Need help with migraines

I'm so sorry. I get migranes too. I can relate....

Feverfew is a specific for migraines. Make a feverfew tea and drink 6 - 8 ounces per day without fail. It is not an immediate fix, but long-term keeps them at bay. Look it up.... and good luck?!

I don't know if this will help you but it helps me:

I gently rub peppermint oil on my temples and back of neck. I then put a cold compress on my forehead and one on the back of my neck. I lay quietly in a darkened room for about a half hour to an hour.

It may not take it completely away but it sure seems to help relieve the worse part of the migraine.

Good luck.

After 10 years of migraines that lasted 24 hrs each time,they stopped.....or so I thought.One day I went partially blind,was in hospital with a light stroke diagnosis.Then it happened again & Dr said "occular migraines "....of the eye.Had never heard of them.A few times they happened several times a wk,but mostly they respond to Excedrin migraine med.Available without a prescription in any pharmacy.

I also learned to stay away from all forms of artifical sweeteners.

I am so sorry - I can feel your pain. My husband and I tracked mine to determine what the triggers were. One big one for me is lack of or not enough sleep, so I have to make sure I sleep for at least 7-8 hours each night. I also didn't want to take any drugs unless absolutely necessary, so my doctor recommended 400 mg Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), 300 mg Magnesium and 300 mg CoQ10 daily. I take these along with my multivitamin and my migraines have been under control. Every now and then, things happen and I am not able to get the rest I need, etc. and the result - migraine, so when that occurs, my doctor also prescribed 500 mg Naproxen that I have to take twice a day to get rid of it. Of course, I have to get back in gear and get the required amount of rest.

I hope this helpls - this regiment has definitely helped me.

Butterbur. An herb. The label recommends 1 capsule 2X a day, but 2 capsules 2X a day is also safe if your migraines are resistant.

http://www.amazon.com/Butterbur-Extract-75-60-Caps/dp/B001TEIM1A/ref=sr_1_1?s=hpc&ie=UTF8&qid=1369925760&sr=1-1&keywords=butterbur

My husband has never had a migraine in his life, but takes this for allergies. It works wonders for this also.

I was going to suggest butterbur too since it's an herb, not really a "drug". My neurologist had me trying it for a bit, but I asked to be taken off it because the aftertaste made me extremely nauseous for a couple hours. :ohwell: However, I've heard WONDERFUL things about it.

I've heard that a lot of people have gotten rid of migraines or at least lessened them significantly by cutting out gluten. You could try that?

I've been suffering from chronic migraine/CDH since 2006 and have yet to find something that "cures" them. I'm on Topomax and Zoloft now, and they seem to be a tiny bit better. I'm also working on cutting out gluten, but so far I've just lowered my intake of it rather than cutting it out completely.

I've suffered from chronic migraines for years, and meds from the doctor never worked. A couple of months ago, I ordered Migrelief (magnesium, feverfew and vitamin b2) and Butterbur extract from Amazon. I take one of each in the morning and night. It's helped SO much. I cannot recommend it enough. It's seriously been life changing from me. I keep a migraine diary, and here is how it breaks down. I started taking it at the end of February:

Dec 21 days with migraine
Jan 16 days with migraine
Feb 17 days with migraine
March 9 days with migraine
April 6 days with migraine
May 5 days with migraine

HUGE difference! I tell everyone I know who gets migraines to order this stuff, and they never do. And I have to listen to them complain about their chronic migraines. Please try it, it's awesome. You have to take it with food at first, and it will likely upset your stomach for the first couple of weeks. After that, the stomach problems taper off for most people.

My migraines are also occular and I have to work on a computer all day, which doesn't help matters but at least they let me work in the dark and that helps. My main trigger is fluourescent lights.

I forgot to mention, I've heard about this as a common trigger too. I just can't figure out how to avoid it. I can't make my office change the lights. :ohwell:

But my mom has heard that using "old school" light bulbs at home (rather than the spiral-y [compact fluorescent] ones that are more eco-friendly) can help. Do you use the old, incandescent bulbs or the newer compact fluorescent bulbs at home?

ohhhh poor you, really, really poor you :-(

I suffer 2 kinds of migraines. 1 from stress & tiredness and the other from a neck injury.

This is a good page for what can trigger migraines - http://www.webmd.com/migraines-headaches/guide/triggers-specific-foods It does mention sweeteners and I'd be especially inclined to agree with foods high in artificial additives and caffeine.

Natural remedies, I personally haven't found any apart from drinking lots of water and trying to sleep it off.

Medicinally, I'm prescribed Amitryptiline in 10mg doses. It's a bit of a knock out but I do tend to wake up with the migraine gone. I also find diazepam (which I take for other reasons) a good quick remedy but it's not something you can rely on long term.

Unfortunately, if your migraines are from a head injury (like mine are often from a neck injury) there might be very little you can do to prevent them.

I truly hope you find a way to manage them.

I just started going to a neurologist about a year ago so I'm still kind of new to testing options. (I was on an HMO plan where I couldn't go to a specialist without a referral, and it took over 6 years of complaining to my doctor to get that referral. :grumble: )

I had that issue. I called to make an appointment, they asked who referred me, and I said "I'm referring myself". :laugh: She didn't think that was funny. I then asked why I need to pay one doctor to tell me I need to go to a different doctor, and she eventually let me see the nurse practitioner, who I've been seeing ever since!

I have to work in an office on a computer with flourescent lights...I had them unscrew the lights above my cube...I got a lamp for my desk with an incandescent bulb and a led lamp to hang right over my screen...it seems to work quite nicely since I was getting about 3-4 migraines a week prior to making those changes and also going on 150mg of topamax and 50mg of amitriptyline at night. My doctor completely cut me off of ibuprofen because of the rebound headaches that they create...as well as the excedrine. I only take those if I have a headache that does not qualify as a migraine (which almost never occurs). I went from having 15-20 migraines a month in June of 2012 down to 1 a month (max) by May of this year!!
I have also cut out most of my dark diet sodas cause the topamax just makes it taste yucky! But they do make Diet Coke with Splenda and without aspartame...maybe try that if you're still hooked?
When I do get a migraine I still take Imitrex and if its still not going away a Valium to knock me out. But these days, thankfully, they are few and far between!
I wish you lots of luck and hope that you can find relief wherever you can!! Remember, just because you've tried one medication does not mean that's it...there's so many out there! I went through 3 others before I found the Topamax and Amitripyline combo for me.

The lady that does my massages at the spa told me to take two tennis balls and put them in a sock and lay them where your neck and shoulders meet and lay on them for a little bit. It releases the tension and stress in your neck which accompany my headaches and helps ease them off

I have to work in an office on a computer with flourescent lights...I had them unscrew the lights above my cube...I got a lamp for my desk with an incandescent bulb and a led lamp to hang right over my screen...

Good idea! I might look into that. The lights above my desk are in the middle between being above mine and my neighbor's though so hopefully it wouldn't bother her.

My doctor completely cut me off of ibuprofen because of the rebound headaches that they create...as well as the excedrine. I only take those if I have a headache that does not qualify as a migraine (which almost never occurs).

Yep. Same here. I'm on Frova right now if I get a migraine. My doctor has tried Imitrex and Maxalt, but none of the triptans have seemed to help so we're probably going to try a different class. We've tried BP medication too even though mine is normal (surprising considering most of my family has either too high or too low BP).

Non-extensive list of various medication options: http://www.rxlist.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=104593

everyone has really good suggestions! my migraines are almost GONE thanks to using prophylactic propranolol. i do 20 mg twice a day, and i am so stoked over that.

when i can, i take showers with my migraines...in the dark. the water beating on my neck just makes the pain go away.

i found that taking caffeine (okay, ok, a LOT of caffeine) out of my diet helped too. i'm down to one cup a day, and i've stopped adding sugar/splenda/whatever was available. also, exercise.

hope the others helped you more than i could!