Migraine Headaches Support Group
Migraine is a neurological disease, of which the most common symptom is an intense and disabling episodic headache. Migraine headaches are usually characterized by severe pain on one or both sides of the head and are often accompanied by photophobia (hypersensitivity to light), phonophobia (hypersensitivity to sound) and nausea.
I seem to mostly get migraines in the morning. I have been woke up by them as early as 3AM. They are getting worse as I get older (43 now). I am now going through months at a time were I wake up with a migraine every morning, then they stop for months. I am seeing my neurologist regularly but either I am in a good period when I see them or just starting a hell month. I need to find what is triggering this. I can't keep missing work and going for toradol shots to stop the migraines.
A few things I have noticed with my migraines now:
1. Almost exclusively start in the morning.
2. Getting a lot of different visual auras- tunnel vision, zigzag lines, vision flipping like an old tube tv with bad horizontal control. Getting more light sensitivity.
3. Have been dizzy a few times from them (not the meds- before taking anything).
4. Neck getting stiffer as migraine progresses.
5. My old auras- nausea and hyped up sense of smell don't always occur and are not occurring before (they use to be my warning).
6. Had a nose bleed with one migraine- not bad but never got nose bleeds before. Blood pressure is 118/74 so not high blood pressure.
7. Going through perimenopause- had 3 months this summer with no period, blood work showed post-menopause hormone levels. When it began, I had migraines every morning, sometimes they went for days. Period is a minor trigger for me but never a great predictor of migraines. Periods are back now for 4 months but migraines are ramping up again.
8. Can't take sulfa based drugs anymore- huge trigger.
9. Having trouble thinking and speaking sometimes with migraines- not a usual thing for me or even in the past with a migraine.
I currently take gabapentin at 400mg for prevention (yeah right). I can't take triptapans because of med interactions (they worked in the past). Fioricet not always working. Been given toradol injections to stop migraines- work but this is not a drug that can be used that often. It has a potential to cause severe gastrointestinal bleeding. No med changes or diet changes in last 6 mos.
If you have any insight as to what might be the trigger and a way to avoid it, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks
A few things I have noticed with my migraines now:
1. Almost exclusively start in the morning.
2. Getting a lot of different visual auras- tunnel vision, zigzag lines, vision flipping like an old tube tv with bad horizontal control. Getting more light sensitivity.
3. Have been dizzy a few times from them (not the meds- before taking anything).
4. Neck getting stiffer as migraine progresses.
5. My old auras- nausea and hyped up sense of smell don't always occur and are not occurring before (they use to be my warning).
6. Had a nose bleed with one migraine- not bad but never got nose bleeds before. Blood pressure is 118/74 so not high blood pressure.
7. Going through perimenopause- had 3 months this summer with no period, blood work showed post-menopause hormone levels. When it began, I had migraines every morning, sometimes they went for days. Period is a minor trigger for me but never a great predictor of migraines. Periods are back now for 4 months but migraines are ramping up again.
8. Can't take sulfa based drugs anymore- huge trigger.
9. Having trouble thinking and speaking sometimes with migraines- not a usual thing for me or even in the past with a migraine.
I currently take gabapentin at 400mg for prevention (yeah right). I can't take triptapans because of med interactions (they worked in the past). Fioricet not always working. Been given toradol injections to stop migraines- work but this is not a drug that can be used that often. It has a potential to cause severe gastrointestinal bleeding. No med changes or diet changes in last 6 mos.
If you have any insight as to what might be the trigger and a way to avoid it, I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks
I would suggest that you look into physical therapy or a massage therapist to work on your neck, jaw, and upper back. My massage therapist specializes in those areas. If you don't address this your neck can get knotted up, including your jaw, and upper back, then it is really hard to stop the migraines. Your muscles actually get a memory and stay tight all the time even if you don't feel it.
Too many Toradol shots are also bad for your kidneys, but they do work.
I hope someone here can help you. Good luck.
This may not be of help but I Thought I would throw it out there. I always had bad headaches in the morning. after years of seeing doctors, My current Neurologist looked at me and said I have sleep apnea. Which I did. Now using CPAP machine and the migraines are much improved. I also receive botox shots and watch the food triggers. Migraines are now less frequent and usually not as severe.
Another thing that may help with the stiff neck is a muscle relaxer. I take 5 mg of flexeril an hour before bedtime and I sleep like a baby.
Best of luck to you, hope you find some relief soon.
nipper
Can you get yourself allergy tests? Food allergy tests made a huge difference to my oldest daughter when she was a child. In my migrainous family hormones play a part. Mine started only in 40s as hormones began to change and youngest daughter's started with puberty.
The daughter who was helped by watching food as a youngster (five plus migraines a week at worst times before cut out certain foods after test when went eight weeks with none) had fewer at puberty.
I get clusters but no recognisable pattern. Worry and stress dont help. Certain smells (there are around 6000 potentially allergy triggers in various perfumes including colgones, powders, soaps etc) can be a factor.... i call the lot petro chemicals and avoid and wear a flying mask if I get the smallest whiff at concerts and various seated performances where I cant move my seat. (it is called dehumiflyer and cuts back the chemicals of perfumes as well and helping with jet lag.)
The three of us in my family with migraines all prefer to manage without too many drugs. The youngest says she senses when they are around (I do too) and tries to manage with diet and maybe a mild painkiller like paracetamol but even though we are related we are quite different!
Long term quitting gluten and dairy make a difference to me but there are all sorts of things that can interfere with our bodies. The list my eldest daughter got from her allergist was a page of closely types foods plus the wheat (and it was wheat rather than gluten with her). She also never drinks caffeine hot drinks.
So hard to say this or that. I showed my daughter's list all those years back to a friend who quit her favourite breakfast spread (a fermented type spread) and her migraines stopped!! Just one food!
That was on a list of foods which have amines in. I would hope you could get something like that rom the internet.
Trouble with diet is it is so hit and miss and I am convinced things build up too. I might get away with one gluten cracker as long as I have nothing else that week but otherwise it isnt just migraines but another health issue I have that starts to flare.
Weather and lights are also biggies with migraines.
Anyway going on too long. But so sympathise over the absolute despair one can feel with on gong migraines. And even on 'only aura' days the rest of the day is sort of wrecked.
My Dr began to wonder if anything bad was going on with my blood oxygen levels while I sleep at night. So he had me wear a device that measures oxygen in the blood. A normal blood oxygen level while you're sleeping should be 95 to 100. My reading was 75, and yes, that is considered dangerously low. The Dr had me put on supplemental oxygen immediately to be used every night. He said that my vital organs were being starved for oxygen and that I was dying as I slept every night. He also told me that low oxygen in the blood causes the brain to swell which in turn causes the migraines. So, long story short, you may need a CPAP or even oxygen while you sleep every night.
I'm still getting the migraines which probably means I'm still low on oxygen. I'll need another sleep study performed and an increase in air pressure from my CPAP machine.
I'm not sure if this is the answer to your problem but it might be something to consider. I hope you find a way to stop those migraines.