Putting it bluntly, my previous advice still stands. There are many “triggers” for people who are susceptible to migraines, and you’ll never get away from all of them, so in my non-medical opinion the best treatment is to have prescription pills on-hand to deal with those times when they occur, unless you’re willing to go with hormone therapy.
And no, having been relatively migraine-free for two years, I’d rather take a bullet than go back to that hell.
You have to be blunt with her as well if you want this fixed. Print out this thread, hand it to her, and make her read it in its entirety (you can redact your posts with a sharpie). There are meds out there than can change her life for the better. It’s worth the effort!
That’s the truth. OTC stuff never, ever stops a migraine once it’s rolling. If you’re really lucky, you might stop one before it starts. Once you get your ‘aura’ or whatever you want to call it, you’re pretty well hosed unless you have a triptan handy.
I have brain injury migraines, mine are like a big nail has been hammered into my left temple, blurred vision, dizziness, nausea, confusion. My Doc told me to take 4 Excedrin Migraine buffered with 2 Famatodine acid controllers. Works great if taken early enough. My ex had incredible migraines, they used to just give her a big ass shot of Demerol in the ER so she’d sleep for two days. Migraines are so different, and the medical community seems intent on broadening the definition endlessly in pursuit of drug profits, it’s really hard to find a Dr. who can figure out how to help. I’ve powered through a lot but seems migraine always wins…
My husband also gets debilitating migraines, like he was disabled for weeks on end before he got a good regimen, and his neurologist has him on an interesting cocktail of daily preventatives: Magnesium 200 mg, Butterbur 50 mg, Vitamin B-2 100 mg, and Nortriptaline 25 mg. Plus Aleve for pain and prochlorperazine for nausea as needed.
It’s reduced the occurrence to a bad one every two weeks or so, but even then, it only lasts a day.
He hasn’t noted any side effects whatsoever, other than the Butterbur tasting nasty and the B-2 turning his pee bight yellow. No dopiness at all. He hasn’t had to take a narcotic for pain in over two years.
If she has adequate health insurance, not treating migraine is self-indulgent and irresponsible.
I got my first migraine when I was in my early teens. I had them on and off through my early 20s, and when I quit smoking at the age of 25, the migraines became very rare. Until two years ago, when they started up again with a vengeance. My doctor tells me it’s yet another symptom of perimenopause. (I’ve gotten to the point that I feel like if I broke my arm, it wouldn’t be worth seeing my doctor, because she’d just say, “Well, that’s really common in perimenopause…”)
I absolutely love Imitrex. That drug (and Ambien, which I’ve already said too much about in other threads) is making it possible for me to continue a somewhat normal life until this whole hormonal mess fades away sometime in the next two or three decades (“Well, perimenopause can last for up to ten years,” my doctor chirps). I do get some side effects - it makes me feel a little “speedy” and I get a weird sensation in my chest - but that beats the hell out of being unable to function for most of a day except to crawl to the toilet to vomit.
As for what time your co-worker does or doesn’t take off and what sick leave she does or doesn’t claim, unless you’re her supervisor, it’s kind of not your business. And unless you have a personal relationship with her that goes beyond what most co-workers share, I’m not sure it would be appropriate for you to give her medical advice, either (although I’m an enthusiastic evangelist for Imitrex, based on my personal experience).
I still use a 2 gallon stockpot in the bedroom as a trash container. It originally was put there to vomit into instead of trying to gimp to the bathroom in time to hurl into the sink tub or toilet.
I picked up the habit of using a stock pot to hurl into from my mother - reason being they hold a lot, are easy to grab and easy to empty and wash. The cheap stainless steel ones are also that - easily available and cheap. I have a friend who uses a tupperware cake holder - large just over a gallon, and the base is used as a lit to trap any smells and keep it from spilling. To each their own
YMMV, of course, but the second gen triptans are supposed to have fewer side effects in most people. Imitrex worked for me, and the only effects I noticed were a mild warm tingling sensation in my extremities and thighs. Relpax gives me very mild drowsiness.
While that’s interesting I would posit a simple test for sinus problems. If the passages swell shut and fluid is held back then it becomes a mass that is detectable by simply shaking one’s head. If there is pain associated with this then I would call it a sinus headache. When I take sinus medication 2 things happen, the passages upon up allowing normal drainage and blood vessels are constricted as a side effect which acts on the migraine.
I can have what I would call a sinus headache without a migraine. For me, migraines are the 3rd headache which follows after a tension headache which follows a sinus headache. I stop the first one and I stop them all. If I don’t stop the first then I can’t stop the other 2.
