Advice for Migraine Sufferers

You will definitely know if you have a migraine. Headaches are nothing compared to this debilitating pain. Sometimes all you want to do is lay in a dark room with a cool rag on your forehead and wish for the pain to stop. Loud noises, strong smells, and bright lights just make you feel nauseous. It affects your work and home life - making you miss out on opportunities or call in to work. I have plenty of experience - started having them in my mid-teens and now I'm in my mid-twenties. I've been to numerous doctors and also have seen specialists, such as a neurologist. I'm here to pass on the advice I have received, and hopefully it will work for some of you!

Let's start with medicine. For non-prescription, Excedrin Migraine has proved to be quite useful. Caffeine is a main ingredient, which helps with the blood flow. These have helped me with smaller head pains. For prescription medicine, I've been on Midrin before, and now I have Imitrex and Maxalt. Imitrex is to be taken at the onset of a headache and is in pill form. Maxalt is similar with the instructions, but is a dissolving pill. Granted, these medicines should not be taken without consulting your doctor. I also have found Flexeril to be useful - at the moment, it is the most useful. This is a muscle relaxer that I originally got for back pain but my neurologist now says to take it for head pain. It can create a dizzy or sleepy feeling, so be careful about when you take it.

Now for those of you that don't want to be pill-poppers, let's go to some other advice. I know that taking pills everyday is not a fun way to live. Believe me, I hate relying on them. I don't feel like myself after taking multiple pills, but sometimes it's the other way I can get my head off the pillow and function. This has been my worst year ever for migraines, and I've reached out as far as possible for any help I can get. First there's the usual advice - avoid "triggers" - Stress, lack of sleep, certain smells, bright lights, certain foods. Then reach for the next step of "natural" helpers. My neurologist recommended trying vitamins daily to help - B-Complex and Magnesium. She also said that the herb Feverfew can help, and to avoid massive sugar intake. There are also a few natural nasal sprays that have proven to be helpful to some, such as SinuFix and Sinus Burster. These can be found at health stores such as GNC.

I highly recommend seeing a neurologist and also getting a CT scan to see if there's anything wrong in your head that may be causing these migraines. Perhaps you had an injury? My dentist told me that wisdom teeth can cause pain, especially if they are impacted. If you are like me, you will want any help you can get for migraines. No one should have to suffer thru such pain.

My last piece of advice is to get a doctor's note for your file at work explaining that you have migraines and may miss work because of them. I've missed several days this year at my job because my pain was too severe. Sometimes I am able to take some medicine and struggle thru the day, but occasionally it gets beyond my control and I have to stay home in the dark with a rag on my head, hoping to sleep off the pain. This is why I continue to look for anything that may help, and hopefully I've given out some advice that will work for some people!