Why, Hello There!
By Kerrie | June 8, 2009
Along with the Seattle sunshine, I’m rejoining the world after a long hibernation. It was another terrible spring for nausea, but my migraines and headaches have been relatively mild. (More on that in a moment.) Whenever I have felt decent, I’ve been getting ready to sell our house and move to Boston.
That’s right, we’re moving to Boston in August! Hart was offered a job he couldn’t refuse. As much as I love Seattle, I’m excited for an adventure. I’m also terrified, but isn’t that a part of every adventure?
I hope better health and more time to write will coincide with the move. Although a change of location is unlikely to spur the change, birth control pills might. My migraines and headaches reduced in frequency and severity after I had taken birth control pills for three months. Unfortunately, they also caused horrendous nausea.
I’ve spent the last few months drugged up and conked out. Deciding I was better equipped to handle head pain than nausea, I stopped the pills last week. Sure enough, the nausea is gone, but head pain and general wooziness are back. I’m seeing a gynecologist tomorrow to determine what to try next. I imagine it will be a brand with different synthetic hormones. I hope I won’t have to wait another three months for them to take effect.
So, that’s what’s been going on in my life. I hope you have been doing as well as possible!
Topics: Coping, Treatment | 10 Comments »
New Migraine Drug Telcagepant on Hold, Perhaps Permanently
By Kerrie | April 24, 2009
Telcagepant, a migraine abortive with much success in clinical trials, is now on hold. It will not be submitted to the FDA for approval this year, as Merck previously announced. Originally studied for intermittent use, patients in an early trial to see if the drug could be used as a daily preventive developed high levels of liver enzymes.
The article doesn’t explain why, but here’s my take: People with frequent migraine episodes often take abortives more frequently than recommended. Even using telcagepant as an abortive, these patients could also develop high levels of liver enzymes.
The bad news for migraineurs is the findings could be significant enough to shelve the drug permanently. Merck, which was banking on the drug, can’t be too happy either.
What are your thoughts on why the drug is on hold?
Topics: News, Treatment | 4 Comments »
A Chronic Illness Comic: When People Try to “Fix” You
By Kerrie | April 10, 2009
This comic from the Single Gal’s Guide to RA is perfect! Just subsitute RA with your ailment. Thanks to maxjerz on Twitter for the link.
Did you know The Daily Headache is tdhblog on Twitter? So are a bunch of other folks with headache and migraine. Set up a Twitter account and you can follow any of us. All the cool kids are doing it!
Topics: Community | 6 Comments »
FDA Approves Generic Version of Migraine Preventive Drug Topamax (Topiramate)
By Kerrie | April 3, 2009
The FDA has approved production of topiramate, the generic version of migraine preventive drug Topamax. It will be available in multiple strengths from 17 different manufacturers.
This is great news for the many people who have found relief from migraines or headaches with Topamax. Except for the side effects, which many find intolerable, Topamax is often called as a “miracle drug.” I don’t believe in miracle drugs, but one that can help so many people is pretty impressive.
Ortho-McNeil Neurologic’s patents on Topamax began expiring last year.
Related posts:
- Trouble Thinking on Topamax? Study Finds “Language Disturbances”
- Antiepileptic Drugs Linked to Increased Risk of Suicidal Behaviors and Thoughts
- Preventive Drugs Improve Quality of Life for People With Migraine
[via Somebody Heal Me]
Topics: News, Treatment | 8 Comments »
Migraine Day Turns Into Multi-Day Migraine
By Kerrie | April 3, 2009
My scheduled migraine day ended with a trip to the emergency room for Hart. He had chest pain and wanted to be sure it wasn’t serious. It wasn’t — he’s perfectly OK. But we didn’t get home until almost 4 a.m.
The stress, caffeine I drank at the hospital, and messed up sleep schedule has extended Wednesday’s planned migraine into multiple migraine days. The nausea has been unbearable and I’ve been drugged to the hilt. That made yesterday not too bad!
Hart is out of sorts too. He went straight from the airport to the ER after returning from a three-day business trip to Atlanta. Except for constant drilling outside — we have to replace the main water line to our house — things are quiet around here. Baseball season starts Sunday and MLB has free games online this weekend. I imagine we’ll spend a lot of the weekend watching baseball. Sounds perfect to me!
Rereading this post, I’m pleased to see my automatic response is to turn lemons into lemonade. This isn’t the case all the time, but is my default. I don’t know how I would survive migraine life without a positive attitude. I’m so grateful.
Topics: Coping | 4 Comments »
The Trade Off: A Scheduled Migraine Day
By Kerrie | April 1, 2009
I drove more than three hours to my sister’s house yesterday so I could surprise my nephew on his 10th birthday. I had to be home for plumbers this morning, so I could only stay for a few hours. Cramming nearly seven hours of driving, lots of caffeine and bad-for-me food into 13 hours ensured I’d be sick today. I went anyway.
After years of constantly overdoing it and constantly being sick, I learned I become terribly ill when I push myself too much. Now I know to hold back; sometimes I think too well. I’m stuck at home with migraines so often. There’s only so much time I can give up because one might come along.
Last year, a friend taught me that I don’t have to shirk anything that might make me sick — even if it is something that I’m absolutely positive will result in at least a day in bed. She showed me I can choose certain times to push myself without doing it every single day. The trick is knowing one day of indulgence can lead to one (or more) days of feeling awful.
When planning yesterday’s trip, I factored in today as a sick day. Other than letting the plumbers in, I made no appointments or plans. I stocked up on easy food and checked out a good audiobook. By intentionally making a trade off, I feel no guilt.
I know I should never feel guilty for being sick, but I rarely do what I should. Today I can see what a reprieve it is to just let myself be as I need to be.
Related posts:
- Balance is Overrated: Choosing Fun Despite Knowing Vengeful Migraine Imminent
- Balance & Illness (and Always Overdoing Pushing Myself Over the Edge)
- A Banner Day
- Walking the Tightrope
- The Spoon Theory of Illness
- Balance? Yeah, Right
Topics: Coping | 4 Comments »
Crossing Allergies Off the Migraine Trigger List & Adding Nasal Irrigation as a New Treatment
By Kerrie | March 23, 2009
Of the 33 allergens tested for in a basic allergy panel, I’m allergic to nothing. I’m happy with the results, even though it means crossing yet another possibility off the list. I used to get discouraged when I hit a dead end. I’m not now; just glad to not have to deal with allergy shots.
The allergist thinks I’m one of about 20% of people who have nonallergic rhinitis. These folks aren’t bothered by typical allergenic inhalants, but by a host of other possibilities, including odors, irritants in the air, weather changes, medications… Mayo Clinic’s definition of rhinitis:
If you do have rhinitis, the lining of your nose swells due to expanding blood vessels. The mucus glands in your nose get stimulated, causing a congested, drippy nose. The symptoms of nonallergic rhinitis are similar to those of hay fever (allergic rhinitis), but there’s no allergic reaction involved.
The treatment is a simple spray of intranasal corticosteroids, like Flonase. Great news, right? Except that a study written up in this month’s issue of the journal Cephalalgia indicates nasal steriod sprays can trigger migraines! I’m going to try it, but nasal irrigation (with a neti pot) might be a better solution. You may have heard of nasal irrigation about a year ago, when Oprah praised its benefits.
Using a neti pot is simple. Basically, you pour a saline solution up one nostril and it comes out the other. I won’t lie — it feels bad and weird at first. It takes patience to put up with the initial unpleasantness. Once you get the hang of it, nasal irrigation actually becomes pleasurable! Here’s how it works:
I’ve never used a neti pot consistently, but am always pleasantly surprised by how my sinuses feel afterward. It’s an easy, inexpensive treatment to try. Neti pots, some of which come with salt packets, are $10-20 on Amazon. Making your own saline solution is simple and much less expensive. The basic recipe is 1/4 teaspoon non-iodized salt to 1 cup warm water. (Distilled or purified water is preferred. To use tap water, bring it to a boil, then let it cool before using it.) You can choose to add extra ingredients. A 1/4 teaspoon baking soda makes the solution more soothing. You can keep your nose from drying out by adding 1/4 teaspoon glycerin.
I’m dedicated to giving nasal irrigation another shot. I’ll do it every day for a week, starting today. If you’re interested, you can track my progress on Twitter. How about you? Does it sound like a good treatment or does it just gross you out?
Check out neti pots on Amazon and help support The Daily Headache!
Topics: News, Treatment | 15 Comments »
Headache & Migraine News Updates on The Daily Headache
By Kerrie | March 17, 2009
I’m forever reading news I want to share with you, then don’t have the energy to write a post. News & Notes, now in the right sidebar, highlights important stories in the news and on blogs. Follow any of the links and you’ll see my comments on the story.
I’ll still write in-depth posts sometimes, but would rather share them with short comments than not at all.
Topics: Biology, Community, Coping, Nerve Stimulation, News, Society, Treatment | 2 Comments »
Relpax Aborted a Migraine!
By Kerrie | March 9, 2009
I woke in the night with the early stages of a migraine. After trying to wishing it away, I took Relpax. Triptans (migraine abortive drugs) have never been effective for me, but though it might work since I caught the migraine at the beginning. It did! I was exhausted this morning, but had very little head pain. The last couple months have been so bad that I’m extremely grateful.
WebMD’s triptan overview is excellent. Check out specific drug websites for detailed information on each one:
I’m dropping off my Relpax prescription right now!
Topics: Treatment | 5 Comments »
Terrible Migraines: Is it birth control pills? Allergies? A bad spell?
By Kerrie | March 4, 2009
My brain has had a rough month. I’ve had brief reprieves, but most of my time has been occupied by terrible migraines. I feel better this morning and am taking full advantage of it.
I’m in my fourth week of birth control pills. I’ve been spotting for the last 10 days, which I assume has contributed to the migraines. I plan to give the experiment a couple more months, but am not sure if I can make it that long.
I’m increasingly certain that allergies trigger at least some of my migraines. You may remember last spring was also horrible for me. Magnesium certainly was a factor. I wonder if allergies were also involved. Taking a Zyrtec yesterday appears to have reduced my agony tremendously. I had to reschedule yesterday’s appointment for allergy tests (for the third time) for later this month. (Please note that although allergies don’t cause migraines, they can be a trigger.)
My outlook is surprisingly good. Especially considering a bad appointment with my headache specialist Monday. The gist of the appointment: I have headaches and migraines that haven’t responded to treatment. With time, headache research will uncover more clues. Until then, why not try some more things in case they help? And I should think about medication to “make life bearable,” like morphine. (That’s a can o’ worms I can’t open right now.)
Back to the good outlook: If I have to live with migraines and headaches, at least I can do it the best way possible. I have a comfortable home; supportive, patient friends and family; and an understanding husband. My insurance covers a variety of treatments. I can stream NPR and audiobooks from the library. I eat good food that I don’t have to make. My life is as good as it can be right now.
I’m sad to not post more on the blog. I want to write about news and research. I want to share resources. I want to write about myself less. I want the blog to be like it was two years ago. Change is inevitable, so I’m trying to not worry about it much. Maybe I’ll get there again, maybe not.
Topics: Coping, Treatment | 11 Comments »