Need a list of meds for controlling headaches?
 

My neuro so far has tried Depakote (it was ok...) and Topamax (OMG just kill me...) and I see him tomorrow. I want to demand something other than Topamax but I was wondering what else was out there so I could throw some names at him. I would not put it past this bastard to tell me "Well Depakote and Topamax are all there really is..." since he is a WC hack. What is working for all you all out there? Thanks ahead of time for any suggestions.

Topamax is what has worked best for me. Before that, I was on amitriptyline (Elavil) for headache prevention.

If you have migraine-like headaches, you might also be able to get Imitrex to take when a headache comes on. The downside to that is that you can only get a limited number per month and it causes rebound headaches.

A "natural" option for migraine prevention is taking daily: 400 mg riboflavin (B2), 500 mg magnesium, and butterbur (max dose of whatever brand you get -- it's 75 mg 3x/day for the brand I have). That one can take up to a month to take effect, though.

Some other options for when you actually have a headache are to ice your head and neck while simultaneously immersing your feet in hot water (really hot, as hot as you can stand).

You can also try trigger point massage and/or acupressure. If you google acupressure for headaches or acupressure for migraines, it will show you the typical spots to try.

Hope you are able to get some relief soon. I know the headaches are SO miserable.

Scott,
 

Are these migraine headaches? Some years ago, a neurologist I was seeing at the time, prescribed a combination of Inderal and Elavil taken daily as apreventative. ( I have not taken the Inderal or Elavil as a preventative for years.) He also sent me to have bio-feedback therapy. The bio-feed back is good to learn to help relax the head, neck, jaw, etc. whatever type of headaches you are dealing with.

I do take the Imitrex. You do of course, have to be careful not to overdo because rebound headaches are the result. Also too much aspirin, or any other headache reliever can cause rebound headaches too.

I have my doctor prescribe 50 MG's of Imitrex. I only need 25mg's; but the price is the same and you are only allowed 9 in a month. By getting the 50 mg's, I cut them in half and then it comes to 18. Much more afordable as well. I am fortunate, the Imitrex really has been a godsend. When I feel the tightening or think the headache is starting, I take an Imitrex (cut in half 25 mgs's) Rarely do I need a second.


Gerry

I don't know, I guess....I get them every day, some days worse than others. They started after my concussion and have never gone away. Light exposure can cause them or make them worse, as can certain kinds of sound exposure (cacophony for example).

Do you get visual disturbances with them? Are you sensitive to light and/or sound while you have them? Are they worse on one side than the other? Do you have throbbing or pulsating pain? Does it feel like you have a tight band around your head? Does movement make it worse? Do you have neck and/or sinus pain with them?

This article describes the different types of headaches, although post-concussive headaches don't always fit neatly into these categories.

http://health.usnews.com/health-cond...dache/symptoms

I had an ongoing headache that started shortly after I sustained the concussion I'm still recovering from (22 months later) and it got worse and worse over the course of the first six months to the point that I was in severe pain and could hardly move or speak for several of those months. The intensity of the pain of the headache varied over the course of the day, but it was one solid, ongoing headache.

The neurologist figured out it was caused by a somewhat rare complication called increased intracranial pressure that was causing it. It turns out that many of the other symptoms I was suffering from was caused by the same

Make sure that your neurologist knows if you have an ongoing headache instead of several separate ones and any other pain or information that you might be experiencing because it *might* be related.

My severe headaches were relieved with a spinal tap - the procedure relieved the increase in intracranial pressure - it was like a miracle for me!!

It's a rare complication, but I only mention it because it is a possibility and I wasn't even aware that it could happen until she suspected it was what was going on with me.

Much luck!

p.s. I hated Topomax too.

Scott,
 

Migraine headaches are frequenty brought on by light, as well as aggravating the headaches. My only concern is the fact that this started after a concussion and that would seem pretty unusual to begin getting migraines.

You are under the care of a neurologist; but might want to get another opinion. I would assume you had an MRI after the concussion; especially since the headaches continue. If you have not; would be a good idea. You are treating the pain, which the treatment could actually be causing the pain. When I had rebound headaches (had used Midrin and Bufferin for years), I would take a Midrin, it would subside for an hour or so and then come on even worse; then would take another one; this would continue throughout the day/night. This is what lead to the rebound. The headache were daily. I finally had to get off all the pain meds to find out how much was caused by rebound. That was a very painful time. Not sure in your case, because of concussion, it is a good idea. But that's what rebound headaches are...daily and within an hour or two, back again.

When Imitrex came on the market, it was unbelievable how this helped. I learned my lesson as well, not to overdo and since I had eleminited the rebound effect by stoping the Midrin and Bufferin, the Imitrex worked. I have been taking the imitrex for at least 10 years.

Again, I would suggest getting another opinion and an MRI if you have not already had one.

Gerry

Thanks for all the replies. I'll try to give more details, in case it helps anyone relate to what they know about their own headaches.

I never had problems with headaches before this concussion. I have had PCS for almost 6 months now, with the headaches being one of the main major symptoms. Light sensitivity is the other really big one, along with sound sensitivity. I have no stamina for doing anything, especially if it's multi tasking; something as simple as fixing pancakes and bacon for my family this weekend wore me out, caused headaches in my forehead, made me light headed and dizzy, and made my head feel feverish (I get clammy and the cold chills a lot when I do anything physical).

My headaches occur mostly in my forehead, though I have had pains right on top of my head before, on both temples, and sometimes just a generalized pain all over my head. The last one is usually the easiest to cure, both Depakote and Topomax seem to ease the overall headache, but cannot prevent or relieve any other headache pains. Some days I wake up with a headache waiting for me; most I do not, but I get one pretty quickly. The amount of light I'm exposed to or the amount of physical activity I attempt seem to determine how quickly and how bad I get a headache. Time spent on the computer will also cause a headache, especially if I try to play a video game.

I have recently tried the combo of Tylenol and Aspirin, taken at the same time, and it seems to work half the time, maybe relieving the headache pains for a couple hours. Its' better than nothing, but it's not a solution. I have had an MRI and a CT on my head, both came back negative. My headaches have never gotten worse than they were when the whole thing began; no symptom has, they have just not gotten any better. In fact, some of my symptoms got worse after taking Topomax (hence, my insistence on changing meds).

Again this is a Work Comp Dr. and a Work Comp situation so I'm kinda stuck with him for now, and I know the meds he's trying are decent meds but they are the old school, really cheap ones and there are probably better meds that might cost more. I just want to know what I'm talking about when we sit down tomorrow and talk about the meds; I'd like to have some names to throw at him and see what he says. I already think I'll throw Imitrex at him. Thanks!!!!!

Also wondering if you've had a vision efficiency evaluation. A good portion of my headaches were caused by convergence insufficiency, other problems with binocular vision, and difficulties with accommodation. After vision therapy, my headaches improved quite a bit (but didn't disappear entirely).

You can find eye doctors who do this type of evaluation at http://www.braininjuries.org or http://www.nora.cc

I agree with Eowyn on getting a vision evaluation. I met with a vision therapist last week and she determined that my eyes were definitely not converging together properly. This is causing extreme eye strain and thus my constant headaches. Finally, an explanation! She mentioned that this convergence problem is very common with head injuries. Both eyes cease to work together as they usually should. She put on a program of doing various eye convergence exercises twice a day for three months. Brock string and double bullseye(basically transparent cards with circles in the middle) exercises.

Making a connection between eye strain and chronic headaches does make sense because eyeballs are constantly focusing. From the moment you wake until you close them at night. I am very hopeful that this vision therapy will reduce my headaches.

I too get headaches all day long could never figure out the trigger but focusing problems do make the best sense at this point. There was a period of time when I would only usually get headaches from computer use but my headache frequency increased after taking 300mg of Gabapentin for almost a week and the frequency hasn't lessened too much since got off of it over a week ago. As far as medication, I'm only on 30mg of Amitriptyline now. Other than Gabapentin, I've tried notriptyline(useless), fioricet, simutriptan, and had a nerve block. 10 months into this now, I'm more focused on getting to root of symptoms instead of just masking the pain with tons of meds. Going to neck and spine doctor Thursday to see if there may be an issue there as well.

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10 mos. PCS from mTBI. Chronic daily headaches. Treating with Amitriptyline, vision therapy, light exercise, healthy diet, and vitamins.