Please provide some headache help for college ds...

[Paz]

He has been getting headaches since age 12 but only occassionally. They were bearable with some OTC things like Tylenol, Aleve, or Excedrin Migraine. Now that he lives the life of a college student he gets them worse and more often. Things like changes in schedule of unhealthy eating bring them on, I think. I think there may also be an allergy component. We have been to the neurologist a few years ago who suggested a prescription which costs $10 or so a pill. He decided against that.

 

Any other suggestions of where to go from here. He is out of town until a week before he leaves for college so I need some ideas of what to do so that he can survive next semester.

[Guest Katia]

I would go with the pills the neurologist suggested. Really. It's worth the cost to make it through college.

 

We had to do this with our ds. He would sneeze uncontrollably and after tons of allergy tests, etc. his neurologist suggested that it was actually a manifestation of migraines, which it was. Poor nutrition, lack of sleep, stress....all those wonderful college side-effects caused this constant sneezing. It was so bad he would get dizzy, his heart would race and he couldn't see properly. It made him very, very sick. Scary. Not to mention that everyone around him thought he had something contagious and tried to stay far away from him. After a sneezing episode he would have to sleep 10 hours; or collapse. NOT good for classes, tests, work, etc. etc.

 

The pills were the only thing that helped, and they did help; as long as he took them religiously. And, he only needed them through college. Once he graduated, got a job, was eating and sleeping well again.....no sneezing and no pills.

 

But he never would have made it through college without them. It amazing how different people react physically to stress. I'd never heard of this before my ds, but the neurologist said it was very common.

[Paz]

Were these for when he got migraines or just a maintenance? Do you know what they were called?

[gingersmom]

My daughter gets headaches from stress.

 

I am hoping as she gets older she will practice yoga (she refuses now) or other relaxation techniques.

[Paz]

My ds is the least stressed person I know but he is always hyper and on the go so that may influence his headaches as well. I just spoke with him and he said he is either waking up with headaches or getting them before lunch so I am wondering if it has something to do with allergies in his cabin, like dust or mold.

[Dobela]

Dust mites are a big problem for me and cause many migraines until I started making sure all beds had some sort of allergy cover. Vacations are awful if I am gone from home for more than a few days. I even carry my own pillow protectors now.

 

MSG is a big migraine trigger for me as well. It is in many foods, some you don't even expect.

 

If he is taking a lot of OTC meds like Excedrine migraine, he needs to be careful. Those actually can cause rebound headaches that increase the intensity and frequency of the migraines. They will do it to the point that you are essentially addicted and have to be weaned off of them. If he is not sleeping well and depending on lots of caffiene as well, that could accentuate the headaches and how the OTC meds work. The advantage of prescription meds is that most do not have the side effects and can be taken until the headache is gone. Once I began taking Rx meds my headaches came less often and didn't last as long.

[Christy B]

Aw, I'm sorry. I can relate.

 

The pills sound like they might be a good idea, but I'll mention some of the things that have helped my migraines:

 

1. Hyland's homeopathic migraine tablets. These do NOT treat a severe migraine, but they can head off a nasty tension headache/mild migraine if I take them at the VERY FIRST sign of a symptom.

 

2. Head On topical treatment -- unbelievable, but it actually helps!!! I find that if I've let a headache "get ahead" of me -- if I go ahead and take a dose of Excedrin, etc, and then apply the Head On and lay down for a few minutes -- the Head On seems to ease the worst of the pain and allow the oral medication to kick in. I just found Head On for sinus headaches; anxious to see if that helps my allergy-related migraines.

 

3. Ice, ice, baby. :-) Surrounding my head in ice packs helps immensely. I put one on the top of my head, one on the back of my neck, and one across my eyes. (Actually, I use the cheapest bags of frozen peas I can find). That and a nice cold Coke does wonders.

 

Hope your ds finds some tricks to relieve his symptoms; it's no fun!

[Paz]

Ds probably has every headache trigger this summer, lack of sleep, caffeine to survive, dust, mold, cafeteria food...He did this last summer and didn't really get the headaches but he was also getting more sleep.

[OnTheBrink]

I don't like to take medicine, so when I get headaches (stress headaches), I rub peppermint lotion on my forehead and massage it into my neck and lower part of my head (not into my hair, though).

 

Also, I take my pillows and put them on the edge of my bed and lie with my shoulders on the pillows and hang my head off the edge. I make sure my heart is below my head, so all the blood doesn't rush to my head. It stretches my neck and always makes the headache feel better.

 

If it's a sinus headache, I use a saline wash for my sinuses and a cold eye compress across my eyes.

[Leanna Tomlinson]

I wonder if his headaches could be exacerbated by low blood sugar? My migraines are definitely triggered by this and most of my headaches occur in the morning or right before lunch.

 

I have been fighting migraines for years without meds. Here are some things that help. Much of this is very individual, but many headache sufferers have had similar experiences.

1) I MUST have some protein for breakfast.

2) I MUST have a mid-morning snack.

3) I am more likely to get a migraine if my feet and/or neck are cold. In the summer this can happen if AC is blowing on my neck.

4) I can't have too much processed food, or I will wake up with a headache.

5) Keeping well hydrated can prevent a headache that is starting.

6) Changes in barometric pressure can bring on a headache. Last time we had tornado warnings, I had a "buzz" for 2 hours.

7) Caffeine can help a headache, but too much caffeine in the morning can start a headache.

 

I hope you find some answers for your son.

Blessings,

Leanna

[Danestress]

College kids are very frustrating sometimes. I know mine chooses to make very bad food choices (I mean, really disgusting, like very frequent fast food, pop tarts, soda all the time) and has a sleep schedule that would absolutely kill me. When he complains about health issues, I tend to say, "Move to a plant based, vegetable rich diet, get a regular sleep schedule, and work out four times a week. If that doesn't help, I will pay for a doctor's appointment."

 

Of course, migraines are different from his more mundane complaints. If you can trust him to make serious lifestyle changes, then I would do that first and meanwhile carefully document when he is getting them, how bad, what time of day, what he ate and did the day before, etc.

 

If he's simply not going to do that, I would encourage him to pay for the pills and would help him pay for them if I could, but then again, I would be reluctant to pay that much for medication if my son wouldn't make life style changes to help himself. But I'm pretty sure he wouldn't.

[Amy in KS]

Maybe I can help!!!

 

I had similar symptoms, migraines from my teens on, but so relentless that this last year I ended up with debilitating daily migraines and two mri's of my head!

 

My DENTIST finally figured it out when I went in for my third broken molar in the last 3 years. He felt the tendons in the back of my mouth (which sent me through the roof) and asked if I had a lot of trouble with early morning migraines and stiff necks. Yes, yes!!!

 

Turns out I have TMJ! You get it from grinding or clenching your teeth at night and/or during the day. It causes a muscle contraction that starts at your temple and extends down your neck. This muscle can get into a charley horse of sorts--in constant contraction which really does a number on the many nerves in your head. The longer it goes on, the worse it gets--it can cause muscle spasms in your neck and back as well.

 

The migraines I had upon waking every day were always debilitating and made me vomit. Usually they were better by afternoon after a double shot of espresso and excedrin migraine (my poor liver--when I think of all i put it through).

 

I was fitted for a tmi device which fits on the top front six teeth and it prevents the molars from making contact at all during the night. I know different doctors use different devices, but the tmi is the only one fda approved for migraines. It's worked for me. After 3 or 4 days I could tell the headaches were much better, but it's been a slow process. Now 3 months later, I'm finally feeling normal (instead of the constant picasso painting feeling I'd complained about for more than a year). The mouthgard pieces for sports won't work for migraines because the back teeth are still in contact with something.

 

Anyway, it's easy to check with your dentist. You can get a slight idea by trying these things: open wide and feel the tendons between the top and bottom teeth (pain isn't normal), extend the bottom teeth forward and move jaw from side to side (does it hurt).

[Amy in KS]

oh yes, and stress makes tmj worse which translates into worse migraines.

[Amy in KS]

Oops! NTI device, not tmi device.

[rlowetx]

it took me years to realize my migraines can be from aspartame..which is in almost EVERYTHING these days. After I brought it up to others in my family, they admitted to a similar sensitivity...if I even sip a diet anything or chew any kind of gum (except a few).. instance headache. Its an easy thing to check.. if he gets headaches after drinking a diet coke..bingo.

Now, of course this only gets rid of some of my headaches.. the others, well its just genetic..my deepest sympathies to him, its horrible.

[MOM24WONDERS]

Well, coming off the heels of a three-day hospital stay with a migraine, you'd think I would have all the answers. But, alas, I don't.

 

My doctor says that I have so many triggers it would probably be impossible to know them all - too much sonlight, too hot, too cold, not enough sleep, too much caffeine, not enough caffeine, weather changes, stress, the list goes on and on.

 

I think I've tried every medication known to man, but here we go again! My doctor is amazing - his wife is a chronic migraine sufferer like me (3-5 per week) - and she has been all over the US trying to find relief. She is my children's pediatrician and they've been dear friends of ours for years. I have full faith and trust in both of them. He has put me on the same medicine regimine that she is now on and has found relief in. I am praying that it works.

 

Neither of them are safe during pregnancy, though, so that's another huge concern of mine. We aren't pregnant now, but we would really like to be and hope that we will be soon. I have never had a migraine during pregnancy, so I'm hoping it won't be an issue if we are able to get pregnant again.

 

Anyway, sorry for the book and probably no help. My 11 year old has been having them since age 5 and my 5 year old has now had two. I DO NOT want them to go through what I've been through. My advice, take the meds - there is no amount of money that's worth not having quality of life.

[Guest Katia]

Were these for when he got migraines or just a maintenance? Do you know what they were called?

 

So sorry I'm just now getting back with you, but I don't think I'll be much help. Ds has moved into his own house in another town so it took a while for me to check with him.

 

He doesn't have (or can't find,lol) the bottle of pills, so we don't know what they were called. I do know that he couldn't just take them and expect them to start working immediately...it took time for them to get into his system and he had to take them on a regular schedule. Whenever he forgot and slacked off......a week or so later he would have a sneeze attack. It was one of those things where the meds worked so well he would forget he had a real problem or think he was fine now......forget to take the meds and then....wham, he'd remember in a hurry that, no, he was NOT alright. But it was hard.

 

I feel for you and your ds. I hope you can find something to help resolve his issue.

[momzilla333]

If it's migraine, the triptans (like Imitrex, Amerge, Frova etc.) can be so helpful. They can really give you a chance to live a normal life without being miserable.

Yes, they're expensive, but most of the companies have a program to provide them free or very cheaply to patients who qualify.