MS and headaches
 

My bane!

http://msviewsandrelatednews.com/blo...hp?itemid=1238

I'm not sure where the last one I had fits into this discussion exactly. It was a 2 week long headache that made my skin on both sides of my face feel like it was burning/tingling (kinda like what happens in my legs on a regular basis).

I have had all different types of headaches, including what I suspect was similar to or trigeminal neuralgia. I've never been sick to my stomach with any headache however. Close, but never gotten that far before I fall asleep and sleep it off.

How about you folks? Headache sufferers out there?

What gets me is that some neurologists dismiss headaches as being part of MS... just as some are quick to dismiss pain as part of MS. :rolleyes:

I think my migraines may be linked to my MS. I have had a few (maybe 5) migraines that knocked me to the floor and wouldnt let me up for about 3 days or so.

hi Laura, well as i told you b4 i dont normally get headaches, yet my last 3 or 4 relapses have had a severe headache prior, and lasting a couple weeks each time, my neuro has said two are not related then in same breath mentioned that spinal lesions can cause these headaches:Bang-Head: I personally feel the two are intertwined

We got into a conversation about the various types of headaches we experience in the attached thread:

http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/sh...light=headache

Besides the "spinal headaches" (my name, don't know what they really are), I apparently have "painless migraines" too . . . but the only bother they are is how they affect my eyesight, and tolerance to light and noise.

Cherie

I've gotten carsick since I was a kid. I was also told at age 6 by Sick Kids Hospital in Toronto (where my mom took me) that I was experiencing migraines, so headaches have been a lifelong thing.

My current neurologist said that car sickness not caused by ear issues is due to migraines. Interesting!

Edit: Interesting about the Naproxen. I never thought to ask for that before as far as regular headaches went (I've taken the 500mg guys plenty of times for facial pain not headache).

Maybe if I still have pain Tuesday (which I do currently from my cheekbone on the left side, up to near the center of my scalp on that side) I'll ask my GP about it when I go in to see her.

I am also a headache sufferer long before I was dx'd with MS. I am a true migraine sufferer but also get tension headache for which I take fiorcet.

My neuro is not one who believes that migraines and MS go hand in hand and treats them separately. Migraine lesions look different than MS lesions and the radiologist has pointed that out to me.

Since I started on Topamax, I have been migraine free. I do get tension headaches occasionally and fiorcet takes care of them. I also get occasional sinus headaches and I can definitely tell the difference due to the location of the headache. Naproxen doesn't help me at all for any type of headache but I know it does help some people.

Have you had a CT scan when you get these headaches, Laura? I have had a couple of CT scans, especially when the headaches were quick onset.

I do have a spinal lesion but it's not the cause of my headaches. It's a T-spine lesion. I usually know the reason for my tension headaches :eek:

Yup, I had 2 CT scans when I was having chronic facial pain and headaches/migraines. Both came back as 'normal', however they didn't use a contrast of any type during the CTs (not sure if that would have made a difference).

I'll have to check into Topamax. Not sure what the generic or brand name is in Canada (or if it's the same).

http://www.topamax.com/topamax/index.html

topiramate is the generic name and is available in canada.

Thanks for the link! :)

You know, I believe I was taking Topiramate previously. My neuro on February 27th had prescribed me something for migraines, that I had to begin taking in smaller amounts and build up over the weeks. I stopped taking it at the time that I was told "It's MS" thinking the headaches were resulting from MS alone.

Now I'm curious as heck, so I'm going to call the pharmacy to find out exactly what drug it was that I was taking :p

I called and it was indeed Topiramate, so looks like I'll be asking about this one again and taking it to see if it helps. Like I said, previously I had been taking it and stopped before a week due to the MS deal at the time.

My first Nystatin prescription for my burning mouth was in July 2007. Eek. So the burning mouth has been around that long. :( Of course, Nystatin didn't fix the problem, and I didn't have yeast mouth hehe.

It's a drug that you titrate up slowly and you don't cold turkey stop. You shouldn't anyway. You should taper off.

It is also an anti-seizure med. It's really worked for me for migraines. I take 400 mg daily - 200 in the morning and 200 at night.