September 2006 - The Migraineur

The Migraineur

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The Migraineur - September 2006

Migraines - a wine whine!

September 30th 2006 21:19

Red wine if often a trigger for migraines. I personally find that a glass of red wine can send me of into HeadButt land in about an hour or so.

This is a real bummer because I really love the stuff, much more than white wine, and it is so much better for you than white wine is (expect for the migraine part, of course!)

According to one source, it is the tannins in red wine that cause the migraine. Tannins bind to starches when being digested and it is these starches that are used to produce seratonin. Migraines are caused, in part, by a lack of seratonin.

The disturbing thing is that tannins are very high in tea, but I don't see any tea warnings for migraine sufferers.

The Alaska Science forum blames the migraines on phenolic flavanoids (another name for tannins).

They say: One account of the experiment suggested that some of the phenolic flavanoids in red wines become part of the sediment that forms as the wine ages, and that migraine sufferers might be able to tolerate well-aged and carefully decanted red wines even though they could not safely drink young, rough, red wines with all of their flavanoids intact. Again, this idea has not really been tested.

So I think I need to step up to the plate and test this out, at least for myself.

Maybe then I can have a little less whine with my cheese, and a little more wine!

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Posted By: Julia - Category: No Category

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Chronic Illness Week

September 30th 2006 03:35

Check out the sick meter!

Unfortunately I was overseas when it was chronic illness week. I always seem to miss these things!

One of the articles on the chronic illness website had the following quote: "Living with an invisible chronic illness can mean constantly trying to redefine your condition. We can't keep up with the rest of the world, and yet the world sees no excuse for our lack of participation."

I'm really feeling that this week. I'm jetlagged like you wouldn't believe, yet back at work and trying desperately to catch up, get un-packed from the trip, clean the house because the step-kids are coming over this weekend, get my taxes done on time, work out strategies to foil the evil plans of the psycho ex-wife etc. etc etc and etc etc etc some more. I'm exhausted, and I just want to sleep, not do all this other stuff that other people think I should be doing, things that if I was healthy, I would be doing.

One day I hope they can invent a simple "sick meter" that I can carry around and show people - "hey look at this gizmo! I really AM sick!"

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Posted By: Julia - Category: No Category

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The Great Migraine Drug race

September 29th 2006 05:21

At the moment there are a number of new migraine and tension headache drugs that are close to being released as drug producers race to the finish line to get their lastest concoction out to the buying public.

Although I don't like taking medication for migraines and head pain, and prefer to treat them naturally, I do believe there is a place for drug therapy - firstly for people who are only just starting to get symptoms. In this case, I believe drugs need to be used for pain control until other methods are found, triggers are uncovered etc. Secondly, medication should be a last resort when all else has failed. Although I don't like drugs, I believe it's worth taking a look every so often as to what is out on the market.

So what new drugs are about to hit the market?

Trexima, a combination of Imitrex migraine drug and naproxen sodium, approved and available by the fall int he US. Trexima is used when experiencing acute pain.

TOPAMAX® is approved in the UK as a treatment for epilepsy. More recently, TOPAMAX® has been approved for migraine prophylaxis in 41 countries. Topamax is a preventative and needs to be taken daily.

Zolmitriptan nasal spray, used to treat migraine headaches, also may be safe and effective in treating painful cluster headaches, according to an article posted online today that will appear in the November 2006 print issue of Archives of Neurology, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.

MAP Pharmaceuticals recently announced the initiation and first patient dosing of a Phase 2 clinical trial evaluating MAP0004 for the treatment of acute migraine headaches. MAP0004 is a novel inhaled drug formulation of dihydroergotamine mesylate (DHE) administered with MAP's patented Tempo(TM) Inhaler. The therapy is intended to offer fast onset of action similar to an IV infusion, but without the need for an injection in a hospital or doctor's office setting.

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Posted By: Julia - Category: No Category

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What does a migraine look like? - migraine art!

September 29th 2006 00:57

migraine art

One of the problems with chronic migraines is there very few physical symptoms to see, and the experience can be hard to put into words.

I found 4,363 photos about "headache" on flickr.com, and some of them definitely represent life in the HeadZone

[ Click here to read more ]

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Posted By: Julia - Category: No Category

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Product Review: Migrastick

September 19th 2006 05:03

Well this one is a beauty. It's basically a purse-sized roll-on of essential oils of lavender and peppermint. I've been using it for a while now and I'd have to say it's fantastic, especially for warding off acute headaches.

Theory is that before a migraine starts, seratonin levels drop and it's that, in part, that causes the vascular dilation that leads to an increased bloodflow to the brain - causing the familiar swelling and pain

[ Click here to read more ]

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Posted By: Julia - Category: No Category

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Please sign the petition to have Migraines properly recognised

September 15th 2006 05:02

Please sign the petition located here.

Migraines are a debilitating disease for some people, making them unable to function in their everyday lives, let alone work. But in most states, migraines are not considered a disability. Even when the migraneur is suffering from daily migraines, and cannot get out of the bed for days at a time, there is no help, financially, for the sufferer. Because, according to the Government, "headaches" are not a disability

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Posted By: Julia - Category: No Category

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A 'normal' life.. with migraines?

September 6th 2006 02:55

The problem with being away from home is that you are not in control of your envrionment and can't control your headache triggers. And on the loose triggers means on the loose headaches and migraines.

There is a big difference between headaches and migraines, they are not the same thing, although for some poor sods, like me, you can get both of them and they overlap. A migraine is considered an "episode" or an "attack" because alot of the symptoms have nothing to do with head pain, headache pain is just one o fthe many symptoms that may be present in a migraine attack, and some folks have migraine attacks without having a headache at all. They may still get the migraine aura, the dizzyness and the nausea, but miss out on the headache compontent altogether

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Posted By: Julia - Category: No Category

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Travel tips for migraine sufferers

September 3rd 2006 02:47

If you are anything like me (i.e. you suffer migraines) you'll find that holidays can cause a whole heap of problems you never anticipated. How do I know this? I'm sitting here in my hotel room with a cold compress on the back of my neck, headached-out on holiday.

As all migraineurs know, it's all in the triggers. Triggers, for the uninitiated, are those things that set your noggin off on that personal road to hell known as a migraine. Triggers can be anything from strawberries, to margueritas, to flashing lights to stress and sleeplessness

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Posted By: Julia - Category: No Category

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November 2006

6 Posts

October 2006

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September 2006

8 Posts