Does Anyone Just Take Hydrocodone (vicodin) For Migraines?

[DSM3KIDZ]

I have been having migraines for almost 2 yrs now. I have tried every abortive there is (maxalt, imitrex......) they ALL make me sicker for longer than the migraine would.

So I asked my doc for vicodin when I had shingles and I took it for migraines and when I take that the pain is still there but very minimal and I'm able to completely function for the rest of the day. Well I asked my doc if she can just prescribe that for my migraines and she said no that's how they handled migraines years ago and there are new advanced meds...................I tried them all.

I don't want to be looked at as a drug seeker but I need relief from these migraines and I finally found something that works.

does anyone here just take pain meds for migraines and not abortives?

Yes I also tried daily preventitives with too many side effects.

Head throbbing pain

Dayna

[Dawg Tired]

I do....

I cannot take abortives since they throw me into more of an arrythmia that I already have. I also take xanax for the tachy.... I went into the ER once in 2003 with the migraine from **** - they looked at my med list and since xanax was listed they gave me Nubain. They might as well have given me a shot of saline! It did NOTHING. I was still moaning in pain and throwing up and I heard the doctor (2 hours later) tell a nurse that I was just a drug seeker.... Dry heaves and with a 10 pain! Nubain doing nothing and the nurse finally told me I had to leave because they needed the room. I refused to leave without at least some Phenergan. I held on until a different doctor came on duty - the nurse came in and actually THREW a ziploc bag with 4 - 25 mg phenergan suppositories in it at me. On the way out of the hospital I stopped and used 3 of them. By the time I got home I was at least knocked out from the Phenergan.

The next day I called my doctor and he called in prescriptions of Vicodin and Phenergan - with refills!

I cannot take any kind of NSAID so vicodin is it for a pain pill.

[Eli6596]

Vicoden is an abortive medication. An abortive medication just means that you take the medication when you have the pain. Triptans (imitrex, maxalt, zomig, relpax, axert, amerge, frova) are usually the abortive medication of choice for migraines because they USUALLY work the best. As you have discovered, they can have side effects though. I take axert because I can tolerate it better (less nausea) better than zomig, maxalt or imitrex. Often, the patient needs to try more than one triptan before finding the right fit. Vicoden is usually used as a last resort because of the addiction potential, and because usually the triptans work better.

There are over the counter natural preventative medications for migraines which can be better tolerated than prescription preventative medications. Ask your doctor about the options of:

1)magnesium 400 to 500mg daily, or

2)vitamin B2 400mg daily, or

3)coenyme Q10 150mg daily, or

4)butterbur or feverfew

I have had good results from magnesium.

Hope this helps. I too suffer greatly from migraines

Karyn