I was recently diagnosed with MAV and was referred to this forum by my doctor (Dr. Rauch). I was reading through some of the posts here, trying to get more information on this sickness and I have some questions, I’m hoping that some of you may answer.
Does MAV goes away on its own someday, or is it something you have for the rest of yourlife?
Does it get worse with time (years)?
Does taking antidepressants for it means suffering side effects? Do any of you take an antidepressant and don’t have any side effects?
I am sorry if I’m repeating some of the older posts…
(my story - had mild to mod depression for past 4 years, but managed it without meds. A year ago, had my baby number 2 and was hit with MAV which seem to have ups and downs. So far i tried celexa (really bad nausea), paxil (before i was diagnosed with MAV) (nausea), effexor (insomnia). Now Dr. Rauch asked me if I would like a tricyclic but I’m scared of the side effects. With SSRIs I experienced them on low doses immediately, its like my body really wants nothing to do with them)
Hi Tanya! Sorry you had to join us here. This forum is an amazing support group though! I’ve learned more here than through my actual doctor about MAV.
There have been some success stories of MAV. I’ve been told that migraine (I guess meaning MAV) stays with you throughout your entire life. But I feel optimistic that everyone can find a medication that is right for them and get at least some relief or maybe even 100%. Everyone is different. Don’t ever lose hope if you start trying medications. It may take a while to find the one that is right for you. It can be disheartening at first. That’s where this forum comes in, very supportive. For me I went a few years without medication and tried doing things the natural way and now have developed extreme anxiety and I think it is so bad because I didn’t take any medication for it. I’m going back to my doctor thursday to ask for either klonopin or valium. I have tried taking Xanax (very low dose) and don’t care for it. It worked about 50% of the time and made me extremely tired. I have also tried Lexapro and felt like my heart was going to jump out of my chest. But like I said everyone is different. I’ve heard klonopin and valium are much better than Xanax but not sure how my body will react. I’m medicine sensitive so it’s scary for me to try things but I have learned that there will be medicines I can and cannot tolerate. You have to try before you will know.
Does MAV goes away on its own someday, or is it something you have for the rest of yourlife?
Does it get worse with time (years)?
Does taking antidepressants for it means suffering side effects? Do any of you take an antidepressant and don’t have any side effects?
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Yes, sometimes spontaneous or gradual remission occurs (has happened for me many times).
It changes - can get worse, can get better, symptoms can change.
Depends - on you and on the med. Most side effects, for most people settle within the first couple of weeks. If they are intolerable you can switch to another med.
What are your current symptoms? I had a hard time with Lexapro as well but found the Tricyclics to be easier to tolerate. Dr. Rauch is supposedly one of the best, so you should be in good hands.
Thank you everyone for you responces!!! (I had a crazy couple of weeks so couldn’t get to this board right away)
JBankston - you are right, everyone should be optimistic and I’m very happy that this board is here for that!! I hope you will find your right medication too!! let me know if you do!
Victoria - thank you. I guess I was hoping that this is a temporary event. I see that its not.
Kelley - my symptoms with this migraine? Dizziness/vertigo. (and nausea because of that) Hard to read anything/concentrate my eyes on smth, have to only look straight, walking is a problem too (due to balance).
I picked up my tricyclics. But since everything eased up for time being (my migraine state goes up for a month or two and then down for a month or two) i’m going to wait until its bad again, makes it easier to accept some side effects and makes me more determined…
Tanya
Which tricyclics did he prescribe? How is your sleep?
You might want to try a natural route and pick up some 5htp for serotonin and I would try promethazine for the nausea/ dizziness. There is a book called simply “5HTP” you could pick up cheap. Both of these things are a conservative approach and I’ve incorporated both of them in my daily use.
Good luck!
Ps
You need a prescription for promethazine, but it’s an antihistamine so most doctors shouldn’t have a problem.
