Hello all,

I've been a sufferer of severe migraines for several years and the doctors can't figure out what is causing them, they have put me on antibiotics which don't seem to be working (as none of the others have).

I have recently been looking into alternative therapies as this has helped me in the past with other issues and I was wondering if anyone has any suggestions?

I am currently trying to learn self-reflexology but I haven't learnt enough yet to be sure if it will be effective.

If anyone can provide any advice on what to try I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks

It could be that your magnesium levels are low, as that has been found recently to influence migraines, not only getting them in the first place, but how severe they are too, I believe.

Migraines are hideous. At best I lose my vision on one side to the flashing aura, and at work I thought I was having a stroke as I lost all movement down one side of my body and couldnt talk.

I've tried everything over the years - feverfew did nothing, imigram (? sp?) was pretty effective but only for a while.

I have found the best policy is to keep away from my triggers, and these can be unusual so it might be an idea to keep a track of what you eat and drink in the run up to an attack.

My triggers are orange - both natural and artificial, (migraine will hit within half an hour), red wine (even real red wine in cooking will do it), coke as in a coca cola - lol, stress, lack of sleep (especially if I am dehydrated as well) and hormonal imbalances will do it too, and on occasions sun glare, so I tend to wear sunglasses whenever I drive. For the hormones, Vit B complex and evening primrose oil are good as they help balance the hormones.

My manager wore pink tinted lenses after finding out it helped her dyslexic tendencies and then found she had less migraines too.

I take magnesium in large doses for FM, and have had far less migraines (apart from last week when I had two and realised I had forgotten my magnesium for a week as I had run out) so I reckon there's something to it.

There is also a point just below your skull in the indent at the top of your neck that if you press, the pain disappears, trouble is, it only goes for as long as you keep pressing, so look into your reflexology for that area.

I fully sympathise. I used to suffer killer auric migraines but only once every 3-4 years. I get them slightly more often now but oddly stronger aura with less, or sometimes no pain! Like a horrible bad-trip. Very strange but scary and disorienting when they happen.

Be careful prescription drugs. I tried Tylex for a while and I actually think they aggravated/prolonged the experience - knocked me out for a while but afterwards it came back stronger. I used to recover in 24 hours, on Tylex it went on for three days resulting in injections to stop me falling over and being sick Very unpleasant, I wanted to die.

Avoid anything with aspartame in - some painkillers have it to take away the bitter taste and it's a terrible thing for migraines. Avoid juices/foods with it in too. Phenylalanine in foods can be another one but if you don't have a history of sensitivity to it you should be fine.

Some over-the-counter stuff can help - I found Migraleve quite useful. Ibuprofen’s better than most things as it deals with inflammation, although when I was younger no standard painkillers even touched it. Seems to have become more manageable as I got older. Seriously, they were horrific, was almost admitted to hospital twice with suspected meningitis but fended the doctors off both times - last thing in the world you want is to be moved! Mine appear to be genetic though as my mum is the same and my dad had them until his mid-twenties.

Are they auric or straight-pain?

The food trigger is debatable. If foods trigger them they are different for everyone and not predictable: chocolate, cheese, wine (especially red), citrus fruits and even milk have been blamed. I think there is a food reaction from mixing those but I personally also think, for women at least, it's often something hormonal too. I had my first migraine the day of my first period and whereas I could eat those foods with impunity most of the time, I think mixing them before my period was a danger zone.

If you've just suddenly started getting them I'd agree with Moon that it could be a deficiency of something, perhaps your body is struggling to process something. Careful though as I find multi vitamin tablets set me off.

One of the simplest things to do is to get an eye test. Deterioration in eyesight and eye strain can be a trigger too - especially if you use a computer a lot.

I take it they've tested you for things like diabetes, blood sugar levels, blood pressure etc and that you haven't started taking any new medication recently?

What was going on around the time they started and how have you been sleeping/dreaming/feeling generally?

Very strangely - and I learned this from an army doctor when I had my worst one - although coffee is a trigger for some people, once you get a migraine it can help as it contracts the blood vessels in the head and can reduce the pain. Might be the last thing you feel like, but when it hits, try a cup of strong black coffee. I did once and certainly found it didn't do any harm.

Pennyroyal tea - a type of mint - has also been known to work, but (to the women) never take if you're pregnant as it's also an abortive.

Good luck with it, let us know how it goes.

I have had migraines since a teenager, not disabling exactly, but strong enough that I'd go around pressing my hands to my head and whimpering as each new wave came on. I have concluded that all sorts of things are involved, hormone changes, trigger foods and stress. Recently I managed to stop one after a few hours - normally they go on for two days - so I was impressed with myself.

What I did was a Bates technique for eyesight improvement. Bates' theory was that vision problems are caused by mental strain - straining to get things into focus, and straining to make sense of what you see. I think this really ties in with migraines, in my case at least.

The technique is to move about, detaching yourself from your surroundings so that it feels as though everything is moving freely around you. You completely stop trying to see anything properly - all you let yourself focus on is the feeling of counter-movement in the space around you. You are aware of all that space and you are aware that your body is pivoting and moving through it. I wish I could describe the sensation, it's a wonderful letting-go, literally, you let everything go and flow around you, but you are still connected to it because it moves as you move, only in the opposite direction.

Looking at what I've written, it sounds a bit sick-making, but it's not, honest - but i would recommend practising it when you don't have a migraine! If you relax into it it feels good, doesn't make you sick at all.

Thanks for the suggestions everyone, some of the things listed I haven't tried yet, have to apologise, I should have given more details on it.

I have been suffering from them for over 8 years now and have been prescribed many different antibiotics, none of which work as I have a very strong resistance to antibiotics.

My symptoms depend on the migraine severity:

Mild migraine: Affected by light and sound
Medium migraine: The above plus bouts of dizziness and nausea
Severe migraine: All the above plus sickness, delerium and blackouts

I have had my eyes tested (including for a VDU computer screen) and they are apparently not the cause.

Over the years I have tried multiple diets (no food triggers found yet) and have been checked for allergies and have none at all.

I have had blood tests (and they thought I had meningitis as well a couple of times) and they came back clean.

My blood pressure was very slightly low but only just apparently.

Sometimes I am stressed when they appear but not always (sometimes I have been relaxing at home when it happens).

I never remember my dreams so unsure if that may be the cause or not. With emotions it can vary, my emotions are very volatile in that they change very regularly so unsure if that is a cause either but might be worth looking into.

As for frequency, again there seems to be no pattern, sometimes I go months without any, sometimes get all three in a short space of time and sometimes I just get one type numerous times in a short space of time.

Thanks for the suggestions so far, there have been a few things I haven't tried that will be looking into now. Any further assistance would be a great help.

Thanks

I am just a bit confused as to why they are giving you antibiotics for a migraine, I have never heard of that before.

I've no idea myself, I think they are just at a loss as to what to do, my GP pretty much said so last time, so I think they are just trying anything they can think of.

As I said, they aren't working and their lack of confidence is one of the reasons I started this thread, medical isn't one of my areas of knowledge but I know that they are clueless so I'm hoping for an alternative therapy that might work.

I was wondering the same - antibiotics would suggest they suspect a bacterial cause for them, which doesn't seem likely. Most antibiotics can change your blood cells a bit which may even add to the problem, who knows. If they're not working, seems a bit pointless continuing - especially after 8 years. Did you still suffer them even during periods when you weren't taking antibiotics? I'm assuming so.

Mind me asking how old you were 8 years ago when they started? Can you describe the first time it happened?

Have you had your heart checked out? Sounds a bit random but they discovered certain changes in the way the heart works can trigger them. Also digestion and stomach disorders.

That's the problem, it could be anything.

Reflexology may help, as could acupuncture and acupressure. Worth going to a specialist and giving it a go. Often you need to stick with these treatments for some time before they take full effect. Hypnotism is another route, to block out the pain - only question would be whether the pain is a warning of something else and as auric migraines and strokes can be incredibly similar you don't want to be oblivious to any changes.

Do you get numbness/deadening of your face/arms before a migraine?

You mention your mood swings - could be indicative of a sudden drop in serotonin, which could trigger a migraine. Oddly an SSRI antidepressant might help you but I wouldn't recommend it as a long-term solution Would be an interesting experiment though I doubt doctors would agree and it's a bit of a random theory, me not being a doctor or anything

If it happens when you're just chilling out at home too then it sounds like a chemical change potentially caused by something physical (heart/digestion/random serotonin drop).

Have you checked out any of the NGOs related to migraines, such as the Migraine Action Association or The Migraine Trust?

I don't mind at all, I was 16 at the time, it was 3 weeks before my GCSEs and I was sitting in English class. At first I thought it was just a headache (not knowing any better) and one minute was listening to the teacher the next woke up in a hospital and being told I'd blacked out - when I woke up I was very delerious so can't remember all the exact details, just general things.

You are quite right in your guess, the migraines come whether I take the medications or not, I have been tried on all sorts, the latest one I have only been on a month or 2 and was told they should help prevent them rather than easing them. I have continued taking them in case they are reducing the severity rather than the frequency but I really don't know.

When I get the severe ones then I sometimes feel a deadening of my face on the right hand side, my eyes and mouth droop and sometimes I can't feel them at all, not sure what that indicates though.

I have had very basic heart checks, plus I think they said they checked for some things when they did one of the blood tests but I don't know, they could tell me anything and I'd know no different.

How would I get checked out for drops in chemicals such as seratonin or magnesium, is there something specific I ask for or do I just asked to be checked for those things?

Thanks for all your help everyone, it's greatly appreciated.

I have suffered with regular migraines since I was pretty young .. not much I can do to stop them. I use Nurofen plus which is a pretty aggressive painkiller if I catch it in time two of them every three hours a dark quite room and I might be ok in a few hours. The doctor has recently proscribed me Almogran (spelling might be off) which opens the blood vessels in your head and should cure a migraine. Got to be honest again if I catch it in time they do aid the painkillers.
I have not found anyway of stopping the migraines I sometimes wake up with, they are very painful, sensitivity to light sound and strong smells, flashing lights and vomiting.
In fact the only way I can get over it is to vomit until there is nothing left in me .. I find after I have been sick I feel mildly better for a bit then the migraine gets more painful and I know I am going to be sick… the process repeats until I have brought up every last thing then I find I can sleep for a few hours. By the evening I am up I have a “thick” head feel very weak but normally able to drink something and keep it down.
Its something I have learned to cope with .. not been able to find a trigger. Lack of sleep seems and or excitement about going or doing something is a possible.
I have not tried that many alternative therapies but I find lavender oil in a burner is sometimes helpful. As to why I am not sure it does relax me sure but I am not sure if it’s a homely thing too as my grandparents house always smelt of lavender.

Not tried magnesium at all .. I think its worth a go.

Why suffer from migrains when they are so easily cured with Feverfew.
A neighbour suffered for years with such bad ones that she would be laid up in a darkened room for days at a time. She had all sorts of tests and the doctors could do nothing for her other than prescribe strong pain killers.
I gave her a Feverfew plant and she started eating one leaf every day, in a jam sandwich (they taste horrible on their own) and until she died about 20 years or more later, she never had another migrain.

because Feverfew doesnt work for everyone, Pasher. It didnt do a thing for me.

You rather surprise me Moongazer.
Was it the actual feverfew leaves you took or was it the crap in tablet form. I have heard of quite a few folks that the tablets had no effect on, but have never heard of anyone taking the leaves every day and getting no relief.

Neither, Pasher - it was a tincture purchased from a qualified herbalist.

That could be the answer. Try getting a feverfew plant (they are very pretty as garden or house plants) and eat a leaf every single day, preferaby freshly removed from the plant. The leaves can be dried and used over the winter if needed, but my plants (growing in a large planter outside) seem to stay in leaf even in bad winter weather.
They are very easy to grow (like weeds) and each plant you buy or scrounge will provide dozens of new plants each year for you to give to friends.

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone, I have loads of things to try out now.

I was getting pretty desperate as I've already been in hospital 3 times in the last 8 months over this. As a side-note, I recently discovered that 1 in 20 people are reported having lost their jobs over migraines, which I thought was quite high.

Anyway, will look into these suggestions and let you know how I get on.

Pasher, it doesn't work for everybody. Didn't for me either. Pennyroyal is particularly recommended too but migraines - the triggers and reliefs - are so very individual. It is quite a shock to look at brain scans of a migraine spreading - like a mini atomic bomb going off; chain reaction. Perhaps herbal therapy over a prolonged period of time will help. This is something else I'll say is give things a chance like you are with the current meds, especially alternative therapies can take a course of treatment to take effect.

I'd try acupuncture if you haven't already, and failing that perhaps hypnotism is the way to go.

The deadening is something I get too - part and parcel of severe auric migraines. The problem is it's also a symptom of strokes and like I said before something like hypnotism will stop the pain but maybe make you unaware of a crucial change in the symptoms too.

Black outs do occur in a small number of cases - the only times I've heard about it are in men, probably are women too though. Again the age at which it happens would suggest something hormonal - the only thing I must tell you is never to take the combined contraceptive pill Ahem, doubt there's much fear there eh *grin*

However, there was some research once upon a time that suggested people who get these severe migraines are less at risk of dying from stroke because their bodies have toughened up to the symptoms - was an academic paper but can't remember the details and can't see's it'd make that much sense really as they're similar but different. Not much comfort

Have you posted on migraine forums? Might be a better place to get specific advice. I'm not sure where you can get checked for chemical imbalance - try suggesting it to the doc. After this long surely they'd like to try anything.

Also, make sure you're well hydrated - drink water regularly. When you feel the symptoms coming on, have you tried taking in sugars? Glucose tablets or sweets - preferably not chocolate?

Accupunture is something I've never tried but I am a very solitary person due to major trust issues and the thought of letting someone stab me multiple times with a load of needles would take me a while to build myself up for.

Hypnotism, never thought of that for migraines, tried it to help quit smoking but they struggled to hypnotise me as I struggled to let the barriers round my mind down.

Not much chance of me taking the pill, I've never been much worried about whether or not I will get pregnant haha.

I do drink a lot of water anyway, however never thought about the sugars, I've been checked for diabetes and I came back all clear so I never thought any more of it. Might be worth trying though, thanks.

In recent years the quality of my migraines have changed. Now the pain tends to be a lot less although the auras are stronger. I get some great ones - my hand turns blue and separates from my body or my hand starts doing things without me! I get the numbness down the arm, face, lips, gums - usually left side. Vision very swimmy and sensitive to light.

Anyway, when I was younger I used to panic when I felt the symptoms. First I'd notice there was something not quite right with my vision, when the numbness - then it'd usually clear up and about three hours later the pain would hit full-force.

I'd panic, burst into tears, I'd really lose it - clawing the walls knowing what was coming.

One technique I learned a couple of years ago through trial and error - which I honestly reckon has caused the change - when I felt it coming on I'd make sure I'd drank water and ate something, just a small something, nothing to make me feel full incase I was sick - just a biscuit or two.

Then I'd sit on my bed and 'bluuuuugh'.

Heehee, don't know how better to say that. Just tune out. Let your eyes relax, stare wherever they end up staring, let your jaw hang open a bit - very relaxed, just let your shoulders droop - don't force them down, just very natural like. And just sit there zoned out, don't think of anything. Don't focus on the pain or the threat of it, though you'll undoubtedly be aware of it. Just completely bluuuugh. Lank jaw important I think, the pressure around the jaw and mouth can be a problem, when I panicked I'd grind my teeth sometimes or clench my jaw. Head slightly tilted down.

Just wait. Don't think of anything, don't check the time, don't move. Just sit there. See what happens. Breath naturally, though it's usually a bit shallow when that's going on. Don't worry about it.

The pain will come, just note it but try not to fall into it. Feel it move if it does, or intensify. Important just to stay very still. Like you remove yourself from the migrant happening.

If it's very severe you may black out anyway, but see how long you can passively resist it. It might just come, pound for a bit and move on. But stop thinking. Just be empty. You'll get a real insight into where it's coming from, which part it's attacking and everything, almost like there's a sentient communion there. But just let it wash over.

I think this helped me. My natural response now is this - not panic, just a very 'gaaaaaa' - dumb kinda look. You need a quiet room to yourself But I do think that the key is that thinking stops - you switch to vegetative.

My dad was the same with hypnotism for smoking. They eventually told him 'If you have the strength of will not to be hypnotised, you have the strength of will to quit smoking' - so he did

Letting a stranger stick needles in you is a small price to pay if it'll cure the migraines. Sure you'll come around to it

Anyway, by the time they get around to sticking any needles in ou they'll hardly be a stranger - these people like to get to know their patients well first.

Thinair, your migraines and their pattern over the years sounds alot like mine.

First time I lost feeling, it was all down one side of my body, and my words came out total gibberish, I really thought I was having a stroke. But my doctor told me that just because you have migraines this severe, doesnt mean you will have a stroke. Which was a big relief.

I would agree that the 'relaxing into' a migraine does seem to help. My worst ones are when I get stressed about having them - if I had a deadline at work, for instance, and one time when my daughter was in hospital and I had a migraine and so couldnt go and collect her myself (actually that one got so bad I wasnt even aware she had come home - I felt awful about that, poor kid) but if I just think "ok migraine coming" and take migraleve as soon as possible, and as you do, I also have a small bite to eat, it does seem to lessent he pain and the aura is not as severe.

The other thing with feverfew is it can have quite nasty side effects, as alot of herbal remedies do, which the herbalist warned me about, and I remember having heartburn and other digestive issues with it.

But definitely try taking a magnesium supplement - its still natural when all said and done

I suffered with aura migraines for years. Horrible. About 4 years ago I was tested for food intolerances (not allergies, which are different) and stopped eating gluten and lactose. I haven't had a migraine since. It also put a stop to my horrific gastric symptoms, cured my eczema and terrible mood swings!

I've had an absolutely stinking evening

Feeling rather upset.

Was due to go out for a friend's birthday but instead came down with an auric migraine. Whole of my throat went numb, thought I'd poisoned myself with a cuppa soup for a while. Couldn't swallow. Then the tingly hands. I'd had an afternoon nap and it hit on waking.

Then my ex-cum-rekindled flame turned up.

Does anyone else get this where they're completely incapable of forming sentences? It's like you know what you want to say but there's a block between the head and the mouth and you just come across really vague and space cadety?

Well, he had no idea what to make of that so I popped an anadin and went to bed where I promptly burst into tears and felt nauseous. No proper pain though - just absolute nervous melt-down.

Then the bastard left! He went to meet someone in town! Said 'call me if it gets worse' - I'd just got him to write the bloody text message to my friend saying I couldn't go. If it got worse of course I couldn't call him - grrrr!

I'm okay again now - still a bit tender and swimmy, got the lights off and the brightness on the screen well down. But very upset at being abandoned to be honest. And pissed he turned up in the first place to watch me mumbling like an idiot.

All a bit shit really, but I've been feeling tense and tired for about a week now. Feeling a bit more rational after clearing that from my system.

(((Thin)))
It's hard to explain migraines to those who don't suffer them. They never understand what's so bad about "a headache".
I get almost painless migraines sometime. Just slight aura ans twinkles out the corner of my eyes, completely space-cadetty for a couple of days, sound like I'm half-cut, slurring and stammering, then it goes away again. People just assume I'm a low-watt bulb or possibly hungover...
Bed is the best place.
Incidentally I was once told the best cure for a headache is sex. Does this apply to migraines? It really is the last thing I feel like doing. And no partner wants to be barfed over.
bm
xx

lol

Hmmm, sexy.

Thanks for the hugs sweetie - feeling distinctly short on love at the moment. My family went home a week ago after a lovely two weeks and it's been a very tough week back in the working saddle - high stress. Back to one meal a day after being fed continuously so maybe withdrawal too.

Glad it's not just me. It's the weirdest thing. Sets off a panic reaction too - although I haven't had pain with the migraines in about three years they’re more frequent now and I still remember what the pain was like so when I get the symptoms I can have a full-on hypervent sesh because I panic about what might be coming. I think having a really full-on cry helps, relieves a lot of stress and makes the body sleepy and relaxed.

Just pants really. Especially as things were going so well with this guy - suddenly reminded me why it didn't work the first time. I was really ill with that chest infection and he did the same thing - he's utterly shite at taking care of people when they're ill - well, taking care of me. He just hasn't got a clue. I wonder if it's because he doesn't have any family so when he's ill he's never been used to someone taking care of him. He underwent four hours of open surgery once without anaesthetic (was too expensive) and no-one was with him or nursed him afterwards. It makes me feel like a whinging little twerp to cry so much over a migraine but my levels of coping aren't the same as his, they've never had to be.

Ugh. Just a bit confused at the moment. An hour ago I wanted to hold his head under water for a very long time, now I feel 'ah well', maybe explain it to him and 'work on it'.

I started getting migraines when I was 11 or so, head and stomach migraines with 'visual disturbance' as my doctor put it. I tried feverfew and all that, didn't work. I ended up on steroids and uber-painkillers for when I got migraines, none of which did anything except make me put on a ton of weight and feel like a zombie. I also got incredibly depressed, which didn't help with the migraines.

At one point I was put on an elimination diet - eating only brown rice with peas and sweetcorn for three days, then introducing a different fruit or vegetable each day. My mum wasn't exactly strict with it, but decided that cheese, chocolate, tomatoes, citrus fruit, vinegar and strawberries were all triggers. It was less than scientific, but it was cheaper than paying for allergy tests to be done, and to be honest it didn't do a damn thing for me (I still ate white chocolate, sneakily though, seeing as it's not really chocolate and all that...). It didn't make me popular at school, being off ill so much, and on the occasions I did go out with friends it would be to places like Pizza Hut where I could only eat a salad and get teased about being the cliched fat kid eating 'health' food.

Before each migraine my lips would swell up painfully so food intolerances were an obvious avenue to explore. More likely, it was a hormonal problem, my mother says with hindsight, because I'd get the migraines regularly, monthly. I developed early but started my periods quite late at 15 so my mum thinks I was having migraines instead. There might be something in that, because they did tail off in my later teens until I started on the pill (I'd get hideous migraines when I started taking the pill, but because of other issues I'd take a break from it every now and then).

I can now eat pretty much anything, but my lips still swell if I eat too much acidic food, especially when I'm ill and run down with a cold or something. My main coping mechanism was to sleep - it was the only thing that made them go away and to this day even a simple headache makes me sleepy.

A friend of my husband's had severe migraine and mood problems, though, and he eventually discovered that coeliacs disease was the cause. If anything, getting proper testing for food intolerances and allergies would be the best way to go if nothing else has worked, I think.

Mine started around that age too.

This is going to sound funny but I've noticed a hugely increased chance
of getting them if I take a multi once-a-day vitamin tablet. Must be something in there I don't like very much.

One thing that gave me almost instant and totally crippling migraines were those Smint breath mints. Didn't make the connection first time, began to suspect the second time, third time I knew I was onto something. Never eaten them since.
BM
xx

Thinair, just reading this, bit late, but

Migraines always leave me feeling very emotional: I feel odd before, feel like the wrath of the furies during, and like Ms Needy afterwards Sex during a migraine: Vert'd have to be a braver man than he is to even suggest such a thing,

Migraines are hell, there's no getting away from it. Stress is my trigger - if I could figure out how to avoid that I'd feel much better

Smints - contain both aspartame (a seriously bad chemical allegedly related to epilepsy and cancer) and probably a source of phenylalanine which some people have an intolerance to so can cause digestive and headachy problems. Always better off with a moderate about of sugar than you are with sugar replacements which all contain aspartame.

P - yup, sounds like me too. Been pissy for days and during and after I felt SO sorry for myself and just kept dwelling on my feet being cold and no-one being here to look after me. Was feeling down indeed.

I've had a funny few days - had that auric no-pain migraine (sets off panic because I still expect severe pain to follow and hyperventilate if I think about it too much! Not like me at all - usually very calm in a crisis). But I've been getting the tingles on and off for three days now! Mostly in my throat to begin with - odd - now in my hands and arms - day 3! And my tummy is feeling all tense like it's on permanent clench. Is that a tummy migraine? I'm not familiar with the term but the tummy and the hands and head all feel related.

However. Yesterday I went and bought lots of food so I'm feeding myself up at the moment and last night I did - for the first time in years - a chakra meditation and it had miraculous effects - I'll post separately. But I slept like a baby and woke feeling much more relaxed and level. Going to spend the next few days running through some other meditation techniques and go to my Brahma Kumaris centre - maybe start yoga. Also going to the doc for a bilharzia test - I don't think it is but just want to rule everything out. I have no idea what I've done to myself but it needs to stop.

One thing I mentioned before here and I'm about to do again - coffee; it gave me a bit of releife! Always been sceptical about that advice and the first time I did it it didn't seem to have much affect but yesterday the tingles went away for a bit. Going to try it again now and will report back.

Does anyone know if migraines indicate a change in blood pressure? I have slightly high blood pressure and I always wonder if these are a sign of it going through the roof but no way to check. Maybe I just think that because I feel stressed by them but sometimes I feel my heart hammer a couple of times when I lie down.

Yep! Coffee works! Feel much better - tingling stopped!

I'm always cold when I have any type of migraine which is weird because I'm always too hot. Have to atke a hot water bottle even in the hottest weather.
Only nurofen drugs work for me, which make me wheezy so I feel worse before I feel better.
Wishsomeone would publish some proper research n a format I can understand. There's loads of highly technical papers out there but I need Migraine For DUmmies.
BM
xx

You should suggest it to Migraine Action UK and the Migraine Trust - I think mostly their answers are 'there are no answers'.

Migraines 'mean less cancer risk': http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/health/7710674.stm

"Women who suffer regular migraines may have the comfort of knowing they face a much lower risk of breast cancer, say US researchers.

The discovery points to the potential importance of hormone levels in both.

The study of 3,412 women suggests a 30% lower risk for people with a history of disabling headaches.

However, the researchers, from the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, warned more work was needed to confirm the link."

And yet the combined pill raises stroke risk significantly in the same women. Just can't win.