New Girl... old story!

Hi,
I'm Christine and have had menstrual migraines since early high school and I'm now 40. I have been to see various GP's over the years who have all done a bit of 'lucky dip' in terms of prescribing and have had the following:
Imigran, Migraleve, Beta Blockers, Amytriptylene, Maximelts and now I'm on Migard.

I have asked to see a neurologist but was told 'they will just try to find the right cocktail and do what I am doing'... so never got anywhere. I wondered about getting a bit of money together and seeing a private consultant to see if that would help.

The migraines last for up to 4 days before and at the beginning of periods. I get the pulsing pains when moving and feel exhausted during and after each episode. I also get migraine if I drink alcohol or if I get too little or too much sleep. I don't seem to have any food triggers that I'm aware of.

I have a 12 year old daughter and I'm terrified she ends up with this condition too. I will be devastated if this is the case.

I hope to find a bit of support, useful information and compassion here... as you will know, most people don't get that it isn't just a 'headache' that you should push through! I have tried really hard to keep working, I run my own business, but at times it is hard to not just curl up into a ball and surrender to it.

Christine

Hi and welcome.

I can certainly relate to your problem, as I have a massive problem with menstrual migraine (including migraines that aren't supposedly menstrual ones, as they are so late in the cycle, eg. around day 6).

I also use Migard (Frovatriptan), which I do find helpful, as it's so long lasting, but it's of very limited help.

Have you tried any supplements at all?

I have dabbled with supplements but never really had knowledge about what might help with what I am going through... please share any wisdom on this as I would be happy to try anything to improve the situation!

There are various possibilities with menstrual migraines, like vitamin B complex (vitamin B6 is the best one, but it's best taken in combination anyway, plus some of the other B vitamins are good for migraines ). There are different forms of the B vitamins, so it's not always easy to find a good one, but start with a basic B complex if you've not tried it before. You probably want around 25-50 mg of each main one, apart from B12, which comes in much smaller quantities, and niacin in higher.

Magnesium deficiency is another one that is implicated in migraines, and a lot of us are deficient (the body requires a lot of magnesium, and we tend to have a lot more calcium than magnesium in our modern diets). It's not the easiest of supplements to absorb, and there are lots of forms of it. The poorest is magnesium oxide. I personally find magnesium malate the best, but some find magnesium citrate OK. You can also get magnesium oil or flakes (for a bath or foot bath) to absorb it via the skin.

Another that I find helpful is iron.

Hope I haven't bored you to tears! Give me a shout if you need to know anything more about any of this.

That is a great help thank you.

Shame the GPs can look at things holistically and test for any vitamin deficiency. Isn't there a place you can send your urine away to test! Not a job I would want but would be helpful all the same!

Years ago I had a blood test that picked up a magnesium deficiency. This was a private practitioner. I've also this year had a private vitamin D test which you send away. It's £25, if you are interested in the details (although I may have put them on this forum somewhere already!)

GPs don't seem to be interested in nutrition in general! Having said that, vitamin D is becoming a bit more mainstream.

Well, there are a lot of people here for support! Hope you can find something that works