Migraines - Yukon,OK

I am on Beta blockers and they have changed my life. I used to get migraines about 3 times a week.

I wonder if they could help you too?

I'm so sorry you get migraines. I suffered from awful migraines my entire life. Anyway, what worked for me was to change what I was eating. I follow what they say on this website:http://www.msgmyth.com/

I did a 2 week elimination diet (you basically eat nothing but a couple foods, ugh) and then I totally cut out these ingredients (which are in everything): http://www.msgmyth.com/hidden_names.html
Even if you do not want to do the elimination diet it is worth a try. I think a lot of people who suffer from migraines should try this. I have not had a migraine ever since I started doing this about 4 years ago!

I take Relpax. There is a $15 off coupon on their website so I pay $50 for 9 pills with insurance. My insurance doesn't cover much of migraine medicine. I would call your insurance company and find out what they do cover and then call your doctor for free samples to see which one works for you. I told my doctor how expensive my prescription was and I found myself not taking the pills as often as I needed them. She gave me a bag full of free samples. If you haven't already drink a lot of water. Most of the time I can get mine to be at least bearable if I take 2 Excedrin and then an hour later take 2 more. At least then I can function.

is it possible you are having cluster headaches instead of classic migraines? I get both, but no medication helps with cluster headaches. Look it up online and see if it fits. Sorry you are having a hard time. I know how horrible it can be.

cluster headaches are worse than migraines....feels like a hot poker is slamming into your eye socket over and over again. they occur in clusters (several at a time for awhile and then they can go away for months or years) tho some poor folks get them all the time. Few medications help. They used to be called suicide headaches because people were thougth to commit suicide because the pain is that bad. Usually no vomiting with cluster headaches, which is not the case for migraines. Also, I wake up in the middle of the night with clusters, but I have aura and other neurological symptoms with migraine, but not with clusters, which come on fast and strong.

If you have migraines 2-3 times a week, then you should talk to your doctor about preventative medicines. I tried Topomax (an anti-seizure medication) first. It helped cut down on the number of migraines I had, but I had too many side effects. My neurologist switched me to a beta blocker (propranalol) and it's made a world of difference. I have even fewer migraines than I did with the Topomax but none of the side effects. And I realized something else when I started the preventative medicine. My head had been hurting almost all the time but I apparently just got used it. I didn't even realize that it was hurting until it stopped. I still have occasional migraines but far fewer than before and they generally aren't quite as bad as before.

Can you try acupuncture? It may not be covered by your insurance -- however it has helped me greatly. You can ask your doctor for Zofran for your stomach -- which is available in a generic form and should be covered by insurance and works very well. There is also a preventative medication, which I have not tried. You take it every day, even if you have no symptoms. Good luck -- I know how debilitating migraines are.

My mom takes Topamax, I can't b/c it doesn't mesh with me. You could try it out and see if it works. I don't have insurance at all but wal-mart has a card for the uninsured/underinsured and I paid 20 something dollars for the generic of Topamax when I was trying it. Glad you put your medicines out there though, I didn't know there were others and will probably try yours. It's all about individual tolerances so you could try it and see if it works.

@Letty, could you say the difference between cluster headaches and migranes? I'm starting to wonder if I get both too.

I take a combination of Imitrex and Naproxene. These are the 2 main ingredients in Trexemet. My insurance doesn't pay for Trexemet so my doctor put me on the same dosages of the 2 main components of Trexemet

Oh my....I feel for you! I get them too and they are nasty! I've had migraines for the last 15 years and I'd give anything to find a permenant solution for the pain. Mine last for days and last time I threw up for 24 hours straight. I was on Imitrex for a few years but it stopped working and they switched me to Zomig. I had a lot of luck with that one for about 10 years then it stopped working. Then my doctor tried me on a beta-blocker (propranalol) along with a pain med (fioricet) but that didn't help...the symptoms actually became more severe for me. I finally went to see a neurologist b/c my primary doctor was out of ideas. He gave me 3 samples of migraine meds and I tried each out...Frova made me tired, Maxalt made me tired and loopy, but the Treximet seemed to work best for me.
I go routinely to a chiropractor and definitely want to try acupuncture at some point in the near future. I would LOVE to live a migraine free lifestyle- my poor 3 year old doesn't know what to make of my episodes, poor thing. I really hope you find a solution because I know how debilitating the migraines can be. Good luck- I wish you the best! ((hugs))

Talk to your doctor about the following preventive meds and see if any are right for you. Topamax, elavil, inderal, cymbalta

I took Topamax and it relieved my chronic, daily migraine, I stopped taking the medicatin and now only get them about 1 X per month with my period

Good Luck

Try plain Fiorinol or Fiorinol with codeine. They are fairly inexpensive, and they work for me if I use them at onset of the migraine. Maxalt is my favorite as it wipes it out within just a few minutes. Make sure you cut MSG out of your diet. I did a food and headache journal, and found that when I ate foods that contained MSG, I got a migraine within hours. You wouldn't believe how much it is in when you start reading labels. Good luck and feel better!

Don't know how old you are, but two friends of mine had migraines that
stopped once they started menopause. Me, on the other hand, never
had headaches (migraiines until I started menopause). I know this does not
help now. Ask you doctor for samples of what you need. You would be
surprised how much they have been given by drug companies.

I have had cluster headaches and migraines for almost 30 years, and have tried just about every medication. Most don't help me. For the past 4 years I've been taking Topamax daily, and Vicoprofin (Vicodin and Ibuprofin) and phenergan (I always throw up with migraines) when I get migraines. I can only take Vicoprofin 3 days a week or I'll get rebound headaches, though, and I get migraines usually about 4 days a week during the school year, so that's a problem. Ice on my head and a dark room helps, but not completely. I also go to a chiropractor, and that seems to help some.

I went to the neurologist last week, and he told me to start charting my migraines very specifically because he thinks I am the perfect candidate for botox. He told me that patients who have more than 15 migraines a month and have tried all varieties of medications and alternative treatments, like going to a chiropractor, are the perfect candidates. Some of his patients who have tried botox for migraines have gone from 15 or more migraines a month to NO migraines in 6 months. I can't even imagine that.

There are so many options for migraine sufferers, but a lot of it is trial and error since you have to discover what works for you. I hope you find relief soon.

Are you on the Pill? My daughter's Neurologist says that the Pill can cause a build up of fluid in the brain that makes migraines worse. Imitrex didn't work for her either. We are currently using Elavil for a preventative and Fioricet for pain when the migraine starts. Getting off the Pill really helped and the Fioricet really knocks out the pain. She's still getting the migraines, but sleep is a big trigger for her. She's currently taking Serequel to help her sleep and that has really made a difference.

Sometimes insurance companies will permit coverage if you failed a 'trial' of one or two other formulary drugs. Since you failed Imitrex is there any other you have tried and failed? Talk to your neurologist because they should know the ins and outs of your insurance. Otherwise I would ask the manufacturer for a coupon or assistance.

Considering how disabling migraines can be, I would seriously consider paying the extra out of pocket if you can fit that into your family budget. But I'm used to paying for everything out of pocket, since my very expensive health insurance doesn't contribute a penny until I exceed $6000 in medical bills for the year.

I hope you find that your migraines stop when you reach menopause. Mine did!

I feel for y'all who suffer with migraines!!

I don't know much about medications, but I just read an article that profiled a woman who had migraines that basically ruled her life. She went on magnesium supplements, and the migraines went away. She was magnesium deficient. Worth a try?

Good luck!!

If you get that many, could your doc possibly try some of the preventatives? I take topamax and amitriptylin as preventatives. If I do get a migraine, I'll take Prodrin (It used to be Midrin but that was taken off the market). Prodrin is wonderful but really expensive, my insurance will pay for it, but it's the highest tier so it costs me $50 out of pocket. The other thing I will take is Frova - it's like Imitrix but I find it worked better for me. It was the highest tier too but I called the drug maker and they gave me a coupon for a year-long discount, so I'm only paying $10 copay for that one.

Sorry you suffer... I (literally) feel your pain. The summers are the worst time of the year for me.

Also, I don't know how your insurance works - but if you find that your doc isn't taking you and your suffering seriously, find another doc who will listen.

Everyone is different when it comes to migraines; Maxalt used to work great for me but then my migraines "changed pattern" (that's what the ER PA called it) and it didn't help anymore. At that point, they put me on Fioricet, which worked very well, but it doesn't actually treat the migraine, just the pain, and it can be addictive, so you wouldn't want to take it for frequent migraines.

My best suggestion is to find a good chiropractor. Some are better than others, so you may need to try one or two before you find one you really like. In my case, my new migraines were caused by vertebrae in my neck being twisted out of place (I could actually feel them, but thought they were muscle knots for two years!). I did an intensive course of adjustments with the chiro, and the migraines went away almost completely. I still get them occasionally but it's SO much better.

Of course, if your insurance doesn't even cover Maxalt, it probably doesn't cover a chiropractor. But most chiros will drop their prices when the patient's insurance won't cover it, and you can probably work out a plan. The initial course is fairly expensive cause it's a lot of visits, but it is WORTH IT if it helps the migraines. These days I go a few times a year and that keeps everything in check. I only take the occasional Advil/Excedrin, no other meds.