Posted by Ken (158.138.192.200) on December 30, 1999 at 07:12:37:
It’s been a long time since I’ve posted on this site. I’ve popped in and out a few times over the last 2 years but things were too political for me then. It looks like this site is getting its act together again. That makes me happy!
Typically my headaches come in the evening around 8 then again early in the morning between 1 and 3. I always get them in the winter (2 weeks into a cycle now) and sometimes in the summer around June. I’ve been on Imitrex for 7 or 8 years now. I was wondering if those of you lucky enough to have Imitrex at their disposal were using it in the same manner and having the same results?
When do you take the shot? I’ve found that if I take it too early I will surely get a rebound headache a couple of hours later so I wait until nasal congestion starts. Also, if I take it at the first sign of a headache I go from a 1 to an 8 within the first 5 minutes after taking the shot. Typically it’s completely gone within 10-15 minutes afterwards.
How much medicine do you use? I’m using 2 mg (1/3 shot) and it always gets rid of the headache sooner or later. This is my 2nd year using 1/3 dosage. It’s great because I don’t feel paranoid about overdosing. On the other hand, some of the techniques I’ve used in the past are not effective anymore (cold air, water). I think now that I know relief is just 10 minutes away I don’t have the patience anymore.
Does alcohol increase the amount of time it takes to get rid of the headache? I usually make this mistake once each cycle. I think, “What the hell, I’m going to get a HA anyway.” I had a margarita Christmas Eve. It took 40 minutes to get rid of the headache after taking the shot. 30 minutes of that was at a 10 level.
Where do you inject? I tend to favor my left arm at the shoulder. I’ve tried other areas but seem to have the best results in the left arm (probably because I’m right handed). I wonder if I’m destroying the tissue in that area?
Have you ever had a bad headache and injected, only to have the headache go away within seconds? A few times I’ve taken a shot after being sure it was going to be a bad one only to have it go away after less than 2 minutes. It surely couldn’t have been the Imitrex????
I’ve noticed that I always grab the back of my neck during a headache. During the last two headaches I noticed the muscle on the left side (pain side) was tenser than my right side. I tried to ‘flatten or relax’ the muscle by massaging it while I was waiting for the Imitrex to kick in. Coincidentally, the headache went away quickly with much less pain both times.
I just had a headache about 2 hours ago and these questions were on my mind while I was waiting for the pain to go away. They made sense at the time, not so sure now but I’ll send it anyway.
Ken