Migraine Disease

I have tried all kinds of preventative meds. in the past 4+ years. I am still having 2-4 a week. The amount of my migraines has not decreased with medications. If anyone out there has had relief with a medication, device, or surgery please email me back. I am extremely frustrated. My Neurologist is getting there as well. What has worked on his other patients is not working on me. I also have lesions on my brain. Have any of you all found that you have them as well? I am told that they are not for sure why they are there. It could be the cause of the migraines or the effect of the migraines, and apparently they have no idea what they mean for my brain in the future. Only that I do not need any more. I am frustrated as I am sure many of you are. Just looking for other options or meds. if I need them. I am going to try to get off all preventative meds. All of mine have been anti-seziures like Depakote, Topamax, Lyrica, Zonagram, Keppra, and I’m sure there are more but i can remember them…..:) Any success stories???????

Hi, Just joined this website.I wonder if anyone has has any experience wth the use of imipramine(Tofranil) for the prophylaxis of
migraines.I am also taking Celexa and Celebrex.Still noe majoe relief bur I am only on my first week of the Tofranil.

Thanks ken b

I think like many I’m desperate to just find someplace I could live a normal  life without worrying about migraines, medicines, staying inside,  sunglasses…. Washington looked good for the cloudiness and cost of living but  the  wildcard was the storms and barometric pressure increases up north as my husband  said. He wasn’t sure if that would be a problem.   My topomax might be working  for me in Arizona just because the barometric pressure changes aren’t as bad  here when a storm comes in as they are further North, a lovely thought.    We’ve been through San Francisco all the way up the coast and figured  anywhere along the coast would be a safe bet but I guess you really don’t know  unless you check what the areas weatherfronts are like, talk to people from the  area and test different spots during vacations to see what happens to your  migraines (and if your medicines hold) when you get there.   mimi in az.

I am looking for your opinions, or advice,  whatever you can offer!    Here is the background:  About 8 years ago I started getting these  funny sensations in my jaw sometimes when I would drink beer or wine.    At first it was just a tingle every now and then.  After a few years  it turned into an intense stabbing pain worse than anything I have  ever felt almost every time I drank.  So I finally went to a doctor.  PCP said he never heard of it.  Dentist never heard of it.  I found an  ENT who suggested i might have salivary stones.  The CT scan did not  show stones, but did show thyroid cancer. I was hoping it was related,  but no such luck – cancer under control, intense pain still occurring.    I then found an allergist who suggested trigeminal neuralgia.  He  sent me to a neurologist who diagnosed me with atypical migraines.    The pain lasts about half an hour, and during that time I can’t put  anything in my mouth or the pan in my jaw intensifies.  (So I can’t  even pop an ibuprofen to see if it would help).  And after the pain is  gone, I can drink alcohol again with no problem.    I am still not clear on why what I have is a migraine and not  trigeminal neuralgia.  Can anyone clarify?    Is there anything I can do to avoid this pain?  (I know, avoid  alcohol!)  But I have been noticing slight tingles in my jaw when  eating other foods, so I am starting to worry again.    Also, besides these atypical migraines, I get the typcal ones too, all  the time.  They are starting to get worse so I am thinking of asking a  Dr. for something better than Advil.  Where do I start?    Any advice is appreciated.  Thank you.

I have a  combination of migraine/tension headaches. Triggered by my monthly  cycle, dry indoor heat in the winter, stress, and allergies.    One thing I have never heard anyone else say is that dry heat in the  house during the winter triggers their migraines. I keep (cool mist)  humidifiers going around the clock for this reason, but I work in  public schools and sometimes have to suffer overheated rooms with no  moisture. If I’m in someone else’s car and they have the heat  blowing out of the upper vents it kills me. Does anyone else have  this experience or am I the only one on the planet?    I recently went to a neurologist after having a migraine for 6 weeks  straight and he put me on Elavil. It has helped, but when my cycle  came around, so did the migraines, just not as bad.    Here’s my routine: 20 mg Elavil at bedtime… if I start to feel a  headche during the next day, which I do most days, I take naproxin  and tylenol. Sometimes that’s enough, but if not, I take 50-60 mg.  of Imitrex and that takes care of it. I had to stop taking 100 mg.  becaus of severe neck/throat pain. Sometimes I have to take 50 more  mg. later in the day. Does anyone have any advice for me on  improving my regimin? I have fioracet but it has bad side efects for  me so I don’t like to take it.    To my great surprise, last summer I learned that working out in the  heat doing landscaping did not cause headaches. It seems the  exercise did wonders for my whole system, including my emotions. I  highly reccommend regular exercise for migraines, anxiety,  depression, and probably many other bodily ailments.

Has anyone else gotten intermittent FMLA through their job?  If so, how  often does your employer require you to get recertification?  I live in  PA and I know there are shortages of neurologists here, and my  neurologist flipped when I told her my employer is requiring  recertification every 30 days.  She said they don’t do that for any  other job and will only do it every six months because it is a chronic  condition and because of the shortage they just don’t have time to fill  out the paperwork every 30 days. I don’t know if it is common to have  to have recertification every 30 days or not.  I think it’s a little  ridiculous since it’s something they know isn’t going away.  Maybe they  think that it will, or that I’m making it up.  What does anyone else  have to provide?

I need to vent today…I’ll try to be quick.  I went to the Neurologist for the first time today (couldn’t wait to  get there to get some long awaited relief, finally!  HA!) and was  totally disappointed.  He spent about between 10 to 15 minutes total  with me, barely said anything, and took me off Topamax 100mg and  AmbienCR and put me on Noritriptlyne 10mg at night (sp?).  This is to  prevent the daily chronic headaches and infrequent migraines.  The  Topamax was working for the migraines but not the daily headaches at  all.  I also take Naprosyn 500mg when I can’t tolerate a h/a and  sometimes percocet.  I think my problem could be with the percocet  because it’s the one thing thing that can cause rebound.  If anyone has  any advice or comment, it would be greatly appreciated.  I seriously  want to get rid of these daily behind the eye, in my temples,  throbbing, sometimes stabbing, annoying headaches.  Ok, I feel better now.  Thanks for listening.