Migraine

Hi everyone,
It's been awhile since I've been here.
A new GYN of mine recommended that I try birth control pills for my headaches.
At the time I was at a crossroads; I refused heavy duty stuff from numerous neurologists and was running out of options.

For about 6 months, they changed my life.
I no longer needed triptans just advil from time to time.
Did not experience nausea and vertigo either.
Well, now I have chronic daily headaches.
Not sure what to do!

Last Tuesday I started with skewed vision along with a headache.
I have had hearing loss that subsided when I took advil.

Not sure what to do next!

Anyone have a similar experience?
I am trying to decide whether to stop taking the pill for now to see how I do.

Thank you!

Glad to see you posting again. If it has been a really long time you may want to take a moment 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.

See here's the, Migraine is a genetic neurological disease thought to be caused by overactive neurons in our brains and genetics. It is a chronic disease similar to diabetes or epilesy. We need be mindful and manage our triggers, have an accurate diagnosis, treatment plan and when necessary make adjustments in our lifestyle.

Now, having said that, it is not easy to do. Lots of us have been doing it for over 20 years, some of us only a few. Either way it can be a time consuming, frustrating process. With good support and information hopefully it can be a bit easier.

As far as "heavy duty" medications go - I wonder why you think Migraine meds are any more "heavy duty" than birth control pills? BC pills have some potentially serious side effects, especially if you smoke, are over 35 and so on. There is a greater stroke risk for them and so on. So really, BC pills are as "heavy duty" as you get.

To treat your Migraines, it sounds like it may 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

If you're taking Migraine abortive meds such as triptans or any kind of pain med more than two days a week, a big part of your problem may well be medication overuse headache (MOH), aka rebound. See Medication Overuse Headache - When the Remedy Backfires for more information on this. If you're in an MOH situation, nothing you take is going work, neither prescription nor "natural" medications nor over-the-counter. If that's the case, you need to work with your doctor to stop the medications causing the problem.

Just wondering which bcp helped for 6 months? My daughter has avoided them because in many cases they can make headaches and migraines worse and since she has both ndph and migraines it's a concern. I do understand how frustrating that must be to have it stopped helping and cause problems. I understand your not wanting to try the heavy duty meds many neurologists and headache specialists prescribe. We have gone that route also without success. My daughter has been to the best headache and migraine specialists around. She does not take triptans and OTC meds because frankly they don't help. In the past if a triptan did help it was only for the day. Another migraine would return the next day and then be more frequent so they just are not worth it.
The medications my daughter has been given are numerous and frankly they are heavy duty in the side effects and problems they have caused. I am one of those who frequently checks this forum for what has helped others in hopes that something will help my daughter. Although I know everyone reacts differently to medications I keep hoping there is something out there that may help. It does not help hearing that there are over 150 different medications to try after you have tried over 50. Some people are not as lucky as others when it comes to finding medications that work. And I'm not sure that trying the same things under different names helps more than it harms. Many of us are looking for support and others who may have had the same problem. We are well versed in hearing that we should only see a headache specialist. Having been to the best and I do mean the best I know that even they are at a lost when triptans, anti-depressents, beta blockers, calcium channel blockers, anti-seizure and anti-inflamatories etc. don't help. And it doesn't help when you get other side effects and no relief. As far as I'm concerned all medications can be heavy duty and I have learned they can all have serious side effects. So while a headache specialist may be great for some there are so many out there who are still looking for relief. And many of those still looking for relief are not over using medications because frankly for many once you realize that they don't work you're not going to keep taking it. When I hear doctors blame headaches and migraines on MOH while I know that may be the case for some it is not the case for all.
I hope you get some help and answers rafruitloop.

Thank you so much for your reply EmilyR!
I have been taking Loestrin FE. It provides 24 days of active pills as opposed to the typical 21. I haven't stopped taking it yet since I am still trying to figure out what triggered this most recent long headache that won't seem to go away.
I am with you on the headache specialist!
I've been to 4 neurologists and one actually threw topamax across her desk at me and would not answer any questions about the medication.
I have also been told to try beta blockers but my internist told me that I probably would have passed out on standing if I took the prescription since my blood pressure runs on the low end - not extremely but enough that it would have had adverse effects for me.

Prior to the bcp every month to every other I would experience vertigo near the time that I ovulate - which made it difficult for me to take care of my two little girls. Often I would have vomiting with the vertigo.

I actually spend months at an ent since I was experiencing hearing loss - my hearing tests were negative and they wanted to do a myringotomy(?sp) to relieve the pressure in my ears but in the end it was just from the headaches.

I was also told I have Meniere's disease from one ENT - I disagree since the hearing lost went away once the headache went away.

Not many people understand what it is like to live with this chronic illness!
It is nice to find people who do!

Hi rafruitloop -

The thing about BCP and other hormones is that each of us react differently to them. We have these highly sensitive nervous systems which react to changes in our internal and external environments, including hormonal changes. Some women do better on birth control or hormone replacement, some do worse. Some things work for a while and then stop working. So that's hard to predict. I had no Migraines at all when I was pregnant and nursing (when hormones are at a particular high level) but some women have it worse then.

Although there are drs out there who throw up their hands and give up when someone has hard to treat Migraines or daily headaches, there are plenty of really good doctors who will work with you. We have lots of people on this forum who have had good luck in reducing the frequency of their Migraines, with help from specialists on the list. I have to agree with Nancy that BCP is a heavy medication in and of itself. It may be that going off the pill is what you need to do but it would really be best to do that with a doctor's advice - none of us here can do anything other than guess.

Emily I'm sorry you and your daughter have had such a hard time, certainly no doctor should throw a medication at you like that will solve all your problems. I don't know if you're aware of the difference between preventive and abortive medications - from what you wrote maybe not? Triptans will never work on more than the current Migraine - they are abortives which stop the Migraine process, but no they won't prevent a new one from starting tomorrow. Preventive medications are prescribed to lessen the reactivity of our nervous system so we can be less likely to get triggered.

But it is recommended to treat a Migraine early with abortives because when we let the process continue our nervous systems get into a pattern where we are more likely to get triggered again. So today's triptan doesn't treat tomorrow's Migraine, but if we stop as many of the Migraines as we can (within limits on how often to take the meds) we are less likely to get into a bad pattern where they occur again and again.
There aren't easy answers for many of us, there is no one size fits all solution. It's about learning by trial and error what works for an individual. We all wish it could be easier!

Hope that helps!
- Megan

Nice to see you again. I can mostly only echo what the others have said. It sounds like you might just be resolved in seeking out a migraine specialist, and that's good. In the meantime, though, while you get things arranged, you might want to at least call your OB/GYN that prescribed the birth control pills and ask about stopping them. It could be that they've just reached a fizzle out for you, but it could also be that they still are helping at least a little bit. Just discontinuing them all at once might be a bit snarly if they're helping some. It would be better to have your doc's helpful eye on things while you're looking for a specialist.

Different BC pills work differently on every individual. I currently take Lybrel. Now that is a pretty heavy duty BC pill. It is continuous. Never get a period. My Gyno would prefer me on something lower dose like you take. Unfortunately for me I know my Migraines will get worse on a lower dose BC pill. If I can’t get my Cholesterol under control I will have to minimize my BC pill. I am soooooo dreading this. Then I go back to the ole' drawing board. Don’t give up.

I understand where you are coming from. I was on birth control for 10 years, and i had to switch to a higher estorgen every 6-12 months bc thats about how long it prevented headaches and then i would get daily ones. It worked until i was on the highest level on the market and i had my first hemiplegic migrane. then the dr. took the BCP away bc he thinks it may have been a stroke ( my dad had one at 30) and my choesterol is high. it was awful, so i do not reccomend just stopping them. i have been off 6 weeks and I am still adjusting and i have made an appotinment w a speicalist this thurs. my daily headaches turned into monster migranes, so i suggest weighing your options and talk to your OB bc u may just need a differnt dose.

On another note, i feel for you in the aspect that the nero drugs are heavy duty. i was on topomax, depekote, beta blockers ( which made me pass out bc of low blood pressure) anti depressents, Lyrica, and natural alterantive like magnesium when i was 18-19... so i undertsand your concerns, i would have rather stayed on the pill if it was working ( i also have endomertrosis, so the pill helped me more than a normal person) and i didn't go back on preventives until i couldn't have the pill anymore. one thing that helped me for a while was doing continous use BCP, menstral cycles brought on a lot of migranes, as did ovualting. ( and FYI- my ob has been doing it with pills other than seasole and lybrel since 1973. so if you can find one that works all the time, ask your ob about that one, if you are comfortable not haveing a period. ( i went a few years and it was amazing, the intesity and frequent migranes dimdinshed, i just had to up estorgen when the headahces came back) and estroegn levels naturally vary throughout life, so the pill that works at 17 may not be enough at 27, just keep that in mind.

I tried the generic for topmax a few weeks ago.... that was fun. not. They switched me to an anit depressent- noritriptlyne... the daily headahces are gone, so that might be a good option for you to check out? its not like others either- u don't feel loopy or doped up.. just kinda groggy the first week or too, but i was like you- i didn't like the idea of the side effects/ long term effects of the other nero drugs.... which led me to this past sat ( halloween) i was in bed all day, vomiting with a migrane... something i haven't done in years and i made the decsiosn that i am going to see a speicalist and i found one reccomemned off of this site and have an appt. thurs. there are altertives to the heavy duty drugs- u just have to work to find them, and everyone reacts differntly. topamax generic messes me up mentaly and makes me a basketcase, but the name brand just makes me a little down sometimes. (which can be casued by chronic migranes too) good luck- its a balance for everyone. one drug may releive your headaches, but you can't handle side effects, so keep that in mind. I loved topamax in the headache aspect, but the side effects were rather bothersome for me. Good luck- hang in there and see if you can't find something that works!

Hello and welcome to our forum family, tavstar1! 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

Tavstar1:
Thank you for your post!
It is so reassuring to know I am not the only one suffering and that there are other people out there who share the same opinions that I do.

I hope that you too, find an answer and can enjoy more symptom free days!

I stopped taking the pill for now and have an appointment with a new internist next week and will start from there.


So, thank you for sharing your experience!!!

Welcome to the forum Tavstar1!

Just an FYI: birth control(BC) pills are just as "heavy duty" as "neuro drugs." Medication is medication, all have potential side effects. In fact, BC some serious potential dangerous side effects we have to be careful about, especially if they smoke and/or have certain other risk factors. Drugs are drugs, they are in different classes, with different side effects, one is no more heavy than another. Does that make sense?

There are more than 100 medications that can be used to treat Migraines. The frustration of trying to find what works for us can make it seem as if we’ve tried it all, but with so many possible preventives, it’s literally impossible to have tried them all. See Migraine preventive medications – too many options to give up! for more information.

I hope that clears things up a bit.

I have to disagree. How can you possibly compare an anti-seizure drug to synthetic hormones? I am beginning to wonder if this forum has become a soap box for 'moderators' to preach.

Post after post in which people ask and share opinions and you guys keep chiming in with philosophy and theology. Any intelligent person knows that 'everyone is different and everyone will react differently to different treatments.' However, it is valuable to hear the experiences of others.

I don't know that I will continue to frequent this forum.

Moderator's are inhibiting members from sharing their experiences and receiving useful feedback from other members, without you guys chiming in on your theories.

I agree with the last post. There is a huge differnce between hormones and nero. meds. There is a reason kids can't have nero meds, while it is safe for a 13 yr old to be on the pill. some nero meds make people ditzy, dizzy, angry, shaky, and take away the ability to taste food. There is a stronger potential for liver damage on nero meds. I have tried 82 of the meds on the list of 100- started over and went through 4 again before i found what worked, so don't get discourged.

However, if BCP pills were an option, i would choose them over any nero drug. they do not mess with your abilty to function, they do not sedate u, nor do u have to wean off of them. any drug that u can not stop taking with out lowering the dose is a heavy duty drug. BCP will not kill you if u stop cold turkey, and makes most women feel better. alot of the nero meds may get rid of headaches, but u can't funtion for other various side effects. The descion to take daily preventiaves is not one i personally took lightly and i look at every med and talk to a pharmasict before ifill a scrpit, i was sick last week and missed my dose of daily and i felt like crap for days. i quite BCP and there was no nero. differance. That is the difference between the two for me. however, if u have underlying risk factors then, yes BCP can really mess you up. However, it is safe for the majority of the population and not many people have a bad experiance with it.

Now, that being said, i was under the impression that we are on here to share experiances and make people feel like their decion and/or beleiefs are validated. If she doesn't want strong neuro drugs, then how about anyone that knows about homopatheic? magnesium, vitamin b complex, ect.if someone is not okay with the stronger drugs, lets help them and give them ideas to help each other. the standard response of see a dr. is not helpful, bc not everyone lives in an area with a migrane speicalist. i myslef have to drive 2 hours to get to mine. i personally want to share my expierances in order to help someone maybe get a new idea that they can discuss with their dr. i use the experinces of others to determine i will try a drug. dr.s do not tell you everything, nor do they know everything. there may be a new treatment they haven't heard of but once u mention it they can research it more.Thats why i am here. to help other migrane suffers gain knowledge from me and vise verse, at least then i haven'y suffered in vain for 20+ years.

Nancy was making a valid point about the use of the term "heavy duty." There are some doctors who recommend that Migraineurs not take the pill at all because of the increased risk of stroke. She wasn't preaching, she was making a valid point. You mention sharing opinions. The moderators are allowed to share theirs too, and nothing she said should inhibit you at all. I think you're being overly sensitive here. Please just take her post as it was meant, and everyone should be able to get along fine.

quote:

Originally posted by rafruitloop:
I have to disagree. How can you possibly compare an anti-seizure drug to synthetic hormones? I am beginning to wonder if this forum has become a soap box for 'moderators' to preach.

Post after post in which people ask and share opinions and you guys keep chiming in with philosophy and theology. Any intelligent person knows that 'everyone is different and everyone will react differently to different treatments.' However, it is valuable to hear the experiences of others.

I don't know that I will continue to frequent this forum.

Moderator's are inhibiting members from sharing their experiences and receiving useful feedback from other members, without you guys chiming in on your theories.

Hi guys,

I am one of the biggest proponents of free speech around. One can share their thoughts, opinions, views and what not here, there and anywhere. I am also one of the biggest proponents of correct information when I know it. So, I was trying to say that birth control pills are no less heavy duty than antiseizure medications.

I have copied and pasted the contraindications, that anyone can get from Epocrates.com first for Ortho Tri-cyclen, a birth control medication see below:

Contraindications/Cautions
hypersens. to drug/class/compon.
see Drug Interactions
pregnancy
endometrial CA
estrogen-dependent CA
breast CA, active or hx
hepatic tumors, benign or malignant
thrombophlebitis, active or hx
thromboembolic disorders, active or hx
surgery, major w/ prolonged immobilization
prolonged immobilization
smokers >35 yo/heavy smokers
CAD
cerebrovascular dz
valvular heart dz w/ thrombogenesis
thrombogenic rhythm disorders
thrombophilias, acquired or hereditary
HTN, uncontrolled
diabetes mellitus w/ vascular dz
headaches w/ neurologic sx
bleeding, undiagnosed vaginal
hepatic dz, active
cholestatic jaundice hx, OCP or pregnancy-assoc.
w/in 28 days postpartum
w/in 28 days post-2nd trimester abortion
w/in 6wk postpartum if breastfeeding
caution if breastfeeding 6wk-6mo postpartum
caution if hepatic impairment
caution if renal dz
caution if HTN
caution if hyperlipidemia
caution if diabetes mellitus
caution if sensitive to fluid retention
caution if depression hx
caution if vomiting or diarrhea
caution if obesity
caution if headaches w/o neurologic sx
caution in nonsmokers >40 yo
******************************************************************************
Here you can find them for the antiseizure medication Zonegran:
Contraindications/cautions
hypersens. to drug/class/compon.
hypersens. to sulfonamides
renal failure (GFR <50 mL/min)
caution if renal impairment
caution if hepatic impairment
caution if nephrolithiasis
caution if metabolic acidosis
caution if ketogenic diet
caution if diarrhea
caution if respiratory dz, severe
caution if surgery
caution in hot weather
caution if depression or hx
caution in pediatric pts
avoid pregnancy
avoid abrupt withdrawal

Is one more "heavy duty" than the other?

My only point is they are both medications, even natural supplements are medications that react with our body. Yes, there are differences because they do different things. But to say one is more "heavy duty" than another isn't accurate.Migraineurs have so many barriers to cross to find good treatment, dispelling any misconceptions is a good thing.

The reason "kids" don't take some of the same medications adults do is because there are no clinical studies showing the safety for them the FDA doesn't do studies on younger children in general.

The last thing I want is for people to stop sharing their experiences here. I wasn't commenting on your usage of the medication, because if you know anything about me - I'm all about if it works use it. I'm the woman who took methadone for 3.5 years, then moved to oxy contin. I think BC is just as "heavy duty" as those medications. Soapbox, you bet. You can have yours, as long as I can have mine