Anybody gets migraines???

>I've had migraines since I was 6 years old, only I did not
>know they were migraines at that age. However, I am lucky
>that I only get about one or two a year, but I'm not sure what
>exactly triggers them. I can always tell when my migraine is
>coming on when my hands start going numb. I know that it will
>spread to my face and then my tongue will feel very thick and
>my speech and vision blurs. I can think coherently at that
>time but I can not talk and say what I am thinking. Somehow
>the path stops at the thought process I guess. The only thing
>I can do is lay down and try to fall asleep before it hits.
>After I awaken it is gone completely but I do have some
>residual head tenderness afterwards.
>
THAT"S a perfect description of aura. Like I said earlier, I also get visual disturbances - specifically blind spots where quadrants of my vision is gone. Sometimes I think the aura is scarier than the actual migraine.

And oh! Cluster migraines are the worst! I would take my migraines over those any day. I certainly feel for those sufferers! How could you even bear it?

One of the teachers at our school actually had neurosurgery to relieve her migraines. Aprrently it worked - for the most part.
 
I used to get migraines when I was on the pill. I always knew exactly what day every single month I would get them...and they were excruciating! Nothing helped!

As soon as I went off the pill...*poof*...the migraines stopped. I also started getting acupuncture and that helped, too. So do chiropractic adjustments.
 
I never knew my migraine type had a name. Actually I never realized others were experiencing the same symptoms that I have been for years. The things I learn at this forum! What a wealth of information!

Does everyone take medication for their migraines? I've never taken medication, other than the ocassional Tylenol, since mine are rare and sleeping normally eleviates the symptoms. Do you think it is necessary to go to a Neurologist? Too bad I didn't know about this 8 years ago when I worked for one. He probably could have hooked me up with some good stuff.
 
My sister gets them and has definitely noticed a correlation between them and MSG (Monosodium Glutemate). She said that a lot of soups have it in it, plus ranch dressing she mentioned has a ton. She said the problem is, it is not always listed in the ingredients, or is under a different name.

Jen
 
i have gotten them alot recently and am pretty mych incapcitated. i hate them!!!!x( but i can't figure out what is causing them. i just have to lie down and applying heat seems to help a little. 2 weeks ago i had one that lasted almost a week solid. i get sick at my stomach and smells and noise make it much worse. i had my sinuses xrayed, but nothing showed up. i don't klnow what to do about them. i have tried migrane Rxs, but htey don't touch it. ????????


jes:-(
 
I also get migranes but I'm not sure what triggers them, I also get sinus headaches on a regular basis. Much more frequently than migranes. All of it is a pain but my migranes will knock me out for a good while, it takes a few days to recover from them.
 
>Do you think it is necessary to go to a Neurologist?

Absolutely! If you get migraines fequently, your neurologist will probably hook you up with a daily med (or meds). If you get them infrequently (like I do), she/he might give you a med to take only when you get syptoms.

Before you go, however, I highly recommend keeping a journal of somekind regarding your headaches - date, what you did, ate, etc., how long it lasted, etc.
 
I used to get them, 3 or so a week. I went on a gluten-free diet because of intestinal problems and what do you know...no more migraines!!!:D !!! Food allergy/intolerance should not be overlooked.

Trish
 
I just wanted to say that due to this thread I did some internet research and found out about the different migraine types and types of headaches. Unfortunately, by examining the different symptoms I think I get about 2 or 3 types of migraines and I get cluster headaches often too. I was ignorant to all of this. I thought there was only one type of migraine and one type of headache. I'm going to print those papers and take them to a neurologist. Another thing I did was to check out a new salad dressing I bought and had that same day I had my migraine and interesting enough it had monosodium glutamate. Blame it on my ignorance to buy a low carb dressing because I couldn't find Italian in my favorite brand. I checked the one I buy regularly and it doesn't have MSG.

Thank you to all of you who shared your experiences and knowledge. There might be some treatment to this after all.
 
I had to come out of lurking to reply to this topic because I feel so bad for anyone that has to deal with this pain. I've suffered with migraines for about 16 years. I used to get about 6 a month, with such severe pain and vomiting that I'd wind up in the emergency room. Mine are triggered by hormones, I get them like clockwork once a month right at the end of my period. After having my daughter 9 years ago, my migraines have become much less severe. I take calcium, magnesium & zinc (I read on the internet that this may help) and I still get the migraines, but the pain seems to be less "throbbing". I know when a migraine's coming on when I feel pain in my left eyeball, a feeling like my eyeball is swollen. Then I feel sick to my stomach, then the trobbing pain starts. I take Imitrex and also Compazine for the nausea, and usually this will take away the pain in about 2 hours (but the Imitrex makes me extremely tired). Have you tried Imitrex for your migraines? You might want to talk to your doctor about it, maybe it would help you.

I promise you all I'll stop lurking and start to post more. I have a shyness problem. I'm new to Cathe, and she's kickin' my butt!
 
>I promise you all I'll stop lurking and start to post more. I
>have a shyness problem. I'm new to Cathe, and she's kickin'
>my butt!

Welcome Daisy. Yes, forget about your shyness and post! I will get an appointment with a neurologist and I will post whatever happens so anybody with the same problem can benefit.
 
I've had three migraines with vision impairment. One after swimming class in high school, one when I was driving to work (now, isn't that scary), and one when I was a little girl. The rest of my migraines didn't have vision impairment, but were excruciatingly painful and linked to my taking the pill.

Now, the only types of severe headaches I get are what I call my "Monday Headaches". It seems that it's the only day of the week I get them, and they can become quite bad. I think they are more tension-related cluster headaches, and not migraines. Ironic that I only get them on Mondays. I've been lucky the past couple of weeks and have not gotten them, but before the holidays, EVERY SINGLE Monday, without fail, I got one. I actually wrote Mondays out of my rotations as my day off from exercise.
 
I used to get migraines with the aura pretty frequently, but I haven't had them often for years now. One time, I believe, they were set off by too much thyroid medication. And I swear that I caused one myself one time by eating too many black walnuts all at one time. Oddly, though, mine are pretty atypical. Although I get nauseau, blind spots, flashing lights, shakiness, etc., I can control mine enough to function by taking four Advil at the first sign of an aura and repeating every four hours. I know most people aren't this lucky.

Shari
 
I wuld take care with the Advil. My daughter's husband's grandmother died because she actually took to many aspirin. They totally caused a huge erosion in her somach and the med professionals could do nothing.
Diane Sue
 
I've suffered migraines for over 20 years. About 8 years ago, my doctor put me on amitriptylene 25 mg daily for migraine prophylaxis. Amitriptylene is actually an antidepressant, but it's worked wonders preventing my headaches. I still get them on occasion when I'm under a lot of stress, but they're much, much milder. Like someone else who posted, I get the aura, numbness, speech loss, nausea, vomiting, and of course the severe pain. OTC drugs have never worked for me. They usually end up making me even more nauseous. Imitrex is pretty good if you catch it right at the onset, but taking daily amitriptylene has really been my savior. There are other drugs that do essentially the same thing, but I like the price of this one--$19.99 for a 3-month supply. I'm not an advocate of using medications for every little thing, but if your migraines are regular and fairly disabling, daily prophylaxis will make your life a lot more pleasant. Good luck to you.

Elizabeth
 
I actually get fewer migraines on the pill than I used to get when I wasn't on it. Like others have mentioned, I get significantly fewer when I regularly take a calcium/magnesium/zinc supplement. Imitrex works well for me but I have to take it like I would any other pain reliever--every 4-6 hours. It gets rid of the migraine entirely and allows me to get on with my normal life.


Lisa
 
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