I don't get migraines (my son does), but I have Bipolar Disorder (there is a connection). I take Depakote. It works for me, but every person is different, so really, my feedback is useless to you. I will tell you, though, it has a terrible rep for causing weight gain. My pdoc said only 50% of ppl gain weight, but that weight gain should be unacceptable. I see so many ppl who don't see their doc often and gain 20-30 ppounds and I find that acceptable. If I gain 1 pound I'm done. Haven't gained any yet (six weeks). Good luck.

Neither worked for me, but every person is different. If neither had ever worked, I don't think they'd still be trying 'em out on people, y'know? Along with Neurontin and Amitriptyline, they are the first round meds for migraine preventatives.

And side effects comes with each, but whether or not you'll experience those side effects is unique to you. Try not to be too scared off. Read the warnings, talk to your doctor, make an informed decision, try out what you feel comfortable trying.

I have not taken Inderal ( I think, I might have, if I did it did not help, we were discussing this one for a while and I cannot remember if I actually went on it). Anyway, I have taken depakote, and I will tell you what, that was a NASTY drug. By far the worst side effects of any med I have been on. I slept constantly, like 12-14 hrs a day, and I was exhausted the rest of the time. Another bad side effect was that I could not stop eating, I was ALWAYS hungry. No matter how much I ate I would not be satisfied. Once I ate 5 large platters at a mongolian BBQ, and I am a skinny 150 lb, 5'11" kid. I ended up ballooning up to 180lbs in about 3-4 weeks. Ya 30lbs in 3 weeks. And I am one of those people who never gains weight. I have never gained a bit of fat in my life. But when I went back to school after those 3-4 weeks ( I was out from being sick, and then X-mas break), everyone could tell how much weight I gained. My face looked fat and I had a beer belly, it was definitely something new for me, and not pleasant. I looked like a chipmunk my face so was chubby. Luckily when I came off of the depakote I lost the weight easily and returned to my normal weight. There are also all kinds of other nasty side effects from the depakote, including severe liver damage possibly in the first couple weeks of treatment. This is why your doctor should draw your blood every couple weeks when you first start on it. It also did not help my headaches (it might have slightly, but it was not really noticeable). Overall a bad bad drug for me, though see people have better experiences. I would recommend the Inderal, simply because the Depakote was so terrible for me.

Good luck finding a med that works for you and I hope that everyone has a pain-free day,
Circa

i tried both. they sucked.

Thank You everyone, that was helpful. I am not going to take either one. I've already tried enough meds and I can't stand to go through the side effects again. You lose days of your life. I am super sensitive to side effects and just can't tolerate them.

I'm bipolar and I get severe migraines. I take Depakote and it works well. Only thing, preventative wise that has worked on me. But during my period you can forget it. Nothing works.