does anyone here get migraines?

[cookiepuss]

I have a long family history of migranes, but I only recently started getting them. My doc gave me Imatrex which does control them, but it's super expensive so i just have samples that he's given me, which means I take the meds sparingly.

Since I just started getting them I sometimes have a hard time identifying them..often it seems like they are a sinus headache to begin with, but one of the main indicators that it's not a sinus headache is that ibeprofin doesn't help at all. other symptoms that let me know it's not a regual headache is vomiting and slight to moderate sensativity to light and sound.

most of the time I will wake up with a migraine. if it's bad i won't even be able to get out of bed and if it's more mild, like it is today, I have to spend some time figuring out what kind of headache it is. it usually runs with my monthly cycle, coming 2 days after I quit flowing but this time it's early. the migraines are happening every other cycle.

I'm wondering if anyone else could describe thier expereinces with migraines so that i can learn how to better indentify my condition. thanks.

[TAL]

Nope, I've never even had a headache.

[cookiepuss]

you are super lucky TAL

until I started getting migraines, I had no concept of what they really were. I knew they were a bad headache..but I didn't understand the whole vomting and light/sound sensativity thing. migraines make a regual headache seem like nothing more than an itch

they really suck. :(

[TAL]

People usually get a little angry at me when I tell them about my lack of dilemma. So thanks for being supportive.

I hope you will stop having them eventually. Would some chocolate help?

[adam_f]

I got migraines sometimes when I still had hearing in my right ear. I don't get them anymore, so I guess there could be a correlation.

[cookiepuss]

I got migraines sometimes when I still had hearing in my right ear. I don't get them anymore, so I guess there could be a correlation.


so are you saying I should destory my right eardrum? :confused:


:D

[avignon]

I have the symptoms you already discribed, vomiting, sensitivity to light and sound, and also, it affects my balance, I get dizzy. i get hot and then cold. And I get the shakes. And then I cry.

[ScarySquirrel]

I used to get migraines like crazy when I was a younger lad. To make a long story short, it took 'em a while to figure out that migraines were really what was bothering me... for some reason they didn't want to think that a young kid (all this took place between the ages of six and ten) could be having these horrible headaches.

I was prescribed Imitrex and that helped a ton. But, before that, it used to practically render me immobile. I'd have to lay in my room with all the lights off, shades closed, no sound, no light, and I'd usually put a pillow over my head to keep everything out. Sometimes I'd just be in my room with the pillow over my head and be bawling. I was a wuss, man.

I never threw up though... I did miss a ton of fun stuff because of those migraines though. Bastards.

[cookiepuss]

I was prescribed Imitrex and that helped a ton.


I agree that drug does help ALOT, but I get drowsy. They told me that they thought my fatigue was from expereinceing the migraine rather than a side effect of the drug itself. did you find you were extremely tired after taking the imatrex?

[ScarySquirrel]

Yeah, sometimes I'd get really drowsy and other times not so much. I'm pretty sure it's one of the side effects of the drug though, so I don't think it's anything to be worried about. I can understand how that would suck if you've actually got stuff to be doing though and you're taking the shit just to try and feel able to cope with the migraine.

Some of the more serious side effects look like they'd scare the piss out of someone. Swelling, irregular heartbeat and/or chest pains, sudden severe stomach pain, problems seeing, or unusual weakness or numbness. Whoa.

[P of R]

I used to get them, but then I stopped eating certain things that could cause it. Like chocolate for example. I still eat it sometimes but I try not to.

I haven't had a migraine since. (y)

[redhead]

I've had migraines since I was about 8yrs old...they suck-diddly-uck.
I've never had prescribed meds for them tho, but I have found what I call my miracle pills. They are called A C & C (acetylsalicylic acid, caffeine and codeine) The pharmacist keeps them behind the counter, but they are not precription...if I catch the migraine right at the beginning they usually kill it. If not, I just hafta suffer.
Sometimes it seems like Gravol helps too...at least they put me to sleep, so maybe that is HOW they help.

[beastieangel01]

I sometimes get them. I am extremely sensitive to light and sound. It's so bad I can only lay there and as some have said, cry. In order to help them, I have to take some vicidon or something similar. Nothing else helps. I also have found that putting pressure on my head (something like pushing my hands to my head hard, or tying some kind of handkerchief or rope tight around my head) helps alleviate some of the pain.

p.s. ask cosmo if there is some sort of herbal medicine that may help. I've never been to a doc since I don't get them all that often, so I don't help much :/ heh.

[zorra_chiflada]

i think i've talked about joe's migraines here a few times.
the doctors he's been to (and he's been to pretty much every fucking doctor possible) have said that they are the worst migraines they have seen in anyone.
basically, his migraines are more like strokes. he loses control of half of his body, he can't talk, has difficultly breathing and can't move. as well, there are the usual "auras," sensitivity to light and noise and extreme pain. the only thing he can do is scream. when they're especially bad ones, we have to call in a doctor to administer him morphine shots, but they only half work. the pain is still there.
he first started getting them when he was three (could you imagine a small child having to go through this?) and has had them fortnightly until about the age of 19. obviously, it has affected his life profoundly - it has been hard for him to live normally when you're in the constant fear of having a migraine. he's tried medication and other therapies - acupuncture, aromatherapy, osteopathy, been on diets, everything. they've started to become less frequent now. (which is excellent, because every time he has one i can't help crying)
i really sympathise with anyone that has experienced migraines, and i understand that they are not just bad headaches.

[QueenAdrock]

^My dad has the SAME THING. Hemoplegic Migraines. He's gone to the hospital many times...the scariest one was when my dad went out for lunch and had one in the car...he had to pull over to the side of the road, couldn't use his phone or anything and ended up crawling to the local firestation to get help. Everytime I get a phone call saying my dad has a migraine, I burst into tears because I don't know if it's the last time I'll see him.

When he gets them, he gets paralysis on the left side of his body, starts vomitting, can't understand people, can't walk...it's so scary. And every time the migraine is over (we almost always have to take him to the hospital), he's lost a part of his brain. He doesn't remember a lot of things, and has extreme confusion. He's astounded all the doctors in my state. He's found a really good neurologist though, who still says my dad has them the worst of anyone he's seen. :-/

The only thing that's worked for my dad is Depakote 3x/a day, and he's on an extremely strict diet. No cheese (except American), chocolate, alcohol, MSG, and so much more.


They're so scary, and what's scarier is that they're genetic. :(

I've only had one bad one, but I always have constant pain (even if it's very very slight, it's still there). I have Imitrex, too. Just in case.

[zorra_chiflada]

^My dad has the SAME THING. Hemoplegic Migraines. He's gone to the hospital many times...the scariest one was when my dad went out for lunch and had one in the car...he had to pull over to the side of the road, couldn't use his phone or anything and ended up crawling to the local firestation to get help. Everytime I get a phone call saying my dad has a migraine, I burst into tears because I don't know if it's the last time I'll see him.

When he gets them, he gets paralysis on the left side of his body, starts vomitting, can't understand people, can't walk...it's so scary. And every time the migraine is over (we almost always have to take him to the hospital), he's lost a part of his brain. He doesn't remember a lot of things, and has extreme confusion. He's astounded all the doctors in my state. He's found a really good neurologist though, who still says my dad has them the worst of anyone he's seen. :-/

The only thing that's worked for my dad is Depakote 3x/a day, and he's on an extremely strict diet. No cheese (except American), chocolate, alcohol, MSG, and so much more.


They're so scary, and what's scarier is that they're genetic. :(

I've only had one bad one, but I always have constant pain (even if it's very very slight, it's still there). I have Imitrex, too. Just in case.
hemoplegic migraines - i've never heard of that term. what does it mean? is it something to do with neurological disorder?

oh, and yeah, things like MSG, alcohol, caffeine aggravate the problem too - they must affect the brain in some way.

[Documad]

I have a long family history of migranes, but I only recently started getting them. My doc gave me Imatrex which does control them, but it's super expensive so i just have samples that he's given me, which means I take the meds sparingly.

Since I just started getting them I sometimes have a hard time identifying them..often it seems like they are a sinus headache to begin with, but one of the main indicators that it's not a sinus headache is that ibeprofin doesn't help at all. other symptoms that let me know it's not a regual headache is vomiting and slight to moderate sensativity to light and sound.

most of the time I will wake up with a migraine. if it's bad i won't even be able to get out of bed and if it's more mild, like it is today, I have to spend some time figuring out what kind of headache it is. it usually runs with my monthly cycle, coming 2 days after I quit flowing but this time it's early. the migraines are happening every other cycle.

I'm wondering if anyone else could describe thier expereinces with migraines so that i can learn how to better indentify my condition. thanks.
Yours sound like my friend's migraines. Hers tracked her monthly cycle and made her life very difficult. She never found anything that helped until she got pregnant at 34 and never had another one.

I have a male friend that has worse ones. They sound more like the Pres's, except less frequent. He goes to the emergency room and gets a shot of morphine.

[QueenAdrock]

Hemoplegic migraines are when it's focused all on one side of the brain (that's why the paralysis is on only one side, also tunnel vision). By being concentrated in only one side of the brain, it's even more powerful. Definitely look into it, because if your husband gets them as bad as my dad, it's probably hemoplegic.

Where do you live? If he has them still, I recommend coming to D.C. if it's not too far a drive, to see my dad's doctor. He's very good.

[zorra_chiflada]

Hemoplegic migraines are when it's focused all on one side of the brain (that's why the paralysis is on only one side, also tunnel vision). By being concentrated in only one side of the brain, it's even more powerful. Definitely look into it, because if your husband gets them as bad as my dad, it's probably hemoplegic.

Where do you live? If he has them still, I recommend coming to D.C. if it's not too far a drive, to see my dad's doctor. He's very good.

unfortunately, we live in a small country town in the middle of nowhere, and to get proper medical help we would have to go to mainland australia.

[QueenAdrock]

Well, Jesus! You're half a world away!

Well, definitely do ask a neurologist about hemoplegic migraines, they should know.

[Documad]

Zorra, I know you're both young and just getting settled but I really hope you can move someplace where he can get some help.

Damn, it's unfair. :mad:

[Documad]

Well, Jesus! You're half a world away!
I know! Did you ever think you would know someone in Tasmania! A lot of people don't even think it's a real place.

[zorra_chiflada]

Zorra, I know you're both young and just getting settled but I really hope you can move someplace where he can get some help.

Damn, it's unfair. :mad:

yeah, melbourne is the closest "big city" and we'll probably move there when i've finished my degree.