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Two-Week Long Migraine - What to do?

I have had migraines for almost 10 years now, I am 26. They were really bad at first, but have become less frequent the past few years. I was on topimax for a while, but stopped a couple years ago because it seemed that most of my migraines revolved around menstruation and I had them well under control. However, recently I have been experiencing the longest, and most painful migraines since I can remember (and I am not currently menstruating). I have had a recurring migraine for over two weeks now, and it seems to be getting worse by the day.

I take indomethacin and zolmitriptan to treat migraines, and it usually kicks a migraine within 2 hours and they usually last 2 days tops. I took these medications for about two weeks straight because my migraine wouldn't go away. I know it's not good to take these medications for so long, so the other day I went to urgent care. At urgent care, they gave me the "migraine cocktail": Reglan, benadryl, and tylenol. I ended up having a really bad allergic reaction to the Reglan, so I went back the next day and they referred me to a neurologist. (Context, I just moved to NYC so don't have any doctors lined up yet). The neurologist prescribed me steroids (which have worked in the past) but this past Friday I ended up in the emergency room because it got so bad, my sensitivity to light kept getting worse, I had no appetite, and I started having pain in my lower back that radiates down my legs. At the ER they gave me toradol and haldol (which to me seemed like a weird combination for the migraine) and it stopped the migraine. However, although it helped with the migraine it gave me severe panic attacks.

The past couple of days I have still had headaches and migraine fog, but the pain has lessened and I am still finishing out my steroid pack. Sorry for the long back story but I am reaching out for help on what to do if I can't get back to 100%. Has something like this happened to someone who thought they had their migraines under control? Does anyone have any non-medical, maybe more holistic or herbal ways of combating migraine? Because at this rate, I'm not up for experimenting with any more new medications. I have an MRI next week to make sure nothing has changed in my brain, but I am looking for relief so I can get back to my normal, daily life. I appreciate any suggestions or insight. Thank you.

  1. Hi mp125,

    Thank you for sharing your difficult journey with us. Having chronic head pain is so very exhausting, I'm sorry you are going through this right now.

    Good to hear the pain is lessening. Hopefully the remainder of the steroid pack will completely break it.

    In the meantime, I would encourage you to start keeping a detailed migraine diary. This will help you determine what your triggers are and any patterns your attacks may have. You can read more about this here; https://migraine.com/blog/keeping-migraine-diary-basics/.

    Seeing as you've recently moved to NYC, you are in luck! There are a number of world class true migraine experts there you can look into seeing. You can find a list of doctors who are board certified in headache medicine, which is different than being certified in neurology, here; http://www.ucns.org/globals/axon/assets/10300.pdf.

    We do have a section on complementary and alternative therapies you can read about here; https://migraine.com/complimentary-and-alternative-therapies/. I'm currently taking magnesium oxide, vitamins B 12 and D and use Cefaly.

    Fingers crossed this breaks soon,
    Nancy

    1. Hi Nancy,

      Thank you for your response! These seem like some great resources that I will definitely look into.

      I take b12 every day, but have not tried magnesium yet. Did this make a big difference for you? Also, what is Cefaly?

      Thanks so much for your advice.

    2. Here is a great overview of the Cefaly device. - https://migraine.com/blog/cefaly-questions-answered/. Hope this is helpful! -Joanna (Migraine.com Team)

  2. Hi mp125,

    I hope those links are helpful. Joanna gave you a great resource for the Cefaly.

    I've not noticed a great big difference with magnesium, but don't want to upset the apple cart so to speak!

    Nancy

    1. Let me know if you have more questions about Cefaly after you take a look at that information!

      Nancy

      1. I know this is an older thread, but I was just curious if you ever found anything to help with your situation. My girlfriend is experiencing many of the same things you had listed and after two weeks it seems like she continues to grow past her threshold. If there is any information you could give I would greatly appreciate it. Thank you!

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