---Tracey <TVallieu@aol.com>
USA -

I am a 49 (almost 50) year old teacher that has suffered from monthly migraines for about 15 years. Have tried several different prescription drugs from our family doctor. They work for awhile and then I have to start taking more and more until I have to have something stronger. Lately I have been taking extra strength Excedrin and it helps some. My period stopped at the age of 31 after the birth of twins and that is when the monthly migraines started. They usually last 3 days and affect the left side of my head and face. The only minute relief I get is from heat or cold. I have also found a pressure point on my gums that relieves the headache some. I have also noticed that the day before my headache starts, I will yawn uncontrollably all day long. The doctor doesn't seem to think this is related to the migraine, but it happens everytime. I sat and cried while reading these other letters, noticing that the symptoms are so much the same for everyone. I haven't had to miss that much work yet, but everyone knows when I have one. My kids will even ask me if I have a headache. By the way sleeping doesn't help mine. They will last three days, no matter what I do. I have a very understanding family, however they can't understand why my headaches can't be cured. They keep insisting I see another doctor, and I don't see the point. A lady a school gives massages which help temporarily. Thanks for listening.

---Barbara <miller@brightok>
Cheyenne, OK USA -

Hi, its Janet again I got to thinking that I have not really written my history on this site so here goes. I am an LPN ER nurse,IV certified worked ICU,CCU,float poool etc.I am no longer able to work am on disability. I had headaches from what I can remember as a teenager but now as I look back I can see that they were migraines. I went into nurseing right out of Hi school so I was young at the time but I remember being at work and I worked swing shift and we were waiting for them to get done with report so we would could go home and my head hurt so bad that I was crying! After all these years of the medical profession supposed to be so great and so knowledgeble I was only diagnosed with migraines aprox. fives years ago I have been to Doctor after Doctor after Doctor and I am sick of it!!! I have tried every medication out there for migraines and nothing nothing has worked. aprox three years ago I woke up with my left arm totally limp couldn't use it thought I had had a slight stroke so took a cab to ER and the Doctor wanted to know if I drank and i said no god maybe I should anyway Being an er nurse i knew what he was getting at cause there is such a thing if you od on alcohol and pass out and are lieing on one of your limbs it will go numb. etc so they didn't run any tests they sent me home with my arm in a sling so the next day I went to the Doctor who had been treating me for migraines and he told me that I mentally caused my arm to go numb and I asked him well what if I have had a stroke and he said well if you did your ok now!!!!!!!!!!So I went home feeling like a real nut oh yeah he suggested I see a shrink!I suffered with my left arm numb for about three months and then the feeling finally came back and it was not easy cause it was my left arm and i am left handed!In case you are not aware of it migrainers do have their limbs go numb so the er Doctor and the Doctor that I was seeing made me feel like a nut when they didn't know what they were talking about! I have been married three times I can't stay in a relationship cause eventually they tell you your lieing fakeing etc, I am 52 and not bad looking for my age and have had guys a lot younger then I am asking me out but why bother getting into a relationship when I would just be setting myself up to be hurt again.Family and friends (not my Dad hes great) think Im lazy and fakeing it so I don't see many of them any more!!!!!!!!!!! I am totally and completly DISCUSTED WITH THE MEDICAL PROFESSION tHEY ARE ALL IDIOTS!!!!! I do see I Neuroligist here SO I CAN GET MY DRUGS HO HO I take fiorocet but I am limited to three per day cause I am sure he thiks I am a druggy!!!!! I will probably get sued for saying all this cause i am in the medical profession so let them go ahead i have nothing left all my money has gone to Doctor after Doctor after Doctor and medicine that doesn't work!the fiorect doesnt really work either!!!! I am now experiencing personality changes Highs and lows and someone else on this site mentioned that and I was glad to read that cause I was worried --- I could write a lot more about my horror storys with Doctors but i will shut up cause I have probably depressed alot of you and obviously with my personality changes It looks like I am going into my down cycle. My migraines are getting worse with no end in sight and that is why I want to get on Oprha before the big one hits and I really do stroke out!!!! Janet

---Janet <stella@verdenet.com>
cottonwood, Az. USA -

I just finished reading many of the most recent histories which you have posted, and I feel as if I am readinng my own story over and over again. I am 42 years old, and have been suffering from severe chronic migraines since 1992. I have tried many different medications and complimentary (formerly called alternative) treatments and nothing seems to help much. I have seen several neurologists, and find that most are either arrogant or uninterested in migraines. Finally, I decided to go to a local headache center, which is not a part of my HMO. I am so glad I took this step, as at last I feel like I am understood more and taken seriously. I am trying out Zomig (a new drug similar to Imitrex w/o some of the side effects), and it does seem to work faster on my less severe headaches. I cannot seem to reduce the frequency of my headaches, as I have had terrible reactions to most of the preventative medications. (Depakote even landed me in the ER with severe chest pains). My biggest trigger seems to be weather-related: rapid changes in barometric pressure and/or temperature. Accordingly, I get a headache anywhere from 2-3 times a week, and since El Nino began the frequency has increased to almost daily. (People laugh at me when I suggest this, but I truly believe there is a correlation.) This frequency of headaches has prevented me from holding a job outside of my home, so I must rely on working from my home during times when I can cope. Like many others, my worst headaches are those which I have when I first wake up in the morning ; usually I end up going to the ER for these, as I am unable keep any meds down, and the pain is so severe. I normally am given an IV of demerol and compazine, which brings relief. No one has ever questioned the legitamacy of my migraines in the ER, as I am usually vomitting. Plus, they always call my doctor.....The hardest part of having these migraines is that I feel as if I am no longer living my life. The migraines are my life. I have lost friends because they do not understand why I sometimes have to cancel social engagements over "just a headache." Worse, some of my family members think I am a malingerer. I have tried to remain upbeat and optimistic, but I have felt somewhat depressed of late. I keep praying that the headaches will leave as mysteriously as they came. I will keep plugging along, but there are days I wonder how much more of this I can take. I, too, have gained a lot of weight since the headaches began. I know that exercise is helpful, but it is hard to do when one is medicated or in a lot of pain. Thank you all for "listening" without judgement. Finding this journal has been a godsend!
Lisa Hayes <botanica@fuse.net >
Cincinnati, OH USA -

Hi its Janet again!!!Just want you all to know I Emailed Oprha yesterday and told her my story and if she wants me on her show and I am down with a bad migraine I will crawl ther on my hands and knees with my puke bucket under my arms!!!!We need to go public with the way we are treated----So once again if anyone else is interested in writeing her and telling their storys let me know! I think the more letters she gets from us the more she will listen!!!this is my last plea for help from you cause this is the third time that i have asked you people if you were interested and I thouht I would have had at least a hundred of you out there saying yes go for it so if none of you other people out their are interested me and my other migrainer friend will go it alone except she is down with a migraine rigt now and has not been able to finish her letter! bye, Janet

---Janet <stella@verdenet.com>
Cottonwood, Az USA -

I ran across this page while trying out just what the latest drug was that my doctor prescribed for my migraines. I am 27 years old and have been getting migraines since I was about 17. In fact, I remember the very first one I got. We didn't have any aspirin or Tylenol in the house. I was crying to my mother that she had to go get some. By the time she returned I was curled up into a ball on the floor, holding my head and sobbing. She thought I was being overly dramatic--now she knows that's not true. My maternal grandmother has suffered from debilitating migraines her whole life, so I know I get them honestly. She claims that taking an aspirin a day keeps her from getting them quite so badly. I, personally, cannot take aspirin. I've tried several different prescriptions: Vicodin, Darvaset, Imetrol. The first two will normally do it if I catch the migraine right when I feel it coming on. However, once the nasuea hits, I can't even keep a pill down. The last one was so severe that I went to the emergency room. The gave me a shot of Imetrol. It took away the pain, but I experienced dizzy spells for several days afterwards. My doctors has suggested I get a CAT scan; however, not only do I fear that, but I'm a struggling graduate student right now, and can't really afford it. The key for me seems to be taking the darvaset as soon as I feel the familiar symptoms start. Usually a cup of strong black coffee helps too (as long as I drink it before my stomach starts in). J.J. Kunkle jj5@frognet.net

---J.J. Kunkle <jj5@frognet.net>
Athens, OH USA -