Migraine

Hey Everyone,
I just wanted to update you on David. Since I last posted he has gotten so much better. If you recall he got a clean MRI so we know it is definately Migraine. David started on Claritin (his MRI showed some sinus issues but, the Neuro said nothing more than usual) We thought why not try claritin. Seemed like a better choice than some of the preventatives. Dr said worth a shot. Well, David has definately shown improvement. He hasn't gotten nearly the amount of Migraines he was getting before.

He did start with some eye itching and so it seems he has some allergies that are causing headaches which turn into Migraines. Maybe they start as sinus headaches and go into migrianes. Anyway, I wanted to get him allergy tested to see what exactly he is allergic too. The Pediatrican said No why put him through that. I say why not, isn't it better to know what he is allergic to so we can better target the treatment?? Any thoughts??

Bottom line is he is doing better for now and I guess that is all I can ask for. I know this is going to be an ongoing struggle but, at least I know it is migraines and nothing more severe.

Thank you again for all your support and kind words.

Cheryl

Glad to hear the good news, burnsie.

How wonderful that David is doing so much better Cheryl. You must feel a great deal of relief. Having our children in pain is worse than ourselves being in pain.

I am going to give you my personal opinon on the allergy testing. If David's treatment would change based on the testing, I would consider it. The people (children and adults) I've known who have add it done have found it extremely uncomfortable. I don't know that I would want to subject my child to it unless it was going to significantly impact his treatment plan.

Again, I am so happy he is doing better.

Take care,
Cindy

I'm glad to hear he's doing better since the Claritin.

I don't know a whole lot about the whole allergy testing thing, since I don't have any allergies and no personal experience. I was talking to a friend yesterday that just went through it, and it does sound like a royal pain, with quite a bit of discomfort. I think I get where you're coming from, though. Any specific information is good information, particularly when drawing up battle plans. But I can see why nobody would want to be put through it that didn't have to be, either. My friend didn't have it done until things got quite bad, and they absolutely had to know what specifically was causing her all the trouble.

I had the skin patch test done when I was 14 and my allergies were at their worst - bad enough that I broke out in hives whenever I walked across a field of grass. The thing about the patch test was my body was so reactive at the time I tested positive to 29/30 allergens. Many of those things I'm no longer sensitive to, and I don't know if the allergy shots I had for years helped any, or if my allergies just calmed down in my 20s (like they did for my mom and others in my family).

Personally, I am a bit skeptical of the testing, but a lot may have changed in the past 10 years. And, like I said, I was so reactive at the time.

Another thing to keep in mind is that sinus headaches are actually quite rare unless a sinus infection is present. If David is only having allergy attacks, his headaches are likely tension-type headache or migraine, and *not* sinus headaches. I thought for years that the headaches associated with my allergies were sinus headaches - as did the rest of my family - but it turns out they were chronic daily headache and migraines. We have an article on this HERE.

Another thing to consider is that some allergy meds are used as preventives, if you do decide in the future to have David try some preventives. Cyproheptadine and Singulair are both coming to mind.

It doesn't hurt to schedule an appointment with an allergist, if that would put your mind more at ease. They don't typically do the patch testing at the first visit anyway, as I recall - you could always consult with one and see what he says, then make your decision from there.

Good luck to you. I'm glad to hear that David is doing better.

Glad to hear he is doing better!

Cheryl

I'm so glad that David is doing better.

I personally had the allergy testing about 6 years ago. I didn't think it was that awful and I had a lot of reactions during the testing. It does get uncomfortable when you get a reaction, but my doctor gave me an allergy pill and some creme and things cleared up quickly. My test was the scratch test. They scratch the skin on your back in 40 places. They put all the allergy causing "stuff" on those scratches and wait to see what happens.

My son also had the allergy testing when he was in early elementary school. At that time, they only tested him for about 10 items not the entire 40. He had 2 allergies. The reason we had it done was because he developed severe asthma. He had the testing and received allergy shots for probably 4 years. When it started he was on multiple drugs for asthma. Now he only takes a rescue inhaler once in a great while. The testing and the subsequent shots were a good choice for him.

If the allergies are triggering the migraines, I would get him tested and get the shots and relieve some of those allergies and migraines.

Good luck.
Jean Ann

Hi We have been through the food allergy thing with my son who is six and was having migraine at least 4 times a week when he was intitially diagnosed early last year. Seems he has had chronic migraine most of his life.

The way the paediatrician explained the allergy stuff to me was that the pin prick tests are painful and only show up extreme allergies not intolerances and most migraines are triggered by intolerance not allergy. An allery would usually trigger breathing difficulties or anaphalaxis(sorry cant spell), swelling etc. He recommended we keep a food diary over 6 months, eliminate nearly everything and gradually re-introduce foods one at a time using a food challenge....where you eat heaps of it and record the result. It sounded like too much hard work to me but when you are desperate anything is worth a try. My son would often break out in a rash when he had a bad bout of migraine so it was thought there was some link to allergy.

We did this food challenge process in conjuction with the paediatrician and a naturopath.

Anyway we found he has intolerance (not allergy) to a range of things especially dairy,egg,preservative 220 and a host of other chemical additives. In small doses these things were fine but when taken together or in large amounts they would trigger a migraine. For example quiche (containing both dairy and egg) would trigger a migraine for my son.

The down side of this is basically you cant eat out at all while you do the challenges and everthing had to be prepared from scratch. It took a huge amount of work but it was worth it.

I wish i could say that it solved all my sons issues but unfortunately it is but one piece in the whole puzzle of migraine. For us part of the migraine prevention has been ensuring our son is in optimum health. He has been great for the last 6 months with only 2 episodes both after quiche (we have chickens so we love quiche) so the decision was made in consultation with the Dr to have a medication "holiday". This was a huge disaster and resulted in the worst episodes of migraine yet. We had hoped to manage it without drugs but have come to the realisation that preventative medication is essential.

He is back on the meds and doing better but we still have kept him on the diet. He has not had a cold or any other illness besides migraine for a year now which is pretty amazing for a kid who is in first year of school. It think making sure he is healthy and rested is one of the best things we can do for him to make this whole thing a bit easier and the food intolerance stuff is a big part of it.

Anyway what a long rambling reply. Seems I am the one doing all the posting at the moment. Hope it helps. All the best with finding out info.

Hi Burnsie, Some of the allergy testing that is done can be done by drawing blood. That's what my son's Ear-Nose-Throat Allergist did with my son.

Knowing about allergies is always a good thing because even minor allergies can make you very miserable, and learning what they are to avoid it makes a huge difference.

Mary in NM