My 11-year-old daughter is having migraines!

by cruzanheart 36 Replies latest jw friends

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  jgnat

  My sympathies. My son suffered for years. We went through all the rounds of possible treatments, forbidden foods, etc. The quiet, dark room is great for recovery.

  There are new meds that can stop a migraine in it's tracks if it is taken at onset. Check out the latest with your doctor. The list of forbidden foods that might trigger an attack included tomatoes, old cheese, and MSG. Try cooking a pasta dinner or a stew around that!

  My son's final favorite cure was to over-hydrate himself. He would carry around a two liter bottle of water and chug it down. Now when I get my monthly headache, I do the same. It works like a charm!

  But then again, every migraine sufferer is different. Try limiting the diet. Try drinking more water. Get some ideas from your doctor. Observe. Do what works.
• 

  jgnat

  Ouch, Big Tex! My sympathies for you as well. Lay low.
• 

  Frannie Banannie

  one of these days I'm going to hit menopause with the force of an 18-wheeler into a concrete wall

  Amen to that, Nina! And just remind 'em. Paybacks are hell! LOLOL!

  Frannie
• 

  upside/down

  My daughter suffers the same...as does my wife...

  Sorry...

  u/d (of the understands class)

  p.s.- find a specialist...and watch the diet.
• 

  Mecurious?

  I guess in addition to what everyone else said. Might want to also check out this:

  Foods that may trigger migraines Aged, canned, cured or processed meat, including bologna, game, ham, herring, hot dogs, pepperoni and sausage Aged cheese Alcoholic beverages, especially red wine Aspartame Avocados Beans, including pole, broad, lima, Italian, navy, pinto and garbanzo Brewer's yeast, including fresh yeast coffee cake, donuts and sourdough bread Caffeine (in excess) Canned soup or bouillon cubes Chocolate, cocoa and carob Cultured dairy products, such as buttermilk and sour cream Figs Lentils Meat tenderizer Monosodium glutamate (MSG) Nuts and peanut butter Onions, except small amounts for flavoring Papaya Passion fruit Pea pods Pickled, preserved or marinated foods, such as olives and pickles, and some snack foods Raisins Red plums Sauerkraut Seasoned salt Snow peas Soy sauce

  Tips on reducing the pain

  • Lie down in a dark, quiet room.
  • Put a cold compress or rag over your forehead.
  • Massage your scalp using a lot of pressure.
  • Put pressure on your temples

  M'
• 

  LyinEyes

  ((((((Nina))))) Sorry for all your troubles, didn't you just have foot surgery? I had that proceedure on both of my feet when I was 16, and then when I was 17. I am way over due to have it done again, but it put me down for 6 months at a time and I will wait , you know it is never a good time for Mom to be laid up, lol.

  About the migraines,,,,,,,I started having them at the age of 9 and by the time I was 12,,,,,they came more regularly. My Mom had them worse than anyone I have ever seen. She would be sick with a headache for 3 days, throwing up, crying, and would end up having to go get more shots at the ER. The migraines were the reason she got addicted to pain pills and when she had one after getting off (briefly) of the pills she would try to hold out and not get a narcotic shot. She always ended up having to get the shot .

  I havent had to have a shot for a migraine since I left the borg three years ago. I still get a migraine about every three months but they are not as painful as they used to be. Weird huh?

  My oldest son has migraines too and mood swings when they hit. He doesnt get them that often anymore, but when he does, I give him Benedryl, Motrin and get him in a cool dark room with a fan blowing on him. I find that is what works for me as well.

  I have heard that taking extra calcium and magnesieum ( sp ) helps some people with headaches.

  Keep us posted on how Jennie is doing, hugs and tell Chris hi for me.
• 

  damselfly

  Ooops! I forgot this in the first two posts. Meds didn't do squat for me, but a nice cold gel pack from the freezer ( wrapped in a dry towel or cloth ) placed on my forehead or base of my skull helped. It constricts the blood vessels to help drain the congestion from the area.

  http://www.moorspa.com/tension_balm.html This product really works for me and is all natural ingredients. Peppermint and feverfew are the main ones. I know that it is a bit pricey but it lasts forever, I think that I've had mine for 3-4 months, use it about every 2 weeks and have barely made a dent in it. If you want to try and avoid meds because of her age you might want to give it a try.

  Damselfly
• 

  Joyzabel

  sorry to hear it Nina. But you just starting with the puberty thing! lol

  Yes, dark room, cold compress to the neck and feet in the hottest water they can stand diverts the blood away from the spasming blood vessels in the head.

  for Jenny
• 

  Elsewhere

  *** Tip-Toes in ***

  (Hope she feels better)

  *** Tip-Toes back out ***
• 

  cruzanheart

  GREAT advice, everyone -- thanks. I'm going to print out this thread and keep a copy around. Jennie had a donut for breakfast this morning, so that might have started it off, though she had one yesterday and it didn't bother her. I'll see what the doctor says and see if we can see a pattern to them. A combination of decongestant, muscle relaxer or tranquilizer, and Advil used to kind of help me, but I'm not sure I had true migraines. Mom did, though, and just like your mother, Dede! She'd throw up for a few days and end up in the ER on an IV. This was in St. Croix, so the ER crew naturally assumed she was an alcoholic like most of the other white people on the island, so they were very nice to the kid who was swinging her legs on a chair in the waiting room. One night I remember the doctor came to the house to give Mom painkiller shots and he had to come two or three times (which annoyed him because he was at a VERY important party at the time -- he went on to become Governor of the Virgin Islands a couple of years after that), and I think he OD'd her because I remember her standing up in the bed waving a knife and yelling that she was going to kill herself. Nice memories.

  As for Chris:

  >looks for place to hide<

  He's the only sane one in the house right now, poor darling!

  Nina