blood pressure and migraine theories?

Recently I googled migraine and low blood pressure.

Am i right in thinking that some of us can have migraines triggered by low blood pressure and some by high blood pressure? Does this explain why some medications like beta blockers make some of us worse?

I was wondering if there might be clues that could suggest which medicines would be a bad idea for folks in the future. The NICE protocol for migraine seems to be a one size fits all approach but if some of us are given meds that aggravate like mine have I'm convinced it has made migraine more of a habit for my brain rather than less. The more we have them , the more we are likely to get them in the future?

best regards

Di

I also have low BP and low cortisol levels. I take drug Relafin and beta blocker related to the low cortisol and irregular BP. Both neurologist and headache clinic felt there was no connection. However, I still feel there is a connection. 40 year history of migraines and the beta blocker and florinef started about 10 years ago with no change in migraines. About 5 years ago I began to get change in migraines based on dietary and supplement changes. It is somehow all connected and my struggle is to find the connections and improve quality of life.

I especially liked your phrasing of "migraine more of a habit for my brain". I think of migraines that way as well. Last year, based on a study comparing acupuncture to topamax, I committed to 4 months of acupuncture done twice a week by a Chinese trained acupuncturist (it hurts). I also did everything she recommended in the way of foot soaks and special broths etc. After 3 weeks of 2 time a week acupuncture, my migraines, headaches, and stiff neck vanished and were gone for 4 months while I continued to have acupuncture 2 x week. I was hoping to re train my brain not to have migraines. No migraines for 4 months and I previously had a 3 day migrain every 10 days. I was hoping to heal and train my brain not to have migraines. 3 weeks after taking acupuncture migraines came back.

If I had the money and lived close to my acupuncturist, I think I could be migraine free with acupuncture maybe twice a week every other week or every 3 weeks. Acupuncturist said trial and error would tell us how often. But, I live 3 hours away. So I'm still searching.

Good luck to you in your search. And, my experience may or may not relate to you but use what you can of it.

I used to have low blood pressure, then a few years ago I was put on a two-month trial of the calcium-channel blocker, Verapamil.

On the one hand it did indeed reduce the severity of the migraines I get by 2 to 4 pain points. But on the other hand it increased the frequency of the migraines from 2 to 3 per month to 2 to 3 per week.

Also, when I stopped taking the Verapamil my blood pressure had risen to the upper end of normal.


Currently, I am being tried on the beta-blocker, Propranolol. So far, all it has done is to raise my blood pressure even higher than the Verapamil did.  

Life long low bp here also though in recent years it is more normal. Tried Propranalol for migraines about 30 years ago and it dropped my pulse to about 38. I stopped taking it immediately.

Hello again.

It seems it isn't just me wondering about this which is reassuring. It seems we have been putting up with this for a long time.

I find it strange that blood pressure and what it gets up to before, during and after migraine isn't really mentioned when I see the neurologist, yet as someone who gets dizzy regularly with the migraine I would have thought that it should be focused on at some point.

Would it help to increase blood pressure by doing something in response to it going lower when migraine strikes?

regards

Di

Well I do know that Imitrex pushes my BP up a good bit, actually a bit higher than what is considered a normal BP. That is because it is a vasoconstrictor.

Another BP story.

I was trying Alieve for the headachy days leading up to the major migraine. Zomig is so expensive I try to limit its use. I was hoping keeping the headaches away would delay the migraine. I also take florinef to help my body produce cortisol as my cortisol levels are very low. Florinef does this by helping the body retain sodium.

Anyway, Alieve stays in the body a good while and it causes my BP to rise. But, not thinking, I kept taking my florinef for low BP and when the migraine hit it included the throbbing of very high BP and the migraine. The combination of florinef and Alieve was increadibly painfully. That was another ER visit. Florinef helps the body retain sodium and Alieve has sodium so I really overdosed. But now, every bottle of Alieve has a big x on it and notes in my pill tray remind me to stop florinef if I'm taking Alieve.

It is good that you caught this. Sure is a delicate balancing act we deal with.

The pain of a migraine is caused by the blood vessels in your head spasming. Part of them constricts and the other part dilates. The blood rushes through the dilated part and then slams into the constricted part, causing inflammation. Some sort of improper hormone signal from the brain, or a misunderstanding by the blood vessel, is what causes this. That is my understanding of the most current theory on migraines.

That's why taking an anti-inflammatory medication often helps the pain a little, but can't solve things because it doesn't change the blood vessels. Triptans like Imitrex or Zomig cause all the blood vessels to constrict, thus doing away with the dilated sections that are precipitating the pain.

That's also why beta blockers such as Propranolol are SUPPOSED to help prevent migraines - by causing the blood vessels to all relax, or dilate, thus doing away with the constricted part of the vessel. However, as you guys know for whatever reason many people who have migraines have lower than normal BP, and beta blockers cause serious side effects because our bodies are responding in such a way to try and keep our blood pressure up. Or we simply become too tired and cold with the even lower BP. In my personal experience, Propranolol has artificial food coloring as well which is a huge trigger 100% of the time for me.

Unfortunately, changing your blood pressure is already what the doctors are essentially doing by giving you triptans and beta blockers. Since they don't yet know the root cause of migraines, there's not much they can do in my opinion.

Seance I agree completely! I have to be responsible for my migraine since no one knows the cause. I keep records, analyze, and keep trying new things. I've managed to get to a pattern of migraine every 14 days. In a few months I'm going to try treating my migraines as if I had celiac disease - just to try a new approach. My best approach to migraines came about when I started googling for research on migraines and then trying for whatever seemed promising giving the treatment or preventative 3 months to create a new baseline, then 3 additional months to judge effect. I've found it important to try new things at least 3 months before giving up.

My BP is normal or slightly high but I get postural hypotension - where I stand up and my BP falls. I see stars and a bit of graying out of my vision. When that happens it almost always triggers a migraine.

I too am attempting to treat my migraines as if I had Celiac. It is too early to tell if this is helping but I'm hopeful.

I was able to get my migraines from every 10 days to 14 days by trying celiac diet. And I maintained the experiment for 3 months. I'll stay on celiac now forever and start morphing it into keto diet as my next experiment.

Cassie it is good that your migraines are at least fewer. Are they also less intense? I will be eagerly waiting to see how the ketogenic diet goes. Also wondering how your digestive system is accepting the gluten free part. Mine seems to be better in some areas but dealing with a bit of diarrhea at times.

I count migraine as that which demands Zomig. Now, On day 10 I get brain stirrings, headache probings, neck tightness all the old symptoms that a migraine is coming. But, Zomig isn't required for another 4 days. And, it is just as severe requiring 2 or 3 days of recovery. From day 10 to day 4 is headachy.

No effect that I can see on my gut. Had no problems before and none now.

I'm 40+ years into this fight and I've gone from 18 severe migraine days a month in my 40s and 50s to milder migraines through a heavy supplement use and less frequent migraines through diet control. Milder, but still unbearable. I'm not suicidal or depressed but I'm ready to go if hit by a truck or cancer. I had a bout of food poisoning yesterday and an atypical migraine exploded a day after being released from my last migraine. I am in awe at the strength of the people that have migraine throbbings 24/7. They are super heroes, super humans to endure so much.

Thanks Cassie, I agree with you on those who have to suffer constantly. Makes me so grateful for the good days and the fact that I do have some.