Anyone suffer from migraines?

[martym]

Used to get them all the time. Down and out for several days.
emitrex injections were the only thing that worked and sometimes I would need a 2nd injection about 12 hours after the initial injection.
Thru trial and effort we discovered that brown rice gives me extremely severe migraines.
And, once i became insulin dependent (long story that one is) and got my blood sugar under control, my migraines have stopped.
Sweet!!

 

[noahpictures]

I know two people that suffered weekly migraines for decades. They weren't fun to be around. Stopping consumption of caffeine cured one's migraines. The other person's physician recommended motion sickness medication and his migraines went away. Again both had suffered for decades and had been to several doctors and had tried many remedies without success.

 

[Rusty Blade]

For those of you that get migraines, do you find any of the over the counter pain medications work for you? E.g. Tylenol, ibuprofen?

 

[eleuther0s]

I don't think what I get are technically called migraines, but when the weather changes I get extreme headaches that incapacitate me to the point of not being able to focus even on something like driving. I am a college student who commutes and there was one particularly painful episode last year where I had a headache so bad that I had to miss the rest of class and had my mother come pick me up and leave my car at school overnight because I was afraid to drive while so disoriented. It is particularly bad when air pressure drops right before a storm, sort of like how my grandmother used to tell me she knew it would rain because her joints ached; except mine knocks me off my feet and is only curable with a dark room, some sleep, and a cold compress on my forehead.

 

[mrb7]

For those of you that get migraines, do you find any of the over the counter pain medications work for you? E.g. Tylenol, ibuprofen?

The problem with the OTC pain relievers is that good migraine treatment requires vasoconstrictors. While ibuprofen and naproxen are not bad pain relievers they are treating the symptom, not the cause.

A truly weird thing I have seen work - but it is very hard to do when your head is about to explode - is very vigorous exercise. That jerks blood away from your head and directs it to you muscles. Not the same as a vasoconstrictor, but it's a reduction in blood flow none the less.

Me? I'd rather retire to a dark room. With a cup of coffee, which is a vasoconstrictor. That's why Excedrin and BC powders work well for so many, the caffeine.

 

[Raissermesser]

Me? I'd rather retire to a dark room. With a cup of coffee, which is a vasoconstrictor. That's why Excedrin and BC powders work well for so many, the caffeine.

Now that you mention it, my migraines or vascular cluster headaches are like bad caffeine withdrawal headaches. Since I take acetaminophen with a soft drink, that's a shot of caffeine right there.

 

[JackC]

Living so close to the Alberta Rocky mountains, we get a lot of Chinook winds, (warm wind out of the West). Almost every time a chinook is going to start blowing, I will start to get an aura and the start of a headache. My Dr. gave me a prescription drug called RelPax, and it works great as long as I take it at the beginning of the migraine. I thing it is a vasoconstrictor type that mrb7 was talking about.

 

[WesternModern]

Mine are sinus headache migraines. Horrible pain, nausea/vomiting, sweating, light sensitivity. The only thing that seems to work is Alka-Seltzer Plus cold medicine along with two ibuprofen - it knocks me out but the symptoms are usually gone afterwards.

 

[SlyMoose]

BC powder, Gatorade and sleep is about the only thing that helps mine

 

[Rebecca]

Not a thing has ever helped mine I've had them since I was a little girl, but I've only had the auras since last year. The first was frightening as I had no idea what was happening. I just have to wait for them to come through like a hurricane and eventually they pass leaving everything hazy and shaky for days after. I wish you luck in finding a remedy that works for you!
~Rebecca

 

[Rusty Blade]

Not a thing has ever helped mine I've had them since I was a little girl, but I've only had the auras since last year. The first was frightening as I had no idea what was happening. I just have to wait for them to come through like a hurricane and eventually they pass leaving everything hazy and shaky for days after. I wish you luck in finding a remedy that works for you!
~Rebecca

Interesting...I was not a headache kind of person when I was young...maybe had 5 headaches over a 30 year period. Then about 4 or 5 years ago the migraines started and it took me a while to figure out what was happening...and it took a while to understand my aura. What worries me is they seem to be getting worse and longer. I just came down off a 4 day migraine plus another day of just feeling poorly with a kind of hangover feeling. Miserable. Nothing seems to work.

 

[GMJager]

Reading through this thread I see lots of mentions of medication, dark rooms, etc.
I don't think I saw any mentions of trying other means of treatment (acupuncture, chiropractic, Physical therapy, aromatherapy, etc)

Working for a chiropractor we see numerous patients that come solely based on their headaches (my mother being one of them).... Anyone else try?

(I had lots of migraines as a kid, but only get one every year or two nowadays, my girlfriend gets them frequently and also found chiropractic to be helpful)


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[Rusty Blade]

Reading through this thread I see lots of mentions of medication, dark rooms, etc.
I don't think I saw any mentions of trying other means of treatment (acupuncture, chiropractic, Physical therapy, aromatherapy, etc)

Working for a chiropractor we see numerous patients that come solely based on their headaches (my mother being one of them).... Anyone else try?

(I had lots of migraines as a kid, but only get one every year or two nowadays, my girlfriend gets them frequently and also found chiropractic to be helpful)


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At this point I will try anything...anything. What exactly does a chiropractor do to resolve migraines?

 

[GMJager]

I know migraines are fairly unknown as to what is actually going on to cause them, but often times contributing factors are going on such as postural abnormalities, muscle tension (Especially in neck/shoulders), vertebral alignment issues, which all can contribute to nerve compression and blood flow disruption to the brain/surrounding tissues. There have also been studies/theories about very very very slight shifts of the plates of the skull that can contribute.

A chiropractor is trained to find these abnormalities/contributing factors and treat them, which can help reduce the frequency and severity. It may or may not completely relieve them, since every person is different, there's no way to tell how they will exactly respond to treatment.

There are a few types of chiro's... Those that use the traditional "snap crack and pop" adjustment (manual adjustment), and those that use the activator technique. The activator technique is less intense, but just as effective, and a bit safer... Especially when it comes to the neck.

A good Physical Therapist will also have techniques to help too if you'd rather go to PT versus a Chiro


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[Rebecca]

Interesting...I was not a headache kind of person when I was young...maybe had 5 headaches over a 30 year period. Then about 4 or 5 years ago the migraines started and it took me a while to figure out what was happening...and it took a while to understand my aura. What worries me is they seem to be getting worse and longer. I just came down off a 4 day migraine plus another day of just feeling poorly with a kind of hangover feeling. Miserable. Nothing seems to work.

Hmm, is there anything that changed in your daily life habits that you think may be contributing? Something recommended to me was to keep a migraine journal, but that was only marginally effective, still might be worth a go though. Oh my goodness yes I understand the 4 day plus hangover feeling very well. In the midst of one now, so screen time is kept to bursts of a few minutes a day with a very dim screen. I was told drinking scotch might contribute but hell I had them long before I was a scotch drinker. I'm sorry for your pain and hope very much that you find something that works for you! ~Rebecca

 

[Rebecca]

Reading through this thread I see lots of mentions of medication, dark rooms, etc.
I don't think I saw any mentions of trying other means of treatment (acupuncture, chiropractic, Physical therapy, aromatherapy, etc)

Working for a chiropractor we see numerous patients that come solely based on their headaches (my mother being one of them).... Anyone else try?

(I had lots of migraines as a kid, but only get one every year or two nowadays, my girlfriend gets them frequently and also found chiropractic to be helpful)


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I used to see a Chiropractor and she was pretty great, will see another in future. Once I start to go it is an ongoing situation as I have Ehlers Danlos Syndrome and have to find to find a Chiropractor that deals with hypermobility.
Your ideas of alternate therapies are very helpful though and could work for many!

 

[Rusty Blade]

Hmm, is there anything that changed in your daily life habits that you think may be contributing? Something recommended to me was to keep a migraine journal, but that was only marginally effective, still might be worth a go though. Oh my goodness yes I understand the 4 day plus hangover feeling very well. In the midst of one now, so screen time is kept to bursts of a few minutes a day with a very dim screen. I was told drinking scotch might contribute but hell I had them long before I was a scotch drinker. I'm sorry for your pain and hope very much that you find something that works for you! ~Rebecca

My days are pretty similar...no major life changes. I have thought of keeping a journal, but for me this is not very practical. I am, however, trying to be very aware of my eyesight, head, general feeling etc. so I can recognize a migraine at the earliest stage. The visual aura I get seems to be the best early warning sign. Still not sure what causes them for me...it is likely a "perfect storm effect" where several things occur at the same time and tip me over the edge...e.g. fatigue, stress, dehydration, hypoglycemia, too much noise and light etc. Stress seems to be the one constant factor in my past migraines. Other factors may or may not have been present. I think the only true solution for me is I just need to retire to a country estate and paint in watercolour, tend my rose gardens, read poetry and do yoga. Just as soon as I win the lottery.

 

[adamchur]

I get the very occasional migraine, usually when I strain my eyes because I'm too tired to concentrate. Very rarely after I've had more than 3 cups of coffee
I get an aura which looks like a lot of bright white streaks across my field of vision, (similar to the ghost images you see every time you blink after being dazzled by a bright light) and a dull pain behind my eyes, sometimes I get a dull headache, occasionally I get the same sort of 'churning' in my stomach, similar to the feeling I get in my stomach when I'm drunk and the room is spinning.
Occasionally I get a more severe headache or sometimes 'icepick' headaches
To date I've never felt or been physically sick.
If I'm in public, I fight it and try my best to focus
If I'm at home I rest my eyes and try to sleep
Either way it usually wears off within an hour, or worst case scenario overnight

 

[sfeile]

I get them occasionally. I get extreme light sensitivity, nausea, and sound sensitivity. (which does not go well with tinnitus....) Got a little excited when exederine came out with their "migraine" pills, until I looked at the back. 200mgs aspirin, 200mgs acetaminophen, 65mgs caffeine. Exactly the same as regular extra strength exederine, just in a fancy new wrapper.
Really the only thing that works for me is a dark quiet room and sleep.

 

[mrb7]

I've never tried acupuncture for migraines, but I did have a seriously busted ankle once, like I still have two steel plates and nine bolts in there. Needless to say it hurt bad.

For that injury I found acupuncture to be far more beneficial than I ever anticipated. It might work for migraines, too.