Best posture to keep migraine from returning the next day?

[L'engle]

Hi folks,

I just joined the migraine club yesterday. I think it's to do with OI/POTS and not getting enough blood to my brain. I'd been exercising a bit more than usual the last few weeks, and then stopped since the blood vessels in my head were starting to feel inflamed. Three days later, this didn't go away, but welled up into a migraine. I went back to bed and kept my head very still all night, and today it is a bit better, but, I'm wondering what is the most restful pose for keeping it away.

Do you find it is best to force yourself to lie down for a day or two to avoid OI returning, or is it good to sit up for a time in the day to let blood flow in and out of your head? Like most OI sufferers I have a problem with blood not getting to my head and once it is depleted the symptoms last even if I do lie down too late.

I guess no one can really give an 'answer' to this, but whatever others' personal experiences are with keeping the migraine away would be helpful. I've only had it once, so not looking to go on any pharmaceuticals at the moment.

On the upside, this is making my sleep paralysis from earlier in the week seem like a leisurely stroll... :headache:

 

[Sallysblooms]

So sorry about that. I get them less now. I have POTS and I watch my heart rate monitor carefully. Do you get rapid pulse? I always sit when I see it reach 120 beats per minute. That saves me some sickness but this week, I have had a very bad week. Just went out to eat tonight, got very dizzy. I was pretty upset. We were having a nice time...

Last night, we went out and I did fine. POTS is so hard.

The only thing I can say is to really try to catch yourself at the right time, before you feel it is too much. Sit or lie down. You will have to see if lying flat or up on a couple of pillows is better.

I am going to get an oxygen monitor online. I would like to see the numbers on the oxygen in the head area.

 

[glenp]

Sometimes the wet weather makes it worse for me. Yesterday was rainy here - I wanted to go to a meeting but felt that I was on the verge of fainting when walking out. I don't get much of this in nice weather!!

 

[illsince1977]

Personally, I have always had to lie down with migraines even prior to experiencing OI with CFS. Caffeine constricts the blood vessels and helps my migraines (coffee, Excedrin). I couldn't live without ice packs for the severe ones. When mine are really bad there's nothing like taking both Zomig and Tylenol#3 (acetaminophen with codeine) for me. What helps me may not help or even be tolerable to you, though. I have no aura. I experience almost daily headaches.

 

[L'engle]

Thanks for your replies. I do get dull head discomfort almost everyday from OI, usually lying down for a rest is enough to ease it off somewhat, though later in the day it usually means bed time. I do get racing pulse from exercise or even daily activity. The strange thing is, I'd been doing ok with the exercise for a couple of weeks, but then the cumulative affects of it seemed to all come at once. Usually the effects of exercise are in the 2-3 days after I do it, but this time, I'd already stopped going on the walks three days earlier, since my head felt some stronger discomfort than usual.

I think it is a good reminder to me just how cumulative and how delayed the PEM can be. I also drank some herbal tea that had about 10 ingredients, one of them licorice root, so that may have made it worse. I think a heart monitor is a good idea.

glenp, the climate here got much colder and wetter this week here too. The change in air pressure could have had some effect. Though again, I'd been walking the rain for some days before, and the effect was very delayed.

The only other time I've has something like a migraine was from caffeine, strangely enough, so I never go near it any more. I thought about taking a tylenol at the worst of it, but by that point it was hard to swallow anything, which is unusual for me! (maybe liquid tylenol)

The ice pack was good, and I put on my air filter in the room to keep a bit of a breeze going. Also pepper mint gum made me feel a bit better. I used to have some peppermint and rosemary essential oil, that I may get some more of to keep on hand.

It seems to be better now, and I'm just taking it easy. Thanks again everyone!

 

[glenp]

I have also noticed some foods to trigger my migraines, some may not be as obvious - I found lima beans and suspect other non obvious triggers. Sally's doctors' site has some good migraine info. I mentioned the rain as a friend who lives close by and I are observing the wet weather on our symptoms. I have taken T'3 but don't really like them, they seem to worsen the nausea and the caffeine keeps me awake, my doctor gave me some "emtec" which is similar but with no caffeine so that it wont affect sleep. I found Maxalt (vaso restrictor) to be a magic pill for me for a few years now. Recently I started on " minocycline" which has decreased the migraines by about 75%. I now have that pre-migraine head but do not usually progress from there. The doctor gave me "Frova" which will work after the start of a migraine. Maxalt only works if you take it at the first sign. I like the frova. I have found the specific migraine prescription a god send. If I leave it too long and it gets bad my doctor will give me a demerol and gravol shot, I don't think many will do that though. I did find that the maxalt seemed to help OI, I guess being it is a vaso restrictor By the way I find they usually last for 3 days for me, if not the full blown then a more wore out feeling -- tg mine have let up for now!!

 

[L'engle]

Thanks glenp! I hope you will be free of migraines from now on, too! Useful to have the names of drugs that work.