Hi Nabeel,
Oh great I just typed this all out, hit the wrong button and it all erased! Let’s see if I can hit all the points again…
I have only just today started with B2 and Cq10 as they arrived in the mail. We shall see if they make any difference.
Butterbur/fevervew combo was recommended by a neuro and have been on it 4 or 5 weeks. Seems to be helping, I have only had dizziness & headache when I had caffeine and food triggers for 2 days in a row. The thing that has improved drastically since taking the butterbur combo is my depth perception I had almost zero when I started it. Fractal vision has also improved. Also seems to help ear fullness a little bit so far. And, I had good luck with feverfew many years ago when I had ‘classic’ migraines.
Gingko I just started again Tuesday, it’s helped in the past with the tinnitus. I only stopped taking it when I got sick this year, not knowing if I should take it. Also, to be honest, I couldn’t think straight back then to save my life. Had difficulty remembering what day it was, let alone to take vitamins & such. Fingers crossed it will work again I hate tinnitus so much.
STJ I just started Tuesday; had luck in the past many years ago for mild to moderate depression. I can’t tolerate anti depressants anymore & I never would have thought of it for dizziness until dx early this year, reading Heal you Headache and finding this forum. I take only 2 doses as I still take 5htp at night and want to be sure I do not get serotonin syndrome as they warn about; there are several combo tablets I have seen that have both SJW and 5htp in them so I am not too scared.
I have taken 5htp for several months it seems to help anxiety. I looked at University of Maryland Medical School & found 400mg of 5htp listed. I will only take that if I drop the SJW.
I have taken magnesium supplements at different times over the years, and also take epsom salts baths. Helps people who yawn all the time, not sure why, and you should see how fast my fingernails grow.
One of the best sleep aid tablets I ever took had melatonin and valerian in it. I cannot find this brand anymore, so I take separate melatonin and valerian caps at night it helps me sleep wonderfully. Have been using it for insomnia off and on for years.
The L Tyrosine I take for a slow thyroid. In combo with kelp (iodine) I have successfully kept myself off of thyroid meds over the years. I have blood drawn almost every year to check this and other things, and when it was drawn in February it showed my thyroid had been slowing down. Initially I took a product from Now foods that combines kelp and L Tyrosine with other things (b6???) but I couldn’t find it recently so I just picked up the L Tyrosine. I already had some kelp caps so I take them both. It is something that, again, I have used for years off and on that has helped & bloodwork proves it. Plus of course I feel better. Probably I shouldn’t list it on my signature as it is not migraine specific, much like I don’t list the multivitamin I take & extra C.
So far I have had nothing but bad luck trying the meds for migraine prevention. I am, and always have been, very med sensitive. Much more so than even other members of my family. Even with the Valium and Xanax that I am prescribed, I still need less than most people to get a good result. Most of the time; we all have those days when we couldn’t walk without Valium.
As far as what is working? Well as I said I have just started some of these things like the B2 but I can say that my entire adult life I have felt better when I take a B50 or B100 supplement 2 times a day. So that may be an indicator that the B2 is good for my migraine brain. Butterbur/feverfew combo, like I said seems to be working. Neuro said 4-6 weeks.
I agree at the end of the day, they are both ‘medicines’ and if the migraine specific ones don’t work I’ll chuck 'em.
Another issue I need to overcome is that I have no insurance, and no way to see the specialist that my doc consulted with re the butterbur combo, or any doc for that matter. Hopefully I will be well enough to go back to work in 3 weeks and then if I am not nearer to 90% go to the doc again.
As far as how far am I now? It is hard to judge. I don’t tend to wake up spinning anymore, so that’s good. Depth perception and fractal vision are better. Don’t spend my entire day rocking. However my brain is still fuzzy. Better in the last 6 weeks or so but nowhere near what I am capable of. And the fatigue is horrendous. So I am better than 50%, but not 90% plus that I want to be. I need to function fairly well at work, at least 75% minimum; lots of brainwork and public contact that exhausts me. My job is a cause of stress to me and I am looking to change it so hopefully, that will help me get to where I need to be.