Migraine with aura

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I get a migraine with aura about once a year. It puts me out for a day. The problem is that once I get it, my anxiety about getting another one is so high. I will literally have panic attacks if I feel like my vision is wonky or my eyes are tired.
Not sure what advice I am looking for, it just sucks.

Get this checked out. ASAP. Insist on an MRI. I had a brain tumor.

OP here - it has been going on for 25 years (probably had about 20 total - as many as every month and as infrequently as once every six years depending on life - I can't figure out what it is).
I got Nurtec and all my bloodwork done and got so Zofran because I get super nauseas, so I am hoping that helps. It is just hard because I have a job where I have to be on and in charge of people, and then am also a mom, so I start to spiral when I think about "what if". I definitely need to be treated for anxiety!

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:Talk to your doctor. I’ve had those migraines for decades. You need to have your anxiety treated.

They don't cause you anxiety? How?! They are so scary to me.
What should I ask my doctor about.

NP but for me, I don't get anxiety about it because there isn't really anything I can do about it (beyond the things I do to try to prevent them). Being anxious whether or not I am going to get another one makes no difference. If I get it, I get it and have to deal with it.

I get migraines daily so I don’t know what it’s like not to but occasionally I get anxious when they are so bad and last days. Usually I can break them to get a few hours per day of relief. If you don’t get them often it’s scary.

Do you get the aura daily too? I’m so sorry. Honestly I am so sorry. I’m sure you’ve tried everything but that just sucks

What if it changes your whole life?
Migraines, never go away except a few hours with imitrex. I plan my life around those few hours. About 10 years ago in my late 39s I started to get the occasional aura. Just a few times a year. It’s scary.

You should try acupuncture or a natural dr?

Should I? What if I did and wasted tons of money and no change... thanks for the bad advice.

[Anonymous]

I am in perimenopause so maybe it is hormonal that they are more frequent. Has anyone used HRT for that specifically?

[Anonymous]

Thoughts on if exercise hurts or helps? Like is it a potential trigger and is it worth it if overall it will help or is it not a trigger at all?

[Anonymous]

Magnesium is effective at prevention.

https://americanmigrainefoundation.org/resource-library/magnesium/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I get a migraine with aura about once a year. It puts me out for a day. The problem is that once I get it, my anxiety about getting another one is so high. I will literally have panic attacks if I feel like my vision is wonky or my eyes are tired.
Not sure what advice I am looking for, it just sucks.

Get this checked out. ASAP. Insist on an MRI. I had a brain tumor.

OP here - it has been going on for 25 years (probably had about 20 total - as many as every month and as infrequently as once every six years depending on life - I can't figure out what it is).
I got Nurtec and all my bloodwork done and got so Zofran because I get super nauseas, so I am hoping that helps. It is just hard because I have a job where I have to be on and in charge of people, and then am also a mom, so I start to spiral when I think about "what if". I definitely need to be treated for anxiety!

That’s normal. But, see a neurologist who specializes in migraines. An mri is pretty standard of care.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am in perimenopause so maybe it is hormonal that they are more frequent. Has anyone used HRT for that specifically?

My doctors don’t allow hrt with migraines as there are risks to it.

[Anonymous]

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Anonymous wrote:OP here - the hardest part for me is that I’ve had about a total of 20 migraines over a span of 25 years, yet I think about them every day. I obsess about them. Sometimes after I go a year or two without one I will start to forget about it, and even though I think about it a little bit every day, I don’t obsess. But coming off of one it really sends me into a spiral of this OCD like thinking. So it’s not even the migraine itself that is ruining my life. It’s the thoughts that come with it.

You need to find a doctor to help treat you with that anxiety. It's not really the migraines that are the problem. But find a neuro that specializes in headaches and see if he can help. I ended up taking Topamax and carrying Imitrex--and it helps with the anxiety part too.

Stop with the anxiety nonsense and dismissing them.

PP is not saying the OP's migraines aren't happening. They are saying that the anxiety caused by anticipation of a migraine is more debilitating for OP than the migraines themselves, given how infrequent they are. And PP is right. Look at the OP's own words: "...it's not even the migraine itself that is ruining my life. It's the thoughts that come with it".

OP needs help to stop worrying about migraines and catastrophizing about what will happen if one occurs. I have gotten migraines with aura for 20 years. Frequency has ranged from monthly, to once or twice a year, to multiple in a week. Hormones are a big trigger for me, so perimenopause has led to a significant increase over years past. I understand what OP is saying about any little visual disturbance making you freak out that one is coming, because the auras start out so subtle. You have a few minutes where you are just kind of frozen waiting to see if it persists and expands over your visual field. I am definitely getting that feeling lately because of such a large uptick in frequency. But the level of anxiety OP is describing is not normal and needs to be addressed separately from any migraine treatment.

No, she doesn’t. You are lucky yours are mild. I never leave home with a triptan. It’s very normal.

DP, I agree OP needs to get an abortive so if she gets a migraine, she can treat it. But I also think it would be worth it to get her anxiety treated because it's frankly odd that she hasn't just gone and gotten a triptan or other abortive already. She is describing an excessive amount of anxiety for a treatable problem. And I say that as someone with severe migraine issues for the last 15 years, to the point where it impacted my marriage. It's hard for me to understand this level of anxiety from someone who gets a very occasional migraine. Yes get an abortive but also talk to someone about the anxiety which is abnormal IMO.

Not odd at all if it’s monthly or a few times a year. I can see how the pain can cause anxiety.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here - the hardest part for me is that I’ve had about a total of 20 migraines over a span of 25 years, yet I think about them every day. I obsess about them. Sometimes after I go a year or two without one I will start to forget about it, and even though I think about it a little bit every day, I don’t obsess. But coming off of one it really sends me into a spiral of this OCD like thinking. So it’s not even the migraine itself that is ruining my life. It’s the thoughts that come with it.

You need to find a doctor to help treat you with that anxiety. It's not really the migraines that are the problem. But find a neuro that specializes in headaches and see if he can help. I ended up taking Topamax and carrying Imitrex--and it helps with the anxiety part too.

Stop with the anxiety nonsense and dismissing them.

PP is not saying the OP's migraines aren't happening. They are saying that the anxiety caused by anticipation of a migraine is more debilitating for OP than the migraines themselves, given how infrequent they are. And PP is right. Look at the OP's own words: "...it's not even the migraine itself that is ruining my life. It's the thoughts that come with it".

OP needs help to stop worrying about migraines and catastrophizing about what will happen if one occurs. I have gotten migraines with aura for 20 years. Frequency has ranged from monthly, to once or twice a year, to multiple in a week. Hormones are a big trigger for me, so perimenopause has led to a significant increase over years past. I understand what OP is saying about any little visual disturbance making you freak out that one is coming, because the auras start out so subtle. You have a few minutes where you are just kind of frozen waiting to see if it persists and expands over your visual field. I am definitely getting that feeling lately because of such a large uptick in frequency. But the level of anxiety OP is describing is not normal and needs to be addressed separately from any migraine treatment.

No, she doesn’t. You are lucky yours are mild. I never leave home with a triptan. It’s very normal.

DP, I agree OP needs to get an abortive so if she gets a migraine, she can treat it. But I also think it would be worth it to get her anxiety treated because it's frankly odd that she hasn't just gone and gotten a triptan or other abortive already. She is describing an excessive amount of anxiety for a treatable problem. And I say that as someone with severe migraine issues for the last 15 years, to the point where it impacted my marriage. It's hard for me to understand this level of anxiety from someone who gets a very occasional migraine. Yes get an abortive but also talk to someone about the anxiety which is abnormal IMO.

Not odd at all if it’s monthly or a few times a year. I can see how the pain can cause anxiety.

But it's not. It's once a year, tops.