus-with-throwing-up-heads for about 20 yrs, until they became monthly after the birth of dd- which was when I sussed they were menstrual migraines...I take sumatryptan which clears them almost totally- just leaves me with a bit of a chili-pepper sensation behind the eyes....

DH tried everything going until a German doctor recommended soluble aspirin and holding each mouthful in his mouth for a few minutes to absorb it through the cheeks (sounds silly I know).

He was hospitalised with a migraine when dd was little as he couldn't speak, understand me or stop vomitting. He was losing days to it.

Aspirin has been great. Triptans were useless. He sometimes uses Cafergot which is ergotamine tartrate which are okay if taken fast enough.

He also kept a food diary and found that certain foods and sleeping in too late contributed immensely.

That's a lot of waffle but maybe something in there.

My mum's migraines were hormonal. 2 weeks of every month she could barely function. Sadly, only a hysterectomy sorted it.

I am in the asperin camp. Beechams powders made up with hot water and lemonade ( the fizzing makes it quicker to absorb) usually stop/lessen the headache, I am just left with the 'spaced-outness' and needing a wee every 5 minutes!

DD (16) swears by nurafen liquitabs ( I am allergic to brufen so can't vouch for this)

Youngest DD has stomach migraines, we were offered pizotifen and I refused, we just manage the symptoms with anti spasmodics.

We come from a long line of migraine sufferers, nearly every women on my mothers side of the family going back to her grandmother have regularly taken to a darkened room with a bucket!

i have been getting migraines for the last couple of years - every month, and possibly connected to early stages of menopause. Somatriptan is working brilliantly for me - I'm still aware that I have a migraine but it reduces the pain to a level where I can still work/function.

I also suffer from migraines with aura.

They leave me in a daze even after the main attack is over. However, I have recently discovered Imigran Recovery, which stops the attack itself. Great stuff! The headaches are bearable, and I don;t feel sick anymore.

However, I have started to suffer from vertigo and a very very light head, forgetting all sorts, my short memory is affected.

Could that be from the Imigran?

My migraines are related to my blood sugar levels dropping, or after a prolonged period of stress stopping. However, sometimes, there doesn'[t seem to be any reason at all..

I have also heard that cranial osteopathy is great, but haven't given it a go yet.