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Caffiene and migraine

Hello everyone, I've not long joined and haven't had time to fully ready through all the topics so I'm unsure if this has been covered before but I was wondering if anyone could relate to my Migraine symptoms brought on by Caffiene. It's been an on going problem for years which has confused me and perhaps someone else could shed some light on.

About 10 years ago I pinpointed the source of my migraines down to coffee, it wasn't a case of I'd drink a coffee then i'd have a migraine, rather I could drink coffee for weeks then I'd have a migraine or I'd be in a routine of getting up at 7am, drinking a coffee then starting my day and over period of days I'd wake up slightly earlier and feel my head getting sore at say 6.50, but once I drank my coffee it went away. This would continue for 3-4 days until it stopped working and I would have a full on migraine for 3-5 days. The strange thing about this was that sometimes I could be in the midet of a full on migraine and if I were to drink another coffee it would *sometimes* completely disappear within a minute or two with no repercussions in the coming days.

I found drinking Arabica instead of Robusta seemed to reduce the frequency and put it down to drinking cheap coffee. Over the course of a few weeks that changed and I'd end up with migraines after a few days. Less intense but a migraine none the less.

I then swapped to tea, with no particular problem for quite a while only when I had the occasional coffee could I feel the start of the symptoms (pressure on the side of the head, pain behind the eyes, stiff neck, numb face, the feeling of wanting to burp). Over time though I've started noticing the same with Tea, to the point where I started drinking decaf and should I drink caffinated tea for a couple of days I'd get a migraine.

It's worth adding that should I drink too many decaf teas I could feel the mildest of mild migraine sensations, it's never amounted to anything but I'm wondering, does anyone else have symptoms like this? What is the driver behind it? I'm not a heavy consumer of tea and coffee, I'm drinking both decaf and caffinated, well hydrated, fit and able.

I've tried sumatriptin which seemed to do very little, zolmatriptin seemed to work better but it was no silver bullet. Does anyone have any other tips or recommendations?

  1. thank you for reaching out. From my understanding, they are still uncertain why coffee can contribute to migraines (aside from withdrawal). Here are a few articles that you may find helpful https://migraine.com/blog/foods-potential-migraine-triggers-understanding-food-chemicals and https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31402050/. I am sorry to see that your current medication regimen isn't doing the trick. Unfortunately, we have found through many in the community what works for one does not work for the other. I have heard great things about Nurtec and Botox injections across the board. Here is a link that will send you to other treatment routes that you may find helpful https://migraine.com/treatment-optionshttps://migraine.com/treatment-options. Please let me know if I can send or help with any other information. Shayla (Migraine.com, Team Member)

    1. Hey there! Sorry you're having such a rough time with coffee. I know you said it's been a long time, but how long have you been dealing with this? Have you been diagnosed with migraine, and are you working with a doctor? This seems like a good puzzle for a neurologist or certified headache specialist. In any case, you aren't alone -- many people here on the site have trouble with caffeine, while others find it helps ease a migraine. Migraine is so individual and strange! Keep us posted. -Melissa, migraine.com team

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