MOH & what to do?
So what is one to do when you've tried many many different types of meds, chiropractic, acupuncture, physical therapy, counseling, psychology, psychology, meditation all with no change in the daily severe debilitating migraines. In order to get any kind of peace and to not have to stay chained to the toilet in a dark room, I have resorted to taking 1-3 pain pills a day that are prescribed by my doctor. But my quandary is this... what is one to do when nothing else works? You know that you are increasing the odds of getting an MOH but what else is there? Any thoughts or tips? I've been doing this for 19+ years and have tried many many different meds, but desperate times call for desperate measures. I look at it this way, I can take the pain meds or I can be curled up in a ball for the rest of my life being potentially extremely depressed, possibly suicidal due to the severity of the pain that no one can seem to find a cause or a cure for.
Hi meh422,
I understand the frustration you are going through and the desperation migraine disease bring upon us. Hang in there, let's see what I can do to help, how does that sound?
Pain medications are not the answer for migraine, but you probably already know that - and here's why - they simply mask the pain. These medications do not stop a migraine attack and that's what we really want to do, stop an attack in it's tracks. Plus you may have moh from pain medication if you are taking one-three pills each and every day, I'm sorry to say. I empathize with you here because I took methadone for chronic pain a number of years ago and got into an moh cycle as well. Our migraines can be more difficult to treat if we have moh and we can end up in in a daily cycle of pain that is hard to treat. I totally get it because I took methadone for three and a half years and I must say withdrawing from that was not fun, but I did it. Here is information on moh I hope you find helpful;https://migraine.com/blog/help-how-can-i-not-overuse-migraine-medications/
I know at this point it feels like you have tried everything out there for migraine, but in reality that really isn't possible. It would take 25 years to try all the various medications available for migraine at the correct dose, for the right amount of time and in the proper manner. Let me share information on all the medications that can be used for migraine treatment; https://migraine.com/blog/migraine-management-essential-4-preventive-treatment/ and https://migraine.com/blog/migraine-preventive-abortive-rescue-medications/.
I'm sure you feel like you've seen every doctor in possible, but I wonder if you have seen a true expert in headache medicine rather then just a neurologist. A neurologist may be a fine doctor but is not usually an expert in headache medicine because they treat so many different disorders like multiple sclerosis, stroke, epilepsy, Parkinson's and others. A migraine/headache disorder specialist is THE expert who is board certified in headache medicine and treats one disorder, migraine and headaches. This is the doctor you may want to see now. Let me share information with you on why these doctors are so special and how to find one; https://migraine.com/blog/how-are-migraine-specialists-different/ and https://migraine.com/blog/looking-for-a-migraine-specialist/.
Another frustrating part of migraine is our triggers can change over time. If you haven't kept a detailed migraine diary recently, it would be advantageous to do so. With all the apps out there it is easier then ever too. Here is information on this; https://migraine.com/blog/keeping-migraine-diary-basics/ and https://migraine.com/blog/migraine-management-essential-trigger-management/. And Migraine.com has the Migraine Meter you may want to look at; https://migraine.com/migraine-meter/.
I've given you a lot of information so I will stop now. I hope you find this helpful,
Nancy
