Newbie here
Hi all,
I'm so glad to have found this site, and I apologize for the long post but I'm frustrated, scared and feel alone. I'm sure most of you can relate.
I've had headaches for the last fifteen years or so, and have been able to control them with Excedrin or Relpax. In the last few months, they seem to have gotten worse and I've gotten into a bad cycle of rotating through those two meds in a week - I probably take one or the other a total or 2-3 times a week, possibly more.
I can tell a headache is coming because my neck tightens up and starts cracking when I try and move it. I feel like I'm caught in a rebound headache cycle but for the life of me, cannot shake the headaches or resist taking something for them. There's been so many tears over the last few weeks because I'm so frustrated. I've never gone to the ER for a headache though - the meds are still able to knock 'em out. They just keep coming back.
I have an appt Monday with a headache specialist (YAY) and I'm hoping he can help me come up with a plan to detox from the meds. Cold turkey is just not working. I've also just started cutting out gluten/sugar/caffeine and I'm hoping that will help.
I also just saw a neuromuscular dentist last week because of jaw pain and clicking. He said headaches and neck pain could very easily be related to the TMJ issue. So, I'm checking on insurance coverage to see if that's a viable solution.
So...I goes I'm curious to hear how anyone navigated the headache rebound detox, if they've had success with TMJ treatment, and or have any advice in general. I just read something on another thread about migrane status something and that made me anxious (I have severe anxiety, especially when it comes to health) and now I'm worried that I should go to the ER. But this isn't a migraine that keeps me in bed and knocks me out, it's manageable.
Thanks for listening, I appreciate it.
Hi, I am new here. Actually here for my daughter, but you sound a lot like her! She's only 15 but has been getting migraines for a few years now. We have been seeing a headache specialist in NYC (not sure where you are from) and she gets a magnesium infusion and b12 shot once a month. She was on Topomax as a preventative for about a year and came off them early summer (because she was doing so much better and started to miss doses frequently), but she has now had a migraine for 5 days, so she may need to go back on that. She takes Maxalt and diclofenac for pain. She also has TMJ. I actually forgot about that. I need to ask her if that's been bothering her.
Another thing I just read about was the parathyroid causing migraines. That will give you an elevated calcium level, so I want to ask to have that tested at her next blood test.
I hope you get relief soon.
Hey there! Sorry this is happening to you. One thing I immediately wonder in reading your posts is, are you on any kind of preventative? Having something that dampens down the number of migraines per month is enormously helpful in migraine control because you aren't so dependent on abortive meds (triptans) or painkillers and less likely to cause rebound. I hear you on rebound. My head is the QUEEN of rebound, LOL.
I also have bad TMJ, which I know contributes. I assume you already probably wear a biteguard at night? I know if I forget to put mine in, I am almost guaranteed a migraine the next day. My husband says I grind like a stegosaurus all night. Botox is also really helpful to me with that because it stuns some of the muscles in your face, neck and shoulders, and reduces tension in that whole region.
It's perfect that you are seeing a headache specialist as they are the ones who will really know how to help treat this.
