Hunting with Migraines

[Homebrew454]

Lots of good advice here I want aware of. I've suffered with them for 30 years. Lately I've been getting them about once a month.

Triggers for me are lack of sleep and too much caffeine. I limit myself to no more than 2 cups of coffee a day but caffeine can also help the migraine, which is weird.

But the lack of sleep seems to be the biggest trigger for me. I spent almost a year fighting insomnia and restless leg syndrome. That was a bad year of migraines. I found out that magnesium supplements helped with my restless legs and going to bed at a set time every night helped.

As soon as I feel the needle/knife pain in my right eye, I take 4 Advil or 2 Excedrin. I try to vary them for coverage. I may look into getting some prescription meds that were listed to help.

The only real help is getting sleep for me. The following day I usually wake up with a severe headache but not a migraine. I can function around 80-90 percent. Although there have been a few times were a migraine lasted several days. That just sucked.

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[mark1j]

My wife gets them just like you describe in first post. This sounds weird but it seems that her most common trigger is driving while on an empty stomach like when she is leaving work. She always eats a small snack before driving. She still gets them but not as often.

 

[Gatorgrizz27]

Thankful I don’t have to deal with these, I have found chiropractic treatment to be extremely helpful for a variety of things besides just back pain. It may be helpful with migraines as well from doing a quick search.

Can Chiropractic Treatment Help with Migraines? | Redirect Health Centers

Chiropractic treatment for migraines, especially when used with other treatments, is a promising approach to increasing quality of life.

arrowheadhealth.com

The issue is finding a good chiropractor, not just a car accident back cracker. Ask them about x-rays, digestive function, etc. A good one can pretty much listen to the issue you’re having (numb elbow, etc), know exactly which vertebrae will cause that, can do an x-ray and see the misalignment. It won’t be a 1 visit fix, it will be a couple times a week for 6 months to a year, but it works. Seen tree service guys, dirt bike riders, etc going into mine. They wouldn’t be spending their $ if it wasn’t helping.

Some people have had bad experiences with them but I compare it to an auto mechanic. If a bad one screws something up, are you never going to maintain your car again?

Realize that sounds like a plug, I’m not a chiropractor but I think a lot of people could be getting help and aren’t.

 

[co_archer]

Lots of good advice here I want aware of. I've suffered with them for 30 years. Lately I've been getting them about once a month.

Triggers for me are lack of sleep and too much caffeine. I limit myself to no more than 2 cups of coffee a day but caffeine can also help the migraine, which is weird.

But the lack of sleep seems to be the biggest trigger for me. I spent almost a year fighting insomnia and restless leg syndrome. That was a bad year of migraines. I found out that magnesium supplements helped with my restless legs and going to bed at a set time every night helped.

As soon as I feel the needle/knife pain in my right eye, I take 4 Advil or 2 Excedrin. I try to vary them for coverage. I may look into getting some prescription meds that were listed to help.

The only real help is getting sleep for me. The following day I usually wake up with a severe headache but not a migraine. I can function around 80-90 percent. Although there have been a few times were a migraine lasted several days. That just sucked.

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I'm glad people are finding some good advice and camaraderie out of this thread.

I'm the same way with the caffeine - sometimes it's the culprit, and sometimes it's the savior.

I take magnesium but I've never heard that it helps with migraines. That's good to know. I know there are a lot of different types/forms of mag you can take, so I wonder if a specific type is better than another.

 

[co_archer]

My wife gets them just like you describe in first post. This sounds weird but it seems that her most common trigger is driving while on an empty stomach like when she is leaving work. She always eats a small snack before driving. She still gets them but not as often.

That's another instance that sounds like it could be related to blood sugar?

 

[Homebrew454]

I'm glad people are finding some good advice and camaraderie out of this thread.

I'm the same way with the caffeine - sometimes it's the culprit, and sometimes it's the savior.

I take magnesium but I've never heard that it helps with migraines. That's good to know. I know there are a lot of different types/forms of mag you can take, so I wonder if a specific type is better than another.

I don't know if the magnesium helps with migraines but it does help my restless leg syndrome.



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[RWhitley]

I typically get mine in 3 day spells, the first and the second days being the worst. I gave up alcohol all together because just one drink equals massive migraine to follow.
I know have an injection that takes affect in just a few minutes. It’s been huge!

 

[co_archer]

I typically get mine in 3 day spells, the first and the second days being the worst. I gave up alcohol all together because just one drink equals massive migraine to follow.
I know have an injection that takes affect in just a few minutes. It’s been huge!

That's great. What is the injection?

 

[Jbogg]

Mine are so random that I can not figure out the triggers. Usually they come in spurts, I'll get 3-4 episodes over a 2 week period then none again for up to years.

What you’re describing really sounds more like cluster headaches. I have suffered from cluster headaches for almost 25 years since my mid-30s. Thank God I have not had a cycle for several years. Imitrex injections helped tremendously, but being self-employed without medical insurance they were incredibly expensive. I stumbled on something called oxygen therapy on a cluster headache website and the relief was almost as fast as the Imitrex injections. Not sure if you migraine sufferers would benefit from oxygen therapy as well, but it might be worth looking into. It was a lifesaver for me.

 

[Yarak]

I lived with migraines for several years and was to the point of getting nerve blocks injected directly into the occipital nerves at the base of my skull
This would help for maybe 2 weeks
Migraine would last 2-3 days with me laying in bed in a dark room
I found no relief in the medical field
One day my wife and I were coming back from The neurologist in Birmingham and I asked her about a chiropractor she was seeing and if he could maybe help
She set up the appointment for me so I went and was very skeptical about the visit since I had never been to a chiropractor before
He did XRays and told me he could see and fix the problem
My thoughts when he said that were “yeah right !! “
He adjusted my neck and it sounded like 22 rapid fire going off
I haven’t had a migraine in 7 years and I see my chiropractor at least twice a month
If you’ve never tried chiropractic I’d highly recommend it

 

[Mojave]

My BIL has them, he has totally quit hunting because of.

Lives in his basement unless he is at work.

 

[ScottRK]

There’s not many people I’d wish one on. I’d get them the day before the 1st day of football practice in HS ,and miss that practice. Aura, real sharp headache pain numbness on one side, tunnel vision, wait to vomit and lay in a dark room ,gut it out and sleep. I’ve never used meds.All the basic stroke symptoms.
Then I had 1 about every 5 yrs from 18., til 45 and think it’s been about 6-8 yrs since the last, after My f150 t-boned a 3/4 T ram at about 40mph. ER checkout was good.
If I got 1 in the backwoods away from truck base camp I’d have to break out a tarp and use my supplies and lay out in the woods so I didn’t blindly stumble off a cliff.

 

[Shraggs]

my friend got those, as many of described, debilitating. she was very active athletically too. she used maxalt back in the day, im sure its generic now - but specifically the melts. she also really really learned her triggers, and put one on the tongue even if there was a hint of a trigger. i know her life improved, but not solved.

any way, maybe the convince of melts in a hunting environment...

 

[WCS]

Started getting migraines when I was a teenager. My doctor was of the opinion that it was a combination of genetics and concussions (who knew that could happen between hockey and rodeo?). I don't get them near as often now, but they're still debilitating. The one trigger I've been able to determine has been sugar. When I used to work as a guide I'd keep imitrex nasal spray around, and also a huge bottle of aspirin. If I could feel one coming on I'd chew aspirin aggressively. It tasted awful but it usually helped. Fortunately I had an understanding guest the one time I had a crippling migraine and we had to stay put for about 8 hours before I could drive the boat back down river.

 

[castnblast44]

I've been "managing" migraines for 30+ years. Like many others, stress and lack of sleep contribute to onset. Funky flickering indoor lights, looking at white paper in bright outdoor sunlight, Mr. Pibb soda (yes, really), and too much chocolate or certain brand of sunflower seeds are some triggers.

Earlier in my 20's I had mixed success with Midrin and Propranolol. Started using rizatriptan benzoate ten years ago and it prevents nausea/vomiting for all but the worst ones. Still have the headache but can function. I keep two dissolvable tablets with me at all times. Many times hunting I've had them. Hangover from the migraine and meds is real.

My biggest breakthrough for prevention started about 5 years ago when I noticed I have way more migraines in the spring months. I blamed stress for a busy spring season coaching baseball and juggling my work. But my doc convinced me to take a daily OTC loratadine allergy pill. Game changer for me! I now hardly get any migraines in the spring.

I feel for all of you, my fellow battlers of migraines!

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[ZDR]

In reference to the injection mentioned by @RWhitley , I wonder if its Sumatriptan? My doc has mentioned prescribing an injection kit if I wanted but I always decline. He did give me a subcutaneous injection of sumatriptan once and it worked very fast with seemingly less of the hangover affect I normally get.