Migraine

I have had migraines since the age of 5. I am now 41. Oh yes life has been just grand!! As I have gotten older thay have gotten much worse.

Light, Cold, Heat, Foods, Smells, Watching TV, Being on the computer, being tired, air conditioning, heavy clothing, soda's (I haven't had any in a yr), Being hungry, not sitting correctly, Having to sit for too long in one spot. Getting angry, crying, Life in general is what I always say. I know there are more but I can't think right now.

I take imitrex but I am going to talk to my Doctor about trying something else. That med is making my mucsles ache very badly and making it difficult to work. I have migraines almost everyday and I have no energy to have much of a life.

Hi NeedAnewHead! Welcome to the forum, it's great to have you here! When you have a moment, please stop by the Start Here Folder for important information and guidelines about the forum. Also, a great article to take a look at is
Learning About Migraines - Where to Start.

I'm glad you've been able to identify so many of your triggers, that's no small feat! You probably already keep a Migraine Diary but that link will get you to a free downloadable diary you can use. I use it and it's very well organized. I keep mine on my computer and print it out for all of my doctor's appointments.

Changing your abortive sounds like a good idea. There are so many of them out there, you're bound to find one that doesn't cause such nasty side effects for you.

Are you currently on any type of preventive medications? If you have three or more Migraines a month, it's time to consider talking to your doctor about starting one. There are over 100 medications out there right now for Migraine prevention:

Migraine preventive medications - too many options to give up!

Again, welcome to the forum. I look forward to seeing more of you!

Hi NeedANewHead! First, welcome. Second, LOL on your name b/c I say that all the time!

I just wanted to throw something out there. How often are you taking your Imitrex or other medications? If is more than twice a week for any kind (ie, two triptans, two narcotics, etc) you run the risk of Medication Overuse Headaches (MOH or Rebound).

Also, you may want to read about Transformed Migraine I was in a transformed migraine cycle for over a year because I was over using triptans (3-5 times a week) and had a neurologist that didn't believe in rebound. Between limiting my triptans an a (slightly) helpful preventive, I've cut my frequency from 3-5 a week down to 2-4.

Anyway, both are things you might want to look at if you are taking Imitrex more than twice a week.

Also, you should ask your doctor if he has any samples of different triptans you can try. I had to try a few different ones before I found one that worked well for me.

Imitrix seems a little overrated to me. Like they advertise a lot, so that is what everyone thinks of when they think of migraine relief, but many people, including me, have really bad reactions to it.

There are several other triptans which are much better, just less well know. (Very few people seem to have heard of the one I take, which is Axert - even nurses and some Doctors.)

But if you are having daily migraines, you should talk to your doctor about a preventitive medication. Do you go to a migraine specialist or is this your GP? A specialist will help! I, sadly, had a GP treat me for years, and his recomendations actually made my migraines worse.

Good luck!