I am stuck between a rock and a hard place right now. I lost my one doctor when she said I broke my pain contract. I have one dr that gives me three bottles of Stadol NS amonth but that only lasts for 6 headaches and I get so many more than that. They put me on Baclofen, but it only makes me sleepy and doesn't help the pain. I am now forced to do the ER thing going to all of the ERs in the area that is within 200 miles. my hubby has had it with our going from ER to ER all over the state and the stress it puts on me and our marriage is tremendous. It also hurts the finances as it is expensive. I am getting to feel so badly that sometimes I want to have a head transplant. Thank you for your support and letting me vent. Tay Hodges

Tay Hodges <tayhodges59@hotmail.com>
Thursday, March 28, 2002 at 03:05:35

I'm touched and pained by reading all of the entries here and wish I could help each and every one of you. I'm 33 years old and never have experienced the migraines which I have had this week. 5 of the last 6 days i have had 1-2 hours of excruciating pain. Other people tend to take it lightly, you all know what I'm talking about. "It's just a headache" they say... if only they knew the sheer torture of it.

No, its not just a 'headache' - its something which stops your whole world at a moment's notice, and unless someone has experienced such pain themselves, there is no way they can know what we're going through. That is why I feel compassion for each and every one of you. I was feeling sorry for myself until I found this site and realized some of you have been dealing with this for years. I don't know why mine have started, nor how long they will last. I will pray for each of you tonight that you have a restful peaceful painfree night. Thanks for listening.

donovon <night3@ameritech.net>
Wednesday, March 27, 2002 at 19:10:01

Hello all,

I'm 16 years old, and I still get daily migraines even after I quit Topamax which I feel maybe they are slightly better now, but I am completely medicationless now(not counting over-the-counter meds). I just couldn't deal with Topamax as if it presented me with the worst cramps every time I was on my cycle. Before Topamax, I had never had this problem during my cycle. I still have like one Maxalt left, but I hold off on taking it. The insurance company won't let me have any more than 36 tablets in 72 days or something...it's insane-maybe they should try dealing with what we go through everyday.

My dad once thought I might have a low-blood pressure problem, but now he thinks it's mostly an oxygen intake as running helps me immensely (not enough yet to keep it away except when running). I've also been tasted for diabetes....nothing there either. And I'm not known to have an "allergies" (been tested there, too), but I wonder if there is some sinus headaches involved. We'll see; right now I just try to deal and get through the day. I'm sure I have eat much luckier than others, so it makes appreciate what everyone else must go through. There seems to be now sense to it, but I guess it makes us incredibly strong.

Peace,
Brandi

Brandi <sitara1@googooshmusic.com>
Tuesday, March 26, 2002 at 12:03:53

I'M A 38 YEAR OLD AND I'VE SUFFERED WITH MIGRAINES FOR MANY YEARS UNTIL I TRIED EXCEDERIN MIGRAINE. THIS HAS REALLY WORKED WONDERS FOR ME. IUSED TO GET THESE HEADACHES AT LEAST 4 TIMES A MONTH. SINCE I HAD A COMPLETE HISTARECTOMY MY HEADACHES HAVE BEEN FAR AND FEW BETWEEN. I;VE ALSO FOUND OUT THAT STRESS WILL TRIGGER A MIGRAINE REAL FAST. SO I TRY TO AVOID STRESSFUL SITUATIONS AS MUCH AS POSSIABLE.I HOPE SOMETHING IN THIS NOTE WILL BE USEFUL.

emma wolford <ablondebabe10@hotmail.com>
Saturday, March 23, 2002 at 23:03:42

I have been suffering from migraine headaches for the past year. I was talking to a friend one day who was just cured from cancer. She went down to a hospital in Mexico (which was alternative medicine) She was completely cured of cancer. When she was their, there was a mother and daughter who had chronic migraine headaches. After the 2nd day of being there and doing the therapy they were gone. The grandson for the Max Gerson (the man who invented the therapy) has just put out a book about the therapy. If anyone is intrested in finding a new approach to curing the pain. Email me and let me know. I would love to pass on the information. I am on the therapy now and have NO MORE HEADACHES!!!!!!
~ Sara

Sara Handy <SkittlesinCali@aol.com>
Saturday, March 23, 2002 at 18:20:45

Good morning everyone. I hope that someone out there was able to have a pain free day. I stumble upon your journalling site yesterday and can't begin to say enough how thankful I am. Thanks Tim! Any how let me introdruce myself. My name is theresa but I've become known as a modern day vampire. You know the kind. The ones that avoid the light and do not part take of sucking the life or spirit out of others. Any way I've been experiencing migraines since the mid 90's. I guess you could say compared to alot of you I've been pretty lucky. You see I experience about 6 a month, but for me what terrifies me is the zoning out i often experience while driving. i hate it! i'll be driving an all of a sudden a tiny pinhole of distortion appears and within at the max. say 5 min. my vision is outta there. I've had to pull into parking lots or just pull over, down the Naprox-sodium and wait it out locked in my car. I know what y'all are thinking no serious med.s? Well I've gone that route. I'll stick with this. I just want to see. I'm usually able to work as long as I get two pills down ASAP,otherwise if I'm hit in the middle of sleep hell cometh to stay and nothing helps so I retreat to the darkness of my black comforter and warn others in the house to keep sound to at utmost min.Back to working I'm a cadd operator and since I've set all of my properties to black background with various colored lines and text. I have found that bright green on black is heaven to my head and eyes. I have blessed with a boss who understands since he was involved with a woman in the past who suffered from migraines. He had the building maintenance people remove all but 1 bulb out of the only two overheads in my office but what a difference! If I get a migraine that has started in the middle of the night, he says stay at home don't worry the work can wait. It just makes me appreciate who I work for all the more. Back to my driving problem. My son who hasn't always been responsible said he's willing to drive where ever I need to go. I know that just a typical teenager talking, but my reality has come to be that I'd rather take a bus and let my two sons take the car to school etc. and have my oldest drive me instead at least if I do zone out we could get home. I just never know when I'm gonna zone out and if I have to I can surely walk without injuring someone. Well I'll be reading and writting from here out and please know that the vampire in tx keeps each and everyone of you in my thoughts and wish for pain free days for us all.

theresa rose hodge <vampierintx@yahoo.com>
Saturday, March 23, 2002 at 07:55:08

Hello. I am 25 years old and have been suffering with migraine headaches since I was 5 years old. When they first began, I would have about one migraine a year. In high school, they started getting worse. By my junior year in college,I was in some kind of cycle where I would have a migraine for 8-14 days and exactly 8 days after is went away, it would start again. This went on for about 6 weeks. After that cycle, they just got worse. It's a wonder I finished college. For about the last 4 years, I have had them everyday. I wake up with the migraines and go to bed with them everyday. I also have frequent migraines. I have lost promotions and jobs because of them. I am currently a ninth grade teacher and have already been told I might not be rehired due to my migraines. I don't know what to do. I have tried acupuncture, massage therapy, braces, glasses, herbs, and lastly medication. I take Norco daily so that I can get through the day and then almost everynight, I'm in bed by 4 in the afternoon. If I don't catch it by 10am, I WILL get a headache. I can relate to the lady that gets treated like an addict. I am currently trying to raise $3000 for a Rhodes Stem machine that is supposed to help redirect pain signals and has worked for many people with chronic pain. I don't know if it will help or not. I recently stopped taking my pain killers for a while and that seemed to send them over the edge. I also take Imitrex but the insurance will only pay for one box a month wich covers 3 headaches. I don't know what to do. I feel so helpless. At one point, there was some hope. My current doctor discovered that I have two torn discs in my neck, but I can't find a doctor to fix them. I recently begged a neurosurgeon to examine me. He took me for free and told me that the discs aren't torn, but the sheath around the disc is. That's apparently not fixable. I want to have children, but cannot like this. Thank you for letting me know that I am not the only one with this type of life. Thank you for letting me vent. If anyone of you want any information on the Rhodes Stem machine, email me and I'll get the info to you. If you have Blue Cross/ Blue Shield, good luck!!

Heather <blizzardheather@hotmail.com>
Friday, March 22, 2002 at 13:36:15

hi, i am now 48yrs old, migraines started at 18. Been to 6 neurologists, tried all classifications at least 20 diff drugs. migraines a few yrs ago increased to 5 a week. I was a nurse. Fiorinal /codeine doesn't touch them plus only get rebound from narcotics. Imitrex 100mg helps, but burns at the pain site. The imitrex injection is the best, but 5 a week of imitrex isnt good for the heart. It can cause coronary spasms, and I have high cholesterol.Not only tried different maintance drugs, but tried acupuncture, avoiding certain foods. The headaches went completely away when I was in my 4th month of preg, but returned after delivery. The drs said that is common, but cant give me a magic drug that simulates preg-to many facters.Got so bad and all the drugs didnt help, actually the side effects arent great either from the drugs, on disability from work, but only covered for 1 yr due to contract limitation. I did go to court and I now recieve social security disability for me and also additional income for my kids.So remember ssd does reconize migraines as totally being disabled if high freq and need the bed , ice and dark room.Thank god for judges that understand the chronic pain. I keep a migraine chart, with pain scale and what meds on, pharm list to lawyer, co-workers letters of what they witnissed(nausea and vomiting at work)and all my dr notes.Finally had a total hysterectomy and removal of overies due to high freq of migraines(which is not usual treatment but i begged )- migraines prob due to estogen fluctuations.on maintaince of estratest which has helped a little. Need the ovaries out or they still produce estrogen at different levels of your cycle so dont think estrogen supplements is going to help you if still have ovaries.Botox injections of forehead and temple is the next hopeful treatment, it numbs the muscles and reduces vessel spasms. Medical insurance dont cover it yet.My mom and grandma had them until about 60yrs old. I guess i am looking forward to older age.Depression is common from the disability alone, so get on something to help you. I stated on nsaids (non steroidal antiinflamitory drug which is helping the arterial vessels from being inflamed.I have had to miss so much in my life, even my wedding night i got one and had to leave the recepion.I have researched neurology articles and internet sites to find any other treatment.Best of luck to all you migrainers, dont give up on drs because one dont help, keep triing different drs and migraine clinics. If work is impossible , disability was the only ans. The migraines made me not be able to function as a nurse or basic functions -no choice but to be disabled. I still am not giving up. Best of luck to all you,only migrainers understand migrainers- this is a great site, your not alone.

debra musclow <dam120 @yahoo.com>
Thursday, March 21, 2002 at 22:38:17

I am 25 now and have been having regular migraines since I started taking oral contraceptives six years ago. I could stop taking those but then I'd grow ovarian cysts left and right, and my periods would be so painful I couldn't walk several days out of the months, and I'd still get migraines at that time of the month anyway. Damned if I do, damned if I don't. Some days I just want to give up. but what would that solve?

They're worst when I go to sleep okay but wake up with one. Those are the times the pain makes me want to kill myself. That's why I don't keep a gun around the house - I might be tempted to use it when I'm in agony. I wake up with uncontrollable vomiting. I don't have a car so I have someone walk me to the hospital (it's only 4 blocks away). Besides, it's better to throw up on the sidewalk than in a car, which makes it worse. Then after waiting for two hours (read: burning in Hell for two hours) I get to lie down in a dark room until the doctor gives me a prescription for a shot. Then I wait another hour until it's my turn for the injection - usually 100 mg of demorol with phenargan for the nausea (I tried compasine but it made me want to crawl out of my skin. I sat in the chair 118 ways). Then after another hour the pain starts to fade enough for me to get to sleep - although I'm usually still throwing up by then.

I hate being stuck with this, but I don't have much of a choice. I'd like to trade in my body for a working one, but that's harder than it sounds. I don't agree that misery loves company in this case. While it's good to know that I'm not alone, it would be better to know that no one else had to deal with this kind of pain. All I want is a regular life.

Maura <timrekthegorf@yahoo.com>
Thursday, March 21, 2002 at 18:37:06

Amazing, I've just read many of your accounts and i find it amazing. My story is not much different than the average sufferer. Mine migraines started at 20 years old and quickly esculated to three times a week each lasting 8 to 24 hours. No clue as to why, so I suffered thru life. I'm 51 now. After going thru the HMO circuit and 20 years of chirpractors ( chiropractic adustments shock the system and that's why it seems to help). I did the ice and heat, neck traction , TENS unit, OTC drugs, ect. I was diagnoised with cancer just about 5 years ago and noticed that when i was doing Chemo that I didn't have headaches. Very few for the three months period. Later one of the Oncologists prescribed Butalbital (Fiorinal) with teriffic results. No other "mirgraine " medication ever worked. I cut the pills in half and take it with a Tylenol every morning and at dinner time. Two years now life is 75 % better and that's saying a lot. For a time a seriously thought of suicide , it was that bad. Now I look forward to walking out in a new day's sun.

diesel dave <cjFolk@Pacbell.net>
Thursday, March 21, 2002 at 00:49:57

Hi my name is Heather and I have been suffering from headaches/migraines for the last year and and a half. I have been on every medication that you can name,Over the past month or so I have had one every day. I am only 20 yrs. old, this shouldn't be happening. I am lucky that I have good support from friends and family otherwise I don't know what I would do. I have been to the Mayo Clinic headache specailists so many times that I have lost count, however they have done nothing for me. The doctor that I am seeing actually told me that I should just start getting on with my life and go back to work, which is impossible when I wake up in pain. If anyone has any suggestions please e-mail me, I am desprite!

Heather <hl39@hotmail.com>
Wednesday, March 20, 2002 at 17:58:43

Hello fellow migraine sufferers,
After just recovering from the worst migraine that I have ever had, I am on a quest to learn more about these headaches.
I started having migraines when I was about 20. I'm now 41. I haven't had them constantly, I've gone for long periods of time without one at all, then they come back with a vengeance.
I think I am entering premenopause now, so this may be why they are getting worse. Who knows? I also have a stressful job and homelife...
It is so helpful reading your entries in this journal. I don't feel so alone. Guess we can commiserate together and perhaps pass on what works for us.
I am currently working with a headache journal so I can try to recognize patterns. Has anyone else done this?
Thanks for listening,
Cindy

Cindy <cindysheets2001@yahoo.com>
Wednesday, March 20, 2002 at 14:02:50

Hi All,

I am 20 years old and I have migraine since I was 15. I could still remember how the first migraine happened: I was on my way to school, then I saw a strong sunlight reflected by a car's window...first come the aura and then the pain, which both lasted for at least 10 hours. Usually it strikes me about once per month on average, but sometimes it strikes me twice or even 3 times a day, and last for several days continueously. I usually take NO pills but 2 paracetamol 500mg tabs for pain relieve, but if it really strikes me hard or, I take Imigran (50mg sumatriptan) and it works for me. There is a weird thing that, if I take a Ferrero Rocha Chocolate the day before, then I could guarantee that I would have a migraine attack the next morning. It also happens to me if I've eaten too many chocolates. I am not sure if anyone here has problems with Ferrero Rocha chocolate.

Marcus

Marcus <marcus409@sinaman.com>
Wednesday, March 20, 2002 at 09:03:30

Hi, my name is Dawn. I'm thirty one years old and have suffered from migraines since I was 11 (before my monthly cycles appeared). One of the first ones I can remember having I was in the sixth grade. The teacher thought I was faking so she sent me to the office. The principal also thought I was faking until I threw up pink Frankenberry cereal all over her rug! Since then I have had moderate to severe migraines. At one point I was getting them everyday! No one seemed to understand the pain I went through until my mother put two and two together and realized I had the same type of symptoms as my father. Yes he was (is) a migraine sufferer too. Luckily for him, they seem to have faded as he gets older; maybe one per year. I, on the other hand feel lucky if I only get two or three a month! I get severe throbbing pain on the right side of my head(sometimes on the left side too). I always vomit and I can never keep anything down; including the medicine I just ingested. I try to drink water to keep myself hydrated, but that comes back up too. I have awful sensitivity to light to begin with, so you can imagine the world I live in when an attack hits! I feel so unbelievably weak the follwing day. And to make matters worse, I have 3 children to take care of; 2, 5, 11. I often have to call my mother or make my husband stay home from work. Everyone's life gets disrupted because of these damned things. At least my kids know that when "Mommy doesn't feel good", they leave me alone. It is so wonderful to know that I can talk to someone about this and they can understand EXACTLY what I'm going through. For someone whose never had a migraine, is like trying to explain to a blind person what the color red is. It just doesn't compute. I would love to hear from anyone who has children and what you do when an attack occurs, and what treatment you might be on. Presently I'm on fiorecet, but it doesn't do much good. Thanks...dawn

dawn chapman <rebjim@peoplepc.com>
Tuesday, March 19, 2002 at 20:13:00

Hi, My name is Mindy and I am 25 yrs old. I have been suffering from migraines for about 3yrs. They last 2-3 months @ a time. Everyday, from the minute I get up untill I go to sleep, thank goodness I can sleep, that is the only relief I get. I have had all the tests, CT, LP, EEG, MRI, Eye doctors, Neurologist, Chiropractor pretty much everyone. They have ruled out Cerebri Tumor. All my test came out normal, Right now my Neurologist has me on Verelin, Butabital, Imetrix, they provide maybe only a couple hrs of releif. I was wondering if anyone has had the Botox done. And if it has helped. Me and my husband would like to start a family but there is no way I can with my headaches as they are. I have enjoyed all your stories and it feels compforting knowing that there are people out there going thru the same as I.

Mindy <kandkbearing@sisna.com>
Tuesday, March 19, 2002 at 12:53:44