Daily Prevention Meds?

Hi, I'm a newb. I was prescribed Imitrex to deal with my migraines but now my doctor says I've been relying on them too much so I'm not using them anymore. She says that she wants to try daily preventative medicine. What do you think she'll prescribe? I've been dying here for four days. Is there any help?

If you read these posts the lists of preventives is long and varied.... some people have gotten some relief but I dont think anyone

has gotten total relief..your Dr. may use what other patients have gotten the most relief from...everyone is diff so it may not

work for you. Im sorry you are here with M as we all suffer also.

I would guess Topamax is the script the most.

Probably start you off on topamax. I think a lot of doctors start off there. Read around about it before taking any preventative, they sometimes have some weird side effects. Topamax is 1 of 4 meds approved by the FDA for migraine treatment, I believe.

I got some funky ones in the beginning but as I continued taking it they slowly went away, as did the migraines. If you have the opportunity to get brand instead of generic (some people cannot because of the price difference) it may be beneficial. I prefer brand, and have read a few articles that brand has better results in anti-epilepsy meds(which are also used as migraine preventatives).

The trick is finding the right one and giving it a chance to work. It takes a while for them to really show results. I think it usually takes about 3-4 months, but sometimes shows improvement in severity, frequency ect. immediately. I noticed full results after 3 months myself.

I wanted to quit so bad during the first month. The side effects were really different from any medication I have taken. I never had a problem before with my health so I only took antibiotics or painkillers for dental problems. These meds effect your temporal lobe in your brain as I understand it, so a lot of changes take place.

My med (topamax) makes my memory very bad, it makes me confused sometimes. I screw up my words occasionally. I loose tons of weight as I have no appetite anymore. I tingle in my hands, feet and face. They go numb too sometimes. My moods feel more stable, however for some it can go the opposite way. I also get really bad leg cramps sometimes. Most of the side effects have decreased by now, but I still get them all to some extent.

Good luck and always research the meds and ask questions. I find a lot of times my doc just gives me scripts but doesn't explain much. It's nice to know the side effects so you aren't caught off guard if they happen.

Good luck with whatever you try. I quit all preventatives. None of them worked good enough to make them worth taking. None of us know the long term effects of taking these drugs daily for long periods of time. I decided to go with just abortives to limit the amount of drugs in my system. It is all a matter of weighing the pros and cons and deciding if it is worth it. If a preventative drastically improves your quality of life, I would definitely go with it but if it is only minimal, I wouldn't. Most of them have side effects also.

And in my case I refused to try Topamax for 5 years and and after being on it for 6 weeks I wish I had tried it 5 years ago.

I havent had all of the preventatives, but didnt get anything but side effects from the ones I did.
They do seem to help a few, but many seem to have to find another after a while because they stop working.
So I am told anyway.

I hope that you have better results.
Good luck

hi i am havin some success with a daily combination of amitriptyline taken at night, and a beta blocker called proprananol taken in the morning and in the afternoon, (in the uk), it has reduced the severity of the migraines alot, but has not changed the frequency, but for now it is still an improvement for me on how i was this time last year,

I was on a small dosage of Topamax for 6 months. The only thing about it is that if you already have low weight, i don`t think it`s the best drug to take. By the time I stopped taking the drug,I was down to 85 pds and the stupid Neuro blamed me for not eating. Which was not true, I did eat but this drug supresses your appetite. Stupid Drs.....

Don't rule out a non-medicine preventative.

My headache specialist swears by B2, Magnesuim, coenzyme Q10 and butterbur. They each have shown promising results as preventatives and the combo has very good results...better then any other preventative out there.

Best part...no side effects, unlike all of the medicine preventatives.

Milo are you sure no side effects? I had a terrible upset stomach from Butterbur.
So disappointed as I heard such good things about it.