Migraines & Running

2

Replies

  • goodlife4ever
    goodlife4ever Posts: 14 Member
    You all are warriors, and I’m not kidding or saying that lightly. Thanks for the replies. 💛

    I’m on the fourth and hopefully final day of my own migraine. I can count on getting one every month since age 16, hormone related and genetic. My mom and grandmother had the same. Apparently they’ll go away with menopause! I guess I have that to look forward too!
    Running is one of the things that brings me the most happiness and mental clarity in life. It’s annoying to fall behind because of these headaches. But a reality.
    I’ve been restricting calories after starting this app and I do feel like that has helped a little with the duration and pain severity.
  • goodlife4ever
    goodlife4ever Posts: 14 Member

    I used to think that I had to stick to a strict exercise schedule of this on x day and that on y day for the whole week like clockwork, and it tormented me on my off days. I have since accepted that I will not be able to exercise on a regular schedule like some. I take it day by day, and try to do something every day be it lifting weights in my garage, jogging in nice weather or biking in my living room. At least if I play it by ear I end up doing more than I would trying to fit an arbitrary schedule. This is not a race and you’ll progress at a rate that might not be as fast, and may be much faster than other people. Hope this helps. [/quote]


    Wise words and so true. Thanks for the perspective. I kick myself when I can’t stay consistent, but you’re 100% right on.
  • jdog022
    jdog022 Posts: 693 Member
    Honestly I have to convince myself not to go run infront of a bus just to stop the pain never mind run for exercise. Fortunately since I started this journey I went from many per year to one in 3 years. I really do think there is a correlation to healthy weight, bf % and various blood markers to migraine triggers. Or maybe that ridiculous amount of alcohol I use to drink
  • EmmieEatsEverything
    EmmieEatsEverything Posts: 15 Member
    Consistency, at least for me, looks nothing like other people’s. I cannot have a “gym buddy” because they would definitely get frustrated with me and I’m terrified of someone thinking that I use my migraines as an excuse to get out of social engagements.

    Some weeks I have an exercise logged every day (Apple Watch) and my streak is 10-15 days. Then sometimes I have to go 3-4 days of doing nothing because I can’t move/see/speak/anything. I like to remind myself that I still did however many days of good exercise, and just because I’m down a couple days doesn’t mean I didn’t do something before.

    I am new to this app, but not new to attempting a healthier life. Since October I have lost 4 inches off my hips just adding in the bicycle when I could. It took me forever to come to terms with my lack of a “schedule.” I’m very type A and get frustrated easily when things aren’t organized. But I have lost 10lbs and 4 inches off my hips since October adopting the “chaotic, do what I feel today” schedule.
  • goodlife4ever
    goodlife4ever Posts: 14 Member
    EmmieEatsEverything, what you wrote, all of it, could be me. From being worried about using my migraine as excuse to type A. You’re so right about the “consistency not looking like other people’s.”

    Congrats on the weight loss and healthy living, and that’s quite an accomplishment for being on since October. I’ve lost 22 lbs so far using this app but I’ve been on and off since February. I’m shooting for three more lbs before January to get back on track, and commiting to my goal weight.
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    edited December 2018
    EmmieEatsEverything wrote: »
    If you’re in the US, there is a new class of prevention treatments that just hit the market this year. I am finishing up the free trial for Aimovig, and I’m pretty impressed. I was having quarterly Botox injections. My sumatriptan seems to be more effective on the newer drug and I’m having slightly less than what I did on Botox. Also my eyebrows aren’t paralyzed anymore. However, insurance typically only covers these if you have failed 2 prevention treatments and have 15 or more migraines a month.

    Mine, without treatment, can last 3-4 days as well. I love my cardio, too. I have a spin bike I scored new, and under 200$ off amazon that I will use on some of the headache days that aren’t completely debilitating. It’s a little easier for me to control my heart rate on a bike than it is jogging. Easier to stop if I think I’m
    pushing myself too far too (no turning around and walking home all wobbly and nauseated.) Realistically though, if you’re incapacitated...you’re incapacitated.

    I used to think that I had to stick to a strict exercise schedule of this on x day and that on y day for the whole week like clockwork, and it tormented me on my off days. I have since accepted that I will not be able to exercise on a regular schedule like some. I take it day by day, and try to do something every day be it lifting weights in my garage, jogging in nice weather or biking in my living room. At least if I play it by ear I end up doing more than I would trying to fit an arbitrary schedule. This is not a race and you’ll progress at a rate that might not be as fast, and may be much faster than other people. Hope this helps.

    I've been getting botox for a while and more and more lately it hasn't been as effective as it was when I first started getting it.

    I just started Aimovig a couple weeks ago, I'm due again in 8 days. I can't take triptans, so I'm on old school DHE for a rescue med and I've been going through a lot of it lately. Considering that's an IM injection, I'm hoping for some relief from the Aimovig, because those suckers aren't pleasant!
  • EmmieEatsEverything
    EmmieEatsEverything Posts: 15 Member
    edited December 2018
    I’ve been using Aimovig for 2 months and I’m finding that it works as well as Botox. There are some who relief is instant, and some who don’t have any relief at all on it. At least based off some of the “reviews” I have read. I’m glad the company that makes it is giving 2 months free, and have discount programs for new patients. If I had to pay for it outright I wouldn’t have bothered trying it. I had to fight between the pharmacy and the people giving copay assistance to get my copay down from 340.53$ to 5$.

    Ouch on the injections! I hope the new class of drug works for you. I struggle with just injecting the Aimovig. If it doesn’t work I know that other drugs that are similar have just hit the market too, and they’re my backup if Aimovig looses its efficacy for me. I also found I began to resist Botox after a couple years.

    (Edited because a coworker asked me a question and I didn’t realize I hit submit before tossing my phone on my desk and walking away.)
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    I'm already on Humira, so sub-cu injections don't phase me. The Aimovig didn't bother me at all, just left a bit of a bruise.

    I have insurance and my co-pay is $60, which isn't too bad. I need to try with that copay assistance site again because it kept crashing on me.

    My neuro told me that the full benefits of the Aimovig really kick in with the second shot, so I'm hopeful.
  • EmmieEatsEverything
    EmmieEatsEverything Posts: 15 Member
    I honestly didn’t start getting relief until the second shot, and the articles I’ve read suggest it takes 2-3 months for the full effect.
  • MHarper522
    MHarper522 Posts: 108 Member
    edited December 2018
    I can...thanks to meds lol. Mine are more straight pain and noise sensitivity, not light, which makes a big difference. Taking a dose of my prescription meds, a cup of black coffee, and running helps. Maybe it's a blood flow thing since vein dilation is basically what migraines are.

    ETA: I take 100 mg Sumatriptan. It takes the pain away if I take it right when it starts, leaves me with a bit of a whiplash brain feeling if that makes sense, but no pain.
  • shelbydodgeguy
    shelbydodgeguy Posts: 194 Member
    pyrusangeles wrote: »
    Sometimes they're so awful I can't even lie down, the pounding is so bad. I have to sit up in the dark with a cold compress on my neck. It feels like I'm going to pop an aneurysm.

    I get migraines like this, and I've had them since I was four or five years old. I get the full deal with light, motion, sound sensitivy, nausea, puking, etc. As I've gotten older it seems like more and more things trigger them and a lot of times it's the most innocuous things like certain shades of light bulbs lighting a room, or sunlight walking outside to get the mail, or a whiff of an unlit candle or something sickly sweet smelling.
    pyrusangeles wrote: »
    I'm on a daily preventative, and my migraines tend to stop completely when I'm calorie restricting (excellent motivation!) so I haven't had one in a month. It has been glorious.

    I take a daily preventative and it reduced mine by about 25 percent but I was still dealing with migraines more than half the month. As a sort of last ditch thing since I don't have health coverage my doctor suggested I try some dietary changes and what do you know... going keto knocked the migraines and my autoimmune inflammation down quite a bit. Now I'm down to one every so often unless I get exposed to a trigger. My body is so weird and I can't explain why it's working, just that it is. *shrug*

  • EmmieEatsEverything
    EmmieEatsEverything Posts: 15 Member
    MHarper, that’s how I feel when I have to take imitrex too. Like I didn’t get enough sleep or am slightly hungover.

    I have never heard of Keto reducing headaches. The only dietary changes my Neurologist has suggested, besides avoiding triggers, is magnesium and vitamin b12. I’m going to have to read up on the Keto thing. My husband is diabetic and surely won’t mind eliminating carbs almost completely . (Yeah, right)

    My only concern about Keto is, I do a lot of cardio and I’m not sure the super low carbs will support that. Once upon a time when I flirted with super high protein diets and only ate chicken breasts and broccoli every day for months, I was getting thin, lifting weights was fine, but my cardio sessions suuuuuucccccckkkkkkked. That, and sometimes when I get a headache, not a migraine but just a mild and uncomfortable headache, I eat some candy and it goes away then doesn’t turn to a migraine.

    By the way, thanks for starting this thread OP. I feel very alone and frustrated sometimes about this subject and I love reading this. 💕
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    Emmie, I do a lot of power walking. My performance tanked. Supposedly if you do keto long enough, this rectifies itself, but since my trial with it for headaches was such a failure, I saw no reason to keep going to see if that happened.
  • MHarper522
    MHarper522 Posts: 108 Member
    EmmieEatsEverything wrote: »
    MHarper, that’s how I feel when I have to take imitrex too. Like I didn’t get enough sleep or am slightly hungover.

    Yes! That's exactly it.

  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    imitrex put me to sleep. i would lose the whole day.
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,627 Member
    if you can run when you have a migraine ... you dont have a migraine.
  • mbaker566
    mbaker566 Posts: 11,233 Member
    edited December 2018
    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    if you can run when you have a migraine ... you dont have a migraine.

    that's not fair. there are varying degrees.
    many of mine have no pain. i have auras, dizzy, nauseaus, and all the other symptoms but no pain. still a migraine per my drs

    (and then there are days where they are mild pain, and others where death sounds like a nice reprieve)
  • YvetteK2015
    YvetteK2015 Posts: 653 Member
    edited December 2018
    callsitlikeiseeit wrote: »
    if you can run when you have a migraine ... you dont have a migraine.

    If you believe that, then you don't know much about the disease.

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