PrairieDog

Okay, here's what occurred to me this morning while I was laid low with a migraine: I almost always get them on the weekend. It occurred to me because I was missing out on working in the garden and I had looked forward to it all week, and then I realized that I can't recall ever missing a minute of work because of a migraine.

It's not the red wine I had last night, because I have red wine on weeknights, too.

It's probably not the extra cup of tea on the weekend mornings, since I often wake up with the migraine.

Maybe there is some subtle shift in my sleep pattern that is triggering them?

Anyone else have the "weekend migraine" phenomenon? Any ideas? I really hate to lose five or six hours of play time to this...

The Weak Link

Do you "sleep in" on weekends? That might trigger them.

stapfam

Don't have the weekend Migraine- but have to be carefull on Mondays as I do get a bit heady in the late afternoons. It often turns into a Migraine in the evening. Weekends are full of gardening- riding and sitting for a couple of hours in front of the TV watching the recordings of Cycling- F1 or Moto GP. Never find time to watch them live.

PrairieDog

No, I get up between 4 and 5, usually. I am wondering if I go to bed a little later, though. More to do on Friday and Saturday nights. Maybe that's what is throwing me off a bit...I should start making notes, I guess.

East Hill

Do you drink a lot of coffee, or have a large caffeine intake during the week? And do you cut back on these items during the weekend?

East Hill

robtown

I don't know about migraines but caffeine tends to help headaches. Dehydration can also cause headaches.

BengeBoy 

+1

Make sure your caffeine intake on weekend mornings is similar to what you do during the week.

PrairieDog

Hmmm, I was going to say it was the same on weekends--but then I remembered that I don't have my usual afternoon iced tea on Saturdays and Sundays...

Another possibility to track.

DaveMc

I went almost 4 months getting a migraine every Sat morning. Once I started getting up exactly the same time as the rest of the week and eating right away they stopped.

Also, do you do or eat anything different on Friday evenings?

Now if I could find a way not to get Migraines after strenuous bike rides.

referee54

I do not get migraines; but occasionally I do get "cluster headaches." They are similar, though---I found that sleep patterns had a great deal to do with getting them. If slept in too much or did not get enough sleep, I could feel one coming on. I try to keep my sleep pattern the same throughout the entire week---going to bed at the same time, getting up at the same time, etc.

If I get one, I take large ammounts of caffeine, a really hot shower, and some sudafed...then I hope for the best.

Tim C.

oldbobcat

I get'em once in a blue moon, now. They're usually triggered by a combination of fatigue and dehydration.

My favorite treatment is two or three ibuprofens, a tall glass of water, a small cup of coffee, and a dark quiet place to lie down.

East Hill

PrairieDog, you might want to keep a 'migraine diary' to be able to see the patterns a bit more easily.

I have so many triggers that it took me almost twenty years to figure them all out--and every once in a while I get one which is a complete mystery .

Fortunately, Imitrex has worked extremely well ever since I started taking it in 1993.

East Hill

waldowales

I had weird migraines for a couple of years, stopped five years ago as suddenly as they started. No one has ever been able to explain why they started or why they stopped. I had the aura long before the headaches began, and was misdiagnosed as suffering from trans ischemic attacks. By the time I got in to see a competent neurologist, they hadn't happened for nearly two weeks, but I went on a course of Topomax anyway. Have you tried that?
I wish you the best of luck, those things are awful!

Louis

I don't get the headaches but often get the aura - those jagged lines with all the colors, I call 'em "church windows" or "colored glass". I usually feel kind of weird and clammy when it happens. It lasts about an hour or less.

grinningfool

I've had them all my life, as long as I can remember.
My doc prescribed amlodipine 5mg, which is a low dosage of a blood pressure med. I take it every day, and it has dramatically reduced the frequency and the severity of my migraines. And I have no side effects from the med.

Retro Grouch 

My dad used to - every other Sunday.

He was a work-a-holic 12 to 15 hour days the other 6 days of the week. Leads me to believe there's a significant psychological element.

Sluggo

I used to get them every saturday when I was under a lot of stress during the week -- the immediate trigger was not the stress, it was relaxing from the stress.

I get them at other times, too. I tried beta blockers (blood pressure med), which had little effect on migraines, but big side effects; and ergotamine, which helped a little, sometimes, and sometimes just made me feel sicker. Imitrex is a miracle.

longhorn31

I get migraines....have had many on Saturday mornings, but my current pattern is to get them on Monday mornings. My triggers are changes in my sleep pattern and changes in my stress level....and when I get too tired. I use imitrex - it's wonderful.

rae

I used to get them, too, but they seem to have stopped since divorcing the spouse that smoked. I've had only one or two in the 27 years since. Don't know if it was the spouse or the cigarette smoke that was my trigger. (Actually, I avoid smoke like the plague since it clearly triggered them at times--well, I avoid him too).

I also would have them on my days off rather than work days--I think it does have something to do with dealing with stress.

PrairieDog

Now that's interesting. It also sounds right--it might be the relaxing from the stress acting as a trigger...

I think I might be getting the same number of hours of sleep, but it is a different kind of sleep. It is much deeper and I don't generally wake up as often during the night.

I've had more of them this year than ever and I've had more stress this year than ever, so there's a clue, too. Hmmm.

My doctor has prescribed Zomig, but I haven't tried it yet. I have a general phobia about meds and it takes me a long time to decide to take them.

janww

Neurologist told me he always had "post stress" migraines after med school exams-couldn't enjoy the celebrations with others. Varied sleep patterns affect me, as well as "post stress." My doctor prescribed a mild antihistimine, Periactin, to help me sleep deeper & open up nasal passages. MIRACLE DRUG for me. I also set my alarm so won't sleep in on weekends.

PrairieDog

I'm thinking this is it. It certainly fits what happened on Sunday--lots of high-level stress all week and all the way through Saturday, when I took students on an all-day field trip. Then Sunday, after the stress is over and when I was planning on having a relaxing day in the garden, I crash.

If that's the cause (and it makes complete sense to me), maybe I can figure out a way to prevent it. I mean, after I've earned my weekends off, I don't want to lose them to a migraine.

Thanks, everyone, for all your suggestions and help in attempting to solve this medical mystery.

grinningfool

Zomig works very well. It's in the same family of drugs as Imitrex. I've used Zomig for years with no problems.

PrairieDog

My doctor said Zomig would make me feel strange at first -- that there might be a feeling of "tightness." Do you experience that? I'm embarrassed to say that I find that worrying.

grinningfool

Not sure what he means by tightness. Occasionally I have experienced a very subtle lightheadedness, but not enough to cause problems. I can still drive and operate machinery safely.
I'm talking so subtle it's almost imperceptible. And really, it's worth it to get rid of the migraine pain.