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<blockquote data-quote="susiestar" data-source="post: 551049" data-attributes="member: 1233"><p>I have had severe headaches/migraines all of my life. My first one that a dr saw was when I was age 4. I am so very sorry that Duckie is having to deal with headaches of any kind. There are more types of headaches than migraines and it is possible to have more than one type. It is entirely possible that the weather changes are causing/triggering her headaches.</p><p></p><p>My mom is one of the rare people who get migraines when a big storm is going away. My dad gets them when a storm is coming in. Gfgbro has never had a migraine and I get them when the weather gets better AND when it gets worse. There is a definite link between barometric pressure and headaches.</p><p></p><p>However, Duckie could also be getting them for any of a dozen or more reasons. One of the BEST things you can do to help her is to start a record of when she has a headache, where it hurts (front, sinuses, left side, back, top, etc.... have her put one finger where it hurts the worst and then the next worse, etc...). Track her sleep, what she eats, activities, etc... A month or two of that while you wait to see a neuro could save you invaluable time and provide him with valuable info that will let him treat her most effectively and efficiently.</p><p></p><p>You can probably find a headache chart online to help you keep records. Make sure to include what you did and how well it helped her.</p><p></p><p>Her pediatrician may want to go ahead and do an mri and then treat her if the mri is normal. Or the pediatrician may want to just refer you on and let the neuro order any tests. If you are going to the neuro, urge the doctor to do the mri NOW because it will save very valuable time.</p><p></p><p>There are many treatments for migraines, both real and bogus. I would very very strongly urge you to NOT give her excedrin migraine. first, it has aspirin and that is NOT safe for someone under 18, esp if they have a cold coming on. I also urge you to avoid motrin, aleve, etc... because they can cause a rebound effect which is an ugly cycle. You start with motrin for a headache that is bad. It helps. You have a headache in a day or two and take more motrin (can be ANY NSAID or tylenol, just using motrin as an example). Before long you are having headaches almost every day.but the motin is awesome, and then starts not being so great which means you take more of it. </p><p></p><p>In this scenario, which is super common and can set in over as little time as 2-3 weeks, your body is creating the headache because it wants the motrin. I you take the motrin and the headache leaves until the motrin wears off or isn't giving the same effect. This is a major reason that Duckie needs to see a doctor and pref a pediatrician neuro.</p><p></p><p>The headache diary will be very helpful in identifying triggers. There is a group of foods known to cause migraines and these should be noted on the diary so that you can try to find out if they area trigger for Duckie. I react to different thigns than most people, so the headache food list didn't help me much. I react more to msg, artificial flavors, high levels of artif coloring, preservatives and the chemicals they put in sausages and lunch meats like bologna. (totally off topic - am I the only one with the oscar mayer bologna song going through my head every time i type or write the word? you know, B-O=L=O-G-N-A going through my head? Back on topic now!)</p><p></p><p>There are two main purposes for migraine medications - to prevent and to stop. Triptans are generally used to stop migraines. Sumatriptan, aka imitrex, is probably the most common triptan. It was the first released in the US. You can get it in a nasal spray (nasty aftertaste but works very fast) or tablets of 25mg, 50mg or 100 mg. Tablets take longer to work, 15-30 min usually. there are other medications, but I had my child start with imitrex because I had taken it for years and knew a lot about how it worked. IF trptans don't work, they can give other medications but they don't work as well for most people and many have addiction risks because they are either opiates or barbiturates. You do feel 'better' with those kinds of medications but you still know the headache is there. mostly you just don't care that it is there thanks to the non-trptan medications. </p><p></p><p>I will alert you to a medication called treximet. I have nothing against it. It is a combo of sumatriptan and aleve. The aleve does make the sumatriptan (imitrex) work better adn longer. Trexmet is FAR more expensive than sumatriptan because treximet is not generic. It is the drug co's answer to losing such a big cash cow when imitrex went generic. If the doctor gives sample of treximent, take them - samples of migraine medications are very hard to get. If the doctor wants to rx treximet, ask him to rx imitrex instead and give separate instructions for school and for you to give her 2 aleve (220 mg per tablet of aleve whih amounts to 440 mgs, treximet has 500 mgs of aleve n it) with the imitrex. it is okay to take the aleve with the imitrex as long as it is not a daily dose and her migraines are well managed.</p><p></p><p></p><p>Migraine mgmt is the other part of medications for migraines. There is a limit of 9 imitrex per month with most insurance companies. not just because the cost, there can be some serious health issues if you take a large amt over a long period of time. If a patient needs all 9 per month, or more than 3 per week, that patient generally needs a preventative. I did not make that up - my various neuros over the years and J's and Wiz' neuros have said this.</p><p></p><p>Preventatives come in many types. partly it depends on what the trigger is. When I lived in TX my migraines were largely allergy related. Seldane (I miss seldane - allegra just doesn't work as well!) was very helpful at that time. I have other triggers though. Many docs want to jump to the newer, very powerful medications before trying the old tried and true ones.</p><p></p><p>I get leery of docs who push to skip the tried and true medications with-o a VERY good reason. not just because lower cost of older medications, but also because we know so very much more about the effects - good and bad - of medications that have been in use for decades. beta blockers are often used as a first preventative. They lower your blood pressue and Duckie would need to have her checked regularly. I think I remember your school nurse being very helpful, so that might be handy. BB's can make you drowsy at first but you get used to it. Propranolol is considered the oen to try first in most areas, but you can try any beta blocker and the doctor may have a favorite to start with.</p><p></p><p>if BB's dont work, calcium channel blockers are usually next. I know verapimil is one, and I thnk they work by lowering your blood pressure, but these have not been super helpful to me so I don't know as much about them.Anti seizure medications are next, with topomax being one of the most prescribed. I would hesitate to start with that wth Duckie until you have tried other medications because it is so powerful and can do so many different things to a person. </p><p></p><p>I will post more later, but I have to go run an errand before they close!</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="susiestar, post: 551049, member: 1233"] I have had severe headaches/migraines all of my life. My first one that a dr saw was when I was age 4. I am so very sorry that Duckie is having to deal with headaches of any kind. There are more types of headaches than migraines and it is possible to have more than one type. It is entirely possible that the weather changes are causing/triggering her headaches. My mom is one of the rare people who get migraines when a big storm is going away. My dad gets them when a storm is coming in. Gfgbro has never had a migraine and I get them when the weather gets better AND when it gets worse. There is a definite link between barometric pressure and headaches. However, Duckie could also be getting them for any of a dozen or more reasons. One of the BEST things you can do to help her is to start a record of when she has a headache, where it hurts (front, sinuses, left side, back, top, etc.... have her put one finger where it hurts the worst and then the next worse, etc...). Track her sleep, what she eats, activities, etc... A month or two of that while you wait to see a neuro could save you invaluable time and provide him with valuable info that will let him treat her most effectively and efficiently. You can probably find a headache chart online to help you keep records. Make sure to include what you did and how well it helped her. Her pediatrician may want to go ahead and do an mri and then treat her if the mri is normal. Or the pediatrician may want to just refer you on and let the neuro order any tests. If you are going to the neuro, urge the doctor to do the mri NOW because it will save very valuable time. There are many treatments for migraines, both real and bogus. I would very very strongly urge you to NOT give her excedrin migraine. first, it has aspirin and that is NOT safe for someone under 18, esp if they have a cold coming on. I also urge you to avoid motrin, aleve, etc... because they can cause a rebound effect which is an ugly cycle. You start with motrin for a headache that is bad. It helps. You have a headache in a day or two and take more motrin (can be ANY NSAID or tylenol, just using motrin as an example). Before long you are having headaches almost every day.but the motin is awesome, and then starts not being so great which means you take more of it. In this scenario, which is super common and can set in over as little time as 2-3 weeks, your body is creating the headache because it wants the motrin. I you take the motrin and the headache leaves until the motrin wears off or isn't giving the same effect. This is a major reason that Duckie needs to see a doctor and pref a pediatrician neuro. The headache diary will be very helpful in identifying triggers. There is a group of foods known to cause migraines and these should be noted on the diary so that you can try to find out if they area trigger for Duckie. I react to different thigns than most people, so the headache food list didn't help me much. I react more to msg, artificial flavors, high levels of artif coloring, preservatives and the chemicals they put in sausages and lunch meats like bologna. (totally off topic - am I the only one with the oscar mayer bologna song going through my head every time i type or write the word? you know, B-O=L=O-G-N-A going through my head? Back on topic now!) There are two main purposes for migraine medications - to prevent and to stop. Triptans are generally used to stop migraines. Sumatriptan, aka imitrex, is probably the most common triptan. It was the first released in the US. You can get it in a nasal spray (nasty aftertaste but works very fast) or tablets of 25mg, 50mg or 100 mg. Tablets take longer to work, 15-30 min usually. there are other medications, but I had my child start with imitrex because I had taken it for years and knew a lot about how it worked. IF trptans don't work, they can give other medications but they don't work as well for most people and many have addiction risks because they are either opiates or barbiturates. You do feel 'better' with those kinds of medications but you still know the headache is there. mostly you just don't care that it is there thanks to the non-trptan medications. I will alert you to a medication called treximet. I have nothing against it. It is a combo of sumatriptan and aleve. The aleve does make the sumatriptan (imitrex) work better adn longer. Trexmet is FAR more expensive than sumatriptan because treximet is not generic. It is the drug co's answer to losing such a big cash cow when imitrex went generic. If the doctor gives sample of treximent, take them - samples of migraine medications are very hard to get. If the doctor wants to rx treximet, ask him to rx imitrex instead and give separate instructions for school and for you to give her 2 aleve (220 mg per tablet of aleve whih amounts to 440 mgs, treximet has 500 mgs of aleve n it) with the imitrex. it is okay to take the aleve with the imitrex as long as it is not a daily dose and her migraines are well managed. Migraine mgmt is the other part of medications for migraines. There is a limit of 9 imitrex per month with most insurance companies. not just because the cost, there can be some serious health issues if you take a large amt over a long period of time. If a patient needs all 9 per month, or more than 3 per week, that patient generally needs a preventative. I did not make that up - my various neuros over the years and J's and Wiz' neuros have said this. Preventatives come in many types. partly it depends on what the trigger is. When I lived in TX my migraines were largely allergy related. Seldane (I miss seldane - allegra just doesn't work as well!) was very helpful at that time. I have other triggers though. Many docs want to jump to the newer, very powerful medications before trying the old tried and true ones. I get leery of docs who push to skip the tried and true medications with-o a VERY good reason. not just because lower cost of older medications, but also because we know so very much more about the effects - good and bad - of medications that have been in use for decades. beta blockers are often used as a first preventative. They lower your blood pressue and Duckie would need to have her checked regularly. I think I remember your school nurse being very helpful, so that might be handy. BB's can make you drowsy at first but you get used to it. Propranolol is considered the oen to try first in most areas, but you can try any beta blocker and the doctor may have a favorite to start with. if BB's dont work, calcium channel blockers are usually next. I know verapimil is one, and I thnk they work by lowering your blood pressure, but these have not been super helpful to me so I don't know as much about them.Anti seizure medications are next, with topomax being one of the most prescribed. I would hesitate to start with that wth Duckie until you have tried other medications because it is so powerful and can do so many different things to a person. I will post more later, but I have to go run an errand before they close! [/QUOTE]
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