Anyone suffer from chronic migraines?

Options
13»

Replies

  • sheclimbsrocks
    sheclimbsrocks Posts: 110 Member
    Options
    I have been to the doctor several times, it's just migraines, no underlying cause. They run in my family. My mom has them pretty much everyday so it's not really something I can avoid. I do know that certain foods trigger them so I avoid them as much as possible. I had been prescribed some pills but they didn't really work. I don't want to be taking pills forever either, they are bad for the body. I just deal with the migraine unless it gets too bad to function.

    You poor thing! They run in my family, too, but I have managed to mostly escape them these days. I've had them so bad that my pupils have turned different sizes and my doctor made me have a catscan! Now I get them a few times a year, thank god.

    I kept a food diary for years and figured out MSG is my trigger. I make most of my own food and am limited in what I can eat when we go out, and am a super paranoid dinner guest. Managing my diet used to seem like a pain in the butt, but necessity is the mother of invention and now this has become my lifestyle. MSG seems to be in everything processed and sometimes my best friends accidentally dose me and I lose days of my life. :(

    I am also with you on not liking the drugs. I have bad reactions to them. Meditation and an ice pack work best for me, as well as sleep and caffeine. A Red Bull is my day after cure. They also say that vitamin B deficiency may contribute to migraines. Since I'm a vegetarian, I take a B complex supplement anyway.

    I can't do any exercises during my migraines. Rest helps my body recover. I hope that you do find a way to prevent them. It is really living hell when you are in chronic excruciating pain with no prediction or explanation. It's like being a prisoner I really do hope that you feel better and can find the root of the cause. Maybe the solution is to exercise like hell on the days that you feel best.

    Feel better, sister!
  • divediva2
    divediva2 Posts: 297 Member
    Options
    Many great suggestions here already. I must second the suggestion to read the book, The Migraine Brain. It is bang on. I have suffered migraines for many years and was lucky enough to be referred to a neurologist who specializes in treating headache and migraines. Much of the advice she gave me was in the book so get it.

    I am also on a daily preventative medication and I also take OTC supplements, Vitamin B2, Vitamin D, Magnesium, Omega Complex, and use Melatonin for sleep. I have two rescue meds for migraines. I have gone from daily migraines to approximately 5-8 migraines a month. Still too many but in comparison it is an improvement.

    One thing I remember from my first visit was the doctor saying how I had actually caused rebound migraine/headaches by taking Advil or Tylenol for Migraine to try and control the pain. I had to stop taking it and she put me on a medication daily for about two weeks to help control the rebound headaches at the time. I have not had an Advil or Tylenol since.

    Visit your primary care physician and see if you can get a referral to a specialist would be my advice. Definitely pick up the book, it is a great reference, I still pick it up and read to this day.
  • Samanthasteinagle26
    Samanthasteinagle26 Posts: 20 Member
    Options
    Omg I had one so bad at the gym. I was almost crying. Somehow running made it a lil better.
  • kschr201
    kschr201 Posts: 219 Member
    Options

    One thing I remember from my first visit was the doctor saying how I had actually caused rebound migraine/headaches by taking Advil or Tylenol for Migraine to try and control the pain. I had to stop taking it and she put me on a medication daily for about two weeks to help control the rebound headaches at the time. I have not had an Advil or Tylenol since.

    I wonder if that used to be my issue. I can't drink too much caffeine because of migraines, but some of the pain medications that I would take if I had one contain caffeine. it's a cycle...

Categories