Migraine sufferers- what is your plan during pregnancy?

MCromwell · October 2012

I've had migraines all my life.... the thought of getting a headache and not being able to pop my 1/2 immitrex and excedrin migraine has scared me enough into not TTC for probably a year...

I've lessened the severity and frequency of my headaches by supplementing with high dose magnesium and riboflavin... I'm going to make sure this is OK at a preconception appt Friday...

But I still get bad ones a couple times a month (especially on my period/hormone fluctuations)...

ScarletOflaherty · October 2012

When I am not eating well I get menstrual migraines, but when I eat low carb I don't get them at all. My plan is just to eat well and hope for the best

angelsnight · October 2012

I really don't know....with less stress in my life (AKA being done with school) it seems to have lessened how often I get them. I'm already suffering since Excedrine migraine seems to have been pulled from the shelves. I plan to give up pop 99% when I am pregnant but more than likely if I get a migraine when KU I'll have to hope the combo of tylenol and some pop can cure it, and hope I can be home so I can lay in the dark.

doodiebug18 · October 2012

I have cluster migraines usually they start CD 1 and last until ovulation. I never had them until stopping BCP, so my guess is their hormonal. I finally found a medication that helps after several attempts. I'm hoping that once I get pregnant they'll stop!

MCromwell · October 2012

angelsnight:
I really don't know....with less stress in my life (AKA being done with school) it seems to have lessened how often I get them. I'm already suffering since Excedrine migraine seems to have been pulled from the shelves. I plan to give up pop 99% when I am pregnant but more than likely if I get a migraine when KU I'll have to hope the combo of tylenol and some pop can cure it, and hope I can be home so I can lay in the dark.

Yeah there was some kind of recall on them.. I suffered for like 2 months before my neurologist told me that every store makes that exact combo, it's just named something else. I got "migraine relief" pills at Walmart and it's identical to exedrin migraine:

250mg acetaminophen

250mg aspirin

65mg caffeine

MCromwell · October 2012

angelsnight:
I really don't know....with less stress in my life (AKA being done with school) it seems to have lessened how often I get them. I'm already suffering since Excedrine migraine seems to have been pulled from the shelves. I plan to give up pop 99% when I am pregnant but more than likely if I get a migraine when KU I'll have to hope the combo of tylenol and some pop can cure it, and hope I can be home so I can lay in the dark.

The pop thing is actually kind of genius!! Maybe I'll phase it completely out in the next month before we officially pull the goalie... then it can be my migraine treatment. worth trying.

bewilderingstar · October 2012

Have any of you tried chiropractic care? If you cannot find a trigger, a lot of time it's musculoskeletal related...

MCromwell · October 2012

SLBxtreme:
Have you kept a diary to see if you could find a trigger? I have journaled my cycles, everything I eat and even the weather to see if I could find a cause for my migraines. Unfortunately it didn't work for me, I'm convinced that I have multiple types of migraine headahes. I have tried all types of drugs only to find that the side effects always suck more than the migraines do. Anyway, if you can find a trigger you can better prevent them from occurring without interfering with TTC. My plan is to drink plenty of water, which helps my migraines some, and take Tylenol when I need to. Other than that I'm just praying that when I do get KU that my headaches don't get any worse. Good luck!

Yup... but I have so many triggers it's ridiculous. Stress and sudden weather changes are the semi-unpredictable ones... if I get less than 7 hours or more than 10 hours of sleep I get a migraine. if I drink less than 2 nalgenes of water I will get a migraine. if I drink any type of alcohol I get a migraine.

MCromwell · October 2012

and as a side note: I've been able to get rid of my migraines about 30% of the time if I catch them early... mine are atypical- they start in the back of my head and crawl up to my eyes. I only get a "typical" migraine with aura once every other year or so (thank god!).

I usually do a neck massager/vibrator thing for 10 solid minutes, then take a shower and put as hot as I can stand it water on my neck, then take a warm bath with aromatherapy, then rub ben gay on the back of my neck, eat something (typically bread), and then lay down on an ice pack.

Lengthy and time consuming, but worth a shot.

angelsnight · October 2012

MCromwell:
angelsnight:
I really don't know....with less stress in my life (AKA being done with school) it seems to have lessened how often I get them. I'm already suffering since Excedrine migraine seems to have been pulled from the shelves. I plan to give up pop 99% when I am pregnant but more than likely if I get a migraine when KU I'll have to hope the combo of tylenol and some pop can cure it, and hope I can be home so I can lay in the dark.
The pop thing is actually kind of genius!! Maybe I'll phase it completely out in the next month before we officially pull the goalie... then it can be my migraine treatment. worth trying.

The only problem is sometimes the withdrawl of the caffeine can trigger migraines...so pay attention to see if phasing pop out actually gives you migraines. But if you plan to phase it out rather than just stop drinking it cold turkey you should be ok...and as you said you want to try ditching regular caffeine use anyway so you'll be mostly off of it once you're KU anyway. Good luck!

angelsnight · October 2012

SLBxtreme:
angelsnight:
I really don't know....with less stress in my life AKA being done with school it seems to have lessened how often I get them.nbsp; I'm already suffering since Excedrine migraine seems to have been pulled from the shelves.nbsp; I plan to give up pop 99 when I am pregnant but more than likely if I get a migraine when KU I'll have to hope the combo of tylenol and some pop can cure it, and hope I can be home so I can lay in the dark.
Fyi Did you know that excedrin extra strength is the exact same formula as excedrin migraine? They just slap a new label on it to be able to market it to more customers.

If I am not mistaken, they pulled all Excedrine products didn't they? Not just the migraine one? That doesn't surprise me though, most things are exactly the same product but with different marketing to justify the higher price.

angelsnight · October 2012

MCromwell:
angelsnight:
I really don't know....with less stress in my life (AKA being done with school) it seems to have lessened how often I get them. I'm already suffering since Excedrine migraine seems to have been pulled from the shelves. I plan to give up pop 99% when I am pregnant but more than likely if I get a migraine when KU I'll have to hope the combo of tylenol and some pop can cure it, and hope I can be home so I can lay in the dark.
Yeah there was some kind of recall on them.. I suffered for like 2 months before my neurologist told me that every store makes that exact combo, it's just named something else. I got "migraine relief" pills at Walmart and it's identical to exedrin migraine:
250mg acetaminophen
250mg aspirin
65mg caffeine

Thanks, I'll have to look for them.

trebeksucks · October 2012

Every doctor seems to have a different opinion about what is safe and not safe during pregnancy for migraines. I know my doctors told me when I was pregnant that I couldn't take any of my migraine meds (Relpax is my go-to) but I was given the okay for occasional vicodin if I was in extreme pain. Also, Zofran was fine for nausea. My PCP also will give a demoral shot if I have a migraine M-F during business hours. I have never taken her up on that, just something she said was okay during pregnancy and she would do.

I started getting acupuncture 2 months ago and I have to say, it has greatly decreased the frequency of my migraine attacks. If I go when I have a headache, often the acupuncture can relieve it.

I think the best thing is just to communicate with your doctors about your concerns and see what plan they can come up with for you. Good luck!

MsCraftsy · October 2012

Crap. I didn't even think of this. =/ I am so screwed. I get migraines all of the time.

They usually knock me on my rear. I throw up, light sensitive, have to have it freezing in the house etc. I don't know what I am going to do if I can't have my imitrex and Excedrine.

I did find that eating a banana (potassium) and drinking some red can coke helps when I have a migraine but that doesn't kill it by any means. I guess I'll be sleeping and taking lots of showers since that is the only thing (in conjunction with the medication) that helps me get rid of them.

I also have multiple triggers. =/

OtterPop1 · October 2012

Mine got noticeably better when I was pregnant. They weren't as often or as severe. I couldn't take my normal medicine (Imitrex), so my OB prescribed Fioricet. It was enough to get me through.

The hardest time was when LO was a newborn, and I wasn't getting much sleep. I had a few times where I had to take my Imitrex and "pump and dump" breast milk.

skio · October 2012

I avoided Imitrex in the 2WW. I remember my PCP warning me against triptans during pregnancy, so I personally wasn't comfortable with it in the wait. Caffeine and Tylenol were my helpers, but if I got a bad one, I would take Excedrin. Although that never did much for me, either. Sometimes taking an antihistamine along with pain meds helps me for some reason; a tip from my dad, who passed the wonderful migraine gene on to me. Benadryl is safe during pregnancy.

I should share the bright side; I got zero migraines when I was pregnant with DD. I brought it up to my OB and he said that was quite common! It's a little special perk for us migraine sufferers from Mother Nature. GL.

hopeful808 · October 2012

skio:
I avoided Imitrex in the 2WW. I remember my PCP warning me against triptans during pregnancy, so I personally wasn't comfortable with it in the wait. Caffeine and Tylenol were my helpers, but if I got a bad one, I would take Excedrin. Although that never did much for me, either. Sometimes taking an antihistamine along with pain meds helps me for some reason; a tip from my dad, who passed the wonderful migraine gene on to me. Benadryl is safe during pregnancy. I should share the bright side; I got zero migraines when I was pregnant with DD. I brought it up to my OB and he said that was quite common! It's a little special perk for us migraine sufferers from Mother Nature. GL.

Benadryl is a component on the migraine meds that you get at my local hospital. Along with morphine and ritalin. It's good to know that smaller amounts can help.

JGior1031 · October 2012

I used to have debilitating migraines years ago. The worst part was I couldnt take any of the medications they had for migraines because I had terrible reactions and side effects to them all (immitrx, fluroside (sp?), topamax, inderal and a few others)

So I was limited to pain medication and valium but I didnt want to rely of thoes types of medication. My neurologist suggested accupuncture and massage. It was a like saver!!! I still get migraines every once and a while but they are nothing like they used to be. The accupuncture was amazing!

LnR70707 · October 2012

My migraines also improved while pregnant and were almost non-existent while BFing. There was a period from 14 week until about 17 weeks where I had non-stop headaches, but that is pretty normal due to increased blood volume. Extra strength Tylenol + a half can of coke was my only salvation, and it usually worked if I caught it in time.

MindyBadger1 · October 2012

I'll have to look into acupuncture... Again, it's worth a shot! I'm interested to see how my preconception appointment goes... I've never been to an OB/GYN- always had my annuals with my PCP.

MindyBadger1 · October 2012

and Ps. I changed my screen name--- that was my old one from 5 years ago on the knot. starting fresh.

coraggiosa · October 2012

This might sound kind of crazy, but my migraines went away after I got my wisdom teeth removed. I had them from age 12 until 22, every month or so. It was horrible. I was on topamax for prevention and maxalt for when I would actually get a migraine.

The last time I had a migraine was right before I got my wisdom teeth removed. Since then, I've been migraine free.

My oral surgeon and doctor actually said that it's pretty common for migraines to go away once you get your wisdom teeth removed.

Migraines seriously suck. I definitely agree with everyone who recommends a Coke when you get a migraine. When I was in school, I had a few cans of Coke with my name on them in the nurses's office, just in case.

jeffsjayme · October 2012

This might or might not be helpful, but my DH gets migraines something fierce unless he chews like 10 Tums a day. Not all at once, but throughout the day. His doc knows and says if it works, go for it. For him, chew Tums? No migranes.

That's pregnancy friendly.

oksoonergirl · October 2012

How is your diet? I just sat thru a lecture yesterday and the speakers were mentioning that some studies were showing a link with food allergies and migraines. Specifically dairy and gluten. I know when I used to get migraines pretty bad they were definitely worse when my dairy intake was really high.

jorkz821 · October 2012

My migraines used to be terrible, lasting 4 to 5 days and nothing really worked for them. The only thing I've found that keeps then from getting worse is Toradol [ Rx strength Advil, essentially] which you can't take while pg.
Up side is pregnancy and breastfeeding made them infinitely better, like I had maybe 2 in 1.5 years and they weren't terrible so I just took Tylenol for them.
Acupuncture also helped A LOT.

Good luck!

shortstuff15 · October 2012

I'm not a regular migrane getter when not pregnant (like I hardly ever get headaches at all when I'm not pregnant). That changes however during pregnancy. During pregnancy I get a headache/migrane (it varies) about 2 times a month. It's awful but I just load up on the tylenol, drink water, let my kids watch movies and lay down as much as possible. Coke also helps and I'm not one to avoid caffeine during pregnancy because I don't drink much anyway.

I guess I'm not much help to you but I just wanted to let you know it is possible to survive them during pregnancy.

curlylocks3 · October 2012

I discussed this with my OB and the MFM during my pre-conception consults. My migraines have improved dramatically over time but still tend to occur around O or my period (aka sudden hormonal changes). The MFM told me 33% of people see an improvement with pregnancy, 33% see no change and 33% get worse with hormonal-related migraines. Obviously I'm hoping to be in one of the first two groups

I'm to continue taking my magnesium pills once pregnant and to use my rescue medicine (Maxalt) sparingly, especially in the 1st tri, but to take it if necessary since I have history of intractable migraines. My really severe migraines do respond to IV magnesium (I've only had to take it 4-5x in my life) so they said as a last resort they'd bring me into L&D and do an infusion of that.

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