Telcagepant

All of you with migraine will have heard by now that there is a new drug coming out. This unimaginatively named Telcagepant is into its 4th stage of testing, so near to release I h ope.
It sounds hopeful. As good and btter than Triptans and useful as prophylactic as well as abortive. Also seems to have a longer half life.
Can't wait.
Does anyone know more....please share.

Neuro appt.

Well I am looking forward with some trepidation to an appointment I have been given to see an apparently good Neuro in Northampton. He comes highly recommended.
I am not getting my hopes up too much because I did that last time and the guy was not even interested in me. Cant be any worse I hope.
I am sweating on being well enough o the day, but committed to getting there.
its about a 90 minute trip.
So just 5 weeks to wait and I so hope he can help me.

Hormones. Waking with migraines.

I would like to know how many people and if male or female wake with their migraines and if most of their migraines start in the night. I don't know who reads this blog and not sure how to encourage people to comment. I want to feed this back to the main support in the UK.
Almost all my migraines come in the night, but it seems somewhat cyclical.
I am desperate to find out why this occurs. I wonder if it is a circadian rhythm thing. Hormone dip or rise.
If it turns out as many men have this as women, cant be the latter.
I would like to see more research in this area rather than just drug funding.
Cause and effect.
I would be 80/90% better just finding how to prevent the night time ones.
In talking with others it seems pretty common.
PLEASE comment.
Thanks.

Wind

Who knows if the weather (especially winds) is a real trigger for migraines?
I seem to have been having more since the beginning of September.
Clearly this is not a happy state of affairs but at least if it is the weather I know I cant do anything about it and it isn't "something" I am doing causing these extra migraines.
So What do you think?

Made it

So we did the lunch today instead.
Tried one place, it wasn't serving after 2pm.
Second one, stood like lemons and no one to serve....we left.
Third one hit the spot.
Even managed a walk afterwards.
We actually had some sunshine.
So today its Migraine 0 me 1.

This is the pits

It is our 37th Wedding Anniversary.
Hoping to go for lunch.
I have had lurking migraine for 10 days now, and this morning it is back to BAD.
I have had to take my Triptan which means no lunch.
Probably no anything.
I am upset, there is no denying.

Eye test success

Well I didn't think I was going to get there having woken up with head pain for the
8th day...BUT I made it. This migraine run has been the kind that upsets my stomach as well, but even despite that I made the test. It was a half hour trip there, and I almost let John and Laura go without me, but that would have been a 3rd test I missed.
Anyway she was really nice and I guess my eyes haven't deteriorated really since the last test 3 years ago. I don't need glasses except the usual mild ones I wear for reading that you buy off the shelf.
So success...migraine this time I beat you.

Trying a different way

I have decided that this month I will take my Migards as soon as the pain is a "problem".
Usually I wait until it is pretty unbearable and having tried the OTC for at least 90minutes.
I keep reading, take them fast or they dont work, so just for this month I will. Let's see if they do work any better.
I sure hope so. It seems as if I am taking more than I was, but because it takes at least two Migards to shift each migraine.
Then there is this one day on one day off thing.
Tuesday it hit, Wednesday, a lot better but not enough to go out.
Yesterday it was back about 5am. I did take the Triptan at 6am, but it still didnt seem to work any quicker or better.
It's now Friday morning. I haven't woken with it, but it is lurking on the left.
Watch this space.....

Well I am paying for the good times

I really hoped I had turned a corner when I got 12 migraine free days, and 5 almost pain free days.
Boy was I wrong.
Since then I have had 12 days of constant head pain.
If anyone knows how to hit the head pains that are not migraine and don't respond to Triptans, please do tell me.
I don't know if it is myofascial from the Fibro, or what, but it ruins what little quality of life I have. Sorry not to be positive today

Finally some Air

It has been horribly humid these last few days. Not so bad when the sun has been out, but yesterday it was damp. We got out of the car away from the A/C and it just wrapped around you.
However we managed to have a bit of family time on the week end so a few pics to thrill you all. What am I saying "all". All two of you... I wish you would come out of the shadows.
I am interested in who looks on here from Borehamwood. My family used to live there.
And who is in Tucson. You are welcome. Come say hello please, don't be shy.
You don't have to be a miggie to read this.
I finally surfaced a bit with the fresher air.
It was really effecting my head, so a picture or two.
What I do when I dont have a migraine....

Weather

I live in England, we don't have a climate, we have weather.
so said a friend of mine from SLC.

I have never had a medic tell me that weather can trigger migraines, but the humidity the last couple of days has possibly given me an unexpected one.

So can we please have more sun, less hot air.....
We get plenty of that from the government.

Another good run and then bad.

Lasted 8 days, quite good for me, and then it has been here since Saturday. I do worry about all the Triptans and OTC meds. I have to take.
I still have no idea why I have it, but the weather has been horrible.
Rain rain and more rain. And Wimbledon is over, so no excuse.

Lasted to day 9

this is really good for me ,and I think if I hadnt got the bug it would have been 12 days. I am so sorry to be in pain again, but thankful for the break. I hope I have made the best of it.

Better Days

I have had a break, which is wonderful. Probably due for a migraine tomorrow after 7 days without, but have made the most of my easier time.

Got a bit of garden done, bee out a few places, ad had some sort of vomiting bug.
But we have had some nice sunny weather which is always a spirit raiser.

We'll see what tomorrow brings......
Watch this space.

still no respite.

~So now its Friday and I have been hit by some throwing up bug. this has given me another migraine opportunity and I haven't got over the 10 days, it is now 15.
I give up.

10 days, What is happening??

this is brief of necessity. I am on my tenth migraine day. I have no idea why and early hope it is ending. Yesterday I managed on no medication and wen to bed a little hopeful for today. I was awoken at 5am with a ballistic pain in my head, felt like it was going to explode from neck to top. It is so scary. sleep is supposed to be preparing and soothing, but I get struck with pain in the night. When I asked the neuro why he told me "it has to start sometime".....wow, I defer to the experts....
So I am off to bed very nervous and this time not hopeful.
Night.

Peter Goadsby

I havent felt like blogging. My migraine phase is still with me, its been hitting constantly since last Friday (a week). I am so sick of pain and exhausted from lack of sleep.
My husband heard a comment from peter Goadsby on BBC R2 ,and it came from The Times.
Here it is....what do you think.....you are there aren't you??

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/health/article4105602.ece?Submitted=true

Payback Time

After that good and industrious day yesterday, now we have the payback.
I am never sure whether it would be occurring anyway, just coincidence.
I always seem to get a bad day after a good one.
I am sort of in denial about the Fibro. No-one, not even my family really seems to pay it any heed. But it could be that that kicks back at me. Bit of a vicious circle really. Fibro gives you headaches too, so I never really know.
anyway that's for the other blog.
so today still glorious sunshine but all my plans to continue in the garden are thwarted by a lousy head and far from happy stomach.
The weather isn't supposed to last so here we go again.
One of the worst things about these migraines is not ever being able to just say....I'll do that tomorrow. It isn't normal, it isn't real life and I dont think anyone truly gets it.

More on rebound

One of my "friends" on the migraine forum has commented on my confusion over the overuse/rebound thing. Thanks. Please feel free to comment on here too.
So here is part of an explanation on this:

• Medication-overuse headache (MOH) is defined as a headache that is present on 15 or more days of the month and has developed or worsened whilst the patient has been regularly using analgesic or anti-migraine medicines for more than three months. It occurs only in patients with a pre-existing primary headache disorder, usually migraine or tension-type headache.
• All drugs used for the treatment of headache can cause MOH. This includes simple analgesics (aspirin, paracetamol), opioids, triptans, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and ergots, alone or in combination with caffeine, barbiturates or benzodiazepines.
• Abrupt withdrawal of the overused medication is considered the most effective treatment. However patients on high-dose or strong opioids, benzodiazepines or barbiturates should have their medication withdrawn as inpatients.
• Patients are likely to require treatment to alleviate withdrawal symptoms. This should include adequate hydration, and, if unable to tolerate withdrawal symptoms, short-term regular agents of a different class to the overused medication, and anti-emetics.
• Relapse may be prevented through education of patients, use of headache diaries, extended close medical supervision, restrictions on the intake of headache medication, primary headache prophylactic drugs and use of behavioural therapies

A better day

So maybe it's the lift to the spirit of the sunshine, or maybe I was due one anyway, but whatever, today has been a better day. I thank whoever/whatever I need to for it. I have managed to garden a little and go visit my son, daughter in law and grand daughter. this is her, she is 20 months old.
I had a lot of fun with her and was able to be fairly active. Often when we visit I have to sit and watch and preserve my head, but today....was good.
I hope Saturday's migraine doesn't "rebound" or whatever and that I can do the things I plan to do tomorrow....looks like some more sunshine as well.

Rebounds

I am constantly reading abut rebound headaches and medication overuse.
This is enough to drive anyone nuts. What are you supposed to do?
You take the medication (for me cautiously) to ease the pain and then get told by neuros that you are giving yourself pain from the medication.
I have just gone 4 days with NO medication at all.
Does that mean when the pain gets bad again I am on the rebound??
The increased stress from trying not to take something that just might be making you worse is huge.
But how does it rebound? People take the same medications for arthritis etc and they dont get rebounds (apparently)
And how does it know when to rebound and when not to...
Answers on a postcard please...or on here will do...

I NEED TO VENT.

This is probably going to end up with me venting and moaning about the intrusion migraine makes in my life. It causes such a lot of problems for me and my family and I hate it.
It seems there is no obvious cause for them and no cure.
If you found this through searching, feel free to join in.
There is not nearly enough research going on regarding these dreadful life thieves.
Maybe we need to find the answer ourselves. ???
If only!!!