I suffer Migraine headaches once a month, How long does usually last?

Question

I am 44 and going through the change of life. Right now I am right in the middle of PMS and Menopause. The doctor told me I would have headaches but they are really bad ones. I do cold packs and I take Advil for the pain. But mine last at least 4 days or more. Is this normal for headaches to last this long when going through Menopause?

Please be gentle with your answers. I am very serious and I am hurting a lot. This months period was the worst. I felt so abnormal. I was not myself at all. I felt really off balanced.

Thanks for your help

I have been under a lot of stress too which doesn't help.

Answer 1

Yes migraines can last days the worse one that I had lasted for about 6 days. And my daughter would get them so often that her neurologist had to put her on a preventive medication. The two that worked best for her are nuerontin and topamax. You should ask your doctor to give you something that would help prevent them. Also when she or I do get them we use Excedrin. It has 250 Mg's of aspirin, 250Mg's of the medicine in Tylenol and about 30 Mg's of caffeine. The aspirin and the Tylenol are for the pain and the caffeine helps enlarge the blood vessels in the head to allow the blood to flow more freely. Try it it really works and its the only medication that my family takes. Don't take it if you're allergic to aspirin.

Answer 2

I get them sometimes, usually brought on by stress, or not eating in the morning or too much or lack of sleep. The best time to catch it is when you feel it coming on, stop whatever it is that you are doing, I used to take Migranil but it started to become ineffective after using it for a few years. Now I take Ketofan 200SR, I never had problems with migraines after that unless I started to get a headache outside and I didn't have any ketofan on me. Then it might turn into a full blown migraine, unless I find a way to calm down and not let pressure from work, or if I eat something right away. With sleep its different, I try to stick to a normal schedule, if I haven't then I can tell when I wake up I can start to feel a dull thud I know to take something or it will get worse, thankfully it builds up to that and doesn't just occur. I don't think migraines just occur like that they usually start out small then intensify as the day, or problem, like lack of eating goes on. If I get the migraine then I have to vomit to get the stomach acidity out wait awhile then I can take medicine or it won't work. Eating after having a migraine never helps it either. At that point I have lost control and must lay down for awhile, throw up, take meds, get some sleep then think about eating later. Hope this helps... oh and having too much coffee on an empty stomach or chocolate and no food can cause it to flare up.

Answer 3

Migraines can last anywhere from an hour to usually three days. I am migraine prone since my hysterectomy and would get them every 10 - 14 days and end up bed ridden for 3 days with intense pain, nausea, vomiting, along with agony brought on by lights and sounds.

Yes, it is normal for some women...not all experience it though. You, like me, are one of the unlucky ones.

I was in such agony that I finally went to a neurologist. I was not able to take any of the preventative medications as I had severe reactions to all of them. He finally tried an over-the-counter cocktail of meds for me and it has done the trick. I rarely get migraines now and, when I do, they are easily managed with a prescription for relpax.

Feel free to contact me for further information or if you have any questions.