Migraine

For the last two months i've been having headaches literally everyday, and two of those were severe migraines.

i've been to the neurologist who put me on some a preventative medication but i'm starting to think that maybe the cause of my headaches are the bc pills. i'm going to call next week and request an mri. and i am going to stop taking my bc pills cold turkey.

has anyone suffered from something similar? did it end up being the bc pills or something else? i've been on the pill for 8 years without a problem and i'm so confused as to what is causing these headaches everyday. the bc pills are the only med i take (besides now the ones for the headaces). i can't think of anything else that has changed in my life to cause them.

thanks!

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[COLOR:BLUE]

Are you taking something everyday for your Migraine? If that is the case, you may be unwittingly creating another problem called medication overuse headache, MOH. This occurs when we take certain OTC and/or prescription medications more than two to three days a week. See Medication Overuse Headache - When the Remedy Backfires for more information on this. The only way to stop MOH is top stop the offendiong medication. But please speak with your doctor, some medications cannot be stopped suddenly.

If your doctor isn’t able to help you, it may well be time to consult a Migraine and headache specialist. It’s important to note that neurologists aren’t necessarily Migraine and headache specialists. Take a look at the article Migraine and Headache Specialists - What's So Special? If you need help finding a Migraine specialist, check our listing of Patient Recommended Migraine and Headache Specialists.

It may be time for a change in you BC pill, but that is a discussion for you doctors and you. Some women never have a problem with the pill and Migraine, while others immediately start getting more and have to go off it.

Good Morning and Welcome,

Nancy has provided you with excellent links to start your reading.

I just wanted to add that I am a person who cannot take BC pills or other types of female hormones. I was on the pill in my early 20's. The first 18 months or so were fine and than I started to get headaches that would occasionally move into migraines. My doctor stopped the BC pills and the headaches went away. A few years later, after some advances in BC pills I tried again. It only took 2 weeks for the HA's to start.

I do have friends who taking BC pills helps their migraines. It's very individual to say the least.

I have been told in no uncertain terms to not take them. It's making menopause a bit of a challange, but it's better than a continous migraine.

Again welcome. Hope to see you around the room.

thanks for the info!
here is some more background on me:

my dr said i was suffering rebound headaches when i visited her a month ago and have since stopped all OTC meds (excedrine was what did it to me). this was at the end of july. i "detoxed" for 3 weeks before starting my new meds the neuro gave me two weeks ago....

which brings you up to date. i am currently taking amitriptalyne (spelling?) every day and imitrex but only when i get a really severe headache. i have been on amitriptaline for two weeks and am taking 30 mg everynight but so far it really hasn't helped at all with the pain and it's leaving me feeling a bit hopeless. i had an mri yesterday and am waiting for results.

i have also stopped taking my birth control pills in case the hormones are what is causing these dull everyday all day headaches.

how long do rebound headaches last? i'm not even sure if what i have are migraines or rebound headaches as the headaches are usually mild to moderate.

i dont want to give up hope, but i'm afraid if i have a negative mri i don't know what else to do

Hi Ruby and please add my welcome to the pile!

It's important not to give up hope! It can take up to three months for a preventive medication to start working it's magic for you. You need to give the amitriptyline some time to start working for you. If it doesn't work, there are over 100 medications out there that are being used for Migraine prevention so there's bound to be a medication or a combo of medications that will work for you:

• Migraine preventive medications: too many options to give up!

I don't have any personal experience with MOH, but I know other members of our forum have and hopefully they'll be along shortly to share their stories with you. Here's some more information on MOH that you can take a look at:

• Stopping Medication Overuse Can Halt Transformed Migraine

So, hang in there and come back here often. We're here to help you and give you a shoulder to lean on.

thanks for the info laura!

you know the more i am researching transformed migraines, the more i think that is what i have!

the only thing i can't figure out is how to cure those? my dr prescribed my prednisone to take along with my amitriptalyne to completely knock the headaches out.

i'm hopeing this works.

Heh there,

See here's the thing - there is no "cure" yet for Migraines. It is a genetic neurological disease caused by overactive neurons in our brains and genetics. Yup, it stinks. But there really is so much we can do for ourselves, and in fact if you do have Transformed Migraine, getting rid of MOH may help with that. The link LauraHost gave you is very good about Transformed Migraine.

Another important article regarding Transformed Migraine (TM) is: Transformed Migraine - Risk Increased by Some Medications. This article has a lot of information, it needs to be read carefully (I just did again). The use of triptans is ok to help avoid TM, ONLY if someone has a LOW number of Migraine days a month, less than 14 or so. This does not sound like you if you are having a Migraine every day. Maybe Imitrex is not the best abortive option for you. Have you tried Midrin?

The important thing is to break the current cycle you are in. There is another option you may want to mention to your doctor; IV infusion treatment. I've had it done in my doctors office too many times, steriods seem to make my head worse, which can happen with IIH. Here is the information to share with your doctor:IV Treatment of Refractory Migraines.

Have we talked about keeping a Migraine diary? If so please just ignore this. If not, it is an easy way to see what may or may not be triggering an attack for you, what medications are working and so on. We have a free version you can download HERE.

Let me know what you think?

Be careful about stopping those BCs cold turkey. Due to the hormonal imbalances, you may be in for some rough days. It's always better to stop the pill pack and go through withdrawal bleeding and just not start the next pack so your hormones have time to regulate themselves through the normal monthly ups and downs.

I went off of BC almost a year ago and it took 5 months for my body to regulate itself, even after stopping the pack after my last withdrawal week.