Amitriptyline for Chronic Daily Headache+ Migraines?

[Trixx123]

Hi everyone,
I have had a continuous headache and at least 8 migraine attacks for the past three weeks. They feel more like spasms shooting up from the back of my head, sometimes pulsates, sometimes jabs, sometimes involve eye pain, and alternates between both sides of my head. I am waiting for an appointment to see a neurologist so in the meantime I just keep going to my family doctor. I had a CT scan without contrast at the hospital, showed nothing, so they gave me IV of a muscle relaxant + anti-nauseant and sent me home.

Tried so far: tramacet (tramadol+tylenol), naproxen, advil, tylenol, tylenol + codeine+ caffeine and imitrex. Nothing has worked.

So my doc prescribed Amitriptyline (elavil). I started at 10mg for 7 days and I am now taking 20mg and it is day 10. Headache pain still here (some spasms throughout the day). The drowsiness and dry mouth side effect I can handle but it seems to have increased my heart rate and increased my anxiety (leading to a few panic attacks) as well.

My question is: has anyone tried Amitriptyline and it worked? how long does it take to work and at what dosage? I am just concerned that the anxiety is being caused by Amit. and I don't want to keep taking it if it does not work. Also if I keep taking it, and it does not work, then I will have to deal with the withdrawal symptoms. Please help, I need advise. :(

[sara12345]

If the Amitiptyline does not work, then try other daily preventative migraine medications.  A variety of those meds did not work for me, except Petadolex that can be purchased online DID help me.  But with exceptionally severe, 24/7 migraines caused by a major stroke, I have needed far more.  

And to the rest of you, you can get Botox injections if you have not been helped by the daily meds and have migraines at least 15 days a month.  The Botox has helped me the most.  Also I get nerve block and trigger point injections which also help me a lot.  Plus I have physical therapy exercises which help to loosen up my tight muscles in my neck and shoulders which contribute to the migraines.

So there is a lot of help out there.  You all take care.

Sara

[sarainadream]

Hi again,
It's been a month since I last posted so I have been on amitrip. for almost 7 weeks. I started out feeling exhausted on only the 10 mg and even worse by the time I got to 30 mg. I noticed at the four week point that the headaches were reduced and I was not having migraines. Last week, so week 6, headaches started again. I still have them this week everyday; a stabbing pain on one side of my head. No migraines however for a couple of weeks. Still feel tired but not as badly; definitely have dry mouth all of the time. I have been sleeping ever since I have been taking it and I was not before. My skin is also much more sensitive to the sun. My neurologist advised me to not take pain killers since I will just get used to them and get rebounds. Pre-medication I was taking 4-6 extra strength Tylenol a day. Since the medication, I have taken 1 Advil sporadically when I cannot work through the headache. For the past 2 months I have kept a headache diary and have cut out alcohol, caffeine, fatty foods and have been drinking much more water. I also started taking magnesium.
I see the neurologist next week for a check-up.

[BouncingBella]

Thank you for sharing this experience, it is very helpful.  

[sarainadream]

Hi all,
I am currently on amitrip. for migraines. I had daily headaches for several months. For several days in a row, I would also feel nausea, dizziness, and very weak. I tried extra strength Tylenol, Gravol, allergy meds, going to the chiro (to treat vertigo and to make sure it was not a neck problem) and the eye doctor. After seeing my doctor three times and having blood work done (all fine) he sent me to a neurologist. I saw one 4 years back and had an MRI which was fine, so I was then diagnosed with chronic headaches that were made worse by bad posture/stress.

Flash to now, I not only had the one-sided headaches again but the feeling of general unwellness was driving me crazy. My equilibrium felt totally off and I wondered if I had labrinthitis on top of my headaches.
My neurologist did his tests and after hearing me out (how I did not notice a pattern in the headaches, that some days were better than others, could not find a trigger, etc). diagnosed me with migraines. He reminded me that they don't always come with a headache, as I argued that sometimes the symtoms were worse than the headache pain. He told me to lay off on the painkillers and to start with 10mg of amit, then 20mg, then 30mg.

The first week I slept like a rock which was great; my sleep had been terrible for months as the headaches would burn in bed, and I would get terrible anxiety and feel sick. Second week I also slept well, but noticed the tiredness right away. I have now almost been on it a month and my headaches are back. I still feel dizzy as well. I was hoping with time the meds would kick in and help with the symptoms, but now I dont know what is me and what is the meds, since their side effects can be dizziness, fast heart rate, fatigue, etc.
I see the neurologist again in a month and a half, likely to see how I am doing with the meds. I am going to give it another week or two but if I feel the same I may ask to be given something that actually deals with the pain and does not cause dizziness since I already feel off. Fatigue is also hard to deal with, even after getting a long night's sleep.

[edyta_blaszczyk]

I am 35 years old female with diagnosed 4 years ago Cluster Headaches symptoms. My GP prescribed sumatriptan tablets and a spray to try whatever best worked for me. We started off with 50mg but 2 years ago I have asked for 100mg and if not too severe headache I would half the tablet and take only 50mg. My headaches were really bad with symptoms such as: waking up in pain in the middle of the night, pain in the back of my eye, pain in my neck, watering of the eye; a runny and bunged-up nose; constriction of the pupil in the eye; and absolute photofobia - I would refuse to have the curtains open until the pain was gone.
The headaches appeared out of the blue. Once a month or twice a month and would last between 24-72hours at the time. I kept a diet diary and tested myself for chocolate, wheat, milk & cheese intolerance. Staying away from chocolate does help a lot to lengthen the period between the attacks but the headaches do still occur. I have recently been to my GP to report that migraines occur with unusual regularity linked to my period: I have cluster-headache symptoms 2 or 3 days before my period, every month. I continue taking sumatriptan which always help - not the nasal spray (it never worked for me) but the tablet but I have now asked my GP to investigate further the change of the pattern - she is referring me to neurologist (awaiting appointment) and meantime she asked me to take amitriptyline 10mg every night 3 hours before bedtime. I am starting it tonight.

Also, I have 1 sister, 2 years younger than me. She started suffering from migraines when she turned 30, too. Sumatriptan had awful side effects on her such as feeling nausea, dizziness, tiredness and heart palpitation - she continues with cocadamol and ginger tea but her headaches last a lot longer than mine and she hasn't been able to find a medication that relieves her pain like sumatripan does in my case. The only time she was free of those migraines was the whole pregnancy.

We also wear kitten heels and flat shoes rather than high heels - wearing high heels for 3 or 4 consecutive days guaranteed a headache the next day.

[mary607]

i was on amitiptyline for 2 years then it stopped working and my headaches actually got worse. i have tried a zillion meds nothing worked but verapamil. i get the aura and stroke symptoms with my migraines. do you have a PFO? its a hole in your heart. the test for it is called a TEE. a lot of people who have migraines have this. closing it can actually help your headaches. did for me on top of verapamil.

http://www.pfodoctor.org/    - you may want to read about it.

hope you all feel better and get the relief i did. :)