migraine/stroke need help :(

I am 21 years old female who has been in a lot of pain in the last year so anyone that has time to read this complex story... please.. it would be greatly appreciated...
i have been diagnosed with basilar migraine/ asthma/ "blank stare" seizures/ and anxiety
heres how my migraines go ... i go blind see spots light show all that.. cant see the 10 mins later...  My left thumb goes completely numb along my with my entire arm the left side of my face then the left side of my tongue then I cant speak and I lose my balance and I am completely confused.
Then the headache, awful of course.. throwing up ..have to sleep it off... the next day i am fine other then freaking out of course cuz it is scary and my nerves are still a little bit jumpy i guess. and i am told to go to hospital but this last time i wasnt home so i went the hospital next day... found out ..i had a stroke but it was not from this specific time. the mri i had said i had a silent stroke. but i have no risk factor other then i have migraines! so i had the tee ekg all those tests. had a large pfo.. this happened last feb ..... had that closed last may.
today - jan 2012! havent gotten rid of a migraine that i have had since feb of last year....  11 doc i have seen .. i have tried soooo many medications nothing has worked for me so far. i have tried nerve blockers botox..  i know about the pace maker with the electrodes but they are not allowed in my state yet and i do not want to be on the trial and maybe get on the "real" side. migraines are serious as everyone here knows. any suggestions?!!!??? like non medication things i could try. i am not that stressed other then being in bed all the time not being able to do a whole lot. i sleep a lot and i go to the hospital to get different meds tried on me. so anything please is a big help :) thanks.
(right now my meds are verapamil topamax effexor aspirin nortripilyne  and none are working for the migraine part)

[goawaypanic]

Hi Mary. I just stumbled upon your post. I am sorry to hear you are going through such a horrible time. I can relate! I get headaches almost daily, migraines about 4x/wk. Anyhow, I am not an expert, but some people find relief from Triptan medications, like Imitrex. Have you ever tried triptans? Also, you got me worried when you said you had stroke. Can that show up on an EKG or did you just get an MRI. I was wondering cause I have been getting lots of chest pains/heart palpitations plus migraines, went to ER couple wks ago, they ran and EKG and said my "everything was fine and it's just anxiety". ugh. Anyhow, if you want natural remedies I have heard herbs Butterbur and Feverfew help some people w/migraines. I hope you can find a specialist who can help you.

[mary607]

since i have basilar migraines i have adverse reactions to triptans and imitrex so i cant take them. i have had a migraine since last feb and cant get rid of it its horrible :(.  it showed up on an MRI that i had in my right cerebellum.  
do you have a PFO????? thats a hole in your heart. some well most people with migraines have them. never heard of butterbur or feverfew. what are they? i found one guy who is really good. just found him a little to late ya know.
im sorry about your headaches they sound awful too!!

[goawaypanic]

Oh, I had a horrible reaction to triptans so I can't take them either. Gosh, I can't imagine having a migraine for a YEAR! I get them for a few days straight and that is enough. No, I do not have a PFO, never heard of that. Interesting. Supposedly everything is ok w/my heart (according to ER docs). Feverfew and butterbur are herbs. You can buy them online, but check w/your dr. first about interactions w/meds. I am happy you found a good dr! Keep us posted. Hope a treatment works for you. I am still searching for mine....

[mary607]

thank you! im sorry you havent found a treatment that has worked for you either. what are you currently on? what kind of migraines do you have? im glad everything is ok with your heart!
next time i see my doc i will ask him about those herbs.
do you have anything else besides migraines? i also have anxiety that goes with it...

[goawaypanic]

Yeah, it's been hell. I am not sure what kind of migraines I have but I do not have the aura w/them. I pretty much only take a bunch of ibuprofen and tylenol (650 mg). I can't tolerate most meds cause of severe side effects. Icepack on forehead and/or back of head helps, too. I live in my sunglasses and stay in bed a lot unfortunately. Sometimes I take Butalbital which helps little bit but has caffeine and makes my anxiety worse. Xanax helps some,so that may be an indicator that stress/anxiety could be causing my migraines. Yes, I have anxiety too. UGH. Plus panic attacks and I am prone to depression. I also have a bunch of other things wrong w/me, like a bulging disc in my neck. That is the latest theory of why so many migraines. I am not completely sold on that. I think there are a variety of triggers: STRESS, allergies/weather, neck issues.

[zev358]

I am no expert other than having a problem with headaches since I was three, chronic migraines for as long as I can remember. I call my migraines; "My dragon" since they seem to have the same attributes, come at will, mean and breath fire. I've been on so many medications that any new neurologist has a had time believing it until they get my records (which I now keep with me).  My advice is to make a list of possible triggers so you can learn to avoid them. I would ask for an MRI of your brain, I get one every 6 to 8 years just to see if they have an answer as to why I suffer this way. Seeking help or just someone to listen helps ALOT. I started my own blog about it. Anyway, the only thing that ever helped me was preventative, I took some ayurvedic stuff from India and it knocked out my migraines for over a year. Now, I still had my daily headache, and I would get the prodome signaling a migraine was coming but it didn't. 4 months after I was off they came back and so hard I thought I was dying. I'm sick of them. I tried to get the same stuff but I was told it's not available in the US yet, so I'm hopping. In the mean time it's back to cold wash cloths, imitrex then anti-nausea medication (which causes headache). PS...I have bulging discs too and earlier this year had a major low back surgery and then a tumor removed, which they said could not have caused the migraines. Of course not, I still have them.

[mary607]

wait im confused you cant get the ayurvedic stuff anymore? Couldnt you get it shipped from India? I mean I would definitely try it.!!! I do not have any discs but I do have neck and back problems. what do you take for your migraines now?

[mary607]

if you have an aura you are 3 times more likely to have a stroke so you should try to be on some kind of medication to prevent the aura. .. i have trouble finding drugs that do not give me side effects as well. my body is extremely sensitive. do you have any other side effects that happen to your body other then the aura??

[FurballsMom]

I have nothing that could actually offer help, but I do know that if I don't have enough sleep, I will have a silent migraine.  Yep, I can get a migraine without the head pain.  Just as lousy, though.  That's not the only known migraine trigger I get, and I definitely get the more painful kind, too.  More often than before, too, it seems.  Like others, I am sensitive to medications.  Fortunately, the neurologist seems to understand this much and has so far only tried the gentler kinds of medications.  Many of those don't really work, though.  Has anyone here tried Botox?  That stuff does seem to help me some.  Especially close to when I first get the injections.  If you ever try Botox, I advise not bathing or showering the night before or the morning of getting the injections.  That is too close to time for the needles.  The warm water brings more blood to the surface and makes the shots more painful.  Not bathing or showering too close to the time for the shots and I hardly even noticed the needles the last time.

[goawaypanic]

Hi. Thanks for sharing your experiences. I did get a CAT scan/MRI of my brain about 1.5 yrs ago and they found nothing. You are lucky you can take Imitrex.I tried that and got severe reaction. I thought I had Serotonin Syndrome, but it turned out it wasn't that "technically", so no triptans for me. The sad part is that my migraine was TOTALLY gone after about 5 hrs of taking Imitrex! Hope you can get those herbs again from India. All the herbs I have tried have not agreed w/me. I really don't want to experiment w/any more.

[goawaypanic]

I have not tried Botox yet. That is great it has helped you.
Do you experience any side effects from it?

[goawaypanic]

Sounds like our bodies are sensitive. I do not get an aura, so that is good. This wk. I have had menstrual migraines and also it has been raining/foggy, so those 2 things are triggers.There is nothing I can do to prevent those types of migraines I don't think. ugh.

[FurballsMom]

I have not had any side effects from Botox.  This is amazing because I am sensitive to a lot of things.

[mary607]

i tried botox and it actually made my migraines worse. silent migraine???
goawaypanic- since you have menstrual migraines ever thought about getting the mirena iud. it stops ur period. i have this birth control love it! this could stop the migraines around ur period if ur period is stopped. maybe ask ur doctor about that.
furballsmom- im so glad botox works for u! how often do u get it?

[goawaypanic]

Thanks Mary for telling me about Mirena. My ob/gyn suggested that cause I have a WHOLE bunch of problems since my 1 ovary had to be removed. ( a topic for another forum, lol). ugh. I am a mess. Anyhow, if anyone wants to email me directly instead of on the forums, u can email me at: christina_kats***@****.
Christina

[mary607]

they blanked your email out...   after kats ....

[mary607]

and now im interested cuz i have problems with my ovaries too.....