Migrains.. Medication During Pregnancy.

[Cassandrajane]

Right my Midwife thinks im 8 wks and 4 days Pregnant.. not how far I thought I was... Basically a week further on, ANYWAYS.. I suffer from Migrains regularly and now I am pregnant they are ALOT worse. I am dizzy from when I wake up untill I go to bed, this is a result of my Migrains as I get it when I have Migrains anyways but not as bad.. My Migrains without pregnancy can last up to 2 weeks constant then will go away for 5 days come back for about 3 days then go away for a week then come back for a week and then go away for a while then come on STRONG for 2 weeks and that is my cycle for my Migrains.
Atm they are constant, I have tried everything I can WITHOUT taking ANY medication because I dont like taking Tablets unless I REALLY NEED too..... As I dont like taking them and as they are So frequent I cant take them all the time due to being pregnant, and I am not really allowed alot of tablets on my person due to depression and trying to overdoes when I was younger so They have been taken away from me.

My GP said Paracetamol BUT that is TOO weak for me to take and DOESNT work AT ALL. Other wise I wouldnt have gone to my GP about them in the first place.... As I am in England some medication is different I understand. And I was wondering am I allowed to take stuff like Co-codamol or Codine??
I've tried the usual NON medicated related stuff.. like sitting in a pitch black room.. Sleeping.. Putting a cold wet towel on my forehead.. putting Frozen peas on my head.. (Some say this makes it worse but it makes it better for me, like period pains people say hot water bottle, but it doesnt work so I use ice) and stuff!
Can someone help me please. These are SO painful!!

THANK YOUU


x

[Cassandrajane]

Thanks, So its better for me to take Co Codamol than to suffer with the pain for the baby's sake...
For the mean time I have been taking something my mum was given in hospital when she was Pregnant and had migrains but i was perscribed this BEFORE i was pregnant and it says nothing about not taking it whilst pregnant and the HOSPITAL gave it to my mum when she was pregnant as well. So it has to be safe, But I am taking it when they are so bad.. Which has been twice so far as ive had this once since sunday...
I hope they go away.

Its killing me


xx

[Ashelen]

well the good news is, about 40% of migraine suffers experience either a temporary or permanent easing of their migraines starting during the end of the second trimester...some of those women have their migraines come back the same or worse after pregnancy, but some experience almost complete relief post-partum. with my daughter my migraines got better and better and I didn't have any for several weeks after she was born..and then they started getting worse again. and with this pregnancy they've gotten worse and worse and my neurologist says they'll likely continue to get worse post-partum, just following the trend.

but there is hope because some women do find pregnancy provides relief, so hopefully you're one of those women...and the younger you're pregnant, the more likely pregnancy is to affect your migraines in a positive way because it helps to balance out your hormones. so..here's hoping for you. :)

[Clysta]

There are plenty of things out there that are safe to take. I've more or less lived on some form of medicine through this pregnancy, and there's nothing wrong with my baby. In the end not taking things can cause more harm than good just because your making your body work harder to manage a pregnancy and take care of you.

[Cassandrajane]

Im not being fussy about medication. I dont wanna harm my baby even If my GP says some things are okay. And I dont like them anyways.
Sometimes my Migrains are because of Lack of sleep. So i try to get as much as I can. I know I cant take cold and flu tablets and things like that. In my books they all say co codamol....

Im also Avoiding things that trigger my Migrains anyways Such as Orange Juice, Apple Juice, Cherries, Cheese, Coke, Caffeine, I dont drink so I am avoiding alcohol anyways.

Cause I have suffered with them for so long I have learnt to put up with them, but they just seem so much stronger now!

If Co Codamol doesnt work throughout this weekend if I have a migrain I will see my GP and see if she can recommend anything else.

Thanks everyone you've been a great help!!

xx

[Ashelen]

no like Clysta and I said I think you've just about covered all the non-medicine things you can try and if they haven't worked I doubt they'll magically start working. Just remember that if you let the pain get too intense and go on too long it's not great for the baby either. it's all a matter of balancing. good luck

[Clysta]

Other than anything that's been suggested, no, there's nothing you can do.

[Ashelen]

one thing I do want to mention before I go make lunch for my DD who is irritating the bajeezers out of me with a bag of bread she found, LOL....one time I had a migraine and they offered me a shot of local anesthetic (marcaine and lidocaine I believe it was) that they would inject into pain nodes on my head to deaden it instantly...it wouldn't actually treat the pain, just deaden sensation.. but that particular migraine had been going on almost 3 wks.

I ended up turning it down because I had to drive and I wasn't sure if I would be able to use my neck correctly but I know that local anesthetics are GENERALLY considered safe (because they very very very minimally pass into your bloodstream) and if your migraines go on for a long maybe that's an option you can consider to break the cycle....

I wasn't pregnant at the time and I have no idea about the use of these shots during pregnancy, my doctor told me it was a new and slightly experimental therapy...but I just thought of it so I figured I would mention it.

[Cassandrajane]

Paracetamol doesnt work for me at all. Ive had migrains since I was 12. and have tried EVERYTHING ive even been scanned for Brain Tumors. But Nothing.
I dont like taking tablets and wont take them unless i REALLY need too. I am taking Co Codamol BUT only if it has lasted over 2 wks OR I cant physically stand the pain any longer which would be after a week or so. I wear my Glasses constantly now but they aint working, but its still something instead of taking Tablets. Cause I really HATE taking them, because of my past and my mate is addicted to Codeine. So is my mum, and I dont wanna be like that. And my Boyf is always like take pain killers. and I always say NO! And now he knows I hate them so he gave up with that one. I dont like tablets at all. And wont take them unless i need too.
My GP said Co Codamol was fine and so did my midwife today BUT i cant take them everyday only When I have a Migrain. So I explained why I dont like taking tablets and wont take them unless its unbareable.!! Is there any other Methods without taking Medications I could try??

Thanks everyone!

xx

[Clysta]

I don't know if there's anything you can do non-medical that you haven't already tried. I had tons of migraines that lasted for weeks early on in my pregnancy up till I was about 17 weeks, and the only thing that worked for me (other than medicine) was to boil water on a stove, put a towel over it and my head and breathe it in. But this only worked because my migraines turned out to be my sinuses being reallllly congested from the increase of fluids. If you don't want to take anything, and nothing else works, you would have no choice but to manage through them the best you can.

[Ashelen]

well you know all the methods to try to solve migraine pain without medicine. none of it ever worked for me or at least it worked in a limited amount. unfortunately a lot of the migraine medicines are even more unsafe than narcotics during pregnancy. if you find something non-medicine that works for severe migraines you could get get rich because I know plenty of people who suffer from them who cannot get relief without medical intervention, lol.

but by all means try all the traditional methods. sometimes those Head-On sticks worked for me, but usually not and I"m not sure about their safety during pregnancy as I've never tried them while pregnant.

[Ashelen]

well they gave me tylenol #3 (tylenol with codeine) for my migraines during the first trimester with this pregnancy, and it's what I took off and on during my whole pregnancy for headaches when I was pregnant with my daughter....but with this pregnancy I couldn't take them for long because the codeine started making me vomit like crazy because it's tough on your stomach so they switched me to a low dose of lortab.

basically it's like Clysta said. you weigh the risks (it's really not 100% known whether narcotics affect the fetus negatively...but they're thought to be fairly safe and have been prescribed for generations, specifically codeine) versus the benefits (intense pain (on a scale of 1 to 10, anything beyond a 7) is NOT good for the baby, it releases stress hormones that can affect growth, breathing, and other development)....but I wouldn't do it without my doctor's permission and knowledge. I know that in some countries (I think the UK is one of them??) You can get the codeine without a script, but in the US you can't so obviously I was only taking what my OB was prescribing and that's what I would recommend for you.

the one thing I would caution that I learned when I was pregnant with my daughter...they're starting to be concerned about the effects of codeine on hearing, of all things. they say that regular usage of codeine over a long period of time can cause hearing impairment...so they're trying to figure out what kind of an effect it would have on fetal hearing, but it's a new discovery (like the last 2 years) so they haven't gotten anything conclusive on it. just talk to your doctor and see what they recommend and tell them that what you're taking is NOT working.

[Cassandrajane]

I hate taking TABLETS full stop so i do AVOID them as much as I can cause I dont wanna become addicted and things. My GP and midwife said Co-Codamol was okay to take as my GP knows about my Migrains anyways. I have glasses to help with them but they really aint At the mo. Before I was pregnant I was Taking Pitzofen for my Migrains cause they also made me hungry which was good as I was suffering Anorexia so they did help alot. But I CANT take them at all now cause Im pregnant...

Is there any other ways I can help my headaches WITHOUT taking medication because I hate them. I have to force myself to take my Folic Acid because I hate Tablets and Liquid medication...

But my migrains are getting beyond ridiculous now. I cant even work cause I cant get out of bed, I have my Glasses on atm with a cold towel on my head....
But I dont want to take tablets unless i NEED too. Which is if it hasnt gone within the 2 wks period. Or something.!!

Thanks everyone!


xx

[Clysta]

I know some women have been prescribed Co-codamol for different things while in their first trimester, but it was given to them by a doctor so if they said you could take it, then it should be fine. Codine (Codeine) is a category C and can be harmful and may cause breathing problems or addiction. (Though I think that's mostly in the last trimester) I wouldn't take either unless your doctor prescribed them them to you and knew you were on them. It's a risks/benefits kinda thing.

[gillianl]

i know how you feel i've been suffering migraines for the past 4 days and i NEVER get them but i'm not pregnant i'm due AF in 6 days time but i have been taking Co-codamol for mine and it's not working the GP prescribed me a stronger dosage which i'm going to get tonight.  I'm honestly not sure whether you can take them while pregnant or not this is why i'm so scared incase i am preggo and taking to many pills.

I really hope you get something better to help you i really do sympathise with you i'm in so much pain :(  

[HeatherLF16]

I have heard that it is not safe to take anything in your first trimester, except for your prenantal vitamins and regular strength tylenol.  I had terrible headaches, and dizziness too.  Both were because my blood pressure was super low which is common during the 1st trimester.  I also got a terrible cold.  I was told by my doctor that aside from tylenol I had to suffer until I was past 12 weeks because any medication can be harmful to the babies development at the early stage.  I know it is different in the UK though so you may want to ask your doc.  Hope you feel better!