# Kindlers Who Suffer From Migraines



## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

Sometime in the last few days there was a discussion of "barometric pressure migraines" (may have even been part of the weekend chat session) and I can't find it so am starting this thread.  A search revealed an older discussion of fewer migraines since reading on Kindles vs computers, etc., but not the discussion I was looking for.  ANYWAY...a member talked about a chiropractor-recommended combination of OTC medicine specifically for barometric pressure migraines (Sudafed and ESExcedrin maybe) when routine migraine prescriptions are not as effective and that is what I am trying to find.  Lots of stormy weather recently and my head is an excellent predictor of significant drops in barometric pressure (way better than my knees for predicting storms), today being a great example   and I am willing to try a non-prescription remedy next time.  Midrin and Maxalt have the current headache down to manageable, but will leave me slightly (more than usual  ) dopey for the next 24 hours.

I did PM the member I thought it might have been and they got back to me with sympathy/empathy (thanks Linda), but it wasn't her so I thought I'd make the more public plea for information.


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## Reyn (Feb 10, 2009)

I would love this info.  I am having the same problems.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

I think this is the post you are looking for:

http://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,7677.msg159045.html#msg159045

Betsy


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## MAGreen (Jan 5, 2009)

I know Excedrin has the key combo of caffeine and ibuprofen I will often make my own combo with coffee and ibuprofen pills till I knock it out. I know that sudafed can help with sinus headaches and sometimes that can attribute to barometric headaches since it often goes hand in hand with allergy problems.


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

A million thanks Betsy!  That is exactly the conversation I was looking for (how did you find it?).  Also thanks to VictoriaP and rho (on the other thread) for the alternative.  DH is off to the store to pick up some Sudafed now.  I'll let you know if it works for me (fingers crossed)!  Excedrin has always helped because of the combo of Tylenol, aspirin and caffeine, but I imagine adding the Sudafed helps the "pressure" during stormy weather.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Glad it was the one!  As a migraine sufferer, I feel your pain!

As to how I found it, I'm a search engine goddess AND persistent.  

Betsy


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

Betsy the Quilter said:


> Glad it was the one! As a migraine sufferer, I feel your pain!
> 
> As to how I found it, I'm a search engine goddess AND persistent.
> 
> Betsy


What hat do you wear as Search Engine Goddess? Laurel wreath maybe? If I knew how to pull pictures from other sites and post them, I could be dangerous!


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

Betsy


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## sebat (Nov 16, 2008)

Here's what works for me...

I take a Goody with a real Coke.  I need the Coke to cut the taste of the Goody and the extra dose of caffeine helps, too.  I then put on a couple of Icy Hot Patches...one on the back of my neck and one on my forehead.  

I don't know if I'm the one you are referring to but I do remember asking someone if they had tried going to the chiropractor for their migraines.  I had a nurse tell me about the Goody's  I improvised on the rest and it really works for me.  A few friends have tried it and they now swear by it as well.  

Hope you get to feeling better soon.


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## rho (Feb 12, 2009)

sure hope it works for you -- 

btw both hubster and I went to that chiropractor today    My neck finally caught up to me and he did something to his back helping his brother the other day .... so we are both sitting with ice packs right now lol


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## Aravis60 (Feb 18, 2009)

sebat said:


> Here's what works for me...
> 
> I take a Goody with a real Coke. I need the Coke to cut the taste of the Goody and the extra dose of caffeine helps, too.


What's a Goody?


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## VictoriaP (Mar 1, 2009)

Ah--I forgot to add nasal spray onto the "secret recipe".  It will work without it, but nasal spray will speed things up by clearing your sinuses more quickly than the sudafed.

One other trick--a lot of migraines also stem from tension issues in the neck (says she who has one now, LOL).  I use a product from Nature's Sunshine called Tei-Fu--it's a massage lotion that I find a lot more useful than things like Aspercreme or Ben Gay.  Bought my last batch on Amazon, in fact, just be careful to keep an eye on the shipping as some sellers are adding outrageous charges.

I use the Tei-Fu on my neck, shoulders, and up into the hairline at the back of the head.  It's very "minty fresh", so keep it away from your eyes, but it's very effective.

Additionally for anyone who can tolerate the triptan drugs (Imitrex, Maxalt, etc.), sometimes adding Aleve can be effective.  So much so that Glaxo has now released a version of Imitrex that includes naproxen!


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## chevauchee (Mar 29, 2009)

Barometric pressure migraines, definitely [random decongestant on hand] and Excedrine Migraine. If you can, add a bath as hot as you can possibly tolerate and an ice pack on the back of your neck. The hot bath gives you steam (further breaking up congestion) and draws the blood into the body while the ice pack constricts the arteries going into the head (less blood in the head = less pounding).

I do the Excedrine + bath + ice pack for regular migraines as well. Someday I'll buy a house and put a hot tub in so that I don't have to wait for the tub to fill.


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## sebat (Nov 16, 2008)

Aravis60 said:


> What's a Goody?


Goody's are extra strength headache powders. You can usually find them on the bottom shelf in the pain reliever section at Walmart. 
It's acetaminophen, asprin and caffine in a powder form. You pour it on your tongue, leave it as long as you can stand it and then wash it down with something with a lot of flavor to kill the taste...hence the Coke. Diet just doesn't seem to kill it.


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## Betsy the Quilter (Oct 27, 2008)

I always just washed the Goody's down as fast as I could...still worked on my headaches!

Betsy


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## rho (Feb 12, 2009)

sebat said:


> Goody's are extra strength headache powders. You can usually find them on the bottom shelf in the pain reliever section at Walmart.
> It's acetaminophen, asprin and caffine in a powder form. You pour it on your tongue, leave it as long as you can stand it and then wash it down with something with a lot of flavor to kill the taste...hence the Coke. Diet just doesn't seem to kill it.


I've never seen Goody's up here on Long Island - I always figured they were a southern thing  Mainly because everyone who I hear talk about them got them down that way...I could be wrong though - has happened before once or twice


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

Thanks for all the advice everyone!  I have seen Goodys here, but have never paid attention to what it is.  Sounds like crushed up ES Excedrin (sounds like it would taste the same too).  I don't have allergies and don't usually get sinus congestion, but the decongestant to help dry things up when your head is expanding to explosion levels with a barometric migraine makes sense to me.  I don't know if it is the same everywhere, but here in Iowa you have to sign for and get Sudafed and like OTC medications from the pharmacist now (and only allowed 1 box at a time) because they are a main ingredient of meth and people were buying everything available on the shelves.  I didn't try the combo last night because I had already taken quite a bit of prescription meds and didn't want to mix, but I am ready for next time!


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## Anju  (Nov 8, 2008)

One thing I really like about where we live in Mexico, low humidity    That being said I still occasionally get the migraine, and when in Dallas got 'em all the time when the weather changed.  Sudafed and heavy duty caffeine usually work quite well, as well as being quiet in my hammock outside with a cold cloth over my eyes.  Really don't like "medicine" per se, but sometimes you gotta have it.


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## Rhiathame (Mar 12, 2009)

I had some doosies the other week, one that kept me in bed and in the bathroom getting sick for a day or so. Usually treat most of mine with perscriptions, I use Maxalt and also a butalbital/apap/caffine combo, they treat differnt levels of my migraines. The key for me has been avoiding the triggers I can (I avoid lillies and perfume sections of stores at all costs!) but for those wonderful barometric pressure changes that we can't avoid and hit often and awefully in the spring, caffine is always a plus. Since it is a mild painkiller and is also a mild blood thinner it helps on two fronts. I was facing more frequent headaches in recent months so I decided to cut caffine mostly out of my diet so that it would be more effective for combating my migraines when I needed it.

Interestingly enough, I get less headaches since getting my kindle, I think that the grey background help becuase it causes less eye strain for me.


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## chynared21 (Oct 28, 2008)

sebat said:


> Goody's are extra strength headache powders. You can usually find them on the bottom shelf in the pain reliever section at Walmart.
> It's acetaminophen, asprin and caffine in a powder form. You pour it on your tongue, leave it as long as you can stand it and then wash it down with something with a lot of flavor to kill the taste...hence the Coke. Diet just doesn't seem to kill it.


*Sounds nasty but similar to something my grandmother used to prepare for me when I was a kid and was always getting headaches. It was a powder with a pinkish tint to it that came in a vial and she used to mix it with a tablespoon of warm water. I hated the stuff but it worked...I forget the name of it but it was some sort of Chinese medicine.

Another thing that grandma used to do that worked was to take a hand of ginger and char it over a flame. She then wrapped it in a tea towel and made me lie down and placed it on my forehead. For some strange reason that always worked in combination with the pink powder.*


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## Linda Cannon-Mott (Oct 28, 2008)

Goody's and a Coke work for me also. Standback powder if I don't have a Goodys.


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## crebel (Jan 15, 2009)

Looked for Goodys at Wal-Mart today and could not find any, may be at the Mom & Pop pharmacy (I wonder if crushing ES-Excedrin would be the same and it would start working faster because you don't have to wait for it to dissolve).  What is Standback powder?


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## Aravis60 (Feb 18, 2009)

Thanks for the info! I will have to look for it the next time I am at the store.


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## sebat (Nov 16, 2008)

I had a hard time finding them, too. The box design doesn't stand out very well on the shelf. The cool orange must be something new. I've not tried that one before.

 

I don't know why I didn't think of this before. Amazon sells just about everything.


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## Mollyb52 (Jan 4, 2009)

I get migraines.  I used to work for a Nurse Practitioner and I told her I did not like the Rx migraine meds and she suggested I try Tylenol, caffeine and sugar.  The combination can be your preference.  Sometimes I use regular coke, (I like diet..regular tastes like medicine to me but it has to have sugar), and Tylenol.  Sometimes I use a mocha coffee and Tylenol.  Sometimes I use black coffee, a piece of chocolate and Tylenol.  If you can escape to a quiet dimly lit place for a half and hour or so it is even better.


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## Angela (Nov 2, 2008)

Mollyb52 said:


> I get migraines. I used to work for a Nurse Practitioner and I told her I did not like the Rx migraine meds and she suggested I try Tylenol, caffeine and sugar. The combination can be your preference. Sometimes I use regular coke, (I like diet..regular tastes like medicine to me but it has to have sugar), and Tylenol. Sometimes I use a mocha coffee and Tylenol. Sometimes I use black coffee, a piece of chocolate and Tylenol. If you can escape to a quiet dimly lit place for a half and hour or so it is even better.


That is pretty much what I do, except I take Excedrin instead of Tylenol. Then I go to bed in a dark room and cover my head so that the air I am breathing is warmer. For some reason the warm air seems to help as well.


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## Aravis60 (Feb 18, 2009)

sebat said:


> I had a hard time finding them, too. The box design doesn't stand out very well on the shelf. The cool orange must be something new. I've not tried that one before.
> 
> 
> 
> I don't know why I didn't think of this before. Amazon sells just about everything.


Thanks for the link. Now if I can't find it at the store, I can order it from Amazon.


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