Use your Migraine.com account
Log in with Facebook
Log in with Google
Log in with Yahoo!
I’m scheduled for Botox injections this afternoon. I’ve spent the last couple weeks considering canceling the appointment.
My hesitation was fueled by superstition — I’ve felt pretty good the last six weeks and I’m afraid to do anything that might mess it up. Just like the baseball player with an elaborate ritual at the plate, I’m grasping to an illusion of control.
See Also
- Botox Approved for Chronic Migraine
- Allergan Launches Botox Patient Assistance Program for Migraine
- Chronic Migraine Resource
Initially I was worried that the injections themselves would trigger a migraine, which happened the last two times I tried Botox. Within an hour of the injections, I had the worst migraine I’d ever had to that point. I don’t recall how long they lasted, probably just a day or two, but I remember the pain clearly. After those initial migraines,the Botox did not appear to have any impact, positive or negative.That was eight years ago, though, and my doctor now uses more of the drug and more injection sites. This new protocol is what convinced me to try again.
My conviction wavered after I discovered that the _proof of Botox’s efficacy for chronic migraine is pretty weak. In the two studies that Allergan, the maker of Botox, submitted to the FDA, the results are less than stellar. Over a six month period, the participants who received Botox averaged 7.8 and 9.2 fewer days of migraine than before the injections. Participants who had a placebo injection reported 6.4 and 6.9 fewer migraine days. There’s not much difference between the actual drug and the placebo. The numbers are an average — some patients have no reduction in migraine days while others experience a significant reduction.
Lack of evidence supporting a treatment isn’t usually enough to keep me away. I’ve drunk scorpion tea, after all. I’m willing to try any treatment unless it is likely to harm me and the risks of Botox for chronic migraine are very slight. The primary side effects are headache and neck pain, but there’s also a chance it will relieve the neck pain I already have.
I was hoping to find clear information that would make my decision obvious. I did not find a resounding endorsement in the research, though plenty of people on forums and who read this blog say that Botox brought a miraculous improvement.
In any case, when I awoke at 5 a.m. today with a migraine and realized it was my sixth migraine in six days, my decision was made. I’ll get the Botox injections. In the last six weeks I have felt better than I was before, but the migraines are still chronic. The Botox could push me into a slump where the migraines worsen again, but I might hit it out of the park. I’ll never know unless I try.
Related articles & posts
Did you enjoy this article?
Read more just like it! Subscribe to the Migraine.com weekly and receive the latest migraine news and headlines, right in your inbox.
Discuss
Comment using either your Migraine.com or Facebook account. Please select the appropriate tab:
"I had my first migraine when I was 12. I thought I was going blind, the spots in my vision all grouped together and everything went black. The pain was intense and felt like my head would crack open above my right eye." 
Do you have migraines or tension-type headaches 15 or more days a month? Get the information and tools you need.
Download the free Migraine.com app for your phone and access your journal, headlines and more.
I too was suspicious of the Botox treatment but the migraines became so bad and frequent that I was willing to try anything. I also trusted my neurologist, a migraine sufferer success with this treatment. The first two treatments were painful but I noticed and considerable, 70% decrease in my Migraines, and the migraines I do have are less painful. I just received my third treatment and it was not at all painful. Since the middle of November, I have not had one migraine. Good luck.
Keep us posted on how it goes!! *huge hugs*