Migraine

First off I just wanted to say thank you to everyone who keeps this website up and running! I got a lot of great information about my migraines. I learned it was not ok to suffer through my migraines for days and there really was help out there. I first started getting migraines about 8 years ago when I was rushed to the hospital by my eye doctor thinking I had a brain tumor, when in fact I had a pseudo tumor cerebi. Once my pressure my drained twice I went on diamox, and then suffered from a whole different kind of migraine thereafter.

I honestly didn't know there was help out there, or really didn't feel like the migraines were frequent enough to get a proper diagnosis.I went through the occasional migraine about one a month up until this past September when I went off my birth control pill. I don't know if this was a factor in the frequency of migraines becoming worse or not, but I went from having a migraine once a month to about once or twice a week. In April I had a migraine that lasted for 3 days with a pain so intense that I could barely stand, and ended up in the ER. WOW, that is an experience I hope to never have to do again. Talk about migraine unfriendly. The doctor wasnt necessarily bad, but I am extremely light sensitive when I have a migraine and there was no dimming of the lights, and of course the doctor wanted to shine his bright little pointer light right into my eyes! UGH, Not to mention trying to put in an IV in a dehydrated body is like using a rubber needle. Needless to say I just don't want to go back.

Went I left the ER I was also told my blood sugar was high and to schedule an appointment with my PCP and a Neuro. My PCP was great she treated my diabetes, which I am happy to report has been controlled by diet and migraine friendly exercise, and my migraines by putting me on topamax and imitrex.

I for some reason could not handle the imitrex, it literally made me so emotional. It would give me major mood swings. Has anyone else has these kind of side effects? I loved what it did for the migraines, but I just never knew if I was going to be depressed or manic after taking it. It was almost like I had bi-polar. In May my pseudo Tumor Cerebi returned and I ended up with another spinal tap. Those sure have changed in 8 years.

I absolutely hated the neruo that the er recommended, so I started doing some research and came across this website which lead me to the Ryan Headache Clinic here in St Louis. Dr Banks was recommended here. I saw him today and just loved him. My visit was a full 2 hours. He made sure that he got all my prior history and just made sure that I knew it was not ok to suffer. That there was more medication to try even if one fails. He put me on Zomig nasal spray and Cataflam for the migraines, and zofran for my nausea.

Has anyone has any experiences with these medications? I also meant to ask about vitamins, because I have read that there are some that do seem to help with migraines. Wow this was a lot longer than I expected. Thanks for reading

Nicole

Welcome Nicole!!

Hello and welcome to our forum family! Our goal is to provide everyone with the information and support that we all need to manage our Migraines and/or headaches. To that end, we consider this a “safe harbor,” where nobody tries to sell us anything, and we all use “family-friendly” language so parents are comfortable letting their children read the forum with them.

Please take a few minutes to review our policies and guidelines along with the other information in the START HERE folder. For information about Migraines, a good article to begin with is Learning About Migraines - Where to Start.

It is great that you have found a doctor who you feel can help you. I have found that to be the biggest obstacle in controling my migraines.

One item that you might find helpful to discuss with your new doctor is the "what if" situations. One of those is if you do need to go to the ER. Is there an ER he perfers you go to? Can he provide you with information to give to the ER about what is a recommended treatment (narcotics usually aren't part of that).

Again welcome. We are happy to have you with us. I too have found this site to be a blessing of factual information and warming support.

Wow, Nicole!

Let's see if I can give you some more links and info! Cindy gave you the Welcome message, and I hope that I can give you some more links to even more stuff!

First of all, here's some info on [URL=http://www.healthcentral.com/migraine/types-of-headaches-193359-5.html ]Pseudotumor Cerebri (IIH) – The Basics[/URL]

You said that you think that your Migraines increased when you went off the birth control pill. Quite possible! Here's some info on the Role of hormones in causing (TRIGGERING) Migraines?


I'm sorry you had a bad experience in the Emergency room! Unfortunately, there are times when it's necessary to go there, or to another place where they can break your Migraine!

After 72 hours of a Migraine without a 4 hour break or relief of pain, it becomes Status Migrainous , and it's a medical emergency. That's where the ER comes in- you need to get that Migraine broken to reduce risk of stroke from Status Migrainous!!

Luckily, We have these great forms that your doctor can fill out ahead of time, and you can bring with you to the ER- your doctor can state how they would prefer you be treated, and with which medications. It also helps in the ER to have a doctor fill out the forms ahead of time so that they don't think that you're there to just get pain meds. So, with that being said- below is a link to the forms and more information about what to have prepared in advance of heading to the ER!

Emergency Migraine and Headache Care - Forms To Help

As far as the side effects you got from the Imitrex, unfortunately, all medications have potential side effects, and different people get the various side effects that can go along with the medication!

I'm SO happy that you found a Partner to work with you in treating your Migraines and other headaches! That's really important. He's right- there's no reason for you to suffer!


Here's some information on Zomig I've used this before, and it makes me sleepy, but it does work on my Migraines!

And some info on Cataflam- which is the brand name forVoltaren .

Last but not least, Information on Zofran - an anti-nausea/ and anti-vomiting medication, which has been absolutely wonderful for me. I find that I get absolutely zero side effects from it- hope you're as lucky!

I hope that helps some! How about starting here, and reading some of this, and we can go thoroughly through more things- including the vitamins in another post! Don't want to make this all so overwhelming!!

Hi Nicole, please add my welcome to the pile! I'm so glad you un-lurked, it's great to have you here

I also take Diamox but I don't have IIH, my Migraine Specialist prescribes it to me to help with my weather related Migraines. It really has made a difference on how often I get triggered by the weather.

Do you know what your triggers are? Besides the weather, I can also be triggered from poor sleep, not eating and strong smells. There's a new perfume out that a lot of young girls wear that just about triggers me every time....ugh! Here's some more information on triggers:

Common Migraine Triggers

A great tool to keep handy is a Headache and Migraine Diary. It will be useful to track triggers, the effectiveness of medications, and any patterns to your Migraines and headaches.

You asked about Zomig NS, I use that as one of my abortives and it really helps knock down the pain level for me. I don't really get any side effects from it either. I use it for the Migraines I wake up with that are already full blown.

One last thing I want to add about going to the ER. I used to dread going because of the way I was sometimes treated. I have run into my fair share of doctors and nurses who thought I was a drug seeker. Now, however, I have a letter from my Specialist stating that I don't want any type of narcotics. It tells them how much Magnesium and steriods to administer to break up a bad Migraine cycle. It works like a charm too, I love my Magnesium! Here's some information on treatment options to break a Migraine cycle:

IV Lidocaine – Effective Treatment for Refractory Migraines in the Clinic

IV Treatment of Refractory Migraines

Again, welcome to the forum and if you have any questions, just ask and we'll do our best to help!

The only one of the meds you list that I've had any experience with is Imitrex. It's been several years since I've taken Imitrex, and for me we ditched it after a rebound issue I was going through with it. I don't recall it making me emotional, but it's been awhile. To be honest, I was very emotional anyway when I tried Imitrex, because I was badly hyperthyroid and had horrid mood swings and crying jags from the thyroid hormones being out of whack. It probably would've been impossible to figure out if the Imitrex played a role in that for me.

It could be that the emotions are part of the migraine attack. It's quite possible to run a gamut of emotion with migraine. It's also possible for meds to simply exacerbate an occuring emotional response, rather than triggering it. It could be a multi-faceted issue.

As for the vitamins, I've taken B2, magnesium, and B6 (which isn't common as a preventative, but I have an odd collective pile o' goo, so it probably figures that I'd be different!). Currently, the magnesium and B6 is still my preventative regimen of choice.

quote:

Originally posted by NicoleM:

I for some reason could not handle the imitrex, it literally made me so emotional. It would give me major mood swings. Has anyone else has these kind of side effects? I loved what it did for the migraines, but I just never knew if I was going to be depressed or manic after taking it. It was almost like I had bi-polar. In May my pseudo Tumor Cerebi returned and I ended up with another spinal tap. Those sure have changed in 8 years.

Has anyone has any experiences with these medications? I also meant to ask about vitamins, because I have read that there are some that do seem to help with migraines. Wow this was a lot longer than I expected. Thanks for reading

Nicole

Hi Nicole,

One thing I wanted to add based on a comment I missed in your first post

quote:

I also meant to ask about vitamins, because I have read that there are some that do seem to help with migraines

I take 400 mg of B2 that my neuro suggested. It has made a noticeable difference in the intensity of my migraines. I also take 600 mg of CoenzymeQ10 as a prevenative. It has help decrease the number of migraines I have. I will be going back soon to my neuro for an additional prevenative and also hopefully to add magnisium.

Thank you everyone for the warm welcome and all the helpful links. It always helps to be as educated as possible. Again I just love the wealth of information that is available on this website. It is like your one stop shop. I have been checking out the section forum of reading material, and I am thinking of purchasing a few books. The first book I am going to get is Teri's. I have come to respect her in so many ways.

Nicole