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Taffy
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| Posted: Dec 30 2009 at 7:27pm | IP Logged
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I was wondering if anyone here could offer me some wisdom in dealing with migraines? I have a long history of them. Regular migraines are bad enough but I am finding the "silent migraines" quite problematic. Silent migraines generally don't include headache but they have a lot of other disconcerting symptoms such as numbness, dizziness, chest pain, and light flashes that interfere with vision. I always start to worry that I'm having a stroke when these happen.
Are there any drug free ways that you've found useful to prevent or combat migraines? I'm already guessing that I need to have more sleep and try and reduce stress (don't we all?  ). I probably need to make some dietary changes too as well as lose some weight but the weight loss will have to wait until this new baby shows up.
I'm not sure about coffee. I know that caffeine can head off a migraine in the beginning stages but I'm not sure if I should cut it out completely or maybe try to have a morning cup a day?
Anyway, I'm hoping to get a lot of responses. I'm so tired of these migraines already!
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Susan
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Susan's Soliloquy
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Tami
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| Posted: Dec 30 2009 at 7:33pm | IP Logged
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Oh, Susan, I feel for you.  And so do others on this board.
I've found it's best to try and identify your triggers. Maybe keeping a log/journal until you can identify them.
I have to go get dinner, but will chime in later. In the meantime, there is at least one thread here on migraines/headaches. You might want to peruse that for some ideas.
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Tami
When we are crushed like grapes, we cannot think of the wine we will become. (Nouwen)
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JodieLyn
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| Posted: Dec 30 2009 at 7:40pm | IP Logged
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Well, first off, caffiene is a cause of headaches for me EXCEPT when I have a headache (migraine) so partly I believe because I don't normally have caffiene that I can use some caffiene (cola works best.. guessing maybe the sugar does something too) and head off the migraine.
It will help if you can figure out any triggers.
Chocolate
Salmon or Tuna
Wine
dyes
processed meats (like lunch meats or hot dogs or sausages)
MSG
Hormones
those are all triggers I've heard about.
For myself any untreated headache will eventually trigger a migraine.. so if I get a tension headache or a sinus headache I need to do something about them not just push through.
pregnancy can be a time of shifting hormones and cause problems. Red raspberry leaf in capsule or tea may help settle down the hormones. it's also useful when you're not pregnant if you get migraines according to your cycle, typical with your period or near ovulation. Red raspberry leaf is a great thing for pregnancy anyway, you get some good mineral and some uterine toning qualities that can help your uterus function better during labor.
Some triggers you just need to avoid. Like chocolate or fish or MSG.
Sometimes smells can be a trigger.. like a perfume or scented candle or such. Not necessarily all of them but that would be possible as well.
I've found that cold compresses on my face or ice on my head (so the cold gets through my hair better) can really effect a migraine for the better.
But then cold causes veins to constrict as does caffiene.. and migraines are often because the vein are dilating unevenly and the constricting helps them get back in sync or something like that
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All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
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Paula in MN
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JodieLyn wrote:
| Sometimes smells can be a trigger.. like a perfume or scented candle or such. Not necessarily all of them but that would be possible as well. |
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This is the trigger for me. I'm fine at home, even with lightly scented candles in the main bathroom, master bedroom and living room. But if I walk into a gift shop or a store like Bath & Body Works, or if someone with a lot of cologne, after shave or perfume sits next to me at Church? I'm down for days.
You asked for options besides medication, but I've found the only thing that works for me is three Excedrin migraine. I have to take them the minute I feel a headache, so I carry a bottle in the van and I have a few pills in my jacket pocket. If that doesn't work, I'm in the bedroom with the door closed, the drapes closed, and a cold washcloth on my eyes and forehead.
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 Paula
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Servant2theKing
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Susan,
You've received some good advice already. A few more triggers that haven't been mentioned; aged, cured, pickled or smoked foods. Some of my primary triggers are humidity, heat, bright lights (including TV or computer screen), sunlight, and secondhand smoke. Red Rasberry leaf would be benefical. "Prescription for Nutritional Healing" suggests eliminating all caffeine from your diet (including chocolate) and using coffee only when you feel a migraine coming on. They say it's only effective to use coffee as a remedy for migraine if you have completely eliminated caffeine from your diet first. The first few days of eliminating caffeine from your diet you could still experience headaches, so that's tricky, but it would be worthwhile in the longrun. "Pres. for Nutr. Healing" also suggests Calcium and Magnesium, Coenzyme Q10, and Primrose Oil, but I would check with your doctor to be sure those are safe during pregnancy. My sister was told by her OBGYN to take Benadryl for trigger/allergy related migraine and it has helped her a lot...again, I would check with your doctor as to whether that would be safe to take. If ibuprofen is safe during pregnancy, I've found that Advil liqui-gels really help me nip an early migraine in the bud. Lessening stress, not trying to push through your headaches and getting adequate sleep also help immensely. Praying for grace-filled relief.
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CrunchyMom
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One of the "aged foods" my husband has discovered as a potential trigger is brie and the rinds of other soft-ripened cheeses.
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Lindsay
Five Boys(6/04) (6/06) (9/08)(3/11),(7/13), and 1 girl (5/16)
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Taffy
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| Posted: Dec 31 2009 at 8:56am | IP Logged
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Thanks everyone. Looks like I'm going to have to keep a journal of what I eat and any symptoms. Darn - I hate keeping food journals!
I already know a few of my triggers. Parmesan cheese, Cinnamon-Apple herbal tea, too much light (two years ago I had to wear sunglasses even indoors because of the sunlight reflecting off the snow through the windows), lack of sleep, and I'm starting to suspect peppermint tea as well.  I'd never heard of fish being a trigger. I don't often eat fish because my husband hates it so much but I have been eating it more since discovering I was pregnant.
I'm going to quit coffee altogether too. I'm pretty sensitive to it anyway and had already cut way down on it. I'll save it for those times when I feel a migraine coming on.
Thanks for all the advice so far and, please, keep it coming. 
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Susan
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KC in TX
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Flickering lights can trigger a migraine for me. I second the keeping a food journal/log to help pinpoint triggers. Stress has also been a trigger for me. I had a serious one coming on the day after Christmas, but was able to head it off (I couldn't see well because of a white flash in the middle of my field of vision).
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And, my 2 angels, Rose ('08) and Mark ('09)
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JodieLyn
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Advil I believe is not safe for pregnancy, because of the blood thinning properties.. like asprin.
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Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4
All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
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Anneof 5
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I have just recently heard that gluten intolerance and/or celiac disease can cause migraines even in those who do not know they have the illness. My son gets occasional migraines. When he was gluten free he had none but since he chose to go back on gluten (19yo, knows it all!) he has had a recurrence. Here is a link and I know there is more info out there on this.
Celiac Disease a Possible Cause of Migraines
May 24th, 2007
From Web MD
In a nifty piece of detective work, doctors at Catholic and La Sapienza universities, Rome, identified a hidden gut problem as a potential cause of migraine headaches. The gut problem is called celiac disease or gluten intolerance. Celiac disease can cause severe symptoms — but sometimes the symptoms are hard to detect. Even in people with no obvious symptoms, it has been associated with many kinds of nerve and brain problems. Might celiac disease also cause migraine? Maurizio Gabrielli, MD, and colleagues compared 90 migraine patients with 236 healthy blood donors. They found that the migraine sufferers were 10 times more likely to have celiac disease than the healthy donors.
“Our results suggest that a significant proportion of patients with migraine may have celiac disease,” Gabrielli and colleagues write in the March issue of The American Journal of Gastroenterology. The cause of celiac disease is sensitivity to gluten. Gluten is the protein in grains that lets bread rise. A gluten-free diet cures the disease. Could it cure migraine? Of the 90 migraine patients in the study, four had previously undiagnosed celiac disease. All four went on a gluten-free diet. It cured migraines in one patient. The other three had fewer headaches — and when they got migraines they were shorter and less intense. This might have been the famous placebo effect. But Gabrielli’s team used SPECT scans to look at the patients’ brains blood flow. The gluten-free diet improved blood flow in the brains of all four patients. If larger trials confirm these preliminary findings, the researchers suggest, people with migraines should be tested for celiac disease. For those found to have the problem, it may be a cause of their migraines and a gluten-free diet could help — or even cure — them.
Dr. Perlmutter’s comment:
Simply stated, all headache patients should have a simple blood test, antigliadin antibody, to check for gluten sensitivity.
Posted in Ailments, Celiac Disease, Migraines / Recurring Headaches | 2 Comments »
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Nina Murphy
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My husband has discovered that SOY is a huge allergen for him. Giving up everything with soy (vitamins are usually soy-based! ---check your labels) has become crucial for his well-being.
God bless you---they are awful.
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~~Nina
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and 2 yet-to-be-met
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helene
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Just another suggestion. See if cutting sugar completely out of your diet when you feel one coming on could head it off.
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Happy Mom to five girls (20,17,13,11and 4) and five boys (19, 15, 10, 8 and 6)
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4Real Forums : Our Lady of Good Remedy and Care
Topic: Migraines
