estrogen and migraine

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Mon, November 26, 2007

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Descending Mt. Painfree

Hi all-

I have a question about estrogen and migraine. I'm just now starting to get my menstrual cycle and my migraines Mad back after a prolonged respite Big Grin from pregnancy and breastfeeding. Now that I know I can be completely pain free when my hormones are stable and I've got plenty of estrogen in my system, I want to know how to achieve this PERMANENTLY!!!!

I know I can't do the pill (it's what triggered my migraines in the first place), but I've heard that things like patches, injections, or subdermal pellets- things with a controlled constant release of estrogen- might be helpful...does anyone have any experience with this? I've also heard about an increased risk of stroke- but I don't understand what causes the increase- would bioidentical estrogen with no progresterone have the same effect?

Also- any recommendations for doctors, accupuncturists, etc. in the Washington, DC area? I'll try anything. :)

My situation: constant tingling, burning sensation, tightness in right side of neck head and face (it's not horrible- just ever present), pretty bad TMJ, ~1-3 migraines per month

Things that help me now: B2, fish oil, good sleep habits, and avoidance of food triggers ( Cry caffeine, nuts, alcohol, cheese)

Things that haven't helped: beta blockers (helped for a little while), sumatripan (the BURNING!!! AARGH!!), biofeedback, accupuncture.

I'm glad to have found this place!!!

Margaret

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Nancy Harris Bonk

11/26/07 8:16pm

Hello, and welcome to MyMigraineConnection.com!

Migraine is a genetic neurolgocial disease. For some women, hormones can trigger a Migraine attack. Lower estrogen levels can increase Migraines for some Migraineurs. This is a conversation to have with your doctor or headache specialist. This Ask The Clinician question talks about it HERE.

You mentioned you stay away from your food triggers, great work. Do you keep a Migraine diary?

Don't give up on the preventive medication route. There are over 100 medications used for Migraine prevention. If one beta-blocker doesn't work, maybe another one in that class will. Migraine Preventive Medications - Too Many Options To Give Up! This also applies to triptans. Imitrex didn't work for you but maybe one of the other six will. You can try Axert, Amerge, Frova, Maxalt, Relpax, and Zomig.

We have a Patient Recommended Migraine and Headache Specialist Directory you can see by clicking HERE. Dr. Pamela Blake is in D.C.

Thank you for creating a SharePost. SharePosts are a form of blogging, and there are many things you can do with them. You can share an experience, suggest something that's helped you, use SharePosts as a Migraine and headache journal, and many other things.

We also have a discussion forum that you may want to check out. Especially if you have questions or are looking for information, you may find the interaction on the forum to be quite helpful. To get to the forum, just look for the orange box marked "Manage" and click on the Migraine Forums link. Because our forums are maintained by a third party, you'll need to register for the forum. You can use the same information you used to create your community log-in if you like. If you want to go directly to the forum, you can click HERE.

Along with your personal "My Home" page and the discussion forum, you'll find links to a great deal of helpful information on the main page of our site, http://www.MyMigraineConnection.com.

If you have any questions, please feel free to post them to the forum or send me a message through my profile.

Welcome again,

Nancy Bonk
MyMigraineConnection.com Expert

PS: If you receive this message from more than one of us, please excuse the overlap. Thanks!

Jonnie

2/ 6/08 12:44pm

Recently I have begun to take a low dose of estrogen to aleviate vaginal dryness. Although my migraines have never completely disappeared, the last 15 years or so, they have become extremely infrequent and have become very "light". Now that I am taking estrogen they are returning more frequently, though the intensity has not returned.

My question is this. Could estrogen be the catalyst to my migraines? Maybe I should stop taking the estrogen altogether and find other alternatives to the dryness I was experienceing.

mjsross

2/ 6/08 1:13pm

It could be, unfortunately. My migraines were initially triggered by taking oral contraceptives about 8 years ago. From my limited understanding, estrogen withdrawal can cause migraines, and when you take a estrogen in a pill form, you get a tiny hormone spike everyday when you take the pill, then when your estrogen levels fall as the day goes on, you become susceptible to migraine. My neurologist recommended that if I wanted to go back on contraceptives (which I've been too terrified to do), I could try something that keeps a constant flow of estrogen, like a with a ring, implant, or patch.

I've read about subdermal estrogen (estradiol) pellets that might help you. They insert these small even release pellets of estrogen under your skin and it keeps your estrogen from falling while giving you the extra estrogen you need. It's been shown to reduce frequency and severity of migraines in post menopausal women, but I don't think it's been tested on pre-menopausal women for migraines- at least not that I've read.

Strangely enough, my neurologist also recommended taking 500mg/day of magnesium in a slow release form. I started making sure I get 500mgs per day now of magnesium (through diet and supplements), and I haven't had a single problem with migraines since. It even releived the joint pain I was experiencing in my fingers and knees! :)

I wish you the best of luck!!!

estrogen and migraine

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