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Chronic, static migraines and moving to Texas

So like many of you I have had migraines all my life, but I’ve had a more constant battle with them for the last four years. I really don’t think there’s much left I haven’t tried, with the exception of a ketamine infusion, really that’s the only thing I know of that I haven’t tried. So if you’ve heard of it being used for the treatment of migraines, off label or on, in all likelihood I’ve been on it at one point or another. And I’ve kind of reached this end point of what can be done. I’m on a lot of very expensive medicine that took a long time to authorize… Botox, Ubrevly, Emgality, and others and I’m really concerned about moving and what that could mean for my migraine treatment.
On the one hand where I’m living I’m running into a wall with one of the only rescue medicines that still consistently works for me, butorphanol. (And yes I’m aware of the dangers, it’s not like I really want it to be the only thing that works…) So staying here I will continue to be treated like a criminal seeking drugs, despite the fact that I have never sought to fill it or anything else illegally or even taken any illegal drugs. But now no matter what kind of pain I’m in the state has made it harder for even my doctors to write prescriptions for me.
So the other hand I risk moving somewhere that I don’t know what the mandates are. I was only able to find them out here after weeks of talking to representatives for the insurance and then finally a clinical pharmacist for the insurance who explained that it was the way the law was written in the state I live in. Sigh, sorry for the rant…

Anyway… anyone in Texas on any of those four medications Botox, Ubrevly, Emgality, or Butorphanol?
Did you have a long wait time with your insurance to get them approved? Know of a good neurologist in the Austin area?

Also FYI I do take other medicine, but as those didn’t require prior authorizations I’m not too worried about them, and they aren’t brand new.

  1. , I have never lived in Texas, but I have seen a headache specialist there. I know they have several in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. The state is so big, I’m sure there must be others in different parts of the state. As far as insurance, it all depends on the plan you have. If it is the same plan you have now, most likely nothing will change unless the state has different laws about these things.


    I really do sympathize with you when it comes to insurance. My plan keeps covering less things. If you already know what your insurance plan will be, you can start checking.


    Peggy (Migraine.com team)

    1. , I live in Paris, Texas (north of Dallas). My husband is the one with migraines; I joined this site to do research for him. He has been taking Ubrelvy in addition to Depakote for several months. Ubrelvy is insanely expensive (as you know) but his insurance pays half and then the pharmacy he goes to has some kind of discount thing that pays for all but $10.00 of it, thank God. It didn't take any time at all to get it approved.

      I don't know about neurologists in Austin; he hasn't had much luck with them in Dallas or here in Paris, but hopefully they are better there!

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