Daily Migraines - How do we function?

@heysie
My teen son has migraines and I have had them too. Both of us have had mild to moderate concussions when young so this doesn’t help. I also believe ours get triggered by hormone fluctuations, stress, too much screen time, dehydration, poor sleep, etc.

My son's neurologist suggested taking omega 3, vitamin D and magnesium supplements and this has helped. He also suggested making sure to stay well hydrated and add electrolytes to water to help retain more of it. When my son gets aura visual changes starting, his neurologist suggested taking Motrin or Tylenol as soon as possible before the pain and nausea sets in. This all has helped. If my son doesn’t take the pain medication at the first sign of visual changes with aura, he gets significant pain soon after then the nausea and vomiting follows. Putting a cool wash cloth in his head, lying down in a dark room while letting the pain medication kick in also helps.

I use Excedrin and it works best if I can take it as soon as I feel the warning that a migraine is about to begin, or when I start to feel the pain. The earlier the better. I have sumatriptan in my purse for emergencies, and there are some topical over the counter remedies for arthritis that I apply to my head that help a little.

@heysie I don’t know what your age but once you reach 60 the Triptans can cause stroke.
When I reached 60 I was taken off Sumatriptan and prescribed Qulipta and or Nortec but they both have a $400 copay so I don’t take either one. So for the past nearly three years I just battle out my bad days.
I get Botox every 3 months but that’s not working well either.
I live with a 7-10 pain level and 10 is most days but I get some 7’s here and there.
My wife also gets migraines and she is prescribed Sumatriptan but she hasn’t reached 60 yet.
My wife tries to manage with Exederin for Migraines and that sometimes works.
I hope you find relief because living with migraines is not fun at all.
Jody

I've shared this before, so at the risk of being redundant, go buy WellPatch Migraine & Headache Cooling Patch on Amazon and wear them to bed every night, and provided you haven't had too much wine the night before, you wake up headache-free. But if you get a headache during the day, put one of these on your forehead, and it will numb the pain and you won't feel the headache. It will allow you to function through the day. It's a clear winner. I've never had a doctor tell me about these. Good luck. Jim-see attached photo

heysie, God Bless you. Migraines are terrible.

When I get them days on end, my doctor will give me a short prednisone taper to break the cycle..about 4 days
worth. It works quickly for me. My Neurologist just recently recommended rotating Rizatriptan and Ubrelvy. I haven't started that yet as
I haven't had a migraine recently...Praise the Lord!

A friend of mine went to an Integrative Medicine and got a Magnesium Infusion and it knocked theirs out.

Also, the hospital ER can give you what is called a migraine cocktail or an injection of Toradol. I have not done
this yet.

Praying for you and I empathize. Blessings....

I have chronic migraines like many of you. I take Imitrex. And Maxalt. It’s the only medication that works. But, That often leads to rebound. Recently my neurologist prescribed an anti-psychotic! To take for a few days to break the rebound cycle. I think it worked for one rebound cycle, but I don’t want to rely on this medication. The general advice to tough it out to break rebound is absurd. Any thought on how to break rebound?

I'm curious. What are the over the counter remedies for arthritis that you use to help?

AleveX and Aspercream. And another that I can't remember. Topical remedies.

2penelope, What works for me to break days of migraines is a very low dose taper of
prednisone. I usually do 30 mg, 30 mg, 20 mg & then 10 mg. It has worked wonderfully for
me to break the cycle of days of migraines.

Migraines are caused by inflammation and Prednisone reduces inflammation. With years of
migraines, this is the only thing that I have found that will work.

Ask your Primary doctor if he will prescribe a short taper of prednisone.

Blessings & Prayers....

I’ve also probably “tried it all” over the past 40+ years of migraines! Most recently, I was having rebound headaches with imitrex. Neuro prescribed Ubrelvy. It worked, but I was having 10-15 headache days/month, so she suggested Qulipta. I am now down to 2-4 headache days/month!!!! Wooo whoooooo!

Although I hate taking medication, I am so grateful it’s an option. My poor mother suffered most of her life with nothing but aspirin and darkness. When they came out with “Fiornal” she thought it was a gift from above!

BTW - I suggest you find a neurologist who listens and cares AND i was told the “prednisone dose pack” should be a very last resort because it’s so hard on your body- that being said, I’ve received it a handful of times in my lifetime.
Also-go online and contact the pharmaceutical company to see if you can get help with your copays - I have!