Chronic migraines.

[Magenta]

Before anyone says 'go to the doctor', let me just clear it up that I will go see a doctor but the thing is, I just moved and I need to find one first.

As soon as I'm done writing this, I'll be going to bed and essentially just hiding in a dark room until I'm not in so much pain I can't sleep. But other than that, over the counter painkillers don't help me at all and I just can't function anymore. I get them anywhere from two to four times a week, sometimes more... sometimes even twice a day. It's genetic, I got it from my mum. Not to mention, my mental health doesn't make my physical health all too great these days either. Not that it really matters.

In the meantime, does anyone have any remedies that work or that you think I could try and see if they help?

[Tree96]

I would put a cold wash cloth over your forehead and relax. Caffeine can also help a ton but it really depends on the person, besides becoming caffeine dependent can cause you to get more migraines until you get your daily caffeine "fix" so be cautious of that.

It might sound sound crazy but meditation can really help to relax the brain and the entire body and to prevent such strong or frequent migraines. Plus it's healthy for a bunch of other stuff so that's a win win.

[justinglives]

I had cluster headaches that were similar. One was so bad I ended up in the hospital, and they had to induce a coma. It was horrible.
I finally found the right dr, and the right meds. Thank God!
Ive been free of them for 5 years now. But I still carry the meds with me just in case.

Point is, seek the right dr who has treated these b4.
Good luck. They CAN be treated.

[Magenta]

I had cluster headaches that were similar. One was so bad I ended up in the hospital, and they had to induce a coma. It was horrible.
I finally found the right dr, and the right meds. Thank God!
Ive been free of them for 5 years now. But I still carry the meds with me just in case.

Point is, seek the right dr who has treated these b4.
Good luck. They CAN be treated.

Note that I said I'm finding a doctor. Except, in the meantime, I need ideas for how to help until I can get proper treatment. This doesn't help me at all.

[1_21Guns]

dark room as you already know, quiet soothing music might also do you some favours, try to relax (probably sounds insane with such a bad headache) but being tense won't help at all

[toriaelizabeth]

U've already got dark room and cold flannel but you could also try:

4HEAD - basically menthol on your head
Soothing music - no loud sounds
Eyes open or close depending
Lay Horizontal
Distractions away from pain
Another one would be cause pain somewhere else so pinch your foot or something.

Food:
Marmite and toast or just toast or soft boiled egg and toast soldiers are good foods for me but you'll have different triggers so be cautious!

And check if its your sinuses by prodding them. If it is get Lemsip and go to the chemist quickly!

Hope you're okay soon x

[Bougainvillea]

I take Frova for my migraines, so when you see a doctor ask them about it because it works wonders for me.

But before I started I had no way of treating it because obviously regular shit won't help, but what really worked for me was getting a scarf or bandana and tying it around my head really tight. Also my mom thought me this. Just get some large q tips and rub around inside your nose really gently. There are nerve endings in there.

Also water. Drink lots of water.

[ImCoolBeans]

Also water. Drink lots of water.

This. Even drink lots of water when you're not getting a migraine. Staying very hydrated can help prevent them as well as helping you get rid of them -- it won't be a cure-all, but everything helps.

[Magenta]

Cheers guys. I picked up some stuff at the pharmacy that I may try until I can see a proper doctor. But I'll definitely try some of these things as well.

[screamtobeheard]

Drink lots of water. And if you want to try over the counter painkillers, I'd go for Excedrin or the pharmacy's brand of that type of medication. It's got acetaminophen, ibuprofen, and caffein, so it's pretty strong.

[sam927]

I used to have horrible migranes but they went away after I got braces (braces are known for correcting/making worse headache issues).

Anyways, I still get the occasional horrid migrane from one of my triggers (usually oversleep or lots of sharp cheese).

Try and keep a log of your migranes to find out what triggers yours. There are lots of different triggers but the most common are lack of sleep, cheese, caffiene, etc.

Doctors also reccomend a treatment plan called AAC for migranes. AAC stands for Acetominophen (Tylenol; it's called Paracetamol in Europe), Aspirin, and Caffiene. Acetominophen and aspirin are NSAIDs, which reduce the brain inflammation caused by migranes. While it may sound counterproductive to have caffiene, a trigger, smaller doses of caffiene helps the speed of onset of the aspirin and acetominophen and sometimes helps migranes itself. Most over-the-counter migrane medicines (e.g Excederin) use AAC. Just remember not to overdose yourself on the NSAIDs as long term monster dosage can cause liver and stomach damage.

Good luck with your migranes... I know how deliberating they can be!

[Magenta]

Thanks guys. I've had a few days free of them at least. I did go to the pharmacy to ask what was closest to Excedrin as I've never heard of it in Canada, got something, and it didn't help me at all and I took over the recommended dose. Guess I'll just be drinking a lot of water then, lol. There's a few other little things here I'll try the next time I get one though, hopefully something works in the meantime.

I have a doctor's appointment next week.

[Magenta]

Cheers, I'll keep that in mind. My appointment is tomorrow.

[Special K]

Take some aleve. Even if you "go see a doctor" they come back strong.