Some people find caffeine to be an effective migraine abortive because it constricts the blood vessels in your brain–like a triptan–and thus stops the vasodilation that produces an attack. However, if overused or consumed daily, it can lead to rebound. This is why people often get headaches when they quit drinking caffeine cold turkey–the normally constricted blood vessels dilate even further when the drug leaves your system, causing pain. So for those of us with chronic migraine, using caffeine or other abortives that cause rebound is generally a bad idea. Personally, I find I cannot tolerate a single cup of coffee–even decaf–when I am stuck in a chronic migraine cycle. It only adds fuel to the fire and makes my dizziness and anxiety significantly worse. Preventative meds are a much better option because they stabilize the brain over time.
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