what should i do?

Hi Jess!  

Have you been to a doctor that has diagnosed you with Migraine? If not, that would be the first step. There are a variety of medications out there that can help you, which I will explain.  

If you have been diagnosed with Migraine, and you are experiencing more than 3 a month, then you  need to speak with your doctor about preventive treatment. There is growing evidence that Migraine is a progressive brain disease that can cause brain damage and that people who have three or more Migraines a month are more susceptible to brain damage than those who have fewer than three a month. Please see Is Migraine a Progressive Brain Disease and Yes, Migraines Can Cause Brain Damage. There are over 100 medications currently being used for Migraine prevention. See this article: Migraine Preventive Medications: Too Many to Give Up!   

Then there are abortive medications. These are medications that actually stop the Migraine process. They are different from what you are getting over the counter, and can only be administered by prescription. The most frequently used of these medications are called triptans. Currently there are eight different triptans on the market -- Imitrex, Maxalt, Zomig, Amerge, Relpax, Axert, Frova, and Treximet so if you have tried some, and they did not work for you, ask your doctor if you could try another one. I tried four different ones before I found the one that worked best for me. See this article: Preventive, Abortive and Rescue Medication: What's the Difference?  

I also want to take this time to tell you about Medication Overuse Headache, aka Rebound Headache. You mention using a lot of OTC (over the counter) medication. Did you know that using these medications, triptans or rescue medications too often can actually cause a headache? See this article: Medication Overuse Headache: When Remedy Backfires.  

If you are looking for more information on Migraine, we have some great links I will share with you, as well as a forum right here on our site where you can chat with other Migraine sufferers.  

Migraines: Where to Start  

Pathways of a Migraine  

My Migraine Connection Forum - you can also reach the forum by clicking the blue "connect" pull down tab at the top of the page, then click on Migraine Forums.  

The last thing I want to leave you with is some information on Migraine and Headache Specialists. If you have just been seeing your primary care physician for your Migraines so far, you may want to consider a neurologist or even a Migraine and Headache Specialist. Teri Robert wrote a great article on Migraine Specialists, you can read it here: Migraine and Headache Specialists: What's So Special? If you decide you would like to see a Migraine Specialist, we have a list of them on our site: Patient Recommended Migraine Specialists.  

Hope this helps!

Good Luck!

Eileen Gray