Hey all: I am a migraine sufferer. I get them to where I cannot see, vomit, excruiating pain. They can last from hours to days. My sister was asking how was I going to deal with that once I am banded.

Is there anyone out there that suffers like I do? Have you had to deal with since banding? What is the best precautions, methods, etc you do to cope?

I know that they can prescribe anit-nausea suppository :faint:

But is there anything else, or suggestions from fellow-sufferers?

Thanks for your help guys.....its appreciated.

Debbie

I get alot of migrains I used to take 800mg of Motrin when I felt them coming on and I could sometimes stop them that way but now I cant take the motrin and have to go into the ER for shots. They usually give me Stadol and Phenergen. I am not sure whats worse at times the migrain or the effects the Stadol has on me the next day. It turns me into a royal (u know what).

I have tried the disolvable ones and almost all of the other triptan based migraine meds, and find that only imitrex works best for me.

Coltonwade, I am glad you are doing so well with the topamax. I couldn't handle that stuff. My balance was off, I was running into walls, I would be driving and forget where I was and not recognize my surroundings in an area I have lived all my life, my blood pressure went very low and I would pass out all the time, I forgot simple words and couldn't really carry on conversations very long cause I'd get confused, my hand,feet,arms, and legs would tingle, my back hurt all the time, and I started exhibiting symptoms of Lupus. Not to mention If you quit the drug cold turkey you could have damaging effects and even start having seizures. I quit my trial and error about 3 years ago trying to do the preventative method, so I don't know if there are any new methods now, but when I was experimenting (under docs supervision) the only routes to prevention were anti seizures or anti depressants. Both which cause heavy weight gain with the exception of topamax. During that time I read a book about migraines from the makers of maxalt which was very informative and I tried most of the preventions and triptan based treatments and found no relief. I did how ever find 60 extra pounds from the anti depressants they had me on. Now that I have the band I don't get them as frequently, but I am more comfortable treating my migraines when they come and not trying to prevent them. I am a firm believer that there is help out there for everyone suffering, It just takes forever for an individual to find the right combination that works for them. It takes persistance on the sufferer's part though. I hope those in need find our information helpful in leading them in the right direction to finding their own personal "cure."

Topmax does have some very odd side affects and it can affect some people more than others. I did have some quite odd side affects , and still do from it . When i first started taking it I had the tingling like you said. One side of my face woudl go numb , or just the bottom of my face would go numb. After about a month or two that went away .

BUT I do still have short term memory problems from the topamax. I forget if i told someone something , so i will tell them the same thing over and over again LOL . I sometimes slur my words or words come out the wrong way , I dont usually even notice it. however, the side affects I still have I have found are much better than the pain of migraines 5 times a week and the pain of not being able to function with my kids.

I understand about quitting the trial and error finding preventative. I quit for nearly 11 yrs when my doc said lets try topamax. I am also on wellbutrin to help with the migraines and also for depression as a result of the migraines.

Imetrex was the first tripatan that i took when it first came out. and it was in shot form , I remeber the first time I took it i was about 16 and it actually got rid of my migraine I cried cause i thought FINALLY something works. I am not sure if there is something new out there or not ?

I would venture to say yes ? Its always good to ask , the docs tend to not offer. Good luck . Im glad yours have gotten better since beeing banded.

I would have to say mine have too , probably because I quit smoking last yr and from being more active.

Mindy

Bandster 1007, you sound like me! The topamax was HORRIBLE!!!! Sounds like you treat your migraines the same way I do except with different versions of the same meds. I have not heard of this "skelaxin" is it like flexiril (a muscle rexlaxor?) I might ask my doc for it next time I am in cause my body has gotten used to the flexiril and its effectiveness is not what it used to be.

It is a muscle relaxer, but it doesn't make you droggy at all. flexiril and zanaflex, and soma, knocked me out, so this is the best bet.

Want a cure and a side effect is weight loss?

Topirimate...aka topamax

There are threads about this...do a quick search...think its at the bottom in news/or off topic.

Want a cure and a side effect is weight loss?

Topirimate...aka topamax

There are threads about this...do a quick search...think its at the bottom in news/or off topic.

There is no "Cure" for migraines. But a HUGE Relief yes. LOL

I never saw any weight loss from the Topamax. But I know others who have.

Mindy

I used to take Topomax and my migrains did go away but I was having amnesia with it and alot of short term memory loss also. I would forget things that happened in my life long ago and conversations with people. My arms would also suddenly have a tingling senstation in them like they were going numb my feet would do it occassionally also. Oh and the worst part was how tierd I felt and not to mention when some people start the drug like me it feels like u have the flu for 2 weeks as ur body gets used to it. I had nausea, diareha, and just plain felt sick. And if u dont take it for a few weeks u have to go through starting it all over again and be sick for two more weeks.

The best part about Topomax aside from migrains going away is that your taste buds get affected and food doesnt taste as good. I took it before I was banded and Soda taste like copper so I quit drinking it and other foods tasted strange also. I would always lose weight on that drug.

I have suffered from excruciating migraines since my teens.

I am afraid to take Excedrin, because it is a

NSAIDs : non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug. That is not a very good mix with the lap band, NSAIDs can lead to erosion.

I suffer from migraines too. They are tension migraines. I am 31/2 wks. post op and I haven't had a headache since! I also suffer from panic attacks and I haven't had one since.

i went a solid month with no migraines after my sugery. the TOM came to visit and i had a migraine for a week, now i am rebounding from it every night. let me tell you, it is hell when you have a migraine and you are on liquids only. i ground up skelaxin last night and drank it after i took a melt maxalt.

do not depend on not getting anymore, be prepared, and be prepared to be in any stage of a diet, considering most people have to go on liquids after a fill.

Yeah, the liquid stage really kicked my butt with the migraines. I had to fly from Georgia to San Diego then ride in a car to TJ and do all my preops with a Migraine, man that was the worst. The physcologist asked me what was wrong cause during the interview I kept rubbing my head and I said "I have had a migraine all day" she said "why didn't you say something and yelled out to one of the nurses to get me some meds....man was that a relief!!

After I got my second fill I could not get anything down and as a result got another migraine so I tried cutting up my Imitrex, well the package is really serious when it says "take whole do not cut up" the moment the tiny pieces hit my mouth they started foaming up....it was horrible. What I would have given for a shot at that moment!!!

There are now several different triptan based meds on the market, most varieties come in melt in your mouth pills, nasal sprays, injections, and pills. If you have not tried then I'd suggest asking your doc for samples. One that works well for some may not work well for others!! As of right now I think there are seven different ones...maxalt, emerge, imitrex, zomig...I can't think of the rest but google migraine meds and you will find them.

Oh, by the way, preband my migraines were tension related and sometimes I would get them around my TOM. Post band I only tend to get them PMSing and during the TOM.

mbanja-that has been the case with me. i am beginning to think that a lot of mine were sugar related. funny, when i read on what i posted i said i had a migraine for a week, well, honestly i do not think that is physiologically possible, but i had a reoccuring one for a week. it was awful, but i could take med's during that week, i just can't now because i just had a fill.

the maxalt melts are working great, but it bothers me that i have to pay $50 for 9 (i'm going to try to get that increased because i think my insurance will cover more), and i have taken 3 in the last 2 days. i'm like omg this could become a $200/month habit. thus the reason i have always tended to fall back on the trusty pain pill. cheap and sometimes effective. damn migraines!!!!

i have used the imitrex nasal spray. it worked pretty good. didnt taste very good as it drained, but seemed to work pretty quickly. i also use the imitrex injector pen. they work quickly too.

Bandster, I am glad the maxalt melts work for you !!! Tell me about the $$$ of it I feel you there!! My hubby is Type 1 diabetic and goes thru insulin like crazy, the pharmacist told him to have his doc write on the script how much he is expected to take in a month to cover any ins questions on coverage of a double dose vial. Maybe that would work in your case, having your doc write on the script apox. how many you would need to cover a month. About the week long migraine, it is possible!!! But it sounds to me like you were having a rebound migraine which comes from taking too many meds to treat it. I know I know you can't win for loosing with these things! If you don't take a pill you suffer, if you do take a pill to many times you suffer.....aaahhhhh! Be careful with the pain pills, codine can trigger migraines and make them worse!!

Want so bad, I love the imitrex injections!! But I hate the stat dose pen!! Plus it is a $25 dollar copay for just 2 treatments!! Now before all yall freak out I cleared it with my doc and she knows I do it...but when I was taking the injections I used to use one of my hubby's insulin needles and draw out the med from the stat dose vial that way I could inject myself slowly instead of having the pen slam it down. I alway got a nasty painful bruises from that stupid pen!!! With the insulin needle I could do it slow and steady without bruising or pain! While I don't recommend anyone doing this on their own, it helped me out. Plus my doc gave me stuff to clean the area properly and the insulin needle was alway sterile!

i went a whole year taking lortab's, when one of my doctor's finally told me that the codiene was causing headache's, also tylenol is a big culprit.

speaking, or i should say typing, of migraines, i'm having a horrible one right now, and i just took a maxalt 2 hours ago. DAMN IT!! I'm sitting here at work trying to figure out what i'm going to do to make it through this. my shoulder's are on fire, and the pain in the top of my head is excruciating.