nausea

14 April 2022

Poll: Stomach/Gut Symptoms with Migraine

Do you experience stomach/gut symptoms with migraine? You’re not alone. But symptoms can vary.

Here are the results of our recent poll regarding stomach symptoms:

The “winner” is no surprise – nausea does not always accompany migraine, but it does tend to be a tell-tale symptom. Here are a few tips for fighting nausea.

Stomach pain is also common – in fact, in “abdominal migraine“, stomach pain may occur instead of the headache itself.

Heartburn is close behind. It is possible that migraine and heartburn have some similar biological roots, as this study suggested: GERD prevalence in migraine patients and the implication for acute migraine treatment. But there’s another possible culprit – the medications we take.

Whether your heartburn is related to migraine or not, certain medications can make it worse. If you’re taking NSAIDs such as aspirin or ibuprofen, check out NSAIDs – Which One Should I Take For Headache?. But you’ll probably want to talk to your doctor about other options. Also, check out Why Headache Patients Are Running from Esomeprazole (Nexium) and other “Heartburn” Drugs.

Finally, general discomfort and bloating are also common in migraine.

For more, check out this quick graphic: 6 Key Stomach/Gut Terms related to Migraine

14 October 2021

A Natural Alternative to Sumatriptan? (Your Questions)

James Information, Treatments 1

Is there a good natural alternative to sumatriptan?

First, an apology – I’ve been negligent in answering your questions. So today I’m going to tackle one from Vicki in the USA.

Vicki finds that sumatriptan helps fight her migraine attacks. But she’s wondering if there’s a “natural alternative” to sumatriptan that she can use when she doesn’t have any medication available.

It’s a great question, but not an easy one! For one thing, triptan medications such as sumatriptan don’t seem to act the same in every person. And sometimes even small differences (such as the differences between a generic and a brand name medication, or different “delivery methods” – tablet, nasal spray, etc.) can make a difference in how well it works. Also, triptans may help with various symptoms (nausea, pain, sensitivity to light).

So you’re probably not going to find a precise alternative that does the exact same thing in your body.

Another reason why the question is difficult is that sumatriptan, as an older and much-studied medication, is often compared with other treatments. Some of these studies are high quality, others not. But the short story is that there are actually a lot of alternatives. Basically, most of the good alternative treatments that you’ve heard about are probably worth a try.

It may surprise many people that there are excellent, often well-studied alternatives to medications. Many people still assume that a “natural alternative” is going to be inferior. But that may not be the case at all.

So, to get back to the original question, here are some possible alternatives that you may want to try. But, as with medications, it will be trial and error, and you may need a combination of some of the treatments listed.

Water and salt – Staying hydrated is a great way to avoid migraine. But you may find that you can lesson the symptoms of an attack with some water and a salty snack. If you feel that you’ve eaten something that is triggering the attack, drinking more water may help lesson the trigger effect.
Ginger Supplement – This is one of those studies I was telling you about. In a study published in 2014, researchers found that a 250mg dose of ginger was comparable (in some ways better) than a 50mg dose of sumatriptan. Ginger has been used for pain and nausea in other conditions besides migraine.
Heat and Cold – Experimenting with heat and cold (ice and heat packs) has long been a helpful migraine treatment, but as with anything it seems to work differently depending on the person and the migraine attack.
MigreLief-Now – A combination supplement specifically designed to fight migraine when the attack is starting.
“Starve and Sink” – This method is completely counter-intuitive, but it’s becoming more well known thanks to the work of Dr. Josh Turknett. You can read more here: How To End A Migraine Without A Pill (starve and sink, part 1), and then part 2 here.

A few more things to consider. First, here’s a brief list of “natural remedy” ideas that may help.

Second, it’s important to consider overall lifestyle changes and possibly supplements that may help prevent migraine. I’m thinking about things like magnesium, cutting down on sugar (part 1 and part 2), and proper exercise.

Finally, there are other medications that you may be able to have on hand to stop an attack, and you may be surprised how effective they are (if taken very occasionally). For example, the humble aspirin and ibuprofen. Ketorolac is another example of a simple anti-inflammatory that has been compared to sumitriptan.

Have you found a natural supplement that has helped fight a migraine attack in the place of sumatriptan? Leave a comment, and let’s help Vicki by keeping the conversation going.

19 March 2021

Cyclic vomiting syndrome is on the rise in adults – and it may be Migraine related.

James Discoveries & Stats 0

A review recently published in Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain discusses treatment of cyclic vomiting syndrome, as well as a surprising rise in adult cases.

The connection between migraine and vomiting and nausea is not news. Cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS) has also long been connected to migraine – in fact, some have suggested that it may be a subtype of migraine.

But there’s still a lot we don’t know about CVS. In fact, as the Mayo Clinic puts it, “Cyclic vomiting syndrome is characterized by episodes of severe vomiting that have no apparent cause.”

Which is why doctors first need to rule out other conditions when (usually children) develop CVS. For example, a part of the intestine may not be developing in the right position (intestinal malrotation). A swelling of the kidneys (hydronephrosis) might also be a cause. So some tests will be required when someone is diagnosed. Anxiety or panic attacks may also bring on problems, in both adults and children.

CVS in adults may also come from certain diseases related to the gallbladder or liver.

Though the nausea/vomiting connection is the most obvious link to migraine, there are other symptoms that some patients get that make the link even stronger. For example, abdominal pain (abdominal migraine is more common in children, but adults get it as well), dizziness, photophobia (sensitivity to light), and, of course, headache.

Why is CVS on the rise in adults? Increased anxiety? Environmental factors? Dietary problems?

What’s the connection to migraine? Is it a gut-brain issue? Are there genetic factors? Lifestyle commonalities? Once more, we’re not sure.

However, the study recommends that we further our research into the CVS-migraine link, and try to diagnose CVS as early as possible. Early treatment, as with migraine, can lead to better results. And in the case of children, we often have the opportunity to catch both early, and so can avoid many problems later in life.

But doctors and patients need to look carefully for migraine-type symptoms, because migraine treatments may be able to conquer both issues.

Report abstract (and link to full report): Cyclic vomiting syndrome: A narrative review and guide to management

3 September 2020

Women with Migraine: Different Symptoms?

James Discoveries & Stats 0

So we all know that the risk of migraine is higher in women, and that the difference is often blamed on hormones (although it’s likely more complex than that). But what about symptoms? Do women experience different symptoms than men?

A study published last year is saying “Yes”. Here are some of things that seems to be worse/more intense for women than for men:

Attacks tend to last longer
Nausea/vomiting
Vertigo/dizziness
Sensitivity to odours (osmophobia)
Allodynia
Higher disability from migraine (based on the MIDAS test)

As mentioned above, women were more sensitive to smells during an attack. Interestingly, they were also more likely to have an attack triggered by odours.

There were also more comorbid conditions – conditions that tend to go along with migraine – in the female group. Depression and allergy were the ones that stood out.

You might ask, because of the common hormonal hypothesis, whether these differences go away after menopause. The answer is mostly no. The differences were still significant, with the exception of nausea. After menopause, the nausea was about the same in both male and female groups.

Of course, these are more descriptions of the attacks. Attack frequency does tend to be less after menopause, although that is not always the case.

What about the Men?

So what items were more significant in the male group? Although generally other factors were the same in both groups, or someone worse for the women, one trigger stood out in the male group. Excessive sleep was more likely to trigger an attack for the men.

Of course this study is not saying that Emily’s migraine attacks are necessarily worse than Jacob’s, but there is a general trend here. We’re fighting against migraine for everyone. However, it’s good to know the areas in which the women tend to suffer more, because it can lead to better understanding and treatment.

To read the full study and the comments of the authors, click here: Sex Differences of Migraine: Results of a Nationwide Home-based Study in Turkey

21 August 2020

Is it Migraine or COVID-19? The surprising similarities

James Information, Tips 0

You might think it’s easy to tell the difference between migraine symptoms and COVID-19 symptoms. And if you’ve had migraine for a while, and your symptoms are generally the same every time, you may be right – it might be easy for you.

But that’s not the case with everyone. Some people’s migraine symptoms change significantly and regularly. And of course if this is your first migraine attack, or you haven’t had migraine for very long, it’s easy to wonder if it’s migraine or something else.

So today we’re going to look at some symptoms that both migraine and COVID-19 may have in common, and how to tell the difference.

Headache

Headache is, of course, the most common symptom of migraine (although you can have a migraine attack with no headache). But headache can also be a symptom of COVID-19.

Migraine headache tends to be throbbing, and one-sided. It’s often accompanied by photophobia and/or phonophobia, that is, sensitivity to light or noise. The pain is usually made worse by activity (for example, climbing stairs).

Though migraine may last from a few hours to a few days, there is usually a progression. The pain may peak, and then diminish, and you may experience a day or two of “migraine hangover”.

From what we know so far, a COVID-19 headache is more often a “tight” kind of headache, that specifically appears along with coughing and/or fever (more on those in a moment). It may get progressively worse over time, instead of “peaking and diminishing”.

The tricky thing is that conditions like COVID-19 may also trigger migraine symptoms – so just because the headache appears to be a migraine headache doesn’t mean that you don’t have COVID-19 as well.

If the pain is moderate to severe, and it’s different than any headache you’ve had before, you need to see a doctor, whether you’re experiencing “COVID-19 symptoms” or not. There are a variety of very serious conditions – some urgently serious and extremely dangerous – that send out a “headache warning”.

A severe headache with COVID-19 can be a very serious sign. Don’t delay that doctor’s visit.

Coughing

Some people do cough during a migraine attack, but it’s most often a “warning sign”. So in migraine, coughing may precede the headache. In COVID-19, the cough may get worse as the headache gets worse.

Congestion/Runny Nose

A runny nose, or feeling congested, is a very common symptom of migraine. Red eyes, watery eyes, feeling “stuffed up” – all these may go along with a migraine attack. If you’re an experienced migraine sufferer, you may be able to tell the difference.

But some people are surprised how common this is. And it can be tricky if you try to go to work with a runny nose that you know is caused by migraine!

These symptoms may go along with your migraine headache, but if it’s COVID-19 they may get progressively worse, and be accompanied by other common symptoms such as fever and coughing.

Fever

Yes, fever may be a symptom of migraine, although it is rare (see some of the experiences of people with fever here). But feeling feverish is much more common! Feeling hot and sweaty, having the chills – this is not uncommon at all during a migraine attack.

Again, you need to look at the big picture (check out – Coronavirus Symptoms: Frequently Asked Questions). If you have progressing symptoms of sore throat, fever, coughing, etc., it’s much more likely to be something other than migraine (or accompanied by migraine).

Nausea

Nausea is a very common (though not universal) symptom of migraine, often experienced along with the headache. Experience will help you know the difference here, but nausea along with migraine headache symptoms (see above) is a big hint that it’s a migraine attack, especially if it comes fairly suddenly and disappears after a few hours.

More information

For a very helpful article featuring Dr. Merle Diamond from the Diamond Headache Clinic, check out COVID-19 or migraine? Here’s how to tell and what to do about it.