# What do you do when you have a migraine? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 18, 2015, 10:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222 "2015-08-18T22:29:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2015, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/41 "2015-08-20T03:26:10Z")
My migraines were the 3rd of 3 headaches. They start with a sinus headache which triggers a tension headache. If left alone it creates a migraine which starts as a strange little headache that spins out of control quickly. I have 15 minutes to react to the start of a migraine. I take Pseudoephedrine and ibuprofen washed down with hot caffeinated drinks, preferably tea. On top of that is nose spray and then I use a towel and a steam vaporizer to breath in hot moist air. If I were to get a migraine headache I’d also take an ice cube in a paper towel and run that all over my neck and facial muscles to get the tension headache under control. Basically I have to cure the cause of the headache or the migraine continues unabated. If I react within the 15 minute window I can stop the migraine every time. I keep the OTC stuff listed above at work, home and in my cars. It took years to figure this out. The important thing for me was learning when to recognize the onset of a migraine and react quickly to it. Once it’s started it takes over to get it under control. ---
**Author:** ![No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ea5d25/32.png) [@No\_umlaut\_for\_U](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/No_umlaut_for_U)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2015, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/42 "2015-08-20T18:39:43Z")
Most of the above for me. Definitely caffeine (and ice packs) helps. To address the boredom, I like to read large type books (so I don’t need glasses) in the gloom. Radio, TV, and the computer are right out. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2015, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/43 "2015-08-20T18:55:04Z")
No major headache today after 5 straight days, but I can feel it nibbling. Just waiting for the wrong thing to trigger it. What I do have is the “hangover” effect that other folks have mentioned. All I want to do is sleep, which seems ridiculous, since I just spent a large portion of the last week in a dark room, in bed! I’ve had my allotted coffee, now I just need to power through a few more meetings. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2015, 10:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/44 "2015-08-21T10:54:57Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > If your doctor is willing to give you Tramadol, you might try Firoricet. It’s a barbiturate with Tylenol and Caffeine. I don’t know if the barbiturate helps the headache or is just there to counter the caffeine, but I can take it late and night and fall asleep with no problem. I asked my doc for it because I found that Tylenol with caffeine was really helping my ‘bad’ headaches (The ones that weren’t migraines but Tylenol didn’t help) but as a non-coffee drinker my body got such a jolt from the caffeine, I couldn’t take it after 5 or 6 at night or I’d be up until 2am. It works great. Gets rid of the headache and I can still sleep. > > I got lucky with my neuro, he’s very well known in the MS world. He does lectures all over the world. In fact, the hospital he’s working in now built a wing just for him as part of a deal to get him to practice there. Sometimes when I’m there, I’ll hear people checking in from hours away. LOL, I improvised that yesterday because my drug of choice went up in flames on the 10th and I am still trying to get certain prescriptions replaced. Fucking insurance. One Ultram [tramadol], one 500 mg Tylenol [left over from a pain control study I participated in a couple years ago] and washed down with coffee. I have found that if you can discover the formulary for a med, you can frequently recreate it ad hoc if you have an assortment of other stuff to work with. Not that I can legally recommend free lance pharmacology … but if you legally have the meds and are combining for yourself only, I can’t see much of a problem. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2015, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/45 "2015-08-27T17:28:39Z")
I am stunningly lucky with my migraines - they are rare, and usually give me enough warning (via visual disturbances) that I can toss back some ibuprofen to minimize it. At that point, I just have to get unconscious as fast as I can before it gets to the anvil-pounding stage. Fortunately (hah) I’m sleep-deprived enough in general that I can always manage to sleep 3-4 hours. Then I stumble around the house, about 75% functional, for 24 hours or so. ---
**Author:** ![WF\_Tomba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/d9b06d/32.png) [@WF\_Tomba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WF_Tomba)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2015, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/46 "2015-08-27T22:37:30Z")
I got migraines once a month or so when I was a teenager. Luckily for me, they would only last about 3 hours. Since then, the frequency has declined; I’m probably getting one every two years now. A large dose of Advil as soon as the visual aura appears is usually enough to manage them. I guess my migraines are pretty wimpy as migraines go. ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2015, 2:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/47 "2015-08-28T02:15:27Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > _If you do any research on Fioricet, don’t get yourself confused with Fiorinal. Same drug but with Codeine added into it (cet tells you that there’s a_cet\*aminophen in it, even though you usually here it with Percocet…Fioricet is what you want to ask for, they’ll be more likely to prescribe it to you. A quibble: neither Fioricet nor Fiorinal contain codeine on their own. Fioricet has acetaminophen, and Fiorinol contains aspirin. Both contain a barbiturate and caffeine. A combination version of each drug is available with codeine. Good times. I used Fioricet for years. The relief after years not not knowing why I had week-long “sinus headaches” was amazing. You can’t imagine. **Pixel\_Dent** – I’ve had IV magnesium as part of the treatment for migraine in the ER, and I wanted a to-go setup so I could do it at home. So effective. ---
**Author:** ![Poysyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Poysyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Poysyn)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2015, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/48 "2015-08-29T04:45:20Z")
I tried Topomax - anaphylaxis. I get Botox every three months, take Imitrex and Advil when one is coming on - Amytriptaline, magnesium and B2 daily. I avoid MSG like the plague, and since I started eating super “clean”, they are not as bad. I exercise 6 days a week and try to control my sleep carefully. Some triggers, like barometric pressure are a bit tough to manage. I also went off the Pill and has a mirena put in. Migraines suck. ---
**Author:** ![Mama\_Zappa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@Mama\_Zappa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mama_Zappa)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2015, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222/49 "2015-09-01T17:35:59Z")
> [@Poysyn](#): > > I tried Topomax - anaphylaxis. … Well now, to be fair, that would be 100% curative of the migraines. Of course, some may consider the side effects (namely, death) a bit extreme ;). (though be honest: when you’re in the middle of a massive migraine, that’s gotta sound like a good idea sometimes!) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-do-you-do-when-you-have-a-migraine/728222.md?page=2)