Non prescription drug relief that actually works? Is there any?
Trying to help my 19yr old daughter who has suffered for 4 to 5 yrs with severe migraines. Her routine is to stay up late on the laptop or cell phone and sleep until 10 or 11 in the morning. Sometimes she has the dark curtains drawn and laying in bed with ice packs on her head or neck. Is there any non prescription way to relieve the migraines, that actually works?
Her headaches are daily.
I'm so sorry your daughter is having a rough time with head pain. I understand how frustrating that is. As a mom, it's difficult to see our children, no matter what the age suffer.
Has she been accurately diagnosed? There are over 200 different kinds of headache and migraine types and getting an accurate diagnosis is key to getting the proper treatment and allows us to learn all we can about our particular type of migraine/headache. Let me share information with you on this topic; https://migraine.com/search?s=accurate%20diagnosis.
Here's something to consider; migraine is thought to be a neurological condition that is managed not cured. Currently these is not cure for migraine. For those who have fewer attacks, or episodic migraine (14 or fewer headache/migraine days a month) OTC medications may be beneficial. But current thinking is anyone who has four or more attacks a month needs to discuss migraine prevention with their doctor. For those of us who are chronic (15 or more headache/migraine days a month) migraine prevention medication may be necessary. Having said that, it sounds like it's time to discuss this with her doctor and if her doctor doesn't seem to take this seriously, it's time to find one who will as her quality of life seems to be suffering. There are doctors who are true experts in treating migraine and headache disease. In fact they are board certified in headache medicine - not all neurologists are. General neurologists may be fine doctors but have a hard time being experts in one area because they treat many conditions such as stroke, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's and more. A true migraine/headache disease doctor treats migraine and headache all day, every day. Here is more information on how these doctors are different and how to find one;
https://migraine.com/blog/seeing-a-board-certified-headache-specialist
https://migraine.com/living-migraine/change-thoughts-new-care
https://headaches.org/resources/healthcare-provider-finder.People who have migraine seem to have overly sensitive brains that thrive on routine. This means a routine sleeping and eating schedule, which is not easy for teenagers to uphold. Has she kept a migraine diary by any chance to see what patterns/symptoms and triggers may be impacting her? Let me share this information on how to keep a diary; https://migraine.com/blog/keeping-migraine-diary-basics.
I've given you a lot to go over so I'll stop now so I don't totally overwhelm you!! Will you let me know what you think?
Wishing your daughter a low pain day, Nancy Harris Bonk, Patient Leader/Moderator Migraine.com Team
Thank you for all of the information and I'm still digesting it. My daughter has been to several doctors in our area and so far none are skilled enough to help her. Most want to throw drugs at her. She spent 4 days in Wolfson's hospital due to one drug causing her to lose her perfect 20/20 vision due to following doctor's orders to double the medication if after a week the original dose did not work. It took 6 days for her eyesight to return to normal. She could not see the top letter of an eye chart from 10 feet. Doctors there tried to tell us she might have MS and wanted to do a spinal tap. We told them it was the medication but they argued with us. It was all I could do as a father to keep from knocking the doctor out. On day 4 the doctors finally came in and agreed that it was the drug that caused her sight loss. Doctors think because they have a piece of paper on the wall it makes them all knowing. I'll match my common sense to their paper any day. I don't believe she has been accurately diagnosed as to the type of migraines. If I knew the best migraine doctor to take her to near Jacksonville Florida then I would take her to get her help with management. Thank you again
I'm glad you've found the information helpful. I understand it can be quite a bit to take in so just do it in your own time. We live on the west coast of Florida north of Tampa and are lucky that we have some great specialists that work out of USF. Here is a link to help you locate a specialist that may be closer to you. You might need to travel a bit if you don't have a specialist near you, but it will be worth the trip to get help from a qualified specialist.
https://americanmigrainefoundation.org/find-a-doctor/
It's unfortunate that you come across doctors that think they know everything from time to time, but there are some really good ones out there too. I'm glad your daughter's vision returned to normal after stopping the medication. As always we are here for your support so if you need any additional help please let us know and we will try to guide you onto the right path. Warmly, Cheryl migraine.com team
Hey there. My heart goes out to you. Nancy and Cheryl have given you a great wealth of information, so I just want to add a few general thoughts. There can be a lot to process when someone in your life is in chronic pain, so try to take good care of yourself, too. I know the urgency that comes with wanting to absorb everything you can, as fast as possible, but take your time. We're not going anywhere, and this is an amazing community to ask questions and build relationships. Some of our members also have children with migraine, so you're not alone.
I'm not sure what the doctor situation is in your part of Florida, but consider teleheath consultations if you feel like you're not getting the support you both need. They may not be able to do a physical exam, but someone with the right expertise could give you some suggestions you've overlooked.
With any treatment, whether it's pharmaceutical or otherwise, it will affect each person differently. We have tons of people on this site and you'd be hard-pressed to find two who take all of the exact same things or have the same migraine experience. So unfortunately, none of us can make suggestions that will work for sure. Trial and error is a huge part of migraine management -- throwing things at the wall and seeing what sticks. I'm sorry she had such a horrible time with the one medication! That's scary. A regular conversation around here is balancing the positive effects of a medication with the negative ones -- some just are't worth it, and that's okay. The key is to keep searching.
That said, some folks have seen good results from essential oils, chiropractic care, acupuncture or acupressure, biofeedback, meditation, yoga, using green light therapy at home, blue-light blocking glasses ... the list goes on. I would say that most use some of the things on that list along with one or more conventional medications. Her specific triggers and type of migraine will matter here, too.
All that said -- we are here for you, and we support whatever options you choose to pursue together. Please let her know she is also welcome to make an account here if she ever has questions of her own or wants to vent. We have other young adults here and this is a comfortable, friendly place to learn.
Keep us posted! Wishing all the best.
Melissa, migraine.com team
