migraines

Erinshealthdiscovery
Erinshealthdiscovery Posts: 20 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I've been eating super clean this month. I'm down eleven pounds. I drink at least a gallon of water a day, and I am still getting terrible migraines. Doctor said "stress", but I've had several extremely stressful days without one and happy days with excruciating ones. It's affecting me badly. I don't want to move much less exercise. Doctor couldn't give medicine since I have a nursing baby. What can I do? Any food that helps? I don't really easy triggers anymore?

Replies

  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    Do you know what your triggers are?
  • HealthierRayne
    HealthierRayne Posts: 268 Member
    A few years ago I determined that certain foods trigger migraines for me - tuna in particular.

    Is there anything new or different you're eating in the last month, maybe your migraines are food induced??
  • CorneliusPhoton
    CorneliusPhoton Posts: 965 Member
    If you are suffering from "low carb flu", it is supposed to go away after a few weeks. I am still waiting for mine to go away. I guess you don't want to have caffeine if you are nursing, but caffeine helps. I hope you feel better soon.
  • Erinshealthdiscovery
    Erinshealthdiscovery Posts: 20 Member
    It's all new. I'm eating clean so no more unhealthy food. Maybe if I log the migraines too I can find a trigger? They seem pretty random.
  • mccraee
    mccraee Posts: 199 Member
    For me it is dehydration or not enough caffeine. And, just not eating enough
  • rakowskidp
    rakowskidp Posts: 231 Member
    I use Migraine Buddy, http://www.migrainebuddy.com/, to track triggers and other conditions that could lead to migraine. I highly recommend it, and it's free!
  • helenrosec1
    helenrosec1 Posts: 82 Member
    I get migraines occasionally and still don't know what triggers them. I eat the same foods a lot so I know it's not any food I eat.
  • louise13dunstan
    louise13dunstan Posts: 74 Member
    I tend to get them when my cycle is just starting or just ending.
    Red wine used to bring them on so I cut that out years ago. X
  • Btheodore138
    Btheodore138 Posts: 182 Member
    It is allergy season, so maybe allergies are triggering them? Also, a gnarly sinus headache will feel very similar to a migraine. Also, watch out for any sort food/drink with sulfites (dried fruits, wine, hot dogs, bacon).
  • fidangul
    fidangul Posts: 673 Member
    My trigger is lack of sleep/rest. When I feel it coming I take my meds for it. It helps a little. I never thought of food as being a trigger.
  • thewildair
    thewildair Posts: 31 Member
    I get migraines too, and I was getting a lot of them when I cut refined/added sugar out of my diet. It took about a month before I was back to my normal baseline.
  • browneyes1520
    browneyes1520 Posts: 94 Member
    Aspartame is a huge migraine trigger for me and a lot of other people too.
  • PennyBrew
    PennyBrew Posts: 47 Member
    Do you clench your jaw or grind your teeth at night? Sometimes that can trigger migraines. I know it does for me and several of my massage clients.
  • CorneliusPhoton
    CorneliusPhoton Posts: 965 Member
    browneyes1520 wrote: »
    Aspartame is a huge migraine trigger for me and a lot of other people too.

    YES. When I was in my 30s I began getting terrible dizzy spells (the stay in bed and don't move kind) alternating with migraines for about a year. Had all kinds of tests done. One of my docs mentioned just kind of offhand that maybe I should cut out the aspartame. I was ready to try anything. I cut it out and was symptom free within 4 weeks. If you are sensitive to it, it takes that long for whatever has accumulated in your system to get out. It is definitely worth checking out.
  • elphie754
    elphie754 Posts: 7,574 Member
    Have you had blood work done (beyond just the basics)? I had been suffering from migraines and when I had blood work done, it showed I was significantly deficient in vitamin D. My MD suggested that this *could* be related, and that more research was being done currently about the link. She told me to take a vitamin D supplement either way because even if I didn't have migraines, I was too low. After a few weeks of starting the vitamin d, I noticed I no longer had migraines. Could just be coincidence but it might be worth checking out.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    edited April 2016
    JEJMA0223 wrote: »
    It's all new. I'm eating clean so no more unhealthy food. Maybe if I log the migraines too I can find a trigger? They seem pretty random.

    Download a migraine app. It can help you identify your triggers.
  • OyGeeBiv
    OyGeeBiv Posts: 733 Member
    Two of my migraine triggers are bright focused light and glare. If my curtains are open all the way, I'm fine. But if they're closed and just a sliver of light is shining in, I'll be sick almost immediately. I wear sunglasses outside, and try to avoid glare at all costs. I also try to avoid having my picture taken with flash.
  • Erinshealthdiscovery
    Erinshealthdiscovery Posts: 20 Member
    I definitely clench my teeth at night. I drink over a gallon of water a day and no sugar. Light definitely bothers me and the doctor wouldn't do any blood work. She said to come back when I finish nursing my baby. I will definitely download an app. I didn't know that was a thing. Thank you everyone.
  • PennyBrew
    PennyBrew Posts: 47 Member
    If you clench talk to your dentist too. They can fit you for a mouth guard that will protest your teeth and keep you from grinding. You can also massage your jaw. You'd be surprised how many people have knots in the massetter and pterygoid muscles.
  • MelissaPhippsFeagins
    MelissaPhippsFeagins Posts: 8,063 Member
    I had migraines every other day while nursing my now 16 year old. It was hormonal. I am sorry you are having them.
  • futuresize8
    futuresize8 Posts: 476 Member
    My mouth guard is brilliant - only for the front teeth (it has a gentle adhesive activated by warm tap water) - so my back teeth don't touch. ( I broke two full set mouth guards by grinding.) It has changed my life.
  • Erinshealthdiscovery
    Erinshealthdiscovery Posts: 20 Member
    futuresize8 wrote: »
    My mouth guard is brilliant - only for the front teeth (it has a gentle adhesive activated by warm tap water) - so my back teeth don't touch. ( I broke two full set mouth guards by grinding.) It has changed my life.

    That's it. I'm getting a guard. I hope that helps ;)
  • shaumom
    shaumom Posts: 1,003 Member
    There can be lots of different reasons for this sort of thing, depending on the person. However...you need to get a new doctor, first.

    Anytime a doctor hears you have headaches and says 'stress' is the reason? That usually a good sign you have a doctor who is not paying attention to what you say, or - more importantly - thinking about what could be happening. In my experience, they will tend to miss problems developing because they are so sure you have minor issues that they won't even think about other possibilities until they get bad.


    So, a few things.
    1. Have you been talking to your ob/gyn about your headaches? Because women who have migraines seem more prone to them during pregnancy, with some common triggers during pregnancy (http://www.whattoexpect.com/pregnancy/symptoms-and-solutions/migraines.aspx).
    However, more importantly, having migraines during pregnancy is something that doctors usually want to monitor because in rare cases it can be a warning sign of trouble later (the article linked above discusses this). I don't say this to scare you, but it's important to know, you know?

    Because that doctor dismissed your migraines as stress AND did it while you are pregnant? Get a new doctor, seriously. You need one who is paying attention and making sure you and baby are doing well.

    2. Clenching teeth - can absolutely make a difference with that guard!
    3. Other things I've seen (and had) that can cause migraines. lack of sleep, low blood sugar, certain foods (usually more than one, so can't just avoid one or two foods and it's all good), artificial dyes, artificial flavorings, artificial gums, artificial preservatives.
    4. Some components of food, added or natural, that can cause migraines:
    - sulfites. This site has a lot of information (http://holdthesulfites.com/ok-you-cant-eat-everything/ ). The list of foods with sulfites is what many sulfite allergic folks react to, so may have foods listed that have such low levels of sulfites that a non-allergic person would be fine, but it's a start, you know? However, one thing to know is that there are naturally occurring sulfites as well as added, so you can still get them while eating a very clean diet (like peanuts or grapes, for example).
    - salicylates. Some folks are more sensitive to these in their foods, and can get migraines from them, too. This site has some information on that: http://salicylatesensitivity.com/about/food-guide/
    - Celiac Disease. This disease is rarely screened for, but can not only cause difficulties with migraines (which many doctors are ignorant and unaware of) but also with pregnancy...and is actually more common than some diseases that ARE screened for during pregnancy (there are groups trying to get this added to the list of things to screen for in pregnancy, actually). If you are still eating gluten, it's just a blood test panel to screen for this. (This just mentions the prevalence of migraines in the celiac community - http://www.migrainemonologues.com/2012/11/study-connects-migraine-with-celiac.html )



    Hope that you are able to find out what's going on with your migraines and start to feel better, hon! Take care

Categories