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What to Take for a Migraine Headache

Migraine headaches, with their excruciating pain, nausea and vomiting, can disrupt your life to the point where you have to lie in bed in the dark for hours on end. Fortunately, there is relief available, even if migraines disrupt your life only occasionally.

  1. Prophylactic Medications

    • Some medications block most, but not all, migraine headaches from occurring. Prophylactic medications need to be taken on a daily basis in order to prevent the majority of your headaches. They include amitriptyline (Elavil), Corgard, Depakote, Inderal, Nardil and Verapamil (available as Calan and Isoptin). If you suffer from two or more severe migraine headaches per month, your doctor may consider prescribing a prophylactic medication to help control your symptoms. These medications are considered to be approximately 75 percent effective in blocking and relieving migraines.

    Pain Medications

    • If migraines are not a regularly occurring event, you can treat them with pain medications. Consider taking aspirin or acetaminophen. Adults should not take more than 4,000 mg. of acetaminophen per day. Consult your physician, as people who drink three or more alcoholic beverages a day are at increased risk for liver and kidney damage when taking this high a dose.

      Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) can be an effective, although intermittent, medication for migraine headaches. Some NSAIDS include naproxen and ibuprofen. One family of NSAIDs (Celebrex) shouldn't upset your stomach as much as others but can increase your risk of heart disease.

      Another useful pain medication is Fiorinal or Fioricet (one contains aspirin and the other acetaminophen). Both contain butabarbital, however, which may be habit-forming; the same is true of Tylenol with codeine. Ultram is another pain medication sometimes prescribed to treat migraine headaches.

    Abortive Medications

    • This class of migraine medications is reserved for people who suffer from severe but infrequent migraines. These medications include Imitrex (sumatriptan), Zomig, Maxalt, Axert and Frova. These medications can cause heart complications even in people who do not suffer from heart problems, so exercise caution. A class of older abortive medications is still on the market that includes Cafergot, Ergotamine and DHE; these often have more side effects than the newer abortive medications. Dopamine blockers---including metoclopramide and prochlorpromazine---can also prevent migraines rather than merely masking the pain. Ask your doctor or neurologist which option is best for you.

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