Safe weight loss options for migraine sufferers?
When I first met my last neurologist and began treatments for my incapacitating migraine episodes I weighed 120 lbs. Over the next six months of therapy and medication I would gain almost 80 lbs. My doctors agreed that once the regiment was over that we'd all work on a weight loss plan together to try and trim me back down. However, that never came to be. I was on medical leave from school so long I no longer qualified to be covered by my parents' insurance. My neurologist worked out a payment plan and I got a job in hopes of paying for it myself but in the end I could no longer afford treatment and had to stop seeing him. As soon as I was off the meds I managed to lose 20 lbs right away. But I have been struggling with the last 40 or so for a few years now.
The problem is not the will to diet and exercise, but the fact that every time I try something I get wild migraine surges. Sometimes so bad I can't see for the pain. I haven't been on any prescribed medication in about four years now and I combat them with over the counters as best I can. Still, they've been returning with a vengence this past year and the more I try to lose the extra weight the faster and harder they come. Food management isn't working and I can't seem to find an exercise regime that can combat the weight on its own. I even gave in and finally tried diet pills - something I'd NEVER wished to stoop to before. But they only varied the migraine fluctuations.
Please, if anyone can help me find a safe way to lose weight without inviting migraines that only increase in severity the further in I get, I'd be extremely grateful.
Hi aranel,
How many days a week do you take something to relieve these headaches? Taking any kind of pain medication --prescription or over-the-counter-- or abortives, like triptans, more than two or three days a week can make matters worse by causing medication overuse headache (MOH), aka rebound. See Medication Overuse Headache - When the Remedy Backfires for more information on this.
Anyone who has three or more Migraines a month needs to be talking with their doctor about prevention. There's growing evidence that Migraine is a progressive brain disease. A recent study showed that Migraines can cause brain damage, and that people with three or more Migraines a month are more susceptible to this damage. For more information, see Is Migraine a Progressive Brain Disease? and Yes, Migraines Can Cause Brain Damage.
We have some information on exertional Migraine you may be interested in by reading these questions from our Ask the Clinician section.
I hope this helps,
Nancy
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