Diet and Health FAQ

Tagged As: Menstrual Migraine Treatment

Question:
Is there any treatment for menstrual headaches?

Answer:
Sure, depending on how often you have them, how long, and some other factors--you might want to offer more info on what you have tried and what yours are like. Doctors often recommend taking Frova before you would normally get them, and then after I believe. That never worked for me as mine are really pretty bad. I would get them every two weeks, ovulation and period, and they were always a 3-day event. Just about killed me. My relief came with hormones. I eventually went on Yasmin continuously without taking any breaks, so my hormones are regulated to be the same. Some may say birth control pills are contraindicated for those with migraines, that's not necessarily true. You want to stick with a monophasic pill, versus a triphasic. Monophasic means that the hormone pills all contain the same dosage. Triphasic pills contain slightly different amounts of hormone throughout the active pills. I've heard the triphasic mimic our regular cycles in terms of dosage and timing. The problem with triphasic is for that very reason. We tend to get migraines from a drop in estrogen and can from other changes over the month. With a monophasic pill, it's always the same. If you take it continuously without a break, no problem. Now that's not to say you won't have problems. Everyone is different and it took me months to find a pill, even monophasic, that had the best mix of progestin and estrogen. It was not a fun journey, but it was helpful. Some doctors think you have to take Seasonale if you want to do this without breaks, but that's not necessary and actually limits you in terms of finding a solution that works. I've been on Yasmin for over 5 years I think now. The best thing about Yasmin is that it is very good for anyone who has acne and also does not promote weight gain or water retention. It contains a diuretic component.