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've been posting in this group for a couple of weeks now, so I thought I should introduce myself.
I found DailyStrength when I was released from the hospital after having a blood clot in my leg that moved to my lungs. While visiting this site, I also found the Migraine Headaches support group, so I started reading through the posts here.
I'm 43 years old and I've been having pretty consistent migraines since I was 30. I also had headaches almost everyday in high school, but they were very different and then went away during college.
I see a neurologist (now looking for a new one), and I consider the management of my migraines under control. I don't use preventive medicine. I get anywhere between 4 and 12 migraines a month. Generally I have one bad week and the rest of the month is pretty good. I am taking Naratriptan when I get a migraine. It doesn't work as well as some other medicines (it takes 2 hours to kick in), but I'm trying to pick one with the least side effects for me. It's also nice that it is about 1/3 of the cost of some others.
My migraines mostly come during the early morning hours (between 4 and 6 am), so I usually take a pill when I wake up with one and sleep 2 more hours while the medicine kicks in and then get on with my day.
I don't currently have a lot of questions, but I like seeing other people's experiences and I'll try to continue to comment if my experiences might be helpful for others.
~Daffnae
I found DailyStrength when I was released from the hospital after having a blood clot in my leg that moved to my lungs. While visiting this site, I also found the Migraine Headaches support group, so I started reading through the posts here.
I'm 43 years old and I've been having pretty consistent migraines since I was 30. I also had headaches almost everyday in high school, but they were very different and then went away during college.
I see a neurologist (now looking for a new one), and I consider the management of my migraines under control. I don't use preventive medicine. I get anywhere between 4 and 12 migraines a month. Generally I have one bad week and the rest of the month is pretty good. I am taking Naratriptan when I get a migraine. It doesn't work as well as some other medicines (it takes 2 hours to kick in), but I'm trying to pick one with the least side effects for me. It's also nice that it is about 1/3 of the cost of some others.
My migraines mostly come during the early morning hours (between 4 and 6 am), so I usually take a pill when I wake up with one and sleep 2 more hours while the medicine kicks in and then get on with my day.
I don't currently have a lot of questions, but I like seeing other people's experiences and I'll try to continue to comment if my experiences might be helpful for others.
~Daffnae
I am also new. Just joined today. I am one of the hopeless causes. I have had migraines since the age of 7. I have tried everything in the book and some of them twice to see if they would work. I am now seeing disability because I am lucky to have 4 good days in a month without pain. I also suffer from fibromyalgia.. I am the one who is always missing family functions, missing work, and just plain missing out on life due to all this. I am happy this group is here... Trying to investigate ways to help my depression by possibly adding my two cents from my experiences to try to help others.. Take Care.. look for a migraine specialist neuorologist they are out there. I have one and he suffers from them too, so he understand. He has been the president of migraine research and president of a headache support group. Good Luck!!
~Michele
I used to be a "hopeless cause", and then I found an amazing neurologist who wouldn't give up until he got rid of my daily migraine. In high school I had a continuous headache for about a year and a half and was just constantly miserable - I'm surprised I graduated. Now I still get migraines, but it's usually about one a month and if I take something right when they're starting I can usually make them go away before they get too bad. I expect I'll probably need to be on the massive dose of Topamax that has kept me stable this long for the rest of my life, but it's a small price to pay for functionality :)
@msweet: my old specialist sounds like yours. He also suffers from migraines, so I always felt like he really knew what I was going through. I'm glad you found this site. I really love the support it brings to me and others.
@rssmsty: I've had a sleep study. It's a really weird experience (lots of wires stuck to you), but in the end not bad. My tests weren't related to my migraines, necessarily, but i know that sleep and breathing can be very related.
@queequeqx6: Thank you for sharing your success story. It's always helpful to hear what works for others.
I have to say I'm resistant to preventative medicines, as long as I get decent relief so that the headaches I get don't interfere much with my day.
For instance, I woke up today at 6am with a headache. I took my pill and went back to sleep. At 7:45 it wasn't quite gone yet, but it was better. By the time I got up and ready for my day it was gone.
I think my husband would rather I find a preventive remedy. The pain I go through for that short time is quite disturbing to him and he worries.
Since my previous headache specialist vanished on June 6th, I'm going to visit a non-specializing neurologist from his department on Thursday. I'm curious to see what sort of information they provide and if they suggest anything different. I see this appointment as kind of an interview to see if I'm comfortable with the new doctor. If I'm not comfortable, I may ask her for a referral to Mayo Clinic...but i"m not sure if she'll be offended by the request. If she won't do it, I'll have to see if my new GP will send the request.