Vaccines Affecting Migraines
Hi,
I have suffered from migraines since I was 7 years old after a concussion with loss of consciousness. As I grew older, I would get them about once a year. Now I am in my 60s and I get them about 3 times a week. I am on preventative medications as well as an abortive medication. In February of this year I received the Moderna vaccine and then received the second one in March. I got the Pfizer vaccine in September. Even though I had received the Moderna, the pharmacy I went to only had the Pfizer and I was anxious to get it because I am immunocompromised due to receiving chemo for cancer. The day after getting vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine I got a severe migraine that lasted for 17 days. I emailed my Neurologist who prescribed a five day 'burst' of Prednisone which temporarily helped, but the headaches returned. On most days they were excruciating and I could not get any relief even from my abortive medication. My Dr. recommended that I go for an outpatient treatment of an IV 'six drug cocktail' for five hours at a local hospital which I did last week. It seemed to help a lot, although not at first. I am wondering if other migraine sufferers have had this same experience with getting bad migraines after receiving either the vaccines or the booster? Please let me know because I am really interested in whether or not this is happening with other migraine sufferers.
Wow- what a rough run of it you have had! I'm so sorry to hear about this chapter in your journey. You have been through a lot. Glad that you have a solid partnership with your doctor.
We have had a few community members pose similar questions- here are those posts and the community discussions that followed:
https://migraine.com/forums/vaccine
https://migraine.com/stories/covid-vaccine-relief
https://migraine.com/forums/migraine-after-covid-vaccine
https://migraine.com/forums/covid-vaccine
https://migraine.com/forums/after-covid-vaccine
Hope these prove helpful!
Warmly- Holly (migraine.com team)I’ve just had my booster which was also the Pfizer jab. I too have had an increase in my migraines and fatigue. It’s four days since my vaccination and I’m still in bed. I’m lucky enough to have the CGRP preventive so the intensity of my migraines is about 6/10 but the associated symptoms like fatigue and photophobia are as bad. Thank you for sharing your journey, I was beginning to think I was imagining the worsening of my symptoms. I keep hearing the booster side effects are more powerful than the first shots. That wasn't my personal experience, except for a terrifically sore arm/neck/shoulder for the first 48 hours. Glad the CGRP treatment is helping to take the edge off but it still sounds pretty rough. Thinking of you and hoping things turn for the better soon. Thanks for sharing your experience with us. Warmly- Holly (migraine.com team).
Hi. You're definitely not alone. The link Holly sent you with so many similar comments shows that! But I am so glad your doctor was able to suggest a helpful cocktail. When you are feeling a little better, I'm curious to know if you had been to this hospital before for any kind of migraine-related care, and if that hospital has a headache clinic. We have people in our community here on migraine.com that really struggle to find adequate care, especially when the hospital is involved. I wonder if sharing more about your experience could be helpful. You can write it here on this conversation, or you can write it as a brand new "story," which I believe more people will see. If you're interested, you can post a story at www.migraine.com/stories. Again, absolutely no pressure at all! I just get excited when someone is successful. 😀 Thanks for sharing! -Melissa, migraine.com team
