Eliminating Migraines Can Be a Tricky Thing

Discovering the cause of a migraine can be as difficult as climbing Mount Everest. There are so many possible causes- triggers can range from food to hormones to stress to environmental, and pinning down one might mean you've just begun the journey, because some people have multiple triggers! But in order to prevent them, you have to at least try to figure out your triggers, because many doctors want to know why you have them in order to see if prevention can take the form of dietary changes rather than long-term prescription medication.

Which is actually a very reasonable path, considering the retail cost of the most often prescribed prescription medication (Topamax) can hit $300. If you don't have prescription coverage, that's a hefty cost to bear to cure your migraines! And since side effects from this drug can be unbearable to some people, it's not even a given that after paying that much you will be cured.

So, you have to pay attention to what you've eaten before getting a migraine. Pay attention to what you've smelled or heard before getting a migraine. And this is when hit with unbearable, debilitating pain. It can be impossible for some people, and if you're one of those, you may be asking what on earth you can possibly do to help yourself cope!

Thankfully, sometimes migraines resolve into patterns. For women, if they notice they get their headaches on certain days of the month, they can state with some reliability (confirmed by their doctors) that their migraines are hormonal. For men, also, there are tests that can be given to determine if their migraines are related to too much testosterone (rare, but it has happened). Stress is a harder trigger to isolate, but if you have ruled everything else out, you can probably state with authority that they are stress-related. Finally, though it is also rare, there are illnesses that can cause migraines, and it is vital that your doctor ensure you have been given a vision test and an MRI or CT scan to rule out physical causes. Usually, this is the first step doctors take, but some doctors neglect it, so do ask if your doctor is one of those who hasn't considered physical causes. (I had a friend who was experiencing horribly debilitating migraines; after having every test in the world, she went to an eye doctor for the first time in about 12 years. Turns out she needed glasses, and after getting them, her migraines stopped. I'd never heard of that before her, but her regular doctor said it happens- again, like the men with testosterone, it's rare, but it happens. So, don't rule out the physical causes!)

If, however, your migraines are not caused by a pattern, not caused by physical causes, and you haven't been able to discover any physical triggers, then you're probably going "well what about me?" That's what we have medication for, thank goodness. Your doctor can prescribe medication for you that may help prevent them over the long term. As I mentioned previously, many of these medications are expensive, but often times doctor's offices will give you samples to test to see if the particular medication they want you to try will work for you, so that you do not have out of pocket cost if you are in need of the help. (If you are in need of the help, do not be too proud to ask for it!) If the medications do not work for you, there are alternative therapies such as botox, acupuncture, and biofeedback that are gaining popularity because they work.

In short, if you are willing to work at it and are willing to try different medications or alternative therapies you can beat the migraines that are tormenting you. I hope you are able to get rid of them as I have.