Posted by Joy (208.170.183.128) on September 23, 1999 at 13:58:52:
I have had migraines for years....3 days at a time often related to "that time of the month". CT scan ok; MRI shows poss arteriovenous malformation...most recent MRI does not show AVM? The headache pain had always been on the L side...where this AVM? is. Nothing ever worked well or for a decent length of time...huge quanities of asprin or any other over the counter stuff didn't touch it. Had fiornal off & on for a while; helped sometimes. Went to the doc re headaches a number of years ago, prescribed Corgard which I took quite a while but with not much help. Tried Midrin without success. Then tried Elavil as a preventative..thought it helped but still got headaches. For a while had Stadol, which helped & they kept refilling until "you can't have any more." Tried various antidepressants, many side effects/ not much relief. Now on wellbutrin...imitrex used to help during an attack but insurance would not pay for shots, pill or nasal spray worked sometimes during an attack but the headache kept coming back. Tried zomig with some success. New doc added Elavil again. I have allergies & mild asthma and use inhaled allergy/asthma meds. But the nature of the headache is now different.....often awakened between 1-3 AM with severe pain, use ice, no meds seem to help, and this can last a week or so. I feel severe pain around my L eye, often in the center of L eyebrow, & the L eye is bloodshot. Does this sound like a mix of migraine & cluster headaches? It almost feels better to press on the areas that hurt....this does not seem to make sense. Any thoughts or ideas would be appreciated....thanks!