Migraine before bowel movement

[kolet22]

I am 24 and have been having Migraines for 2 years now. It started with the worst migraine I have ever had, non stop vomiting and delirium followed by a trip to the ER with CAT scan, MRI of my brain, and blood tests. All came back normal. After that I would get Migraines 1-4 times a week, severely effecting my work ability. I soon started seeing a neurologist that tried me on a variety of medicines including amitriptyline, nortriptyline, Depakote, and Topamax, and a blood pressure medication I forgot the name of. Nothing worked and I had horrible side effects to Topamax. 6 months ago she started me on Lyrica and I have been down to about one migraine a month. It has been a godsend!
Suddenly over the last 4 weeks I have been having a lot of headaches and a few migraines that all seem to happen about 15 minutes before I need to have a bowel movement. As soon as I start to get the headache, I can also feel that stool is being moved down, but I will not actually be able to have a bowel movement for several minutes after the headache starts. Also during this time I have been very irregular in the frequency and consistency of my stool. It has been softer than normal (though not diarrhea) even though I feel constipated at times. The headache will get much worse if I am unable to make a bowel movement immediately. For example my ride to work and back is one hour long and I am often unable to stop due to traffic. By the time I get to work it is a full blown Migraine, but as soon as I make a bowel movement the Migraine is gone within minutes. I feel like my stool is toxic and my body wants it out immediately.  
Some other random background info: I am a vegetarian (have been for 9 years) and have had no change to my diet recently. The only dairy product I consume is cheese.

[pomme401]

Kolet.
I am 50 and have been having the same experience for several years now. I get migraine headaches (relieved with sumatriptin).  The headaches improve after a bowel movement. The way you describe it is exactly how I experience it.  Last year I did some thorough googling on it and ran across an article or post that talked about serotonin reuptake inhibitors being stimulated/released during bowel movements.  If this is true, this may be an explanation for any migraine headache relief you may feel after a bowel movement.
Currently, I am suffering with a sinus headache and am having the same expereince of relief after BM.  I am also eating a mostly vegetarian diet (since about 2 months ago), but had the same experience when eating a regular diet as well.
Please post if you learn anything more about this.
Thank you

[Dr Santos]

Hi,
How are you? This could also be due to exertion headaches which present with generalized head pain of short duration during or following physical exertion such as running, jumping, and even sexual intercourse.This can also occur with passive exertion like sneezing, coughing, or bowel movements.  Check with your doctor for proper evaluation. Migraine medications taken prior to bowel movement may help. Take care and do keep us posted.