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Hi there,

I have been suffering from migraines for many years and wondered whether anyone else here gets them. I take triptans which kind of cure each one, but isn't falible and if they don't work then I have 3 days of pain. Let me know if you get them and how you treat them. I have done lots of research and have started up a blog tracing my research from alternative to conventional methods. The blog is called Another Migraine as I get about 3 a week and can be found here: Another Migraine. I hope that it helps you out and would be interested in hearing your experiences.

Many thanks

Martin

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I have had migraines for years. They got really bad after other health issues surfaced. I've tried all the usual prophilactic meds from beta blockers to calcium channel blockers. I finally gave up. I have not tried Imitrex or other pain meds specifically for migraine. Because I'm already taking pain meds for other issues my doctors won't try it.

I was struggling with more pain in my legs due to water retention. It took me awhile to talk my doctor into trying a water pill to see if it would help my legs. Surprised us both when it helped prevent some of my migraines.

I still get them but usually stress related instead of hormone related.

Massage therapy specifically targeting the trigger points that refer pain to the head has helped. Also when I'm just getting one or I have one entrenced for days I put ice on my head and heat on my feet. It really works!! There is a medical reason why this works. When we hurt our body sends more blood to that area to help in healing. With migraine this mechanism just makes it worse. The heat on the feet pulls the blood away and the ice on the head helps reduce the pain.

I hope you can find some relief. I'm looking forward to reading your blog.

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I suffered from massive migraines for years. They got really bad and I Had brain x-rays and mri (nuclear scans) in which they found no causes for the migraines. This was when I was around 25. I was still suffering around the age of 40 (when your eyes change) and found that I needed prescription glasses. I got the glasses and the migraines and a lot of smaller headaches went away and that has been the case for over twenty years now. Worth checking anyway.

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Dear applepansy

I am glad that you have found some relief for your migraines. They can be horible when you don't catch them. It is been discovered recently that migraines part caused by blood vesels either dilating or the opposite. That is why either heat or cold to the neck works as it reverses the effects. It's funny that you say cold works on your neck, as heat works a little on mine!

There are many triggers to migraines and stress might only be one of them. Have you ever tried keeping a food diary? The results may suprise you.

Martin

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@TGFR, I am glad that the glasses helped you. It is quite often the little things that make so much difference to our lives. I am 40 now but have worn glasses for most of my life and get my eyes checked every year, so unfortunately this might not be a fix for me but I will certainly mention it next time I get them checked.

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For my migraines I take anywhere from 4-6 Extra Strength Excedrins with a full glass of Dr. Pepper (or any other soda with caffeine). And then I try to sleep for about 3 hours. I use to take ibuprofen, but after about a year they became less effective. I have also tried Relpax, but got mixed results (sometimes it would work, sometimes it didn’t).

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Hi Daybreak, Be careful not to take too much caffeine as that can trigger migraines. As it happens, the only time I take a cup of coffee is when I get a migraine and it does help (there will be a blog entry about that in a few weeks time). The reason that caffeine is added to some drugs is that it helps to speed up the absorbtion rate of the drug into your body. Ibuprofen does nothing for me at all. The only over the counter drug that dents it are Syndol and sometimes Paramol

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Dear applepansy

I am glad that you have found some relief for your migraines. They can be horible when you don't catch them. It is been discovered recently that migraines part caused by blood vesels either dilating or the opposite. That is why either heat or cold to the neck works as it reverses the effects. It's funny that you say cold works on your neck, as heat works a little on mine!

There are many triggers to migraines and stress might only be one of them. Have you ever tried keeping a food diary? The results may suprise you.

Martin

yes...food diaries, environmental tracking, ... you name it I've done it. :)

Its the combination of ice on the head and heat on the feet that has the most affect. Another trick if inflammation is suspected is alternating ice and heat every 20 minutes.

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I have been getting them since I was 5. I am on Pizotifen/sandomigran and Nortriptyline as preventatives. When I get a migraine I have found migraine specific pain relief (such as Imigran/Maxalt) don't even touch the pain so I now take Maxalt for nausea with Voltaren and Oxycontin as pain relief for three days at a time - 20mg Oxycontin/75mg Voltaren twice a day. The 20mg Oxycontin doesn't really touch it now so it will have to be increased with the next one.

I find they last three days at least (with pain) but can take up to six weeks for appetite, energy and vision to return to normal.

I find I have to get plenty of sleep and keep stress levels low and steady. My husband says that since our red meat consumption has dropped my migraine has increased - possibly due to lower levels of iron or b vitamins and increasing magnesium intake can help too as people who get migraine are more likely to have lower levels of these vitamins.

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I've had them since I was a teenager, and for me they run in my family as both my mom and brother have had them. My brother even has a prescription for when they hit, but I'm just fine for now with the generic Excedrin migraine pills taken with a caffeinated soda.If I take that as soon as I get the aura of a migraine starting, it stops it from getting worse. My main trigger is heat combined with humidity in the summer, even if I'm drinking enough water. It's one reason why I love where I live, as hot, humid days are extremely rare, as the heat we do get is a dry heat.

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Guest mirancs8

Look at what you are eating. I ended up in the hospital for a migraine and decided to see a doctor that works with natural remedies. It was found that my migraines where triggered by what I was eating. I basically have to limit my intake of lunchmeats, wheat, rye, anything enriched, potatos, sugar, grapefruits, and many other things. I can eat a little bit but I know where the point is where a migraine could start.

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My migraines started when I hit puberty. Long, heavy hair, needing glasses, and smoked/fermented/aged foods were my triggers.

Took me decades to learn the triggers. :confused:

I hadn't had a migraine in nearly 5 years, then had the 'Grand Daddy' of them all a year after my second marriage. I got home from work safely. Husband made an appointment with his Chiropractor for me, and took me in. I couldn't see, and the sun, noise and smells were nearly too much of an overload of pain for me.

The Dr manipulated my neck and shoulders. In a matter of minutes the pain felt like it was flowing down through my body and out my feet. Never in my life had a migraine gone away that quickly.

Since that day, I have only had the onset of a migraine twice. Each time was my day off and I went to the Chiropractor. For $10.00 co-pay, not only did he alleviate my migraine, but also the aches in the rest of my body.:)

Our insurance covers 20 visits a year. Believe me, I go 20 times a year. Twice a year I also treat myself to a full body massage after seeing the Chiropractor.

Try alternating Aleve with the Ibuprofen. I never used anything stronger than Aspirin. Took 6 of them at the onset. Kept the pain from being so horrible.

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Quote:

Originally Posted by ThankGodForRepentence View Post

Try Peppermint Oil dabbed beneath the nose.

That's one of my triggers. Migraines are so complex and varied. It's a beast to try to control.

I was told to use lavender but any smell is unbearable when I have a migraine. The neurologist I saw earlier this year said it is easier to prevent them than deal with them once they get started. That said I am still trying to find something that is really effective in controlling them :(

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Guest DeborahC

Peppermint oil is one of the substances that GIVES me a migraine. It may work, but use caution.

I'd like to suggest anyone with migraines research Multiple Chemical Sensitivities.

Many of us get migraines in response to being exposed to fragrances in household products, perfumes, hair products, lotions, make up, air fresheners, and above all, FEBREZE, which is a neurotoxin. Dryer sheets with fragrance are another HUGE issue, and you carry those chemicals around with you all day long, breathing them and absorbing them through your skin.

I"m not saying all migraines are a symptom of MCS, but some people might find relief by ridding their homes and lives of fragrance. And it could be worth looking into.

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  • 2 months later...

Hi all. Sorry I have not been properly active lately here. Slap on the back of the hand and must do better! Truth is that I lost the link to the website and it took me a while to find it again! Saved it now though so should't happen again.

Regarding pepermint, I use 4Head to help eleviate the pain. I would think that this works in a similar way. If I plaster enough of it on then it makes my eyes water and it is this that actually helps eleviate, but not get rid of the pain.

I wish that I could find a proper trigger either in food or otherwise. I have had allergy tests and have cut out wheat and don't have milk or soya (for other reasons) but nothing helps. Once you have cut out all of the foods it is really important to slowly introduce them again one at a time. You may find that it is only a few of them that actually is the trigger.

Iggy, interesting what you say about the manipulation. My wife has found a point on my back which if she applies pressure will reduce the pain for up to an hour.

Check out my latest blog entry in the post above and let me know what you think. Thanks for the stories as I think that it helps us all to share the pain.

Martin

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I have migraines once in a while usually when something is really stressing me out or I am working really long hours then I have a few hours to a day when things are not fun. I usually take excederin migraine pain killers and go into a dark room that is also quiet. The ex a nurse no less could never understand them.

I have a friend who has migraines 100% of the time and has meds to take depending on the level of the migraine and she has been this way for years and no they have found nothing to be causing them but they are slowly getting worse.

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My friend has a very good doctor who is up on the issue and there is just one cure that he can find and that one is a hard pill to accept. The migraines will stop when my friend leaves this world. Yep that is the only cure they have found that should work. Seems that with all the tests that have been done that they know less than before they started.

It is one of those questions that asks why they even started in the first place and if there is a trigger what is it and can it be turned off. So far after years of my friend being one of the testers for many of the new ideas all they have learned is that they can make it worse for my friend. So now they try to keep the medications at keeping them down to a level that my friend can have some sort of life. We went out to eat and just the noise in the restaurant set my friend off and we even offered to go to another restaurant to see if we could find one with less noise.

Life hands all of us challenges and the sad truth is that some of them are literally making lives very hard to enjoy and one has to wonder the reason for it. But we all know that we are hear to learn something and that the rules are anything goes so that about clears up what we can expect out of this life.

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I learned the other day that G-d only gives pain to those he cares about. The people who don't merit his attention are left to live their life in bliss. It is the next world where this changes around. I would rather have my pain now than have it multiplied in the next world.

It's not an easy concept to accept and I sometimes wonder if it is a benafit only to those in pain, but it helps me get through when I am in the middle of a bad migraine and on top of that my newly found ailment of arthritis my foot flares up.

Martin

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