From: estherchaya	Date: July 6th, 2005 08:06 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Recently, yes. I have taken (in no particular order): depakote, topomax, pamelor, elavil (or something that had elavil in it), a couple of beta-blockers (inderol, maybe?), verapamil (I think that's a calcium-channel-blocker) and, um, probably 20 or 30 others over the last 20 years. Seth knows more of my drug history than I do (I bring him to all my appointments now, since all my appointments are just sessions to talk about what I've taken before and what to try next). Those are just the preventive meds I've taken. I've also taken a variety of pain relievers for one-migraine-at-a-time relief. None of them are stellar. I've taken fiorinal, fioricet, cafergot (used to work wonders, but now it gives me the shakes), vioxx (pretty decent, but now off the market), codeine, percocet, demerol, imitrex and a variety of other drugs in the triptan class (I can't take any of the drugs in that class because it causes heart palpitations for me, so that's no good), and, um, probably half a dozen others.

Topomax, if I remember correctly, worked quite well. And it made me lose weight and everything. But, um, it also made me practically narcoleptic and I lost feeling in my hands. Lost feeling badly enough that I still have a trace of a scar from burning my hand one Pesach when I didn't realize my hand was resting on the top of the oven while I was pulling the turkey out. So Topomax is out.

The others have all worked to varying degrees at different times, but I tend to take a drug for a while and it works, but then stops working after 6-12 months. Depakote was the first thing that seemed to work for years on end. It didn't eliminate my migraines entirely, but I was down to 3 or 4 a month, instead of 4 or 5 a week. And sure, the whole getting fat side effect sucked, but at least my head didn't make me feel like jumping off a building.

Sigh.

That was probably more information than you were looking for!

	From: ichur72	Date: July 6th, 2005 08:18 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Basically, I asked out of curiosity. Walt also gets hit by migraines, but it sounds like he's had better luck in that he hasn't had any particular drug stop working completely. Sometimes he has to take one kind of pill and then another kind an hour or so later, but one way or another he gets through it. At the moment, he's got Maxalt, Relpax and something else I can't remember in the medicine cabinet.

	From: estherchaya	Date: July 6th, 2005 08:24 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Maxalt is a triptan, so I can't take it.
Relpax is relatively new, and Seth and I are now trying to remember why it is that I didn't try it... I remember that there was some very specific reason that I didn't ask my doctor about it, but now we can't remember what the reason was. Anyway, Seth's going to re-research it when he gets home.

So thanks for reminding me about the Relpax, even if it was inadvertent.

	From: ichur72	Date: July 6th, 2005 08:29 pm (UTC)		(Link)

You're very welcome. The world of migraine drugs is somewhat mysterious to me since, bli ayin hara, I don't get them. Sinus headaches may seek me out and then cling to me like leeches, but not migraines.

	From: estherchaya	Date: July 7th, 2005 03:38 pm (UTC)		(Link)

yuck for sinus headaches. I've had exactly two sinus headaches. I'll take 10 migraines over a sinus headache thankyouverymuch.

Relpax, as it turns out, is also a triptan, which explains why I didn't take it.

	From: ichur72	Date: July 7th, 2005 03:57 pm (UTC)		(Link)

Yep, sinus headaches bite, and I'm glad you've had only 2. I can usually remain functional through them, but they make me feel like a team of gnomes has gone to work on my facial bones with tiny sledgehammers while my teeth are trying to secede from my mouth.

Years ago, I remember that one of my mom's friends used to tease her for complaining so much about sinus headaches. The friend's boast (if you can call it that) was that nothing trumped migraines. Then the friend got her first sinus headache and sheepishly apologized to my mom. I thought it was amusing, but honestly, why debate over who gets the worst headaches? No matter they come from, they're horrible.

	From: estherchaya	Date: July 7th, 2005 04:03 pm (UTC)		(Link)

I have been getting migraines for 25+ years. Since I rarely get sinus headaches (or even plain boring headaches), those knock me on my tuchis. They are unbearable. Because I don't know how to deal with them.

If I always got sinus headaches, my first migraine would probably kill me for the same reason.

I think we all learn how to function with what we've got. It's all part of the idea that Hashem doesn't give us more than we can handle. Migraines are yucky, sinus headaches are yucky, plain boring headaches are yucky. Who cares what's the worst when it would be so nice if none of us never needed to know the pain of a headache? I agree with you completely.

	From: ichur72	Date: July 7th, 2005 04:06 pm (UTC)		(Link)

>> If I always got sinus headaches, my first migraine would probably kill me for the same reason.

I've had this exact same thought before. I hate sinus headaches, but at least I know what to do when they hit.

>> Who cares what's the worst when it would be so nice if none of us never needed to know the pain of a headache?

Now I agree completely with you!

	From: estherchaya	Date: July 6th, 2005 08:29 pm (UTC)		(Link)

hey, that would have made it all worth it! (Then again, since it was only a "near" death experience, some good DID come of it anyway... since I had a fun tale to tell on LJ!)

	From: estherchaya	Date: July 6th, 2005 08:31 pm (UTC)		(Link)

thanks.
Honestly, I can usually ignore them, but the severity has gone up exponentially since stopping the depakote, and it's getting harder and harder to just work through the pain. Generally what happens is I stay functional long enough to get through work or whatever I'm doing, and I get home and fall over.